MONSTERS IN THE ATTIC
by Dian Curtis Regan & illustrated by Laura Cornell
In the sequel to Monster of the Month Club (1994, not reviewed), Rilla Harmony Earth lives with her mother in their vegetarian bed-and-breakfast, dealing with a missing father, home schooling, her first boyfriend, and her mother's New Age beliefs. That should be just about enough stress for any girl, but there's more: With her membership in the Monster of the Month Club comes signs that the stuffed monsters have an unnerving habit of coming to life. The author of Princess Nevermore (p. 1356) has a talent for letting a bit of magic create chaos in everyday life. But Rilla's life is so far from ordinary that it easily carries the story with or without monsters; they don't even take center stage until the last part of the book. There are two books here, both interesting, but this time around, real life proves more fascinating than magic. (Fiction. 9-12)