JUMP

Two teenage runaways bond as they scale various challenging cliff faces in this romantic adventure that will please fans of both Anthony Horowitz and Meg Cabot. Critter is a fugitive from a mental institution to which he was committed after a suicide attempt. P.K. is desperate to escape her parents’ plans to send her to boarding school. The two meet at a local gym, where Critter agrees to accompany P.K. on a spontaneous rock-climbing trip that will continue until they are captured or run out of cash. Critter’s fresh enthusiasm for life, born from his near-death experience and based on a Buddhist-like philosophy, is positive and funny, deepening the plot and contrasting nicely with P.K.’s anxious personality. Soon they are sharing their life stories and falling in love. Suspense builds as they stay one step ahead of the authorities, and the climbing sequences are action-packed and intense. (Familiarity with rock-climbing terminology isn’t essential, but it does help.) The short chapters, unusual topic and alternating first-person voices make this an exceptional choice for reluctant readers. (Fiction. 12 & up)