cover image The Boy Who Reversed Himself

The Boy Who Reversed Himself

William Sleator. Dutton Books, $13.95 (176pp) ISBN 978-0-525-44276-9

Once again, Sleator treats us to the best that YA science fiction can offer: averageand sometimes not-so-averageteenagers facing the physical and mathematical absurdities of our universe. Laura's determination to get into medical school has cast her as a brain and, thus, untouchable. She has a crush on Pete, the football captainand weird things are happening on a daily basis, ever since Omar, the creepy boy next door, moved in. Laura makes Omar confess his secrets: he's training to become the guardian of the Second Dimension, while he's exploring the Fifth. Laura invites Pete on a journey to the Fifth Dimensionbut her game becomes a nightmare when she and Pete are captured, and the whole existence of the world depends on Omar's ability to rescue them. After the seriousness of Singularity, Sleator has returned to some of the humor of Interstellar Pig. A welcome offering from a versatile writer. (10-16)