The Trouble with Jacob

Twins Andy and Kat Peterson are spending the summer helping take care of their Uncle Richard's secluded resort. It's a big change from Portland, but chores, small-town intrigue and a friendly neighbor who teaches them to drive a hitch of Belgian workhorses keep Kat and Andy from missing the city. Then Andy spots a forlorn boy, Jacob, who mysteriously announces that someone has stolen his bed. At first, no one else seems to see Jacob, who appears and disappears rapidly; before long, Andy and Kat realize that the boy is a ghost. They get the community involved in piecing together Jacob's story, returning him to his rightful bed and uncovering the buried treasure secreted in his grave. This competent novel begins slowly; readerslike Kat and Andyare drawn into the community until they realize that Jacob's trouble concerns them all. Light entertainment, this has moments of real shock: one involves the discovery of a child's skeleton, buried under rocks. Ages 9-12. (April)