ZENDA AND THE GAZING BALL

This diverting, offbeat tale launches the Zenda series, set on the planet Azureblue, where girls wear crowns of flowers and youngsters at the age of 12-and-a-half participate in a "gazing ball ceremony" in which they receive small crystal balls that reveal in turn 13 "musings," or messages, that relate to their lives. Then, on the child's 13th birthday, the gazing ball uncovers his or her "special gift," which determines one's path in life. Though Zenda already has a hunch about what her gift may be (for two years she has shown signs of kani , the ability to communicate with plants), she is impatient for her impending ceremony. So impatient, in fact, that she takes the forbidden step of sneaking into the building where the gazing balls are kept. She lifts hers out of its box, drops it and it shatters into 13 pieces. Suspense builds as she embarks on a clandestine plan to mend the ball. Though the premise and plot may be flighty, snappy writing and a likable heroine keep the novel unexpectedly grounded. Readers swept into this easygoing fantasy may want to revisit Azureblue in Zenda: A New Dimension , due out the same month. Ages 10-up. (Apr.)