MILLIONS

How would you spend a lot of money fast? That's the irresistible premise of this witty and poignant first novel by a British screenwriter. Damian and Anthony Cunningham have moved to a new neighborhood with their loving but overwhelmed father, following their mother's death. (A mention that their old house is still on the market because of "what happened there" suggests suicide.) Anthony, a precocious fifth-grader plays on people's sympathy: "Tell them your mum's dead and they give you stuff." Damian, the beguiling fourth-grade narrator, is obsessed with saints and saintly behavior. He "mortif[ies] his flesh" by placing holly leaves under his shirt, and constructs his own makeshift "hermitage" near the railroad tracks. He's in this cardboard hideout when a bag containing more than a quarter-million pound notes drops from the sky. Damian believes it's from God. Anthony suspects otherwise but embarks on a spending spree fueled by a deadline—the pounds will be worthless in 17 days, when England converts its monetary system to the Euro. Boyce gracefully weaves in many thought-provoking episodes. Anthony learns about inflation when he overpays for favors and toys at school. Damian follows St. Francis of Assisi's example by buying and setting free a pet store's worth of birds. The ending is sure to spark heated debate, as Damian comes to terms with the ubiquity of poverty and the dark side of human nature. The story starts slowly, but readers who stick with it will be racing to the finish to figure out who's conning whom. Brilliant. Ages 8-12. (Aug.)