The Silver Path

Debut author Harris's cryptic story is presented as a letter written by Niko to Penny, his faraway pen pal, who lives in a ``lovely house'' with a big garden and a dog named Scruff. Niko describes the hotel by the sea where he is staying with his mother, who sits indoors and knits each day and cries out in her sleep at night. The boy's imagination helps him to escape these surroundings: ``When night comes, the moon builds a silver path over the sea, going all the way from where I am to where you are, Penny. I close my eyes and imagine I am running along the silver path to meet you.'' On the final pages, readers at last learn that Niko and his mother have escaped to a hotel for refugees after soldiers raided their village, stealing food and removing his father to a prison camp. Ending on a hopeful note (``Mama says that one day, Papa will be free again. She says we shall all return to the village together''), Harris's story is undeniably haunting, yet too ambiguous to catch the attention of the target audience. Ong's impressionistic art, though slightly stilted, contains a number of affecting images. Ages 7-10. (May)