Reviews: (by author)

Snyder, Zilpha Keatley. The Treasures of Weatherby. New York: Atheneum, 2007. ISBN 978-1-4169-1398-6. $15.95. Ages 8-12. 213 pp.

As a direct descendant of the great Weatherby family line, Harleigh J. Weatherby IV will someday inherit the right to take charge of the Weatherby mansion. At the moment though, he is under the care of his strict and controlling Aunt Adelaide who constantly threatens to send him away to military school if he does not behave according to her wishes. To make matters worse, Harleigh suffers from a heart condition that causes him, at age twelve, to be the size of a mere six-year-old. Not able to endure the taunts of his peers at school, Harleigh develops a chip on his shoulder and convinces his Aunt to let him be home schooled. This gives him free time to wander around the Weatherby grounds, and one day, Harleigh finds a trespasser, Allegra, a girl who “flies” onto the mansion grounds and into Harleigh’s life. Together they discover that a distant Weatherby relative is trying to steal the Weatherby treasure, and must work together to save the treasure, and through that the mansion.

A three time Newberry Honor winner, Snyder writes with a style that readers will find easy to follow. By setting the scene in an ancient dilapidating castle, Snyder brings in a bit of past grandeur into this contemporary story. Readers will be able to see the growth and development of Harleigh’s character as the chip on his shoulder begins to fall off, thanks to the friendship and positive influence of the mysterious Allegra. Readers will also be intrigued and amused by the many eccentric qualities of various distant descendants of the Weatherby family. The story contains the age old plot of having to protect a treasure from some unworthy villain who is trying to steal it, but all in all it is thoroughly entertaining book that readers will enjoy.

Joyce Ho, June 2007

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