Riding Invisible<small> by Sandra Alonzo, Nathan Huang (illus)</small>

Riding Invisible is one of those 'small' books that draws you in and keeps you reading until the back cover bumps your fingers.

It's told from the point of view of a 15-year old boy, Yancy Aparicio, who voices his thoughts and concerns in his journal. And he has a great deal to write about. Besides having the usual coming of age issues, he has a brother who's violent and conniving and who has basically become the focal point of the family. 'Control Will, try to train Will. And finally runaway from Will'.

Yancy's parents have tried hard to find a 'cure' for their eldest son. They've done medication and years of counseling and during all this their own happiness has faded and Yancy has basically vanished into the background. What's sad is that he finds this the only way to survive. Trying hard not to act so as to bring his brother's retribution. Matters come to a head though when his brother figures out that the best revenge can be dished out to little brother by hurting his horse.

This is the last straw, and Yancy rushes away with his horse, heading out through the suburbs and then into the desert. The two suffer some pretty scary experiences before they run across Tavo, a Mexican man with a job at a horse ranch. Between them they work out some of the mysteries of life.

THE SKINNY:::
The only thing that keeps this book from being appropriate for Middle Graders is the language. The story is solid and enjoyable, but the writing is YA from a cursing point of view. Plus, Yancy is a 15 year-old boy and his mind is frequently on girls and their anatomy.

There is some funny artwork by Nathan Huang, which exactly fits the story as Yancy is not only a writer, but also a budding artist.

The font makes the book look like a journal. At least a journal of someone with amazingly consistent handwriting.

I really enjoyed this book. It's just one of those that's well plotted and which brings contentment when you are done. Is everything okay at the end? No. But there's resolution and hope which is about all one can hope for.

If you liked "Last Summer of the Death Warriors" or "As Easy as Falling Off the Face of the Earth", do pick up "Riding Invisible".