Mars

Gr 4—8—The popular "Choose Your Own Adventure" series (Chooseco) gets some competition, but with a nonfiction twist. You, the reader, are a teen chosen to be part of a mission to expand a newly established colony of humans on Mars. Will you heroically save the base's power supply, toil tending goats in the colony greenhouse, or be buried in a Martian dust storm? Accompanying the usual plot choices are facts to help readers make decisions that lead to 24 possible endings —some disappointments, some dead (literally) ends, but only one path that leads to ultimate success. Many of the facts are presented in an "Expedition File" appendix. Seamlessly worked into the narrative are additional details about space travel, from the cost of a space suit to how early astronauts ate and bathed. Black-and-white, bold illustrations add visual interest and lend a graphic-novel feel to many of the pages. Mars is the second in the series, but it stands alone. Short on characterization, but long on action and plot, it offers a successful combination of interactive fiction and nonfiction that reluctant readers will likely welcome.—M. Kozikowski, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY