EVERY SOUL A STAR

EVERY SOUL A STAR, by Wendy Mass (Little, Brown 2008)(ages 8-12). Ally, who has lived at the remote Moon Shadow campground for as long as she can remember, is passionate about stars, comets, and asteroids. Bree, beautiful and popular, is on the cusp of (she thinks) a career in modeling and seeks only to maintain herself on the A-list of popularity. Jack, overweight and awkward, just wants to be left alone.

But the occasion of the first total eclipse to be visible in the continental United States (in nearly a century) has drawn them (and thousands of others) together at the Moon Shadow campground, run by Ally's parents. Over the next two weeks, the three grow to appreciate each other, the search for exoplanets, and the wonders of the universe.

In EVERY SOUL A STAR, Mass expertly weaves together the threads of the teens' lives and delivers an intricately-wrought story of unlikely friendship, discovering oneself, and star stuff.