BEST ENEMIES AGAIN

In a winning sequel to Best Enemies (1989), Priscilla's innate good nature is challenged by beruffled Felicity's snakelike guile in four more episodes. Each time, it's Priscilla's careless trust in her proven enemy that starts the trouble. The lemonade stand is Priscilla's idea, but Felicity steals the show—then greedily raises her prices, so that Priscilla's better product and fairer business practices win after all. When Priscilla confides that if her bike fails inspection her parents have promised her a new one, Felicity makes sure that Priscilla's bike becomes the class Safety Week project—only to reap the humiliation of having her own snazzy bike judged too big, requiring blocks until she grows into it, while Priscilla's finally fails because it is actually too small, as she's been trying to explain to her parents. Broad but not simplistic characterizations: Leverich drops hints that Felicity's family is not all it could be; and Priscilla's niceness is genuine, making her inadvertent victories even more satisfying. Cleverly plotted, easily read, funny—what could be better for an easy chapter book? Illustrations not seen. (Fiction. 7-10)