ANSWER MY PRAYER

An amusing fantasy about a lazy young angel reluctantly coming to the aid of a girl. Lydia lives in a culture dependent on the jeefwood tree and the artisans who carve it. When a greedy capitalist threatens this ecosystem (and, incidentally, Aldersan, the young man she has a crush on) she prays for help. Her prayer is heard by Ebol, who comes to her aid just as the plot thickens. The true sovereign of Lydia's homeland, Korasan, is the descendant of the baby for whom Ebol had given up his own life 200 years earlier, and in spite of his preference for sleep he is drawn in. The interplay between recalcitrant Ebol and Natalie, a young angel with unquenchable enthusiasm, is funny, as are the portraits of the young mortals. The book has the same mildly wry tone as the author's It's Nothing to a Mountain (1994), but, working openly in the fantasy genre, Hite is slightly more self-conscious. Not his best, it is still a good read that will be welcomed onto middle- grade shelves. (Fiction. 11+)