Something’s rotten in the heart of apple country!Hildy Biddle dreams of being a journalist. A reporter for her high school newspaper, The Core, she’s just waiting for a chance to prove herself. Not content to just cover school issues, Hildy’s drawn to the town’s big story—the haunted old Ludlow house. On the surface, Banesville, USA, seems like such a happy place, but lately, eerie happenings and ghostly sightings are making Hildy take a deeper look.Her efforts to find out who is really haunting Banesville isn’t making her popular, and she starts wondering if she’s cut out to be a journalist after all. But she refuses to give up, because, hopefully, the truth will set a few ghosts free.Peeledis classic Joan Bauer, featuring a strong heroine, and filled with her trademark witty dialogue, and problems and people worth standing up to. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Bauer's (Hope Was Here) fans will appreciate this diverting novel's shout-out to the author's debut, Squashed, from which she also harvests a few themes. In an upstate New York hamlet known for its apples, aspiring teen journalist Hildy Biddle treasures her staff position on the high school paper, aptly named The Core. She does whatever it takes to find the facts for a story, hoping she is honoring the memory of her late father, a respected local reporter. But when the opportunistic publisher of the town paper whips the citizens into a frenzy with sensational stories of ghosts and eerie happenings, Hildy and her friends are determined to expose the truth--which involves a disreputable development company. With sharp pacing and an intriguing premise, Bauer renders a fully realized portrait of a small town dependent on an ever-fragile agricultural economy and threatened by modern encroachment. As always, she stocks her work with strong, sage women, the elements for a budding romance and plenty of funny moments. But it's Hildy readers will remember longest, a smart girl who realistically blends the spunkiness, brains and good humor that is Bauer's stock-in-trade. Ages 12-up. (May) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 6-9-Hildy Biddle, high school reporter for The Core, has her hands full following the story of a ghost haunting the old Ludlow place. Life in her sleepy apple-valley town is upset like the proverbial apple cart when a dead body turns up in the Ludlow orchard and enigmatic warnings are scrawled on the door-"YOU DIDN'T THINK IT WAS SAFE, DID YOU?" Rumors fly and fear mounts as Pen Piedmont, editor of the town newspaper, The Bee, prints ever more sensational stories about the eerie goings-on. Hildy, her fellow intrepid high school reporters, and their seasoned newshound adviser are determined to uncover the truth. When they ask the right questions of the wrong people, the principal caves in to threats of litigation from Piedmont and shuts The Core down. Unlikely help comes from cafe owner and Polish immigrant Minska, whose experience with an underground press inspires them to start an independent news sheet, The Peel, and reveal the true villain. Peeled is vintage Bauer, a warm and funny story full of likable, offbeat characters led by a strongly voiced, independently minded female protagonist on her way to genuine, well-earned maturity. Bauer seasons Hildy's story with the high school homecoming dance, a budding romance, strong friend and family ties, and a host of quirky characters, then serves it up in quick-paced prose juicy with apple metaphors. A-peeling all around!-Joyce Adams Burner, Hillcrest Library, Prairie Village, KS Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

The orchard-growing community of Banesville, New York, is known as The Happiest Town in the Happy Apple Valley. But the sleepy town is stricken with hysteria and fear after a series of spooky happenings, and then a death occurs near the abandoned Ludlow House. As Pen Piedmont, the editor of the local paper, publishes fear-mongering headlines, high-school reporter Hildy determines to find the true story behind the incidents and settle her community's growing unrest. Although there are several puzzling incidents at the story's center (Is there a plot against Banesville's citizens? If so, who's involved?), readers will be most drawn by Hildy's growing excitement, relayed in her own strong, witty voice, as she learns from a cantankerous, demanding mentor what it takes to be a journalist. Hildy's romance with a fellow student feels underdeveloped, and the object of her affection is a bit too good to be true. But Bauer's gleeful wordplay, her sure sense of setting, the details of newspaper life, and the many colorful side characters make this a pleasurable read that may encourage teens to consider deeper questions about family farms, urban sprawl, and the many who profit from public fear. See the adjacent column for more novels about aspiring young journalists.--Engberg, Gillian Copyright 2008 Booklist From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.