Fair Coin

Gr 8 Up—Ephraim is dead. At least that is what his alcoholic mother thought when she downed a bottle of pills in a suicide attempt after identifying his corpse. Ephraim comes home in time to save her and at the hospital discovers that the victim of a bus accident is his doppelganger. He is like Ephraim in every way, even down to the library card in his pocket. Among the dead boy's effects is a commemorative quarter that shows Puerto Rico as a state. Later, a note in his best friend's handwriting instructs him to make a wish and flip the coin. He wishes his mother out of the hospital. Then he wishes her into a better job. He shares the coin with his best friend, who insists he knows nothing about the note. Soon they are wishing themselves on dates with their secret crushes. But Ephraim notices that the wishes sometimes come with unforeseen complications, making him hesitant to keep using the coin, much to the chagrin of his buddy. Eventually Ephraim discovers that the coin is not magic but is technological in nature and soon he is skipping across parallel universes, running for his life, and trying to undo the damage his "wishes" have caused. Myers's debut novel is an entertaining, exciting science-fiction adventure. Occasional inconsistencies and discussions of theoretical physics are not enough to spoil the story for teens, who will identify with the protagonist's desires and angst.—Anthony C. Doyle, Livingston High School, CA