Journey to the Homeland Hannah Stahlhut (16 years old) 2007 Championship Series first place winner Baker Trittin Press, P.O. Box 277, Winona Lake, IN  46590 ISBN: 9780981489308 /$10.95  www.bakertrittinpress.com   Reviewed by Terry Doherty, President, The Reading Tub, Inc.   Journey to the Homeland offers families everything they want in a great book: fantasy based in the real world. Parents will love the themes of friendship and responsibility; kids will love the adventure and suspense. Bravo! Hannah Stahlhut has crafted characters that you will love. She quickly brings you along on Keegan's and Nora's journey of friendship and personal discovery. Ms. Stahlhut has masterfully created characters and situations that Tweeners will relate to! This is a book that begs to be read aloud and shared together as a family.   I love Hannah's book. I'm not a big fantasy fan, but I found this to be quite a page turner. I was taking this everywhere I went where I knew I'd be "just sitting." Is she planning a sequel?

Dimensions Estee Wells (14 years old) 2007 Championship Series, second place winner Baker Trittin Press, P.O. Box 277, Winona Lake, IN  46590 ISBN: 978-0-98148-931-5 / $10.95, www.bakertrittinpress.com Reviewed by Michael Anderson for CBA Retailers+Resources   Poor Austin Omera. His folks have separated, his mom turned into a workaholic, and his high-school life in Wilmsburg, Indiana is dull. “Everything is just so dumb. What point is there to living?” he wonders. Even his best-friend Daniel can’t cheer him up.   Enter Samala, “a messenger from the Holy One”. She takes Austin and Daniel to another place in time to meet Edic, the keeper of the Book of Prophesy, who lives in a land terrorized by the evil Cramerites. Their leader is Lucifer whose goal is to destroy all believers in the kingdom. Then Austin discovers that he is “the Chosen One,” the one to help the lost prince of Halian regain his throne. Is their an allegory brewing here?   These teen time travelers move between dimensions discovering far way places, people, and challenges. Adventure abounds. Whenever the evil Gordock and his yellow-fanged beast Spiron appear, they destroy anyone affiliated with the Holy One. A small but powerful stone, the Orb of Light, is the only thing the beast is helpless against. When the Chosen One holds it against the beast… Could Austin save the day?   The underlying theme of Dimensions is faith doubted and faith renewed. It allows the reader to see their world in a different light.   Author Estee Wells is a 10th-grade homeschool student from Indiana, but the reader wouldn’t know it. Her writing style, depth, and descriptive detail demonstrate maturity. She layers themes that deal with youth seeking truth and God keeping His promises. Wells uses abundant dialog and contemporary phrases to connect with young readers and includes witty interludes to break the tension.    Targeted to youth ages 10-16, Dimensions won second place in the 2007 Tweener Time International Chapter Book Competition. It is part of the Championship Series written by teens for tweens and is reminiscent of the wanderings through Narnia. An enthusiastic recommendation by store staff to all fantasy fans is called for.