This book is about a boy named Eben McAllister, who lives in a simple, quiet town called Sassafras Springs.  Nothing exciting ever happens there.  Life is boring and predictable.  Until one day, while Eben is reading a book about the Seven Wonders of the World, his dad challenges him to try and find seven wonders right here in Sassafras Springs.  And if he can find seven, he gets what he has been dreaming about . . . a trip to Colorado!  He starts right away... going to neighbors' houses and asking around for Wonders.  He doesn't realize it at first, but all along his journey, he learns more and more about his neighbors, and even becomes better friends with his old enemies.  It started out with a boy trying to find a Wonder or two, and ended up being a fun learning experience for a few lucky boys.

I thought this book was OK.  It had a few interesting things and stories in it, but other then that it was pretty boring.  There were some points in the book where I was just going to stop reading it.  Yes, it did teach a valuable lesson, about being happy with what you have, but it was just so boring.  I would recommend this book to maybe a fifth grader, but even they might find it a bit boring.  Overall, it was an OK book, not one of the best I've read, and I definitely wouldn't recommend this book very highly.
 
 ~ Lindsay Basile, 8th Grade, Boardman Center Middle School