Malcolm Under The Stars

MalcolmUnder The Stars by W.H. Beck, 257 pages

This is the sequel to Malcolm at Midnight, which I liked a lot.  In this adventure, Malcolm, the rat in Mr. Binney's fifth grade classroom, discovers more problems at his beloved McKenna School.  This time the problem facing the Midnight Academy, the group of classroom animals from the school whose mission it is to protect the teachers and students, is larger than any they have ever seen before.  The school has significant problems that will cost a lot of money to fix and the board is discussing the possibility of closing the school.  This is devastating to the animals and to several of the kids and teachers as well.  There is one hope for the Midnight Academy; the promise of a legendary treasury hidden by Ernie Bowman, a former employee of the school.  If the Academy can find it, it may be enough money to save the school.  I really enjoyed this, maybe even more than the first book.  I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes animals, especially with a fantastical bent.  This is probably best for fourth through sixth grade.