WORLD'S END: A Second book of Dormia by Peter Kujawinski and Jake Halpern.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2011. 501p. 978-0-547-48037-4; hb., $18. YA

Wow! I have been waiting for a series like this since I read the last
Harry Potter book. This is the second book in the Dormia series. Epic in
proportion, the story centers around Alphonso's quest to find his father
who disappeared several years ago while swimming in Minnesota. Alphonso,
like his father, is a Great Sleeper from Dormia, a land not easily reached
located deep in the Ural Mountains. Great Sleepers are able to fall asleep
and do amazing feats which would never happen while the person is
awake.The adventure tests the strength and abilities of Alphonso and his
entourage of friends, and his Uncle Hill.  Seemingly happenstance events,
reveal clues that guide the troop along their perilous route to Jasber,
where Alphonso feels that he will find his father, hopefully alive. Many
die along the way meeting fates too terrible to speak of here. Although
Alphonso is only fifteen, his journey is not child's play. Ultimately he
will try to save the city of Jasber from Kiril, a 600 year old expat who
was banished as a child. Kiril has never forgotten the pain of his
childhood experience and he has had 600 years to think about it. The
characters are fully developed. Philosophical questions keep popping up.
Dormian residents fear anyone and anything different. This fear, seen as a
normal safety concern, may have caused the citizens to be less safe in the
end. The plot is fast and full of surprises. The ending is a classic cliff
hanger that leaves the reader groaning and wanting more. The first book in
the Dormia series is named "Dormia" and the third is "Shadow Tree."
Susie Rohrbough, Accordionist and Librarian at large