RAINBOW VALLEY L.M. Montgomery. Illustrated by David Bathurst. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart, 1990. 282pp., cloth, $24.95. ISBN 0-7710-6182-X. CIP. Subject Heading: Prince Edward Island-Fiction. Grades 7-9 / Ages 12-14 Reviewed by Patricia Fry. Volume 18 Number 5 1990 September Rainbow Valley is the seventh in a series of eight books known as "The Anne of Green Gables" series. In the first six books, Anne herself was definitely the central attraction and the books are written from her perspective. However, the matronly Anne gets very little attention from the author in Rainbow Valley. Instead, this book focuses on Anne's six children and four of their chums. Anne's lively children find a special place all their own and they name it "Rainbow Valley." It's the perfect spot in which to play, to dream, and to make the most unusual friends. That's where they meet the Meredith children, two girls and two boys whose mother has died and whose father is the new minister. The many escapades of the restless children and the romantic speculations regarding their father soon have the local folk talking, but in typical "Anne" fashion, it all resolves happily. It is because of this child perspective that the book is often enjoyed by a preteen reader. The illustration on the book cover is intriguing but somewhat misleading in that the ages and sex of the children in the picture do not match those described in the text. For example, the twin girls are several years older than the youngest child and only other daughter, yet such does not appear to be the case in the illustration. There are five black-and-white sketches illustrating the text; I would have liked more. A librarian has to compare this edition to one of the colourful, comparatively cheap paperbacks of this series, particularly if the whole series is to be purchased. Patricia Fry, Port Credit, ON.