Many fantasy series deepen as they go along; Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Cycle and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events come immediately to mind. But this final novel in Eleanor Cameron's five-book Mushroom Planet series is truly a leap. The earlier books, which came out between 1954 and 1960, are good light fun, but "Time and Mr. Bass," which appeared in 1967, is rich, deep, intense, passionate, and unforgettable. The sense of evil is similar to that in Madeleine L'Engle's 1962 "A Wrinkle in Time," which may have been an influence. It would be perfectly possible to read this book before the others and still thoroughly enjoy it. ( )

Ex-lib. Montgomery County Free Library ( )