The best testimonial I can give this story is to tell you I had to scan it two pages at a time because my twenty-one year old son wouldn't let me take his favorite book apart just so I could use the sheet feeder! Ms. Tolan has written more than a dozen novels for young adults, including the 2003 Newbury Honor Book, "Surviving the Applewhites" (already on Bookshare). However, her special passion is her work with exceptionally gifted children, their parents, and their teachers. From the author's website: "Welcome to the Ark" -- Volume One of the Ark Trilogy In a world of random violence and multiplying militias, four brilliant young misfits are thrown together in a group home for troubled youth. Isolated by their special abilities, Miranda, Doug, Taryn, and Elijah are unable to cope in a society that regards them as freaks. But in the experimental program they dub the Ark, the four discover they are not alone. Slowly, as connections form among them, they discover that their minds have a power they could never have imagined. Drawn together by their deep concern for the future, they embark on a mission to stop the violence that is engulfing the world. The challenge seems impossible.... In this compelling, sensitively written story, Stephanie Tolan paints a disturbing picture of a violence-ridden world. Yet her characters offer a bright ray of hope for anyone who cares about the fate of the earth. The story of the Ark is gripping, suspenseful, heartbreaking, and, ultimately, inspiring. Enjoy, Jim Atwood