Guardian Children's Fiction Prize

Julia Eccleshare provides capsule reviews of the shortlisted books for the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize. The shortlisted books for the 2006 prize are:

• Blown Away, by Patrick Cave ("this is a thought-provoking novel about how individuals and societies survive when science creates new possibilities that threaten them")
• Framed, by Frank Cottrell Boyce ("a fresh, funny and warm-hearted adventure that explores through one boy's obsession how the Ninja Turtles are linked to the artists who give them their names")
• Fly By Night, by Frances Hardinge ("Hardinge creates wonderful and unforgettable images.")
• A Darkling Plain, by Philip Reeve (an "overwhelmingly satisfying story")