Picking right up where "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" left off, "Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator" continues the adventures of Charlie Bucket, his family, and Willy Wonka, the eccentric candy maker.

As the book begins, our heroes are shooting into the sky in a glass elevator, headed for destinations unknown. What follows is exactly the kind of high-spirited magical madness and mayhem weve all come to expect from Willy Wonka and his creator Roald Dahl.

The American space race gets a send-up, as does the President, and Charlies family gets a second chance at childhood. Throw in the Vermicious Knids, Gnoolies, and Minusland and we once again witness pure genius.