This book is a funny and suspenseful story about the value of family and friendship, and finding out what's truly important in life. When Maria Manger loses her favorite doll, Lyla, in a crowded mall the week before Christmas, adventure follows each of them. As the spunky little girl and her new friend Joey (a homeless boy who lives in the mall) race against time and a sinister follower to find Lyla, the doll joyfully reminds everyone who handles her what the true meaning of the holiday should be. Can Maria's worried mother and an entire security force find the children and bring them to safety, or will trouble get to them first? Will Lyla's well-meaning handlers take her farther and farther from Maria, or will the magic of Christmas somehow bring them back together once again?
By August Manda