BOOKSHELF

LITTLE ROCK — How to Clean Your Room in 10 Easy Steps

Jennifer Larue Huget and Edward Koren,

Schwartz & Wade, $16.99, ages 4 to 8 and up

Working backward from introducing readers to her spotless, faultlessly tidy room, Erica Ann Kelly brightly offers an outline and advice to other messy kids.

First, “wait until your mom hollers ... using all three of your names.” Then empty your drawers, creating a big pile in the middle of the room. “While you’re working, it is OK to talk to yourself. Try ‘Oh, I forgot I had this!’”

The next steps - dividing that stuff into three piles, picking up abandoned clothing, sorting things - are familiar from cable TV’s decluttering shows.

But she goes a step beyond what Clean House and its ilk advise. “If you find any dirty socks or undies, stick them under the bed.” Dust bunnies? “Scoop up as many as you can. ... Stash them in the sock drawer with the candy wrappers.” Koren’s perennially disheveled characters perfectly match the text.

Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer John Grisham

Dutton Children’s Books, $16.99, ages 8-12

Every successful author, it seems, has discovered the satisfactions of writing for a younger audience: the appreciation shown in measurable traffic to one’s website, the near-assurance of a series. John Grisham’s first book for young readers, Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer follows the formula established in his adult best-sellers, although this legal thriller has, thankfully, less violence.

Theodore Boone - Theo to his friends, Teddy to his mother - is only 13, but he’s well on his way to being a crack legal mind. His parents are both lawyers; his dog is called Judge. His classmates come to him for legaladvice.

When a big murder trial opens in town, Theo’s tight relationship with the presiding judge assures his whole government class seats in the packed courtroom. The accused is on trial, charged with murdering his wife, and while Theo grapples with the concept of presumption of innocence, it’s obvious the guy is guilty, and pretty smug about getting away with it. Then a crucial witness who can prove the defendant’s guilt falls into Theo’s lap, but he’s an illegal immigrant, afraid to come forward. Moral, legal and social issues are at sta ke.

Grisham’s writing is neater than a pin, with explanations effortlessly cast as natural conversation and fascinating legal problems laid out for an audience on the edge of its seat. More sophisticated readers may find the ending a tad naive, but most will find it satisfying and look forward to Theo’s continuing adventures.