Gillian Streeter (Children's Book and Play Review, May 2006)
Gurl has always faded into the background. She doesn't like to be noticed, and at Hope House for the Homeless and Hopeless, it would be nearly impossible to be noticed anyway. Unlike most of the other people in the city, the orphans of Hope House can hardly fly at all. Gurl herself is a lead foot, totally incapable of flight. But one night she escapes after lights out into the city. Gurl finds a very rare animal, a cat, and a previously unrecognized ability: Gurl can literally fade. Oddly enough, her invisibility draws the attention of the thieving orphanage director, a famous gangster, a boy named Bug, and many other inhabitants of the city. Set in New York City's future, readers might expect The Wall and the Wing to be more of a science fiction novel. While there are a few advances in technology, the story is obviously a fantasy tale: people can fly, cats are mysteriously rare animals that choose their own humans, and once every hundred years or so a being, usually a girl, is born with the ability to disappear. Ruby creates a varied and unconventional world of danger and wonder all wrapped together. Contrary to what the reader may think, not everything is neatly tied up at the end, as evidenced by the final chapter, "Chapter after the Last." The whimsical characters, unusual settings, and reasonable villains in The Wall and the Wing are a pleasure to explore. Rating: Outstanding. Reading Level: Intermediate; Young adult. Category: Fantasy fiction. 2006, Eos, 336 p., $17.89. © 2002, Brigham Young University.

Beverley Fahey (Children's Literature)
Every one hundred years or so a Wall is born--a female child with the remarkable ability to become invisible. The most recent Wall was kidnapped at birth and her whereabouts unknown. At Mrs. Terwiliger's Hope House for the Homeless and Hopeless, Gurl is one of the loneliest orphans. She is a leadfoot, unable to fly like the others. The night she finds a mysterious cat, Gurl makes an amazing discovery--she can fade into the wall and become invisible. The ruthless matron who uses her collection of mechanical monkeys to rob the orphans of their memories learns her secret and blackmails Gurl into stealing for her. Gurl befriends a boy, Bug, who like her is unable to fly. Together they flee the orphanage with the foundling cat when it become apparent that gangster Sweetcheeks Grabowski was hot on Gurl's trail. The pair face danger at every twist and turn of this madcap plot. The two must outrun and outsmart not only Grabowski but also the Rat Man who lives in the sewer and the man with the zippered face. The one person who may be able to help is the Professor, an eccentric who favors housedresses and flip-flops and has grass sprouting from his head. Set sometime in the future in New York City this zany fantasy will take readers on a wild ride. Broad humor, fast pace, and offbeat characters will have readers turning the pages at breakneck speed. Tighter editing could have prevented the lagging pace of the last two chapters. It does hint of a sequel, which should pique the interest of readers for the next adventure. 2006, HarperCollins, $16.99 and $17.89. Ages 10 to 12.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, January 15, 2006 (Vol. 74, No. 2))
Gurl, like all the orphans in Hope House for the Homeless and Hopeless, doesn't remember her given name, if she ever had one, so she has to content herself with the one headmistress Terwiliger has handed her that's a borderline insult. Gurl is a flightless "leadfoot" in a world where some can fly and most can float. She's happy to remain unnoticed as often as possible until she literally blends in with the woodwork. Gurl is the born-once-a-century Wall, and every sneak thief wants control of her. She and friend Bug, who hopes to be a swift-flying Wing, evade capture for a time, but Sweetcheeks Grabowski, notorious gangster, finally nabs them. With the aid of a secret-storing monkey, a riddle-bearing cat and an ancient professor with grass for hair, Gurl and Bug discover their pasts and connect with a hopeful future. The last chapters of Ruby's sophomore effort are excellent, but few will make it through this sluggish, overlong fantasy adventure. Less than the sum of its imaginative parts, this misses the high mark set by her Lily's Ghosts (2003). 2006, Eos/HarperCollins, 336p, $16.99. Category: Fantasy. Ages 10 to 14. © 2006 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Charlotte Decker (Library Media Connection, February 2007)
In a futuristic Manhattan, two orphaned children and a cat set out on an adventure that inadvertently will change the course of history by righting an ancient wrong. In this society, where everyone aspires to become a "Wing" with the ability to fly, Gurl is shunned as a "Leadfoot." But Gurl has a special talent; she is a "Wall" and blends into any background. Bug, who has his own special skills (he is able to open any lock), befriends Gurl. The pair escapes the orphanage and search for the Professor, an old man who knows everything. The Professor warns Gurl that she is in grave danger because the notorious gangster Sweetcheeks Grabowski wants to kidnap Gurl for his evil purposes. Bug and Gurl are able to thwart Sweetcheeks' plan. This is a story that brings together a cast of dastardly villains and sympathetic heroes. The description of Manhattan where Wings are overhead is rich in details. The story combines several themes to create an exciting story where good triumphs over evil. This is a book that will capture the fancy of fantasy readers. Recommended. 2006, HarperCollins, 327pp., $16.99 hc. Ages 11 to 16.

Michele Winship (VOYA, February 2006 (Vol. 28, No. 6))
Take one girl named Gurl, one boy named Bug, one cat named Noodle, mix them together at Hope House for the Homeless and Hopeless, throw in a gangster named Sweetcheeks, a grass-haired Professor, and a room full of toy monkeys, and the result is the makings of a far-out adventure in an alternative New York City, where people fly and sewer rats worship kitties. This novel flips reality on its side and sends readers up into the air and down into the bowels of the city with Gurl and Bug as they plot their escape from Hope House only to find that they are not who they think they are and that they cannot avoid running smack into their pasts. Ruby's characters are both colorful and kooky, detailed in high relief, but readers will have to stay focused to navigate the plot's hairpin curves that turn back on themselves. Older readers might be able to tease out all the pop-culture allusions, whereas younger readers will stay caught up in the off-center, comic-book-like world. Witty and ironic, Ruby's sharp writing propels the story to an exhilarating climax that stops only an inch away from disaster and brings all the characters and their twisted tales together in an ending that seems only fitting for an over-the-top mystery adventure. VOYA CODES: 5Q 4P M J S (Hard to imagine it being any better written; Broad general YA appeal; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2006, HarperCollins, 336p., $16.99 and PLB $17.89. Ages 11 to 18.