Book excerpt: Daria is one of Earth's youngest licensed breeders of endangered species, and she has enough to do caring for her menagerie without having to cope with an exchange student from another planet. Besides Fen's color-shifting and endless questions, there is something about the way the lanky alien looks at her animals and his stubborn refusal to talk about the creatures of his own world that makes Daria nervous. Fen, on the other hand, couldn't be happier with his Earth family. Hoping for one pet, he finds himself in a zoo. With a sharp eye for human, alien, and animal ways, Kate Gilmore has written a fascinating tale.