The Search for Wondla, written and illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi, Simon & Schuster, $17.99, ages 10 and up, 496 pages. In her 12 years, Eva Nine has never seen sunlight or even stepped above ground. As far back as she can remember, a robot guardian named Muthr has been caring for her and training her, so that one day, if she has to, she can leave their Sanctuary, a high-tech home underground, and defend herself against danger. All Eva knows is that there are bad people who would hurt her if they could and that the truth of her past has something to do with four letters "W-o-n-d," which she found on scraps of panel left in a secret tunnel in the Sanctuary. When glued together, the scraps show an image of a little girl holding hands with a robot and an adult, as if they're heading off to explore. To Eva, it's a strange yet happy thought, as she's never even been allowed to explore underground, even though other sanctuaries connect to their own. Instead, Muthr simulates what the real world might be like through Holograms and other devices. Then one day, everything Eva knows changes forever.
