Great children's fiction abounds this season. Here's a look at a few of these books:

• Cat Royal is an orphan who doesn't remember her parents. She only knows that Mr. Sheridan, the wealthy but unpredictable owner of the Theater Royal on Drury Lane in London, took her in as a homeless child, and he has allowed her to make her home in his famous theater. This unusual life works fine for the red-haired, plucky Cat until the day she overhears Mr. Sheridan making plans to protect a diamond and she is plunged into a world of danger and intrigue.

In "The Diamond of Drury Lane" (Roaring Brook, $12.50), author Julia Golding takes readers on a thrilling and wild ride as she details how Cat befriends a hugely talented former slave named Pedro, as well as a couple of friendly, titled young people -- Lord Francis and Lady Elizabeth -- even as she fends off one of London's worst gang leaders. Golding's story is rich in historical detail, but readers will be most attracted to Cat herself, who wonderfully combines courage with curiosity. Golding won Britain's prestigious "Smarties" prize for this debut novel, which is the first in a planned series about Cat Royal. (Ages 8-12.)

• Twenty-two years ago, Newbery Medalist Betsy Byars began publishing a quintet of books about the Blossom family. This unusual family includes a rifle-toting grandpa, a mother who's away on the Western rodeo circuit, and three children -- Vern, Junior and Maggie -- who seem to somehow attract trouble, despite their best efforts to avoid it. Then, of course, there's Mud Blossom, the family dog, who's always in the midst of whatever adventure is happening.

Holiday House has just released attractive new paperback editions of Byars' comical series about the Blossoms: "The Not-Just-Anybody Family," "The Blossoms Meet the Vulture Lady," "The Blossoms and the Green Phantom," "A Blossom Promise" and "Wanted ... Mud Blossom." Each costs $6.95 and is perfect reading for kids ages 8-12. The new cover illustrations by Amanda Haley are cheerful but skew a bit young. Still, don't miss this chance to read the saga of one of the most entertaining families around.

• To Alvin Ho, the world is a pretty scary place. It's especially scary at school, where Alvin finds it hard to say anything at all. Yet Alvin also would really like to make a friend -- anyone but a girl named Flea, who seems to want to be friends with him. In "Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School and Other Scary Things" (Schwartz & Wade/Random House, $15.99), author Lenore Look offers a humor-filled view of a second-grader who is torn between his desire to be a superhero and his fear of talking in school. Readers will readily identify with Alvin's problems, and they'll also love the copious line drawings by LeUyen Pham scattered throughout the text. Let's hope we see more "Alvin Ho" stories from Look, who also writes the popular "Ruby Lu" chapter-book series. (Ages 7-10.)

• The quartet of children who starred in the best-selling and prize-winning book "The Mysterious Benedict Society" (Little, Brown, $16.99) are back in a new adventure. As "The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey" (Little, Brown, $16.99) opens, Reynie, Sticky, Kate and Constance arrive for a reunion at the home of their mentor, Mr. Benedict, only to discover that he and his assistant, Number Two, have been kidnapped. The children travel by ship and onto an island as they use the clues left by Mr. Benedict before he was abducted to try to rescue him from the evil Mr. Curtain. As in the first book, author Trenton Lee Stewart combines heart-stopping suspense with nifty characters to create a story that will keep young readers up at night to find out what's going to happen. (Ages 8-12.)

• Novels that combine text with lots of cartoonish line drawings are the latest hot thing in children's literature. Just look at the huge popularity of "The Diary of a Wimpy Kid," by author/illustrator Jeff Kinney. Girls will particularly enjoy the new "Ellie McDoodle" series, written and illustrated by Ruth McNally Barshaw and published by Bloomsbury. Like the "Wimpy Kid" series, Barshaw's books star a likable yet imperfect character who isn't having the easiest time in middle school. In the first book, "Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen Will Travel" ($11.95), Ellie keeps a sketchbook of her challenging camping trip with some cousins. The second book, "Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School" ($12.99), details the trials and tribulations of moving and having to find new friends. Both books include lots of humorous illustrations. (Ages 8-12.)