[Nesacat]

I didn't know that you'd actually been asked to cut down the number of words. That is a shame, especially when you have characters that have so much to offer. Is this a common thing faced by all writers of books for a similar target group?

I don't think the length would have affected your target audience really.

I'll second Balinor here ... I would buy the 'extended' versions and be glad for them.