Star in the Forest
By Laura Resau Publisher: Random House Children’s Books Pages: 160 Age Range: 7 – 10 Years ABOUT Zitlally’s family is undocumented, and her father has just been arrested for speeding and deported back to Mexico. As her family waits for him to return—they’ve paid a coyote to guide him back across the border—they receive news that he and the coyote’s other charges have been kidnapped and are being held for ransom. Meanwhile, Zitlally and a new friend find a dog in the forest near their trailer park. They name it Star for the...
read moreThe Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle
By Janet Fox Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group Pages: 400 Lexile: 740L Age Range: 10 – 14 Years ABOUT “Keep calm and carry on.” That’s what Katherine Bateson’s father told her, and that’s what she’s trying to do: when her father goes off to the war, when her mother sends Kat and her brother and sister away from London to escape the incessant bombing, even when the children arrive at Rookskill Castle, an ancient, crumbling manor on the misty Scottish highlands. But it’s hard to keep calm in the strange castle that seems haunted by...
read moreTut: The Story of My Immortal Life (Tut: My Immortal Life)
By P. J. Hoover Publisher: Tom Doherty Associates Pages: 320 Age Range: 8 – 12 Years ABOUT Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life is a funny, fast-paced novel for young readers by P. J. Hoover which chronicles the mischievous adventures of King Tut, now an immortal eighth-grader living in Washington, D.C.. King Tut used to rule Egypt. Now he’s stuck in Middle School. Granted the gift of immortality by the gods—or is it a curse?—Tut has been stuck in middle school for ages. Even worse, evil General Horemheb, the man who killed...
read moreBook Scavenger (The Book Scavenger series)
By Jennifer Chambliss Bertman Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) Pages: 368 Lexile: 810L Age Range: 9 – 14 Years ABOUT For twelve-year-old Emily, the best thing about moving to San Francisco is that it’s the home city of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, book publisher and creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger (a game where books are hidden in cities all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles). Upon her arrival, however, Emily learns that Griswold has been attacked and is now in a coma,...
read moreThe Cupcake Queen
By Heather Hepler Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group Pages: 256 Age Range: 12 Years ABOUT A confection of a novel, combining big city sophistication with small town charm. When her mother moves them from the city to a small town to open up a cupcake bakery, Penny’s life isn’t what she expected. Her father has stayed behind, and Mom isn’t talking about what the future holds for their family. And then there’s Charity, the girl who plays mean pranks almost daily. There are also bright spots in Hog’s Hollow-like...
read moreAudacity
By Melanie Crowder Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group Pages: 400 Age Range: 12 – 17 Years ABOUT A 2015 National Jewish Book Award finalist The inspiring story of Clara Lemlich, whose fight for equal rights led to the largest strike by women in American history A gorgeously told novel in verse written with intimacy and power, Audacity is inspired by the real-life story of Clara Lemlich, a spirited young woman who emigrated from Russia to New York at the turn of the twentieth century and fought tenaciously for equal rights. Bucking...
read moreI’m With Cupid (Switched at First Kiss)
By Anna Staniszewski Publisher: Sourcebooks Pages: 240 Lexile: 690L Age Range: 10 – 14 Years ABOUT Marcus is a Cupid. Lena is a Reaper. Opposites attract in the exciting new Switched At First Kiss series by the acclaimed author of The Dirt Diary. Dared to kiss the adorkable Marcus Torelli at a party, Lena thinks it’s the perfect opportunity to cross First Kiss off her list of “Things to Accomplish Before I Turn Fourteen.” It’s only when she gets sent on an assignment the next day she realizes something went...
read moreBe a Changemaker: How to Start Something That Matters
By Laurie Ann Thompson Publisher: Simon Pulse/Beyond Words Pages: 240 Lexile: 1130L Age Range: 12 – 17 Years ABOUT Empower yourself in today’s highly connected, socially conscious world as you learn how to wield your passions, digital tools, and the principles of social entrepreneurship to affect real change in your schools, communities, and beyond. At age eleven, Jessica Markowitz learned that girls in Rwanda are often not allowed to attend school, and Richards Rwanda took shape. During his sophomore year of high school, Zach Steinfeld...
read moreFooter Davis Probably Is Crazy
By Susan Vaught Illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt Publisher: Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books Pages: 240 Lexile: 800L Age Range: 10 – 14 Years ABOUT Winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best mystery. Footer Davis is on the case when two kids go missing after a fire in this humorously honest novel that is full of Southern style. “Bless your heart” is a saying in the South that sounds nice but really isn’t. It means, “You’re beyond help.” That’s what folks say about fifth grader Footer Davis’s mom, who “ain’t right”...
read moreEmmanuel’s Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah
By Laurie Thompson Illustrated by Sean Qualls Publisher: Random House Children’s Books Pages: 40 Lexile: AD770L Age Range: 4 – 8 Years ABOUT Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah’s inspiring true story—which was turned into a film, Emmanuel’s Gift, narrated by Oprah Winfrey—is nothing short of remarkable. Born in Ghana, West Africa, with one deformed leg, he was dismissed by most people—but not by his mother, who taught him to reach for his dreams. As a boy, Emmanuel hopped to school more than two miles each way, learned to play...
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