Adventure
The Boundless
An Amazon Best Children’s Book of the Month, April 2014: Mirroring a slice of actual railway history, the Boundless is a train of epic proportion, an eccentric visionary’s dream made real by the sweat and lives of many. The book's protagonist, Will Everett, is a young man who yearns for adventure, finding it first when he participates in securing the final spike of the Boundless’ tracks and years later on her inaugural voyage. By the time the train leaves the station, Will’s family has literally gone from rags to riches, and he finds himself responsible for keeping a special boxcar’s treasures safe from thieves who will stop at nothing—even murder. Along with his friend Maren, an escape artist with the traveling circus onboard, Will realizes untapped bravery, loyalty, and friendship that help him face a multitude of dangers. The Boundless successfully mixes history, folklore, and imagination into a sweeping adventure story that is a delight to read.---Seira Wilson
Book Details
Recommended Books
Storm
Donna Jo Napoli
A sixteen-year-old stowaway discovers her destiny on Noah’s ark in this riveting reimagining from award-winning author Donna Jo Napoli, available in time for the March 2014 major motion picture Noah.The rain starts suddenly, hard and fast. After days of downpour, her family lost, Sebah takes shelter in a tree, eating pine cones and the raw meat of animals that float by. With each passing day, her companion, a boy named Aban, grows weaker. When their tree is struck by lightning, Sebah is tempted just to die in the flames rather than succumb to a slow, watery death. Instead, she and Aban build a raft. What they find on the stormy seas is beyond imagining: a gigantic ark. But Sebah does not know what she’ll find on board, and Aban is too weak to leave their raft. Themes of family, loss, and ultimately, survival and love make for a timeless story. Donna Jo Napoli has imagined a new protagonist to tell the story of Noah and his ark. As rain batters the earth, Noah, his family, and hordes of animals wait out the storm, ready to carry out their duty of repopulating the earth. Hidden below deck…is Sebah.
Book Details
Recommended Books
Poached
Teddy Fitzroy’s back for another zoo mystery—this time it’s a koala caper—in this action-packed follow-up to Belly Up, which Kirkus Reviews called “great fun.”School troublemaker Vance Jessup thinks Teddy Fitzroy’s home at FunJungle, a state-of-the-art zoo and theme park, is the perfect place for a cruel prank. Vance bullies Teddy into his scheme, but the plan goes terribly awry. Teddy sneaks into the koala exhibit to hide out until the chaos dies down. But when the koala goes missing, Teddy is the only person caught on camera entering and exiting the exhibit. Teddy didn’t commit the crime—but if he can’t find the real culprit, he’ll be sent to juvie as a convicted koala-napper.
Book Details
Recommended Books
Canyon of Danger (Goldtown Adventures)
Jem Coulter’s pa, the sheriff of Goldtown, is away on a trip to deliver a prisoner to Sacramento, and he has left Jem in charge of the ranch—along with Aunt Rose, that is.No sooner is the sheriff gone then trouble starts—a dead calf, a mysterious stranger, and then Pa’s horse, Copper, and his prize rifle are stolen. And Pa’s deputies seem unconcerned.Jem and his cousin Nathan find Copper’s tracks end at a dark canyon up in the hills. Jem remembers an old Indian legend Strike-it-rich Sam is fond of retelling about people disappearing and no one ever seeing them again. What is the real story of the canyon of danger? Have thieves found the perfect hideout?Readers ages 8 to 12 will be entertained by the adventurous spirit and historical lure in this fast-moving series that teaches about life in the post–Gold Rush days of 1860s California. Quick-paced plots and unforgettable characters make these books fun for the whole family.
Book Details
Recommended Books
In the thrilling conclusion to Amy Kathleen Ryan's Sky Chasers series, Waverly, Kieran, and Seth struggle to survive on-board the New Horizon―and take down their enemies before it's too late Waverly and the other members of the Empyrean have been scattered, and their home ship destroyed. Their mission to rescue their parents didn't go as planned, and now they're at an even greater disadvantage: trapped with their enemies on the New Horizon, trying to find a way to survive. Kieran has been pulled under Anne Mather's wing, but is she really trying to make peace, or just using Kieran to build her own power? Meanwhile, Waverly is taken in by a mysterious old man who wants to help her bring Anne Mather down―but the more Waverly cooperates with him, the more dangerous her position is, and the more at odds with Kieran she becomes.Seth's situation is even worse. After setting out from the Empyrean on his own, with only a vague strategy to guide him, he is a fugitive aboard the New Horizon. He's doing what he can to challenge the power of Anne Mather, but he's badly hurt, and getting sicker. All the while, unknown to him, the terrorist Jacob is making plans of his own.Will Seth ever see Waverly again? Will his health hold out long enough to help her topple their enemies? And will Waverly find a way to unite with her friends before they all fall? Nothing is sure and every moment is a risk in Flame, the explosive finale of the Sky Chasers series.
Book Details
Recommended Books
The True Adventures of Nicolo Zen
Nicholas Christopher
A richly detailed historical novel from master storyteller Nicholas Christopher that School Library Journal calls “[A] lush tale of music, magic, and intrigue”! Nicolò Zen is all alone in 1700s Venice, save for his clarinet, which a mysterious magician had enchanted, allowing its first player to perform expertly. Soon Nicolò is a famous virtuoso, wealthy beyond his dreams, but he can’t stop wondering if he earned the success himself—or what might happen if the spell were removed. And throughout it all, he continues to think about the girl he met in Venice, what she might be doing and if she’s safe from harm. With a guest appearance by composer Vivaldi, and brimming with fascinating period details, this is a compelling coming-of-age story full of universal themes and a love story that will conjure memories of Romeo and Juliet, perfect for teens who love stories set in other times, and a magician who dresses all in white and can be in two places at once. . . .
Book Details
Recommended Books
Book Details
Recommended Books
The Forever Song
VENGEANCE WILL BE HERSAllison Sekemoto once struggled with the question: human or monster?With the death of her love, Zeke, she has her answer. MONSTERAllie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren, the psychopathic vampire who murdered Zeke. But the trail is bloody and long, and Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions—her creator, Kanin, and her blood brother, Jackal. The trail is leading straight to the one place they must protect at any cost—the last vampire-free zone on Earth, Eden. And Sarren has one final, brutal shock in store for Allie.In a ruined world where no life is sacred and former allies can turn on you in one heartbeat, Allie will face her darkest days. And if she succeeds, triumph is short-lived in the face of surviving forever alone.
Book Details
Recommended Books
![Sliding Beneath the Surface: [The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book I]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51696ojXkWL.jpg)
Sliding Beneath the Surface:St. Augustine Trilogy,Book I
In America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida, teenager Jeff Golden is in trouble. Horrible dreams won’t let him sleep, and he is up to his eyeballs in terrifying, paranormal experiences.Finally, Jeff turns to his girlfriend Carla, and Lobo, the mysterious Native American shaman, for help. But what he discovers is a lot more than he bargained for.A ghostly presence linked to a local historic cemetery is not only threatening Jeff’s sanity but his life as well. And before he knows what’s happening, Jeff finds both himself and Carla pulled into one of the nastiest and most bloody events in Florida history. It is a place from which they may never escape.
Book Details
Recommended Books
![Sliding Beneath the Surface: [The St. Augustine Trilogy: Book I] (Volume 1)](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51-xwNlCEsL.jpg)
Sliding Beneath the Surface:St. Augustine Trilogy, Book I
Doug Dillon
In America's oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida, teenager Jeff Golden is in trouble. Horrible dreams won't let him sleep, and he is up to his eyeballs in terrifying, paranormal experiences. Finally, Jeff turns to his girlfriend Carla, and Lobo, the mysterious Native American shaman, for help. But what he discovers is a lot more than he bargained for. A ghostly presence linked to a local historic cemetery is not only threatening Jeff's sanity but his life as well. And before he knows what's happening, Jeff finds both himself and Carla pulled into one of the nastiest and most bloody events in Florida history. It is a place from which they may never escape. AUTHOR BIODoug Dillon has been writing for adults and young people since 1984, especially in the paranormal realm. An award winning educator, he spent many years as a classroom teacher, school administrator, and coordinator of programs for high-risk students. Prentice Hall, Harcourt, Mitchell Lane Publishers, Boys' Life magazine, Learning Magazine and The Orlando Sentinel have all published his work.OTHER BOOKS BY DOUG DILLON: Nonfiction books for elementary through high school age students: A Brief Political and Geographic History of Asia; We Visit Venezuela; and Class Trip to St. Augustine. All of these books are offered by Mitchell Lane Publishers. A nonfiction book on the paranormal for adults: Co-authored with Doug's wife Barbara, An Explosion of Being: An American Family's Journey into the Psychic is published through Old St. Augustine Publications.
Book Details
Recommended Books