Fiction

Jack and the Wild Life
Lisa Doan, Ivica Stevanovic
After a wild plan by his parents left Jack stranded in the Caribbean, the Berenson family decided to lay out some rules. Jack's mom and dad agreed they wouldn't take so many risks. Jack agreed he'd try to live life without worrying quite so much. Then Jack's parents thought up another get-rich-quick scheme. Now the family's driving around Kenya. An animal attack is about to send Jack up a tree—alone, with limited supplies. As Jack attempts to outsmart a ferocious honey badger and keep away from an angry elephant, he'll have plenty of time to wonder if the Berenson Family Decision-Making Rules did enough to keep him out of trouble.
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Lupus Rex
John Carter Cash
An astonishing new tale for children from John Carter Cash in the tradition of Watership Down, The Rats of Nimh, Redwall and Duncton Wood. Ysil and Cormo are two quail who must risk their lives when they are driven from their home by crows, and find they must make common cause with a other creatures, if they are to find safety in a world full of perils and adventure. New in paperback.The crow king is dead, and in the field below all the creatures tremble as the Murder gathers to choose a new king from the rival sons Sintus, Milus and Nascus. When the crows drive everyone from the field to keep the reckoning secret, the quail Ysil, Cormo and Harlequin believe they must simply follow their elders to safety. But when the crows turn against each other, the forest becomes full of danger. In the confusion the last wolf, Asmod, shucks off his isolation and begins to raise an army to claim the kingdom for his own. As hidden truths are brought to light and enormous sacrifices are made Ysil and his friends must make an epic journey and an unthinkable alliance if the lesser animals are to survive.
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The Here and Now
Ann Brashares
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is an epic star-crossed romance about a girl who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love. The world Prenna James comes from is in ruins. She and the others who escaped are here to prevent humanity’s destruction. But if they don’t follow The Rules, everything that matters will be gone: Friends. Families. Dreams. Love. Ethan Jarves can never know Prenna’s secret. That she’s not from another place. She’s from another time. "This gripping story is set in a world unlike any other and inhabited by beautifully imagined characters that stay with you long after the last page.” – Sara Shepard, bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars“An appealing romantic thriller . . . [also] a potent reminder that we inherit the future we buy with our actions today.”—Cassandra Clare for the New York Times Book Review“Fast-paced, gripping, and romantic.”—Publishers Weekly “Lightning-paced . . . like a cinematic blockbuster.”—Kirkus Reviews “The Here and Now could just as easily sit among the time-travel sci-fi, coming-of-age, or romantic thrillers of YA. Honestly, even though I really don't know how to categorize it, I loved it.”—Happily Ever After/USA Today
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We Are The Goldens
Dana Reinhardt
"Reinhardt writes wonderfully about delicate, precarious human relationships, articulating dynamics I never noticed but which ring brilliantly true. The Goldens radiate charm, but beneath their charm is heartbreak, ambition, and delusion. There is so much to dissect and discuss here: this book will leave crowds of people eager to talk about the ending."--E. Lockhart, author of We Were Liars and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks Nell worships her older sister, Layla. They're one unit, intertwined: Nellayla. As Nell and her best friend, Felix, start their freshman year in high school, on Layla's turf, there's so much Nell looks forward to: Joining Layla on the varsity soccer team. Parties. Boys. Adventures. But the year takes a very different turn. Layla is changing, withdrawing. She's hiding something, and when Nell discovers what it is, and the consequences it might have, she struggles. She wants to support Layla, to be her confidante, to be the good sister she's always been. But with so much at stake, what secrets should she keep? What lies should she tell? Award-winning young adult author Dana Reinhardt explores questions of loyalty, love, and betrayal in this provocative and intimate novel.
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Empire Waste
In this haute couture-noir novel, T/James Reagan, author of Famous For Nothing, provides his post-Empire vision of the New York fashion scene.Reagan's novel explores all of the taboo subjects plaguing the fashion industry- racism, underage models, eating disorders, pervy photographers, human trafficking, unfair payment practices, and predatory castings.Empire Waste follows Andrew Lorrie, a disgraced fashion designer, who finds himself unemployable after a disastrous Spring/Summer fashion show. With no other option, Lorrie accepts a job designing a competitors ready-to-wear line. As the line progresses, Lorrie begins to notice that the models who are arriving for castings and go-sees are disappearing. No longer willing to idly stand by while the fashion industry destroys more girls, Andrew becomes devoted to saving these "replaceable" models. Lorrie confronts the industry as well as his own demons in a fast paced and introspective meditation on creation, pain, and exploitation.Empire Waste plays out as a fashion satire, as well as an exploration of New York City and the rules of the fashion industry.Reagan's Empire Waste proves to be a deeply personal exploration of a man living in a post-Empire world where nearly everything is disposable.
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People are remarkably adaptable. If you ruin them slowly enough they barely notice! Humans and aliens take on the establishment in Mike Williamson’s funny and thought-provoking debut, Dunnard’s Pearl. Part-time teenage idealist James Justice is transported to a strange world from the playing-fields of his London school. Despite the bright, new surroundings, the same dirty, old tricks are being enthusiastically employed by a self-serving government to fleece the people. James promises to champion the down-trodden and stumbles upon two more earthlings who have also found themselves mysteriously beamed aboard the ‘Vortex’. Together, the three teenagers tread a fine line as they attempt to play along with the powers that be while desperately seeking a way to return home. They find themselves thrust into the company of a very soft alien couple, are recruited for a reality television show, and learn the awful secret that the Administrators are determined to hide. As they try to avoid this awful fate, James and his allies face a final, violent showdown with the Grand Administrator. Will they win? Will they ever find a way to return to their homes?
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CAMP UTOPIA & THE FORGIVENESS DIET
Sixteen-year-old Baltimore teen Bethany Stern knows the only way out of spending her summer at Camp Utopia, a fat camp in Northern California, is weight-loss. Desperate, she tries The Forgiveness Diet, the latest fad whose infomercial promises that all she has to do is forgive her deadbeat dad, her scandalous sister, and the teenage magician next door and (unrequited) love of her life. But when the diet fails and her camp nemesis delivers the ultimate blow, Bee bids sayonara to Camp-not-Utopian-at-all to begin what she believes will be her “real” summer adventure, only to learn that running away isn’t as easy—or as healing—as it seems. Her wry and honest voice bring humor and poignancy for anyone, fat or thin, tired of hearing “you’d be so pretty if…[insert unwelcome judgment about your appearance from loved one or perfect stranger].”
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Blood Diaries: Tales of a 6th-Grade Vampire
Middle school is tough enough for normal humans, but when you're a vampire, it's even more challenging. Edgar rises to the occasion with wit, humor, and some help from his friends.
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The Summer I Saved the World . . . in 65 Days
It's summertime, and thirteen-year-old Nina Ross is feeling kind of lost. Her beloved grandma died last year; her parents work all the time; her brother's busy; and her best friend is into clothes, makeup, and boys. While Nina doesn't know what "her thing" is yet, it's definitely not shopping and makeup. And it's not boys, either. Though . . . has Eli, the boy next door, always been so cute? This summer, Nina decides to change things. She hatches a plan. There are sixty-five days of summer. Every day, she'll anonymously do one small but remarkable good thing for someone in her neighborhood, and find out: does doing good actually make a difference? Along the way, she discovers that her neighborhood, and her family, are full of surprises and secrets. In this bighearted, sweetly romantic novel, things may not turn out exactly as Nina expects. They might be better.