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Alice On Her Way
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Synopsis: Excited about her sixteenth birthday, finally being able to drive, and kissing her boyfriend without braces, Alice feels like she will be practically an adult in a matter of months, yet when she is forced to attend a class on sexuality at the local church by her father, Alice comes to realize that being an adult isn’t actually based on a driver’s license.
Publication Date: 05/17/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Cirque du Freak: Killers of the Dawn
Synopsis: Outnumbered, outsmarted and desperate, the hunters are on the run, pursued by the vampaneze, the police, and an angry mob. With their enemies clamoring for blood, the vampires prepare for a deadly battle. Is this the end for Darren and his allies?
Publication Date: 05/11/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Sledding Hill
Chris Crutcher
Synopsis:

Billy Bartholomew has an audacious soul, and he knows it. Why? Because it's all he has left. He's dead.

Eddie Proffit has an equally audacious soul, but he doesn't know it. He's still alive.

These days, Billy and Eddie meet on the sledding hill, where they used to spend countless hours -- until Billy kicked a stack of Sheetrock over on himself, breaking his neck and effectively hitting tilt on his Earthgame. The two were inseparable friends. They still are. And Billy is not about to let a little thing like death stop him from hanging in there with Eddie in his epic struggle to get his life back on track.

Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Warriors: The New Prophecy: Midnight
Synopsis: Darkness, air, water, and sky will come together...

The wild cats of the forest have lived in peace and harmony for many moons -- but a doom that will change everything is coming. Strange messages from their warrior ancestors speak of terrifying new prophecies, danger, and a mysterious destiny.

All the signs point to young warrior Brambleclaw as the cat with the fate of the forest in his paws. But why would the son of wicked cat Tigerstar be chosen to be a hero? And who are the other cats mentioned in the prophecy? All Brambleclaw knows for sure is that the strength and courage of the greatest warriors will be needed now, as the quest to save the Clans begins.

...and shake the forest to its roots.
Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Arthur and the Minimoys
Synopsis: Luc Besson, writer, director and producer of The Fifth Element and La Femme Nikita, makes his children's book debut with this over-the-top middle-grade fantasy first published in France.

Ten-year-old Arthur and his grandmother are doing just fine on their own -- except for that Grandpa has been missing in Africa for four years and a developer villain is evicting them from their own house. Things sour further when antique dealers haul away all of Grandpa's priceless African artifacts and books. Arthur is certain that his grandfather must have left some hidden message somewhere that will reverse their current downward spiral. He hopes to discover some way to enter the world of the beautiful, red-haired, blue-eyed African Princess Selenia that he saw in his grandfather's sketches; member of a tiny (less-than-an-inch-tall) tribe called the Minimoys that he suspects might live in Grandma's garden. But how, when Grandpa's attic has been stripped of clues?

Besson's story contains many of the elements of a good, suspenseful children's adventure, but it is often over told, employs an abundance of facile plot solutions, and loses threads and themes in a long, dizzying action-adventure sequence that abruptly ends as "to be continued." Still, it's hard to resist a likeable hero-protagonist, treasure maps, the promise of rubies, and a land of warring tiny people. Let the hype begin! The sequel Arthur and the Forbidden City is due in fall 2005, and Arthur, a computer-animated movie based on the books, is due out in 2006, with Madonna voicing the part of Princess Selenia. (Ages 8 to 12) --Karin Snelson

Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Forest Of The Pygmies
Margaret Sayers Peden, Isabel Allende
Synopsis:

Alexander Cold knows all too well his grandmother Kate is never far from an adventure. When International Geographic commissions her to write an article about the first elephant-led safaris in Africa, they head -- with Nadia Santos and the magazine's photography crew -- to the blazing, red plains of Kenya. Days into the tour, a Catholic missionary approaches their camp in search of his companions who have mysteriously disappeared. Kate, Alexander, Nadia, and their team, agreeing to aid the rescue, enlist the help of a local pilot to lead them to the swampy forests of Ngoubé. There they discover a clan of Pygmies who unveil a harsh and surprising world of corruption, slavery, and poaching.

Alexander and Nadia, entrusting the magical strengths of Jaguar and Eagle, their totemic animal spirits, launch a spectacular and precarious struggle to restore freedom and return leadership to its rightful hands.

The final installment of Isabel Allende's celebrated trilogy of the journeys of Jaguar and Eagle soars with radiant settings, spirits, beings -- and the transformation of an extraordinary friendship.

Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Alice MacLeod, Realist at Last
Synopsis:

deAR gooSE,

Thank you for your letter. Too bad you won't be able to write. I guess you'll be too busy moving on. Me too. First of all, I'm quite busy socially. Very busy socially. Plus, my screenwriting is really taking off. I'm basically in discussions with some people. Producer-types. You know. They say moviemaking is the new novel writing. I'm pretty much on the vanguard of that whole thing.

Thanks for the memories.

Alice

I'm not sure that quite captures my emotional state. A more accurate reflection of how I feel would have been:

Dear Goose,

AAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Alice Heart-Torn-into-Small-Pieces-and-Then-Thrown-Away MacLeod

Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Center of the World
Alisa Jaffa, Andreas Steinhofel
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Phil has felt like an outsider as long as he can remember. All Phil has ever known about his father is that he was Number Three on his mother’s long list—third in a series of affairs that have set Phil’s family even further apart from the critical townspeople across the river. As for his own sexuality, Phil doesn’t care what the neighbors will think; he’s just waiting for the right guy to come along.

But Phil can’t remain a bystander forever. Not when he’s surrounded by his mother, Glass, who lives by her own rules and urges Phil to be equally strong; his sister, Dianne, who is abrupt and willful, with secrets to share; his uncle Gable, a restless mariner, defined by his scars; his best friend, Kat, who is generous but possessive. And finally, there is distant Nicholas, with whom Phil falls overwhelmingly in love—until he faces the ultimate betrayal and must finally find his worth . . . and place in the world.
Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
I Am The Wallpaper
Mark Peter Hughes
Synopsis: Thirteen-year-old Floey Packer feels like she’s always blended into the background. After all, she’s the frumpy younger sister of the Fabulous Lillian, a girl so popular and spontaneous that their house is always packed with a gaggle of admirers. But when Lillian suddenly gets married and heads off on a month-long honeymoon, Floey decides it’s her time to shine. Armed with her trusty diary, some books on Zen philosophy, and a jar of Deep Wild Violet hair dye, Floey embarks on a self-improvement mission—with excellent results. People are finally noticing her, especially the boy who really counts. But then disaster strikes.

Are people noticing Floey because she’s so fabulous—or because her evil cousins posted her diary on the Internet? And how will Floey ever repair the damage?
Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Upstream
Melissa Lion
Synopsis: Marty’s small town in Alaska is the most beautiful place in the world. There she and her beloved boyfriend, Steven, can walk through fields of fireweed, explore the wild, and tie pink floozy fishing lures to catch the salmon that swim upstream. But when she starts her senior year, Marty must return to school by herself. Without Steven. Something happened during the summer that changed things forever.

It’s a small town and people are starting to talk; Marty can feel their stares and hear their whispers. But they weren’t there and they don’t know. Only Marty knows what really happened, and it’s something she must never, ever tell.
Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Be Special Be Yourself for Teenagers
Synopsis: www.behappyinlife.com/books

Whether they are different, from the future, from a different country or have special circumstances, the characters of Be Special, Be Yourself for Teenagers, teenagers and adults, deal with the dilemma of giving up their significance to gain love. They struggle with body image, social acceptance, family relationships, school, diversity and inclusion. Invariably, it's their attitude that determines their fate.

"Bojé's Magic Powder" is the story of Sam, who feels different and isolated because of her eating habits, while her classmates think she has an advantage.

"Beauty Queen" is the story of Michelle, a beautiful girl with a secret, who must work out the priorities in her life and find her inner beauty.

"Be Special, Be Yourself" is the story of Adam, who migrates to another country and tries to fit in, without giving up his values.

"Curly Line with Flowers" is the story of Jessie, a dyslexic girl, who writes a diary of her brave struggle for acceptance.

"The Building of Life" describes one class' attempt to create a perfect setup for a group of people living in a building, while coming to grips with some of the realities of their own life.

"The Guidance Counselor" is the story of Tommie, who is physically abused and builds his inner strength to set himself free.

"Love Me, Love Me Not" is a "chain story" about the desire that teenagers and adults have to be loved and things they will do to fulfill that desire.

"Biography" is the story of Daniel, who finds out, with the help of a classmate, just how much he is loved by the people around him.
Publication Date: 05/10/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Dread Locks:Dark Fusion
Neal Shusterman
Synopsis: Combining elements from classical myths, fairy tales, and legends, fourteen-year-old Parker Bear learns the hard way that life isn't always what it seems to be after befriending the beautiful new girl in school who, through a series of strange events, reveals herself as something Parker could have never imagined.
Publication Date: 05/05/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
47
Walter Mosley
Synopsis: Walter Mosley is one of the best-known writers in America. In his first book for young adults, Mosley deftly weaves historical and speculative fiction into a powerful narrative about the nature of freedom. 47 is a young slave boy living under the watchful eye of a brutal slave master. His life seems doomed until he meets a mysterious runaway slave, Tall John. Then, 47 finds himself swept up in a struggle for his own liberation.
Publication Date: 05/04/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Callahan Cousins #1:Summer Begins
Synopsis: Four girl cousins spend summer vacation together with their grandmother on Gull Island.
Publication Date: 05/04/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Don Quixote of La Mancha
Miguel de/ Grossman, Edith (TRN)/ Bloom, Harold (INT) Cervantes Saavedra
Synopsis: A definitive English translation of the sixteenth-century classic follows the adventures of Don Quixote de la Mancha and his faithful squire, Sancho Panza, as they travel through Spain and become subject to the noble knight-errant's fanciful imagination.
Title: Don Quixote
Author: Cervantes Saavedra, Miguel de/ Grossman, Edith (TRN)/ Bloom, Harold (INT)
Publisher: Harpercollins
Publication Date: 2005/05/01
Number of Pages: 940
Binding Type: PAPERBACK
Library of Congress:
Publication Date: 05/01/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Introducing Vivien Leigh Reid : Daughter of the Diva
Synopsis: Leigh can think of a million ways she'd rather spend a summer besides visiting her movie star mother, Annika. But her dad insists the two need some "mother/daughter bonding time," and packs fifteen-year-old Leigh off to Ireland, where she'll be her mom's personal assistant on the set of her latest film, "Danny Boy." It could be worse. Annika may be a distant, self-absorbed diva, but Sean, the young, hot co-star, has a brogue to die for, and things heat up when Leigh lands a bit-part in the movie. Soon, Leigh and Annika are sharing scenes, scripts--and the spotlight. With tensions rising on the set, Annika and Leigh must finally grow into their most demanding roles: mother and daughter.
Publication Date: 05/01/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction

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