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Saving Zoe
Alyson Noël
Synopsis:

SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE!

It's been one year since the brutal murder of her older sister, Zoë, and fifteen-year-old Echo is still reeling from the aftermath. Her parents are numb, her friends are moving on, and the awkward start to her freshman year proves she'll never live up to her sister's memory. Until Zoë's former boyfriend Marc shows up with Zoë's diary.

At first Echo's not interested, doubting there's anything in there she doesn't already know. But when curiosity prevails, she starts reading, becoming so immersed in her sister's secret world, their lives begin to blur, forcing Echo to uncover the truth behind Zoë's life so that she can start to rebuild her own.

Prepare to laugh your heart out and cry your eyes out in this highly addictive tale as Alyson Noël's Saving Zoë tackles the complicated relationship between two sisters and shows how the bond can endure long after one of them is gone.

Publication Date: 02/15/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Desires of the Dead
Kimberly Derting
Synopsis:

The second book in the steamy, romantic Body Finder thriller series by Kimberly Derting.

Violet and Jay are finally dating, but adjusting to the new relationship is not as easy as Violet anticipated. Especially when she has to split Jay’s time and attention with his new best friend, Mike, and Mike’s pesky younger sister—who happens to be obsessed with Jay.

Meanwhile, when Violet’s special abilities lead her to the body of a young boy, her tip to the police puts her on the radar of the FBI. Violet tries to fend off the FBI’s questions while maintaining the semblance of a normal life, but somebody’s leaving her threatening notes and an echo around Mike’s house reinforces that all is not right. Violet is forced to admit that perhaps the only people who can help her figure it out are the very people she’s desperate to avoid—the FBI.

Desires of the Dead is the compulsive second book in the four-book Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting.

Publication Date: 02/15/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Cryer's Cross
Lisa McMann
Synopsis: Kendall loves her life in small town Cryer¹s Cross, Montana, but she also longs for something more. She knows the chances of going to school in New York are small, but she's not the type to give up easily. Even though it will mean leaving Nico, the world's sweetest boyfriend, behind.

But when Cryer's Cross is rocked by unspeakable tragedy, Kendall shoves her dreams aside and focuses on just one goal: help find her missing friends. Even if it means spending time with the one boy she shouldn't get close to... the one boy who makes her question everything she feels for Nico.

Determined to help and to stay true to the boy she's always loved, Kendall keeps up the search--and stumbles upon some frightening local history. She knows she can't stop digging, but Kendall is about to find out just how far the townspeople will go to keep their secrets buried....
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Tiger Rising
Kate DiCamillo
Synopsis: Kate DiCamillo’s second novel, a National Book Award finalist, is now available in a beautiful gift edition that features the author’s signature stamped on the cover.

Walking through the misty Florida woods one morning, twelve-yearold Rob Horton is stunned to encounter a tiger — a real-life, very large tiger — pacing back and forth in a cage. What’s more, on the same extraordinary day, he meets Sistine Bailey, a girl who shows her feelings as readily as Rob hides his. As they learn to trust each other, and ultimately, to be friends, Rob and Sistine prove that some things — like memories, and heartache, and tigers — can’t be locked up forever.
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Owl Ninja
Rhian Nest James, Sandy Fussell
Synopsis: The uniquely talented samurai kids are back — and ready to join forces with a ninja clan! — as the fast-paced martial arts series continues.

(Ages 9-14)

Across the valley, a drumbeat echoes. For ten days, the drum will call the mountain ryus to war, including the samurai kids from the Cockroach Ryu. Only Japan’s feudal emperor can stop the war, so Niya and Sensei Ki-Yaga set off on a grueling journey with all the Cockroaches, whose firm friendship and unusual skills must be put to the test in order to beg the Emperor to maintain peace. Sensei Ki-Yaga is respected and wise, but unfortunately, the last time he encountered the Emperor, the Emperor threatened to cut off his head. All seems hopeless until Ki-Yaga guides the Cockroaches to meet with the Owl Ninja clan. Samurai and ninja are supposed to be enemies, but can these two groups somehow work together to save the sensei and stop the battle in time?
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Pick-Up Game
Charles R. Smith Jr., Charles R. Smith Jr., Marc Aronson, Various
Synopsis: Pass! Shoot! Swish! And 1! An all-star team of YA authors scores spectacularly with an action-packed anthology about street basketball.

It’s one steamy July day at the West 4th Street Court in NYC, otherwise known as The Cage. Hotshot ESPN is wooing the scouts, Boo is struggling to guard the weird new guy named Waco, a Spike Lee wannabe has video rolling, and virgin Irene is sizing up six-foot-eightand-a-half-inch Chester. Nine of YA literature’s top writers, including Walter Dean Myers, Rita Williams-Garcia, Adam Rapp, Joseph Bruchac, and Sharon Flake reveal how it all goes down in a searing collection of short stories, in which each one picks up where the previous one ends. Characters weave in and out of narratives, perspectives change, and emotions play out for a fluid and fast-paced ode to the game. Crackling with humor, grit, and streetball philosophy, and featuring poems and photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr., this anthology is a slam dunk.
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Tall Story
Candy Gourlay
Synopsis: Andi is short. And she has lots of wishes. She wishes she could play on the school basketball team, she wishes for her own bedroom, but most of all she wishes that her long-lost half-brother, Bernardo, could come and live in London where he belongs.

Then Andi's biggest wish comes true and she's minutes away from becoming someone's little sister. As she waits anxiously for Bernardo to arrive from the Philippines, she hopes he'll turn out to be tall and just as crazy as she is about basketball. When he finally arrives, he's tall all right. Eight feet tall, in fact—plagued by condition called Gigantism and troubled by secrets that he believes led to his phenomenal growth.

In a novel packed with quirkiness and humor, Gourlay explores a touching sibling relationship and the clash of two very different cultures.
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Animal Rescue Team:Show Time
Priscilla Lamont, Sue Stauffacher
Synopsis: The squirrels at Mt. Mercy College are getting too friendly—they're frightening the students, making the nuns jumpy . . . and they're super messy. It's time to call the Animal Rescue Team! 

Meanwhile, Keisha's got a problem of her own. The Grand River Steppers jump rope team has a chance to win first place in their school district this year, but Keisha's so nervous, she keeps messing up! When she and Daddy go to the Veteran's Facility to check out their squirrel situation, Keisha meets Sergeant Pinkham, who's learning how to use his new prosthetic leg. Could Sarge be just the person to help Keisha stay calm, do well, and have fun at the competition?

Perfect for independent readers, the Animal Rescue Team books offer adventurous and heartwarming stories with lots of laughs—and plenty of critters.
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Kindred
Tammar Stein
Synopsis: The first time I meet an angel, it is Raphael and I am eighteen.

Miriam is an unassuming college freshman stuck on campus after her spring break plans fall through. She's not a religious girl--when pressed she admits reluctantly to believing in a higher power. Truth be told, she's about as comfortable speaking about her faith as she is about her love life, which is to say, not at all. And then the archangel Raphael pays Miriam a visit, and she finds herself on a desperate mission to save two of her contemporaries. To top it all off, her twin brother, Mo, has also had a visitation, but from the opposite end of the good-evil spectrum, which leaves Miriam to wonder--has she been blessed and her brother cursed or vice versa? And what is the real purpose behind her mission?
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Eli the Good
Silas House
Synopsis: In his timely YA debut, a best-selling novelist revisits a summer of tumult and truth for a young narrator and his war-torn family.

Bicentennial fireworks burn the sky. Bob Seger growls from a transistor radio. And down by the river, girls line up on lawn chairs in pursuit of the perfect tan. Yet for ten-year-old Eli Book, the summer of 1976 is the one that threatened to tear his family apart. There is his distant mother; his traumatized Vietnam vet dad; his wild sister; his former warprotester aunt; and his tough yet troubled best friend, Edie, the only person with whom he can be himself. As tempers flare and his father’s nightmares rage, Eli watches from the sidelines, but soon even he cannot escape the current of conflict. From Silas House comes a tender look at the complexities of childhood and the realities of war — a quintessentially Southern novel filled with music, nostalgic detail, a deep respect for nature, and a powerful sense of place.
Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Selected Shorts and Other Methods of Time Travel
Antonio Deleo, David Goodberg
Synopsis: In 2051, commercial time travel became a global reality. Opportunities abounded for curious history buffs, futurists, and corrupt entrepreneurs. Selected Shorts and Other Methods of Time Travel is a spellbinding collection of 37 tales that explore time travel tourism and its repercussions.

In various settings ranging from Earth to deep space, Selected Shorts presents tales of those brave (or foolish) enough to adventure through the space-time continuum. Explore an era devastated by the Worlds War of 2267, cluttered with time-traveling tourists and swindlers, terrorized by the all-powerful Icelandic Mafia, endangered by ruthless corporations, and threatened by vigilante space aliens.

The future as we know it will never be the same.

Publication Date: 02/08/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
All About Daisy
O'Dell Hutchison
Synopsis: High school is NOT for sissies... Fourteen-year-old Daisy barely made it through middle school. After three years of being constantly taunted and bullied, she’s decided it’s time for a change. It all begins with a list of things she feels she needs: a best friend, popularity, a boyfriend, a first kiss, a spot on the cheerleading squad, and most importantly, boobs. With list in hand, Daisy just knows she will make a huge splash at Glenmark High, and her days of being miserable will be over. The splash she makes isn’t exactly what she was going for, and after a disastrous first day, she is ready to throw in the towel. It only takes a chance meeting with sophomore Russel Bryan, her grade school crush, to change everything. Soon, Daisy finds herself hanging out with the popular girls, preparing to try out for a spot on the cheerleading squad and looking forward to the homecoming dance. Just when things start to look up for her, a betrayal by a new friend shatters everything she had hoped for. With her reputation on the line and the threat of a family secret being revealed, Daisy decides to take things into her own hands. It may not be her destiny to be popular, but she is done being taken advantage of. Part "Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret" and part "Mean Girls", "All About Daisy" is a hilarious and touching coming of age story that will have you cheering for the underdog. Visit Daisy's blog at daisyrosebrown.com
Publication Date: 02/03/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Close To Famous
Joan Bauer
Synopsis: Foster McFee dreams of having her own cooking show like her idol, celebrity chef Sonny Kroll. Macon Dillard's goal is to be a documentary filmmaker. Foster's mother Rayka longs to be a headliner instead of a back-up singer. And Miss Charleena plans a triumphant return to Hollywood. Everyone has a dream, but nobody is even close to famous in the little town of Culpepper. Until some unexpected events shake the town and its inhabitants-and put their big ambitions to the test. Full of humor, unforgettable characters, surprises, and lots and lots of heart, this is Joan Bauer at her most engaging.
Publication Date: 02/03/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Trust
Tom Dolby
Synopsis:

Who can you trust when everything is secrets and lies?

It's a new semester at the Chadwick School, and even with the ankh tattoos that brand them, Phoebe, Nick, Lauren, and Patch are hoping for a fresh start. Each day, however, they are reminded of their membership as new Conscripts in the Society. The secret group that promised to help them achieve their every dream has instead turned their lives into a nightmare.

Exclusive membership lost its luster as the Society revealed its agenda to them and two of their classmates were found dead. Now they can't help but wonder: Who's next? While they search for the elusive truth about the Society, the Conscripts are forced to face their darkest fear—that they truly can't get out.

Will Nick and Phoebe's new relationship endure this strain? Can Patch and Nick's longtime friendship survive the truth that will come to light? The deceptions of the group's leaders, once trusted friends, and family will test these four as they fight to leave the Society behind.

The Trust, Tom Dolby's sequel to secret society, is an alluring glimpse behind the facade of a life of entitlement, where secrets aren't merely fun—they're deadly.

Publication Date: 02/01/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Delirium
Lauren Oliver
Synopsis: There was a time when love was the most important thing in the world. People would go to the end of the earth to find it. They would tell lies for it. Even kill for it. Then, at last, they found the cure. Now, everything is different. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Haloway has always looked forward to the day when she'll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy. But then, with only ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable...
Publication Date: 02/01/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Held
Edeet Ravel, Gareth Williams
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Chloe’s summer vacation in Greece comes to an abrupt end when she is suddenly bound, gagged and whisked away to an unidentified location. Waking up from a drug-induced sleep, she finds herself in a squalid warehouse. Chloe can only imagine the worst. After several days of total isolation and utter despair, Chloe faces a new threat when her kidnapper appears, but she also feels a sense of relief. His revelation that she is being held as ransom for a prisoner exchange, however, does little to allay her fears. The weeks pass and, haunted by terrifying dreams and with only her thoughts to keep her company, Chloe fights to remain calm in an impossible situation. At least her kidnapper, although cold and distant, visits frequently, often bringing gifts. Before long, Chloe begins to have feelings for him that take her by surprise. Though still fearing for her safety, she now fantasizes about a life together. And is it her imagination, or does her captor share those feelings? Even when she is finally released, Chloe vows to protect her captor at any cost. This powerful psychological thriller leaves readers wondering at every suspenseful turn: Is Chloe experiencing Stockholm syndrome?
Publication Date: 02/01/11
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction

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