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Horse Diaries: Koda
Ruth Sanderson, Patricia Hermes
Synopsis: For anyone who has ever dreamed of hearing a horse’s story . . .

Independence, Missouri, 1846

Koda is a bay quarter horse with a white blaze. He loves to explore the countryside and run free with his human friend Jasmine nearby. But after Koda sets out with Jasmine’s family on a long and dusty wagon train journey on the Oregon Trail, he finds out what is truly important to him. Here is Koda’s story . . . in his own words.

With moving and knowledgeable text and lovely black-and-white art throughout—both by real horse people—this is the perfect fit for all lovers of horses and history!
Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
War Games
Akila Couloumbis, Audrey Couloumbis
Synopsis: Based on a true story of World War II.

For 12-year-old Petros, World War II feels unreal and far away. What’s real is working in his papa’s garden. Playing marbles with his friends. Fighting with his older brother, Zola. Zola, who must always be first. Who must always be best. But when the Germans invade Greece, the war suddenly comes impossibly close. Overnight, neighbors become enemies. People begin to keep secrets (Petros’s family most of all). And for the first time, Petros has the chance to show Zola that he’s not just a little brother but that he can truly be counted on. Soon what were once just boys’ games become matters of life and death as Petros and Zola each wonder if, like their resistance fighter cousin, they too can make a difference.
Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Bitter Night
Diana Pharaoh Francis
Synopsis: SOMETIMES YOU CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES. AND SOMETIMES, THEY CHOOSE YOU...

Once, Max dreamed of a career, a home, a loving family. Now all she wants is freedom...and revenge. A witch named Giselle transformed Max into a warrior with extraordinary strength, speed, and endurance. Bound by spellcraft, Max has no choice but to fight as Giselle's personal magic weapon -- a Shadowblade -- and she's lethally good at it. But her skills are about to be put to the test as they never have before....

The ancient Guardians of the earth are preparing to unleash widespread destruction on the mortal world, and they want the witches to help them. If the witches refuse, their covens will be destroyed, including Horngate, the place Max has grudgingly come to think of as home. Max thinks she can find a way to help Horngate stand against the Guardians, but doing so will mean forging dangerous alliances -- including one with a rival witch's Shadowblade, who is as drawn to Max as she is to him -- and standing with the witch she despises. Max will have to choose between the old life she still dreams of and the warrior she has become, and take her place on the side of right -- if she survives long enough to figure out which side that is....
Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Prowling The Seas
Pamela S. Turner
Synopsis:

From the surface of the ocean, it's hard to see any visible signs of life below. But this remarkable ecosystem is teeming with life―life that is increasingly under environmental stress. And it is often the predators that sound the earliest warning signs. By tracking a wide variety of ocean predators, the Tagging of Pacific Predators (TOPP) project provides essential cutting-edge information about the state of the ocean's health and the challenges facing all its inhabitants. Acclaimed science writer Pamela S. Turner takes readers along with four predators―a leatherback sea turtle, a bluefin tuna, a great white shark, and a Sooty Shearwater―on their remarkable journeys. This full-access look will change the way readers view our blue planet.

Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Blood Kin
Maria Lima
Synopsis: The perils of power...

Keira Kelly has come into her full powers, and they are frighteningly strong, creating a distance between her and her human friends in her beloved Rio Seco. It is time to obey her great-great-grandmother Gigi's orders and rejoin her family in northwest Canada, where Keira can learn to handle her dangerous new skills. She'll have friends with her every step of the way -- her shapeshifter brother Tucker, his beloved Niko, and, to Keira's dismay, her cousin on her mother's side, Daffyd ap Geraint, the Sidhe prince who suddenly appeared in her life and now refuses to leave -- but her vampire lover Adam has insisted on staying in Texas. And while there are certainly perks to being Family, such as a private Learjet for the flight to Canada and a fabulous penthouse condo overlooking Vancouver, there are threats looming that nobody, not even Gigi, anticipated. Keira's Sidhe inheritance from her mother is far more important than anyone ever realized, and the fate of the Family may depend upon what she does next....
Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Powerless
Matthew Cody
Synopsis: Superheroes soar in this promising debut—and they’re kids!

Twelve-year-old Daniel, the new kid in town, soon learns the truth about his nice—but odd—new friends: one can fly, another can turn invisible, yet another controls electricity. Incredible. The superkids use their powers to secretly do good in the town, but they’re haunted by the fact that the moment they turn thirteen, their abilities will disappear—along with any memory that they ever had them. Is a memory-stealing supervillain sapping their powers?

The answers lie in a long-ago meteor strike, a World War II–era comic book (Fantastic Futures, starring the first superhero, Johnny Noble), the green-flamed Witch Fire, a hidden Shroud cave, and—possibly, unbelievably—“powerless” regular-kid Daniel himself.

Superhero kids meet comic book mystery in this action-filled debut about the true meaning of a hero.
Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Buck Fever
Cynthia Chapman Willis
Synopsis:

Twelve-year-old Joey MacTagert's dad wants his son to carry on the family tradition of hunting. But Joey has "buck fever"―he can't pull the trigger on a deer, and hates the idea of killing animals. He's more interested in art and hockey, two activities that his dad barely acknowledges.

Joey's dad wants him to use his special skill in tracking to hunt down the big antlered buck that roams the woods near their home. Joey knows how to track Old Buck, but has kept secret from his father the reason he's gained the deer's trust. When trouble between his parents seems to escalate, Joey and his older sister, Philly, find themselves in the middle of tensions they don't fully understand. Joey wants to keep the peace, and if conquering his buck fever will do it, he has to try.

Buck Fever is a nominee for the 2003 Edgar Award for Best First Novel.

Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Espressologist
Kristina Springer
Synopsis: What’s your drink of choice? Is it a small pumpkin spice latte? Then you’re lots of fun and a bit sassy. Or a medium americano? You prefer simplicity in life. Or perhaps it’s a small decaf soy sugar-free hazelnut caffe latte? Some might call you a yuppie. Seventeen-year-old barista Jane Turner has this theory that you can tell a lot about a person by their regular coffee drink. She scribbles it all down in a notebook and calls it Espressology. So it’s not a totally crazy idea when Jane starts hooking up some of her friends based on their coffee orders. Like her best friend, Em, a medium hot chocolate, and Cam, a toffee nut latte. But when her boss, Derek, gets wind of Jane’s Espressology, he makes it an in-store holiday promotion, promising customers their perfect matches for the price of their favorite coffee. Things are going better than Derek could ever have hoped, so why is Jane so freaked out? Does it have anything to do with Em dating Cam? She’s the one who set them up! She should be happy for them, right?

With overtones of Jane Austen’s Emma and brimming with humor and heart, this sweet, frothy debut will be savored by readers.
Publication Date: 10/27/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Synopsis: Venture back in time to Victorian London to join literature's greatest detective team — the brilliant Sherlock Holmes and his devoted assistant, Dr. Watson — as they investigate a dozen of their best-known cases. Originally published in 1892, this is the first and best collection of stories about the legendary sleuth. It's also the least expensive edition available.
Featured tales include several of the author's personal favorites: "A Scandal in Bohemia" — in which a king is blackmailed by a former lover and Holmes matches wits with the only woman to attract his open admiration — plus "The Speckled Band," "The Red-Headed League," and "The Five Orange Pips." Additional mysteries include "The Blue Carbuncle," "The Engineer’s Thumb," "The Beryl Coronet," "The Copper Beeches," and four others.
Publication Date: 10/22/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Dragonfly
Julia Golding
Synopsis: Princess Taoshira of the Blue Crescent Islands is appalled when she is ordered to marry Prince Ramil of Gerfal in order to unite their lands. And he's not too pleased, either. They hate each other on sight. So, when Tashi and Ramil are kidnapped, they fear there's no escape - from their kidnappers or from each other. Can they put aside their differences long enough to survive ambush, unarmed combat, brainwashing, and imprisonment? And will the people they meet on their adventure help them or betray them to the enemy?
Publication Date: 10/20/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Snapped
brntpopcorn
Synopsis: The Quizilla Mibba and Wattpad classic is finally in print. The tale of Melany and her adventure into her other life. When a black-winged angel breaks through Melany's window and lands on her bedroom floor things begin to change. And so Melany met Sorter, the angel, but this isn't just a onetime encounter. The angels refuse to leave her alone. The next day Sorter and Zeke, another angel, appear on the street ready to go to school with her. Zeke seems to be as nice as an angel should while Sorter threatens to kill her if she tells anyone about them. Melany does not realize there might be a deeper reason to them being there or that she could be in the middle of a war between angels and demons. Her life is changed forever, as Melany is exposed to portals and travels to their world. She becomes aware of the threat humanity is facing. But Melany has a destiny that could end the war, save her friends, her people, and allow her to go home finding happiness in her own world. What will be Melany's fate?
Publication Date: 10/20/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Front and Center
Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Synopsis: Football season may be over, but basketball is about to begin, and if D.J. thinks she can escape the attention—and the pressure—her star power brings, she is mistaken.

 
Publication Date: 10/19/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Magic Can Be Murder
Vivian Vande Velde
Synopsis: Nola's not much of a witch--she can work only a few useless spells, like the one that lets her spy on people. But there's no spell for keeping her crazy mother--who hears voices and is a magnet for witch-hunters--out of trouble. The two flee from town to town until the day Nola magically witnesses a murder. Which is bad enough, but worse is that the murderer may frame Nola and her mother for the crime. And then no amount of magic will save her. And you think your teenage years are tough. . . .
Publication Date: 10/19/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Ghost Ride
Marina Cohen
Synopsis: 2011 Red Maple Award ― Shortlisted

Fourteen-year-old Sam McLean is less than thrilled with the prospect of moving to a collection of old mansions on the northern fringe of a small town called Ringwood. A nobody at his old school, Sam is desperate to be accepted by the cool kids and latches on to Cody Barns, aka Maniac. Cody’s claim to fame is performing wild stunts ― the crazier the better ― and posting them on his blog.

When Sam reluctantly joins Cody and his sidekick, Javon, on their midnight ghost riding, a practice in which the driver and passenger climb onto the hood of their moving car and dance, something goes terribly wrong. Cody convinces Sam to flee the scene, leaving Javon for dead. But soon mysterious messages appear on Cody’s blog and anonymous notes are slid into Sam’s locker. As Sam struggles with his conscience, a haunting question remains: Who else knows the truth?
Publication Date: 10/19/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Day of the Pelican
Katherine Paterson
Synopsis: 2013 Laura Ingalls Wilder Award

Meli Lleshi is positive that her drawing of her teacher with his pelican nose started it all. The Lleshis are Albanians living in Kosovo, a country trying to fight off Serbian oppressors, and suddenly they are homeless refugees. Old and young alike, they find their courage tested by hunger, illness, the long, arduous journey, and danger on every side. Then, unexpectedly, they are brought to America by a church group and begin a new life in a small Vermont town. The events of 9/11 bring more challenges for this Muslim family--but this country is their home now and there can be no turning back.A compassionate, powerful novel by a master storyteller.
Publication Date: 10/19/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Goth Girl Rising
Barry Lyga
Synopsis:

Time is a funny thing in the hospital. In the mental ward. You lose track of it easily. After six months in the Maryland Mental Health Unit, Kyra Sellers, a.k.a. Goth Girl, is going home. Unfortunately, she’s about to find out that while she was away, she lost track of more than time.

Kyra is back in black, feeling good, and ready to make up with the only person who’s ever appreciated her for who she really is.

But then she sees him. Fanboy. Transcended from everything he was into someone she barely recognizes.
And the anger and memories come rushing back.

There’s so much to do to people when you’re angry.
Kyra’s about to get very busy.

Publication Date: 10/19/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction

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