WHAT IF YOUR FATHER ISN'T WHO YOU THOUGHT HE WAS?
"I turn up the volume as a woman at a news desk announces, 'This just in…the alleged DB25 monster has been arrested.' Good. The camera switches from the anchor to a mug shot…and it is my face--or at least my face as it will look thirty years from now…A new image replaces the full-screen mug shot as I see two cops hustling my handcuffed father into the back of a police car." Kevin has to face the worst imaginable possibility: that his father may be the man responsible for a series of vicious killings. How much does he really know about his father?
WHAT DO YOU DO IF THE GUY OF YOUR DREAMS IS SOMEBODY ELSE’S BOYFRIEND?
Taryn has found the perfect guy. Epp is tall, athletic, handsome, and best of all, she is sure he likes her, too. There’s only one problem: He’s dating someone else. But when Taryn becomes friends with Epp’s beautiful girlfriend, Isabelle, her life begins to change. New friends, movie dates, and a first kiss—life couldn’t get any better, could it? Except that Epp is still Isabelle’s boyfriend. Girls will relate to Taryn’s sincerity and humor as she tries to balance family, friendship, and, of course, romance.
In this newest addition to the astrology-inspired Zodiac Girls series, 13-year-old Thebe Battye is struggling against powers beyond her control. As a Virgo, she is all about order and neatness, but this is a problem when you have parents as disorganized as hers are. To top it all off, her self-centered cousin Yasmin has come to stay―in her room! Tired of being the stable and dependable one, Thebe takes matters into her own hands, but will she be able to change her life? And will she get any help as the newest Zodiac Girl?
The book that inspired the Disney Channel movie Zapped, starring Zendaya!
When Annabelle returns from summer camp, her life is totally different. She's moving to a new house with her mom's new boyfriend, and that means starting sixth grade at a brand-new school. Birchwood Middle School is very different from her old all-girls elementary-the boys practically run wild in the hallways. And at home, Annabelle's new puppy is taking over the house and chewing on her clothes. But the puppy came with a training manual, so Annabelle might be able to get one thing under control. Unless . . . can you train a boy the way you train a dog?
Ten-year-old Samantha Hansen is a mad scientist. But not the crazy kindshe doesn’t blow stuff up or mix potions or dissect bugs. She just loves scienceespecially rocksand figuring out how the world around her works. But there are some things there just isn’t a scientific answer for. Like, why can’t her bossy big sister keep her hands off Sam’s rock collection? And why can’t Sam control her temper? There are some bigger questions, too, like why did her father have to die? And why won’t her mom talk about him anymore?
When Sam’s mom announces a family trip to the Grand Canyon, it’s a dream come true. But it’s also a challenge: If Sam can’t learn to calm down and ignore her irritating sister, she’s going to miss her chance to see one of the world’s biggest rocks and maybe find the answers to some of her questions.
Samantha Hansen Has Rocks in Her Head is a hilarious and touching debut that introduces an exuberant new character who studies the world around her as she discovers what is in her own heart.
F&P level: S
The treacherous, hormone-soaked hallways of Franklin Middle School are the setting for this sharp, funny noir novel about tough guys and even tougher girls. “The Frank” is in the clutches of a crime syndicate run by seventh-grader Vinny “Mr. Biggs” Biggio, who deals in forged hall passes and black-market candy. Double-cross him and your number is punched by one of his deadly water-gun-toting assassins. One hit in the pants and you are in “the Outs” forever. Matt Stevens is a proud loner with his own code of justice. He’s avoided being pulled into Vinny’s organization until now: Mr. Biggs has offered him a job he can’t resist, one that leads to the surprising downfall of Vinny’s top assassin, the beautiful and deadly Nikki “Fingers” Finnegan, at the hands of an unknown assailant. Matt thinks he was used, and he becomes determined to find the trigger-guy or -girl, even if it means bringing down one of his oldest friends.
New talent Jack D. Ferraiolo revitalizes the noir novel while delivering a terrific, addictive mystery that crackles with wit and excitement. “Jack Ferraiolo shines a light on middle school and reveals what we’ve always suspected: it’s a sinister place ruled by crime bosses and thugs. ‘The Big Splash’ will make you laugh out loud.”—Jeff Kinney, #1 New York Times bestselling author of DIARY OF A WIMPY KID
“Move over Bogart; now there's hard-boiled private detective Matt Stevens on the job at Franklin Middle School ... You could call this genre kid noir.”—Judy Freeman, on the "Sure Shot Books for Boys" list on readkiddoread.com
“Entertaining and thrilling.”--The New York Times Sunday Book Review (full page review)
“A first novel with an ingenious premise: junior high noir … Twists and curve balls keep readers guessing; extended jokes will keep them laughing. With crisp prose and surprisingly poignant moments, Ferraiolo’s debut entertains on many levels.” --Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Ferraiolo weaves a tale that is thought-provoking and rib-tickling all at the same time. Highly recommended.”--Library Media Connection starred review
“Matt Stevens may turn out to be a bankable franchise: His first-person present-tense narration carries in it echoes of Marlowe, and the simple plot makes some crafty twists and turns as it goes along.”--Kirkus
“Ferraiolo cleverly interweaves Mafia undertones with Middle School social dynamics in this comical yet page turning novel. Young adult mystery enthusiasts will love the unmasking of this new sleuth in literature.”--ALAN
“Ferraiolo has taken us down, in a manner of speaking. Good fun, and the comic-book style cover will attract readers.”—KLIATT reviews
“This fabulous mystery will have teens racing to get to the last page…A great whodunit mystery lovers are sure to consume.”—VOYA
“This debut novel delivers plenty of laughs … Fans of private-eye spoofs will enjoy this entertaining read.”—Booklist
“Well paced, funny, and suspenseful, with some real commentary on bullying and mob mentality, this book will have fans eagerly awaiting the next installment in this faux noir detective series.”—School Library Journal
“Ferraiolo shines in this debut novel, working the noir tropes for all they’re worth … The mystery itself is cagily constructed to keep readers guessing pretty much til’ the last bell.”—Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books
“If middle school has an “underworld,” this book is The Godfather and The Maltese Falcon all rolled into one. Better still, it’s funny, and not just a little.”—Gordon Korman, author of SCHOOL OF ROCK
F&P level: W
After watching helplessly as Mexican raiders brutally murder her little brother, fourteen-year-old Siki is filled with a desire for vengeance and chooses to turn away from a woman's path to become a warrior of her Apache tribe. Though some men, like envious Keste, wish to see Siki fail, she passes test after test, and her skills grow under the guidance of her tribe's greatest warrior, Golahka. But Keste begins to whisper about Siki's father's dishonorable death, and even as Siki earns her place among the warriors, she senses a dark secret in her past — one that will throw into doubt everything she knows. Taking readers on a sweeping and suspenseful journey through the nineteenth-century American Southwest, Tanya Landman draws on historical accounts to imagine the Black Mountain Apache as a tribe in a fight for survival against the devastating progress of nations.
Billie and her beautiful gray gelding, Valentine's Kiss, are three-day eventing naturals--winning every regional trial they enter. But suddenly, Billie loses interest in the sport and avoids training with her beloved horse. While her rivals say that she's lost her nerve, the truth is that Billie witnessed a terrible accident during her last cross-country event, in which the horse broke its leg, and she's terrified that the same fate could befall Valentine's Kiss. A new trainer makes Billie face her demons and trust in her horse's exceptional ability.
