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The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Synopsis: Set in contemporary India as well as that of several hundred years in the past, The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming continues the adventures of Anand and his efforts to become a fully fledged member of The Brotherhood of the Conch. This time Anand's journey takes him back to Moghul times, as he encounters powerful sorcerers, spoiled princes, noble warriors and evil jinns. Divakaruni is a master storyteller, and once again she weaves a vibrant tapestry of action, suspense, and rare beauty. Fans of The Conch Bearer as well as readers new to her work will be entranced.
Publication Date: 09/01/05
Age Level: Any Age
Genre: Series
Criss Cross
Lynne Rae Perkins
Synopsis:

Debbie is wishing something would happen. Something good. To her. Soon. In the meantime, Debbie loses a necklace and finds a necklace (and boy does the necklace have a story to tell), she goes jeans shopping with her mother (an accomplishment in diplomacy), she learns to drive shift in a truck (illegally), she saves a life (directly connected to being able to drive, thus proving something), she takes a bus ride to another town (in order to understand what it feels like to be from "elsewhere"), she meets a boy (who truly is from "elsewhere"), but mostly she hangs out with her friends: Patty, Hector, Lenny, and Phil. Their paths cross. Their stories crisscross. And in Lynne Rae Perkins's remarkable book, a girl and her wish grow up. Illustrated throughout with black–and–white pictures, comics, and photographs by the author.

Ages 10+

Publication Date: 08/30/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Peeps
Scott Westerfeld
Synopsis: Cal Thompson is a carrier of a parasite that causes vampirism, and must hunt down all of the girlfriends he has unknowingly infected before they can create even more of their kind.
Publication Date: 08/25/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Science Fiction
SuperSized Kids
Steve Halliday, Sherri Flynt, Walt Larimore
Synopsis: SuperSized Kids shows how the mushrooming childhood obesity epidemic is destroying children's lives, draining family resources and pushing America dangerously close to a total health care collapse -- but also explains, step by step, how parents can work to avert the coming crisis by taking control of the weight challenges facing every member of their family. For the first time in American history, a new epidemic is killing our kids. In 1960, only 4 percent of American children were considered obese. That number has skyrocketed to 15 percent today and is almost triple that number in certain ethnic groups. Staggering; is the word the U.S. Surgeon General uses to describe the potential health care costs of childhood obesity. We are seeing Generation Y growing into Generation XL, he declares. The most common health problem facing U.S. children today is being overweight -- a condition robbing kids of both their quality and quantity of life. Medical problems that doctors once saw only in adults aged 50 or older are now striking children: heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, asthma, joint problems, arthritis. One in three children born in 2000 is expected to develop Type 2 diabetes, with the risk of blindness, loss of kidney function, and early death associated with it. This is the first generation in American history whose life expectancy may actually decrease. Something has to be done, and quickly. Fad diets and self-focused weight loss plans have proven ineffective. An overweight child cannot be effectively treated in isolation of the family insisted one recent study, complaining, surprisingly few intervention programs include multiple family members SuperSized Kids is different. It shows parents how to cure the #1 family health crisis facing them today. It provides a step-by-step, medically sound and eminently doable lifestyle change program designed for the whole family. It also includes practical suggestions for impacting school and community programs as well as what government leaders can do to help.
Publication Date: 08/24/05
Age Level: Adult
Genre: Educational
Capt. Hook : The Adventures of a Notorious Youth
Synopsis:

With his long black curls, a shadowy family tree, and an affinity for pet spiders, James Matthew bears little resemblance to his starched-collar, blue-blooded peers at Eton. Dubbed King Jas., he stops at nothing to become the most notorious underclassman in the prestigious school's history. For James, sword fighting, falling in love with an Ottoman Sultana, and challenging the Queen of England are all in a day's skullduggery. But when he sets sail on a ship with a mysterious mission, King Jas.' dream of discovering a magical island quickly turns into an unimaginable nightmare.

Screenwriter J. V. Hart traces the evolution of J. M. Barrie's classic villain from an eccentric outcast to the scourge of Neverland.

Publication Date: 08/23/05
Age Level: Any Age
Genre: Fiction
13 Little Blue Envelopes
Maureen Johnson
Synopsis:

When Ginny receives thirteen little blue envelopes and instructions to buy a plane ticket to London, she knows something exciting is going to happen. What Ginny doesn't know is that she will have the adventure of her life and it will change her in more ways than one. Life and love are waiting for her across the Atlantic, and the thirteen little blue envelopes are the key to finding them in this funny, romantic, heartbreaking novel.

Publication Date: 08/23/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Chick Lit
Rebel Angels
Libba Bray
Synopsis: Ah, Christmas! Gemma Doyle is looking forward to a holiday from Spence Academy, spending time with her friends in the city, attending ritzy balls, and on a somber note, tending to her ailing father. As she prepares to ring in the New Year, 1896, a handsome young man, Lord Denby, has set his sights on Gemma, or so it seems. Yet amidst the distractions of London, Gemma’s visions intensify–visions of three girls dressed in white, to whom something horrific has happened, something only the realms can explain. . . .
The lure is strong, and before long, Gemma, Felicity, and Ann are turning flowers into butterflies in the enchanted world of the realms that Gemma alone can bring them to. To the girls’ great joy, their beloved Pippa is there as well, eager to complete their circle of friendship.
But all is not well in the realms–or out. The mysterious Kartik has reappeared, telling Gemma she must find the Temple and bind the magic, else great disaster will befall her. Gemma’s willing to do his intrusive bidding, despite the dangers it brings, for it means she will meet up with her mother’s greatest friend–and now her foe, Circe. Until Circe is destroyed, Gemma cannot live out her destiny. But finding Circe proves a most perilous task.


From the Hardcover edition.
Publication Date: 08/23/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
His Dark Materials
John Gribbin, Mary Gribbin
Synopsis: Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is renowned for its mystery and magic. What’s the truth behind it all? Is the golden compass actually based in science? How does the subtle knife cut through anything? Could there be a bomb like the one made with Lyra’s hair? How do the Gallivespians’ lodestone resonators really work? And, of course, what are the Dark Materials? Drawing on string theory and spacetime, quantum physics and chaos theory, award-winning science writers Mary and John Gribbin reveal the real science behind Philip Pullman’s bestselling fantasy trilogy in entertaining and crystal-clear prose.
Publication Date: 08/23/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Science
Eldest
Christopher Paolini
Synopsis: Don’t miss the latest book from the author of Eragon, The Fork, the Witch, and the Worm: Tales from Alagaësia, coming December 31, 2018! 

Perfect for fans of Lord of the Rings, the New York Times bestselling Inheritance Cycle about the dragon rider Eragon has sold over 35 million copies and is an international fantasy sensation.


Darkness falls…despair abounds…evil reigns…

Eragon and his dragon, Saphira, have just saved the rebel state from destruction by the mighty forces of King Galbatorix, cruel ruler of the Empire. Now Eragon must travel to Ellesmera, land of the elves, for further training in the skills of the Dragon Rider: magic and swordsmanship. Soon he is on the journey of a lifetime, his eyes open to awe-inspring new places and people, his days filled with fresh adventure. But chaos and betrayal plague him at every turn, and nothing is what it seems. Before long, Eragon doesn’t know whom he can trust.

Meanwhile, his cousin Roran must fight a new battle–one that might put Eragon in even graver danger.

Will the king’s dark hand strangle all resistance? Eragon may not escape with even his life. . . .


Praise for Eragon:
“Unusual, powerful . . . fresh and fluid. An impressive start to a writing career that’s sure to flourish.” –Booklist, Starred
“Christopher Paolini make[s] literary magic with his precocious debut.” –People
“The new ‘It’ book of children’s lit.” –U.S. News & World Report
“An auspicious beginning to both career and series.” –Publishers Weekly

A #1 New York Times Bestseller
A #1 Publishers Weekly Bestseller
A USA Today Bestseller
A Wall Street Journal Bestseller
A Book Sense Book of the Year
A #1 Book Sense Selection
Publication Date: 08/23/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Friends and Enemies
David Field
Synopsis: Momentous events await fifteen-year-old Tommy when he goes on holiday to a chateau in the south of France near Toulouse. He sees a strange picture of an unknown and beautiful young woman and is magnetically drawn to her image. Suddenly, he's 400 years back in the past, in the France of 1599. In that faraway time he finds the living likeness of the picture in the form of Eloise. They run off for a series of hair-raising adventures together, falling in love in the process. Dynastic struggles, power-hungry bishops, outlaws living in the marshes, demonic caves, murderous clergymen and strolling players form the stock-in-trade of this wonderful historical romance. Its swift action and bubbling humour are matched by the author's canny portrayal of two teenagers meeting across four centuries. And how does Tommy resolve the culture clash? With his mobile phone, of course - another hero of the tale! Read on, and look out for more adventures from the masterful pen of David Field as the story of Tommy and Eloise spills over into the twenty-first century in a volume to follow. David Field lives with his wife and two children in Aarhus, Denmark.
Publication Date: 08/23/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Series
Darrien's Rise
Paul McCusker
Synopsis: What if history repeated itself―with you in it? Passages takes ancient stories and retells them from a kid's perspective. Loosely based on the popular “Adventures in Odyssey” series, Passages books begin in Odyssey and take you to a fantasy land, where belief in God becomes the adventure of a lifetime! Theme: God's call; based on the story of David and King Saul. The story of a brother and sister from small-town Odyssey who find themselves suddenly transported to Marus, a world of brilliant color and perilous wars.
Publication Date: 08/22/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Faith-based
Autobiography of my Dead Brother
Christopher Myers, Walter Dean Myers
Synopsis:

The thing was that me and Rise were blood brothers, but sometimes I really didn't know him. . . .

And so Jesse fills his sketchbook with drawings and portraits of his blood brother, Rise, and his comic strip, Spodi Roti and Wise, as he makes sense of the complexities of friendship, loyalty, and loss in a neighborhood where drive–bys, vicious gangs, and abusive cops are everyday realities.

Printz Award winner Walter Dean Myers delivers an unforgettable novel about life's hardest lessons, illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Christopher Myers.

Publication Date: 08/16/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Chill and Spill
Jeanean Jacobs, Steffanie Lorig
Synopsis: An appealing journal that helps you articulate and transform issues you are dealing with through creative writing and expressive art activities. Created by nonprofit, Art with Heart, the book features 21 award-winning artists and helps to facilitate emotional healing. It's a safe place to yell, cry, boast, dream, evolve. Created to help teens with the emotional fall out from life, the book has been used by victims of the hurricanes, teachers, counselors, and others who know the value of utilizing your imagination to rise above challenges. The book is a balance of full-color printed pages with guided activities and 5 blank sheets which allow for personal exploration.
Publication Date: 08/15/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Anthology
Under The Persimmon Tree
Suzanne Fisher Staples
Synopsis: Intertwined portraits of courage and hope in Afghanistan and Pakistan 

Najmah, a young Afghan girl whose name means “star,” suddenly finds herself alone when her father and older brother are conscripted by the Taliban and her mother and newborn brother are killed in an air raid. An American woman, Elaine, whose Islamic name is Nusrat, is also on her own. She waits out the war in Peshawar, Pakistan, teaching refugee children under the persimmon tree in her garden while her Afghan doctor husband runs a clinic in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan.


Najmah’s father had always assured her that the stars would take care of her, just as Nusrat’s husband had promised that they would tell Nusrat where he was and that he was safe. As the two look to the skies for answers, their fates entwine. Najmah, seeking refuge and hoping to find her father and brother, begins the perilous journey through the mountains to cross the border into Pakistan. And Nusrat’s persimmon-tree school awaits Najmah’s arrival. Together, they both seek their way home.

Known for her award-winning fiction set in South Asia, Suzanne Fisher Staples revisits that part of the world in this beautifully written, heartrending novel.

 

Under the Persimmon Tree is a 2006 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.
Publication Date: 08/08/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Tackling Dad
Elizabeth Levy
Synopsis:

From the author of Frankenstein Moved in on the Fourth Floor, Tackling Dad is the story of 13-year-old Cassie's struggle to make her father understand that even though she's a girl, she can still play football -- just as he did.

Publication Date: 08/02/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Native Son
Richard Wright
Synopsis:

Right from the start, Bigger Thomas had been headed for jail. It could have been for assault or petty larceny; by chance, it was for murder and rape. Native Son tells the story of this young black man caught in a downward spiral after he kills a young white woman in a brief moment of panic. Set in Chicago in the 1930s, Wright's powerful novel is an unsparing reflection on the poverty and feelings of hopelessness experienced by people in inner cities across the country and of what it means to be black in America.

Publication Date: 08/02/05
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction

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