Juvenile Fiction
Beholding Bee
Kimberly Newton Fusco
“Fans of Kate DiCamillo, Jennifer Holm, and Polly Horvath will find this an enjoyable and engrossing read.” —School Library Journal Bee is an orphan who lives with a carnival and sleeps in the back of a truck. Every day she endures taunts for the birthmark on her face, though she prefers to think of it as a precious diamond. Then one day a scruffy dog shows up, as unwanted as she, and Bee realizes she must find a home for them both. She discovers a cozy house with gingerbread trim that reminds her of frosting, where two mysterious women, Mrs. Swift and Mrs. Potter, take her in. Whoever these women are, they matter. They matter to Bee. And they are helping Bee realize that she, too, matters to the world—if only she will let herself be a part of it.
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Precocia: The Sixth Circle of Heck
Bob Dob, Dale E. Basye
Dale E. Basye sends Milton and Marlo to Precocia, the circle reserved for kids who grow up too fast, for their latest hilarious escapade in Heck.When Bea "Elsa" Bubb, the Principal of Darkness, tells Milton and Marlo Fauster they've gotten too big for their britches, she sends them to Precocia, the circle of Heck for smartypants kids who grow up too fast. There, the children learn adult jobs. William the Kid teaches bill collection. Mozart teaches commercial jingles. And all the students are forced to act, dress, and talk like little adults. Soon, the Fausters realize that Precocia's vice principals Napoleon and Cleopatra want more than to hasten adulthood--they seem to want to eliminate childhood altogether. Can Milton and Marlo figure out their plan in time to stop it?Heck is a school in the afterlife where bad kids go for all eternity, or until they turn eighteen, whichever comes first. As in Dante's Inferno, there are nine circles of Heck, based on kids' various vices.
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Ballpark Mysteries #6: The Wrigley Riddle (Stepping Stone)
Mark Meyers, David A. Kelly
Next up to the plate—book #6 in our early chapter book mystery series, where each book is set in a different American ballpark! Ivy-covered walls—they're the most famous part of the Chicago Cubs' historic ballpark, Wrigley Field. Mike and Kate can't wait to get down on the field to see the ivy for themselves. But when they do, they're horrified to discover patches of the ivy have been ripped away! Who would want to sabotage the stadium? Is it someone trying to curse the Cubs? Or is the rumor of a treasure hidden under the ivy tempting greedy fans? The Wrigley Riddle includes a fun fact page about Chicago's Wrigley Field.Cross Ron Roy's A to Z Mystery series with Matt Christopher's sports books and you get the Ballpark Mysteries: fun, puzzling whodunits aimed at the younger brothers and sisters of John Feinstein's fans. Amazon Best Books of the Year 2013 (So Far): Chapter Books
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Star Path
Joshua Tate
Dren Samuel has never left his planet before and is on his way to Draden, a boarding school for geniuses. His world is turned upside down when he and his three new friends are kidnapped for their minds’ potential. After their transport vessel crashes, the teens struggle to stay alive and figure out why they’re so important to the men that desperately pursue them. The journey home takes them to far away planets battling monstrous creatures and ruthless men who will stop at nothing to get what they want – a chance to own the future.
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The Protector
Daphne Q
Maddy is a typical shy, intelligent teenage girl. Or at least she'd like to be. However, Maddy has learned from folks in an alternate universe that she is a Protector and her job is to shelter her younger brother from evil sources so he can accomplish the great things he is destined to do in his life.
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Reaper's Legacy (Toxic City Book 2)
Tim Lebbon
Heroes and monsters clash with government forces in an apocalyptic London. Two years after London is struck by a devastating terrorist attack, it is cut off from the world, protected by a large force of soldiers (known as Choppers), while those in the rest of Britain believe that their ex-capital is now a toxic, uninhabited wasteland. Jack and his friends know that the truth is very different. The handful of survivors in London are developing strange, fantastic powers. Evolving. Meanwhile, the Choppers treat the ruined city as their own experimental playground. Jack's own developing powers are startling and frightening, though he is determined to save his father, the brutal man with a horrific power who calls himself Reaper. Jack must also find their friend Lucy-Anne, who went north to find her brother. What Lucy-Anne discovers is terrifying--people evolving into monstrous things and the knowledge that a nuclear bomb has been set to destroy what's left of London. And the clock is ticking.
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INTERRED
Time has never been an issue for Baxter Jacobs, but then she never knew she had the ability to Bend it. As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Baxter inherits a pendant that will change her life. Connected to the pendant is a dark and mysterious young man named Declan Ashdown. Trapped in a Time loop for the past 122 years, Declan needs Baxter’s help to escape. The only problem is, she has no idea how to do it. To acquire the power she needs to free him, she’ll become one of the Interred, those whose Magical abilities emerge as they come of age. When she does, she’ll discover that Declan isn’t the only one interested in the fact that she’s a Time Bender. As the Interment arrives, Baxter knows this will be no Sweet Sixteen. A vengeful relative and the ruthless Council are determined to control her. Declan’s powerful and charming descendant, Jack Ashdown, claims he can save her. She’ll soon have to decide who she can trust, and how to master her new abilities before Time runs out.
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From the Publisher
Flora and the Flamingo
Molly Idle
A 2014 Caldecott Honor BookIn this innovative wordless picture book with interactive flaps, Flora and her graceful flamingo friend explore the trials and joys of friendship through an elaborate synchronized dance. With a twist, a turn, and even a flop, these unlikely friends learn at last how to dance together in perfect harmony. Full of humor and heart, this stunning performance (and splashy ending!) will have readers clapping for more!For more feathery fun, pick up Flora and the Penguin, Flora and the Peacocks, Flora and Friends Matching Game or, coming soon, Flora and the Chicks.
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The BuddhaPest
Trudy Chun
Alone. When his mother is deployed to the Middle East with the US Army, Marc Gomez finds himself alone in Central Europe. Abandoned in a "Hungarian hellhole of a boarding school," his only friends are a small assortment of cross-cultural misfits with whom he has nothing in common--except the English language. When things couldn't get any worse, Marc's roommate commits suicide, at least that's what the police say. But Marc's odd group of friends see something else. Can you see what they see? And will their unique ability to pick up on clues prove more costly than anyone imagined?
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An Amazon Best Book of the Month, April 2013: Eleven-year-old Annie and her younger brother, Rew, have long wondered what their father was like. All they know is what Gran told them--that he died in a fight--but Gran is an unreliable narrator at best. Life was already unraveling when a sudden turn of events shatters what little stability remained and relationships are questioned, lies exposed, and both children suddenly have to grow up even more than they already have. Zebra Forest is a slim, suspense-filled novel that speaks volumes about family stories riddled with secrets, betrayal in the name of love, and finding forgiveness.--Seira Wilson
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