What if timid Baby Lincoln broke free of her bossy sister and set off on an unexpected journey? Kate DiCamillo presents a touching new adventure set in Mercy Watson's world.
Baby Lincoln's older sister, Eugenia, is very fond of telling Baby what to do, and Baby usually responds by saying "Yes, Sister." But one day Baby has had enough. She decides to depart on a Necessary Journey, even though she has never gone anywhere without Eugenia telling her what to take and where to go. And in fact Baby doesn't knowwhere she is headed - only that she was entirely happy in the previous night's dream, sitting aboard a train with a view of shooting stars. Who might Baby meet as she strikes out on her own, and what could she discover about herself? Will her impulsive adventure take her away from Eugenia for good?
From the author of Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy comes the story of a friendship between two girls set in Victorian England, with magical machines, wizards, witches, a mysterious underworld, and a race against time.
Annabel Grey is primed for a proper life as a young lady in Victorian England. But when her mother suddenly disappears, she’s put in the care of two eccentric aunts who thrust her into a decidedly un-ladylike life, full of potions and flying broomsticks and wizards who eat nothing but crackers. Magic, indeed! Who ever heard of such a thing?
Before Annabel can assess the most ladylike way to respond to her current predicament, she is swept up in an urgent quest. Annabel is pitted against another young witch, Kitty, to rescue the sacred Moreover Wand from the dangerous underworld that exists beneath London. The two girls outsmart trolls, find passage through a wall of faerie bones, and narrowly escape a dragon, but it doesn’t take long for Annabel to see that the most dangerous part of her journey is her decision to trust this wild, magical girl.
Sparkling with Karen Foxlee’s enchanting writing, this is a bewitching tale of one important wand and two most magical girls.
"[Foxlee's] heroines have grit and heart, and they are willing to get dirty. And they do. Foxlee’s nicely wry tone and moments of incongruous humor break up the tension, while Annabel’s race against time in a harrowing journey deep under London keeps the pages turning. Deliciously complex and convincingly detailed."--Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
"Kids who enjoyed Foxlee’s Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy and fans of Hardinge’s Cuckoo Song will find similar otherworldly appeal in this enthralling adventure."--The Bulletin, Starred review
"Memorable for its vivid imagery and stylish, thoughtful prose."--Horn Book Magazine
From the Hardcover edition.
Cliff Abernathy is 11 years old, but he's not an ordinary elementary school kid. As the oldest in a family of six children, he has a lot of responsibilities-and patience. When Cliff looks back over the last year, he has plenty of stories to tell about his parents, his four brothers, and his sister, especially since the Abernathys like to do everything together. Through holidays and weekdays, ups and downs, Fig Pudding brings you into the busy world of a big, close family. As you follow Cliff from one Christmas to the next, you'll learn what a yadda-yadda is, how the headless chicks got to be that way, how the family weathers a tragedy, and other wonderful bits of family lore. Ralph Fletcher is the oldest in a family of nine children, so he has vivid firsthand experience with life in a large household. Through Jeff Woodman's spirited narration, Fig Pudding dishes up generous helpings of the energy and good humor that fill the Abernathys' days.
For 13-year-old Peter Cassidy, each summer day is just like the one before it-mowing lawns for spending money and hanging out with his best friend. But one startling afternoon, a newcomer hitchhikes into town, promising joy and excitement to everyone who comes to the local church. During revival services, Pete sits riveted to the pew, held fast by the hypnotic rhythm of the "Preacher Man's" voice. And when the "Man" turns his piercing blue eyes on him, Pete feels as if his inner-most being were laid bare before the world. Suddenly he is poised to leave his secure, familiar life to follow this saver of souls. But is the stranger what he claims to be? In this Newbery Honor Book, acclaimed author for young people Cynthia Rylant paints a stirring portrait of a teenaged boy learning some difficult truths about religious beliefs and human nature. Pete's moving story of disappointment and hope memorably unfolds with Jeff Woodman's dramatic narration.
An Na has earned critical raves for her young adult fiction. She has won the Michael L. Printz Award and was a finalist for the National Book Award. In The Fold, she examines the complications surrounding teenage plastic surgery. Joyce is thrilled when her aunt becomes suddenly wealthy. But when her aunt decides Joyce needs a makeover, Joyce must decide if she is ready to go under the knife to become the popular swan she's always wanted to be.
Kate DiCamillo meets Lemony Snicket in this darkly comic novel about two sisters who learn they are each others' most important friend.
Imagine two twin sisters, Arabella and Henrietta-nearly identical yet with nothing in common. They're the best of friends . . . until one day they aren't. Plain and quiet Henrietta has a secret plan to settle the score, and she does something outrageous and she can't take it back.
When the deed is discovered, Henrietta is quickly banished-sent to live with her eccentric great-aunt Priscilla on Chillington Lane, where black cats roam the dark rooms and tonight's menu is fish-head stew! Suddenly life with pretty, popular Arabella doesn't seem so awful.
And, though she's been grievously wronged, Arabella longs for her sister, too. So she hatches a plan of her own and embarks on an unexpected journey to reunite with her other half.
The Trouble with Twins is an adventure and a comedy-a tale of the power of unlikely friendships, the bond between sisters . . . and the way a bit of mischief sometimes sets everything right.
Kids have been picking on 14-year-old Harold ever since he can remember. They stare at him and call him "maggot" or "ghost boy" because he's an albino. Even his mother seems angry and withdrawn when he's around. One day the circus comes to town, and Harold runs away to join it. When Fossil Man and Princess Minikin accept him into their family, he feels that he has at long last come home. As he gains the respect of the circus owner and the beautiful trick horseback rider, Harold suddenly finds himself straddling the line between the normal people and the "freaks." If only he could figure out the omniscient Gypsy Magda's warning about the high price of being "normal." Iain Lawrence builds an insightful metaphor with this story of a teenager facing his fear of being an outsider. Narrator George Guidall is the perfect guide for readers as they join Harold on his poignant journey toward self-discovery and acceptance.
ALA Schneider Family Book Award winner Leslie Connor infuses her timely family stories with humor and hope. Fourteen-year-old Dewy Marriss never imagined America's gas pumps would dry up the same week he promised to manage his family's bicycle shop. Suddenly everyone wants a bike, and nobody wants to wait. With his parents stranded far from home, Dewey tries to keep up with his overwhelming responsibilities.
Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction and the California Young Reader Medal, Graham Salisbury injects his books with the exotic color of his native Hawaii. Continuing the story begun in Under the Blood-Red Sun , House of the Red Fish returns to Honolulu one year after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Thirteen-year-old Japanese American Tomi Nakaji must struggle to support his family after the arrest of his father and grandfather.
Mackenzie "Mac" Lowell is living a dream come true on tour with her favorite boy band. Spending time on the road with Perfect Storm hasn't been what Mac expected, though-it's even BETTER!
But with screaming fans and big-time recording sessions come haters and copycats, like Thunder and Lightning, a new band on the label whose first single sounds suspiciously like the song Perfect Storm's guitarist wrote for Mac. As the two bands set out on a joint summer tour, more and more of Perfect Storm's secrets are leaked to the public.
Where's the one place all these lyrics and secrets are supposedly being kept safe? In Mac's journal, of course! Can Mac-and her comic-book alter ego, Mac Attack-stop the leaks and nab the culprit?
With black-and-white illustrations and action-packed Mac Attack comics throughout, Jen Calonita's VIP series is more exciting than a backstage pass!
This imaginative new fantasy will charm fans of the Ranger’s Apprentice and Rick Riordan.
Denizen Hardwick is an orphan, and his life is, well, normal. Sure, in storybooks orphans are rescued from drudgery when they discover they are a wizard or a warrior or a prophesized king. But this is real life—orphans are just kids without parents. At least that’s what Denizen thought. . . .
On a particularly dark night, the gates of Crosscaper Orphanage open to a car that almost growls with power. The car and the man in it retrieve Denizen with the promise of introducing him to a long-lost aunt. But on the ride into the city, they are attacked. Denizen soon learns that monsters can grow out of the shadows. And there is an ancient order of knights who keep them at bay. Denizen has a unique connection to these knights, but everything they tell him feels like a half-truth. If Denizen joins the order, is he fulfilling his destiny, or turning his back on everything his family did to keep him alive?
A chilling new novel about a girl who must delve into her past if she wants to live long enough to have a future when a series of murders that are eerily similar to the dark stories her brother used to tell start happening in her hometown.
Lana used to know what was real. That was before, when her life was small and quiet. Her golden stepbrother, Ben, was alive. She could only dream about bonfiring with the populars. Their wooded island home was idyllic, she could tell truth from lies, and Ben's childhood stories were firmly in her imagination.
Then came after.
After has Lana boldly kissing her crush, jumping into the water from too high up, living with nerve and mischief. But after also has horrors, deaths that make sense only in fairy tales, and terrors from a past Lana thought long forgotten. Love, blood, and murder.
