Cassie must learn that you can't "fix" someone else after a girl with Asperger's joins her softball team in the fourth and final book of the Home Team series from New York Times bestselling author and sports-writing legend Mike Lupica.
Cassie Bennett is great at being in charge. She always knows what to do to lead her teams to victory, keep her many groups of friends together, or fix any problem that comes her way. So when Sarah Milligan, an autistic girl with unreal softball skills, joins Cassie's team, Cassie's sure she can help her fit in with the team.
But before long it's obvious that being around so many people is really hard for Sarah, and the more Cassie tries to reach out and involve her, the more Sarah pushes her away, sometimes literally. It doesn't help that Cassie's teammates aren't as interested in helping Sarah as they are in making sure they make it to the new softball All-Star Tournament that'll be televised just like the Little League World Series.
Soon no one seems to even want Sarah on the team anymore besides Cassie, and the harder Cassie tries to bring everyone together, the worse things seem to get. Cassie Bennett never backs down from a challenge, but can she realize that maybe the challenge isn't fixing a problem in someone else, but in herself? Or will her stubbornness lead her to lose more than just softball games?
Can you still have a home if you don't have a house? In the spirit of The Truth About Jellyfish and Fish in a Tree comes a stunning debut about a family struggling to find something lasting when everything feels so fleeting.
Always think in threes and you'll never fall, Cora's father told her when she was a little girl. Two feet, one hand. Two hands, one foot. That was all Cora needed to know to climb the trees of Brooklyn.
But now Cora is a middle schooler, a big sister, and homeless. Her mother is trying to hold the family together after her father's death, and Cora must look after her sister, Adare, who's just different, their mother insists. Quick to smile, Adare hates wearing shoes, rarely speaks, and appears untroubled by the question Cora can't help but ask: How will she find a place to call home?
After their room at the shelter is ransacked, Cora's mother looks to an old friend for help, and Cora finally finds what she has been looking for: Ailanthus altissima, the "tree of heaven," which can grow in even the worst conditions. It sets her on a path to discover a deeper truth about where she really belongs.
Just Under the Clouds will take root in your heart and blossom long after you've turned the last page.
Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of Broken Heart Club by Cathy Cassidy, read by Gemma Whelan and Oliver Chris.
Andie, Eden, Ryan, Tasha and Hasmita love being part of the Heart Club. They've promised to stay best friends forever and nothing can tear them apart.
But sometimes things happen that you couldn't ever have expected and forever might not be as long as you think.
Now, two years later, Eden and Ryan are haunted by memories of the past. Can they find a way to bring the club back together or is it too late to mend a broken heart?
A gorgeous new story from the bestselling author of The Chocolate Box Girls series.
When a family buys a house in a struggling town for just one dollar, they’re hoping to start over — but have they traded one set of problems for another?
Twelve-year-old Lowen Grover is still reeling from the shooting death of his best friend, Abe, when he stumbles across an article about a small town giving away homes for just one dollar. It seems like the perfect escape from Flintlock and all of the awful memories associated with the city — and to his surprise, his mum, dad, and older brother are all onboard. Only his sister, Anneth, is reluctant to leave her friends and the familiarity (and amenities!) of Flintlock, but with the rest of the family anxious to do what’s best for grief-stricken Lowen, her protests fall on deaf ears. But is the Dollar Program too good to be true? The homes are in much worse shape than it appeared from the pictures, and the locals aren’t exactly welcoming. Some of them even seem to resent the so-called Dollar Families. Will Millville and the dollar house be the answer to the Grovers’ troubles? From the author of Small as an Elephant and Paper Things comes a heart-tugging novel about guilt and grief, family and friendship, and, above all, community.
A heart-breaking, heart-warming novel for everyone of 10 and older - this book will probably make you cry, and will definitely make you laugh.
Cymbeline Igloo (yes, really!) has NEVER been swimming
Not ever. Not once.
But how hard can it be? He's Googled front crawl and he's found his dad's old pair of trunks. He's totally ready.
What he's not ready for is the accident at the pool - or how it leads his mum to a sudden breakdown.
Now, with the help of friends old and new, Cymbeline must solve the mystery of why his mum never took him near water - and it will turn his whole life upside down...
'A wonderful story, moving and funny' - Ross Welford
Bestselling author Gary D. Schmidt tells a coming-of-age story with the light touch of The Wednesday Wars, the heart of Okay for Now, and the unique presence of a wise and witty butler. Carter Jones is astonished early one morning when he finds a real English butler, bowler hat and all, on the doorstep-one who stays to help the Jones family, which is a little bit broken. In addition to figuring out middle school, Carter has to adjust to the unwelcome presence of this new know-it-all adult in his life and navigate the butler's notions of decorum. And ultimately, when his burden of grief and anger from the past can no longer be ignored, Carter learns that a burden becomes lighter when it is shared. Sparkling with humor, this insightful and compassionate story will resonate with readers who have confronted secrets of their own.
Astronomy-loving Calliope June has Tourette syndrome, so she sometimes makes faces or noises that she doesn't mean to make. When she and her mother move yet again, she tries to hide her TS. But it isn't long before the kids at her new school realize she's different. Only Calliope's neighbor, who is also the popular student body president, sees her as she truly is-an interesting person and a good friend. But is he brave enough to take their friendship public?
As Calliope navigates school, she must also face her mother's new relationship and the fact that they might be moving-again-just as she starts to make friends and finally accept her differences.
Ellie Terry's affecting debut will speak to a wide audience about being true to oneself.
Brought to you by Penguin.
Crossfire is the long-awaited new novel in legendary author Malorie Blackman's ground-breaking Noughts & Crosses series - perfect for fans of The Handmaid's Tale and The Power.
Thirty-four years have passed since Sephy Hadley - a Cross - first met Callum McGregor - a nought. Their love was forbidden, powerful - and deadly.
Life is seemingly very different now for noughts and Crosses - including for Sephy and Callum's families. But old wounds from the past are hard to heal, and when you're playing a game as dangerous as they are, it won't be long before someone gets caught in the crossfire.
Praise for Noughts & Crosses:
'The Noughts & Crosses series are still my favourite books of all time and showed me just how amazing story-telling could be' - Stormzy
'The most original book I've ever read' Benjamin Zephaniah
'Blackman 'gets' people . . . she 'gets' humanity as a whole, too' Guardian
'Powerful' Sunday Times
Crossfire is the long-awaited new novel in legendary author Malorie Blackman's ground-breaking Noughts & Crosses series - perfect for fans of The Handmaid's Tale and The Power.
Thirty-four years have passed since Sephy Hadley - a Cross - first met Callum McGregor - a nought. Their love was forbidden, powerful - and deadly.
Life is seemingly very different now for noughts and Crosses - including for Sephy and Callum's families. But old wounds from the past are hard to heal, and when you're playing a game as dangerous as they are, it won't be long before someone gets caught in the crossfire.
Praise for Noughts & Crosses:
'The Noughts & Crosses series are still my favourite books of all time and showed me just how amazing story-telling could be' - Stormzy
'The most original book I've ever read' Benjamin Zephaniah
'Blackman 'gets' people . . . she 'gets' humanity as a whole, too' Guardian
'Powerful' Sunday Times
Marlin is not slow, or mute; what he is is a stutterer, and that makes it impossible for him to convince people otherwise. What he is also is a Rackham: the youngest son of the world-famous explorer Roland Rackham, who is the owner and proprietor of the Zoo at the Edge of the World, a resort where the well-to-do from all over the world can come to experience the last bit of the wild left in the world at the end of the nineteenth century. In order to impress a powerful duke who comes to visit the zoo, Marlin's father ventures into the jungle and brings back a mysterious black jaguar, now the only one in captivity. Everyone is terrified of the jaguar, including Marlin—until one night, when the jaguar confers upon him a powerful gift. Soon Marlin finds himself with a difficult choice to make and, finally, something to say. If only he can figure out how to say it.
Winterhouse by Ben Guterson is an enchanting urban fantasy middle-grade debut-the first audiobook in a trilogy-set in a magical hotel full of secrets.
Orphan Elizabeth Somers's malevolent aunt and uncle ship her off to the ominous Winterhouse Hotel, owned by the peculiar Norbridge Falls. Upon arrival, Elizabeth quickly discovers that Winterhouse has many charms-most notably its massive library. It's not long before she locates a magical book of puzzles that will unlock a mystery involving Norbridge and his sinister family. But the deeper she delves into the hotel's secrets, the more Elizabeth starts to realize that she is somehow connected to Winterhouse. As fate would have it, Elizabeth is the only person who can break the hotel's curse and solve the mystery. But will it be at the cost of losing the people she has come to care for, and even Winterhouse itself?
Mystery, adventure, and beautiful writing combine in this exciting debut audiobook richly set in a hotel full of secrets.
A Christy Ottaviano Book
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Superman: Dawnbreaker written by Matt de la Pena and read by Andrew Eiden.
The blockbuster DC Icons series that began with Leigh Bardugo's Wonder Woman, Marie Lu's Batman, and Sarah J. Maas's Catwoman continues with the story of the world's first super hero - SUPERMAN - from award-winning and #1 New York Times bestselling author MATT DE LA PEÑA.
Clark Kent has always been faster, stronger, better than everyone around him. He knows drawing attention to himself could be dangerous but lately it's difficult to stay in the shadows. A dark secret is lurking in Smallville and he's not the only one hiding something.
With his best friend, Lana Lang, at his side, Clark is determined to discover what evil lies below the surface of their small town. But there are secrets in Clark's past that threaten to destroy the future Man of Steel.
Before he can save the world, he must save Smallville.
The unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of Nick Hornby's hilarious coming-of-age novel Slam, read by Nicholas Hoult, star of the films About a Boy and Warm Bodies, as well as Channel 4's Skins.
'There was this time when everything seemed to have come together. And so obviously it was time to go and screw it all up.'
Sam is sixteen and a skater. Just so there are no terrible misunderstandings: skating = skateboarding. There's no ice. Life is ticking along nicely for Sam; his Mum's got rid of her rubbish boyfriend, he's thinking about college and he's met someone. Alicia.
Then a little accident happens. One with big consequences for someone just finding his way in life. Sam can't run (let alone skate) away from this one. He's a boy facing a man's problems and the question is - has he got what it takes to confront them?
Slam, from the acclaimed author of About a Boy and High Fidelity is a teenage novel about a boy who has to grow up in big, big hurry. It is The Catcher in the Rye for the 21st century.
'Very funny...very real' Daily Telegraph
'Hornby gets his point across with the subtlety and skill of a born novelist who always deserves to be read' Independent
'A moving read for anyone' Elle
Nick Hornby has captivated readers and achieved widespread critical acclaim for his comic, well-observed adult novels About a Boy, A Long Way Down, Juliet, Naked, How to be Good and High Fidelity. His three works of non-fiction, 31 Songs (shortlisted for the National Book Critics Circle Award), Fever Pitch (winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award) and The Complete Polysyllabic Spree are also available from Penguin.
