Featured Reads

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Mid-Air

Alicia D. Williams

Longlisted for the National Book Award

A tender-souled boy reeling from the death of his best friend struggles to fit into a world that wants him to grow up tough and unfeeling in this stunning illustrated middle grade novel in verse “full of vulnerability and hope” (Booklist, starred review) from the Newbery Honor–winning author of Genesis Begins Again.

It’s the last few months of eighth grade, and Isaiah feels lost. He thought his summer was going to be him and his boys Drew and Darius, hanging out, doing wheelies, watching martial arts movies, and breaking tons of Guinness World Records before high school. But now, more and more, Drew seems to be fading from their friendship, and though he won’t admit it, Isaiah knows exactly why. Because Darius is…gone.

A hit and run killed Darius in the midst of a record-breaking long wheelie when Isaiah should have been keeping watch, ready to warn: “CAR!” Now, Drew can barely look at Isaiah. But Isaiah, already quaking with ache and guilt, can’t lose two friends. So, he comes up with a plan to keep Drew and him together­­­—they can spend the summer breaking records, for Darius.

But Drew’s not the same Drew since Darius was killed, and Isaiah being Isaiah isn’t enough for Drew anymore. Not his taste in clothes, his love for rock music, or his aversion to jumping off rooftops. And one day something unspeakable happens to Isaiah that makes him think Drew’s right. If only he could be less sensitive, more tough, less weird, more cool, less him, things would be easier. But how much can Isaiah keep inside until he shatters wide open?

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Weirdo

Tony Weaver, Jr.

"A touching story of belonging." — Publisher's Weekly, starred review
"Honest, hopeful.." —Kirkus, starred review

A Kirkus Best Book of the Year
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year

Eleven-year-old Tony Weaver, Jr. loves comic books, anime, and video games, and idolizes the heroic, larger-than-life characters he finds there. But his new classmates all think he’s a weirdo. Bullied by his peers, Tony struggles with the hurt of not being accepted and tries to conform to other people's expectations. After a traumatic event shakes him to his core, he embarks on a journey of self love that will require him to become the hero of his own story. 

From rising star Tony Weaver, Jr., Weirdo is a triumphant and comedic story for any kid who's ever felt awkward, left out, or like they don't belong—perfect for fans of Jerry Craft's New Kid.

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Louder Than Hunger

John Schu

A Schneider Family Book Award Honor Book

"This heart-wrenching verse novel--inspired by the author's experiences . . . is an unflinching depiction of resistance and disordered eating recovery." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Jake volunteers at a nursing home because he likes helping people. He likes skating and singing, playing Bingo and Name That Tune, and reading mysteries and comics aloud to his teachers. He also likes avoiding people his own age . . . and the cruelty of mirrors . . . and food. Jake has read about kids like him in books--the weird one, the outsider--and would do anything not to be that kid, including shrink himself down to nothing. But the less he eats, the bigger he feels. How long can Jake punish himself before he truly disappears? A fictionalized account of the author's experiences and emotions living in residential treatment facilities as a young teen with an eating disorder, Louder Than Hunger is a triumph of raw honesty. With a deeply personal afterword for context, this verse novel is a powerful model for muffling the destructive voices inside, managing and articulating pain, and embracing self-acceptance, support, and love.

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The Labors of Hercules Beal

Gary D. Schmidt

From award-winning author Gary D. Schmidt, a warm and witty novel in the tradition of The Wednesday Wars, in which a seventh grader has to figure out how to fulfill a seemingly impossible school assignment--and learns about friendship, community, and himself along the way.

Herc Beal knows who he's named after--a mythical hero--but he's no superhero. He's the smallest kid in his class. So when his homeroom teacher at his new middle school gives him the assignment of duplicating the mythical Hercules's amazing feats in real life, he's skeptical. After all, there are no Nemean Lions on Cape Cod--and not a single Hydra in sight.

Missing his parents terribly and wishing his older brother wasn't working all the time, Herc figures out how to take his first steps along the road that the great Hercules himself once walked. Soon, new friends, human and animal, are helping him. And though his mythical role model performed his twelve labors by himself, Herc begins to see that he may not have to go it alone.

What happens when the twelve labors of a god become homework for a regular kid?

  • A Modern Take on Greek Mythology: The assignment is to perform all twelve labors, from capturing the Nemean Lion to facing Cerberus--all on contemporary Cape Cod.
  • A Story About Brothers: Living with his older brother Achilles isn't easy, especially when they're both trying to save their family's nursery. It's up to Herc to figure out how to mend his family while taking on his impossible quest.
  • The Grumpy Mentor: Herc's teacher is Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer, a retired marine who doesn't believe in friends. But his tough assignments might be exactly what Herc needs to find his own strength.
  • Finding Your Own Strength: Perfect for fans of Gary D. Schmidt's The Wednesday Wars, this powerful coming-of-age story is packed with humor, heart, and the power of community.
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Impossible Creatures

Katherine Rundell

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • THE FIRST BOOK IN THE LANDMARK NEW FANTASY SERIES THAT CONTINUES WITH THE POISONED KING

“A glorious fantasy adventure . . . Brimming with intelligence, inventiveness and generosity of heart.”—The Wall Street Journal (One of the Best Children’s Books of the Year)

Two kids race to save the world’s last magical place in this instant classic from “a writer with an utterly distinctive voice and a wild imagination.” (Philip Pullman, author of The Golden Compass)

*This paperback edition features beautifully designed stenciled edges depicting a creature from the book!*

The day that Christopher saved a drowning baby griffin from a hidden lake would change his life forever.

It’s the day he learned about the Archipelago—a cluster of unmapped islands where magical creatures of every kind have thrived for thousands of years, until now. And it’s the day he met Mal—a girl on the run, in desperate need of his help.

Mal and Christopher embark on a wild adventure, racing from island to island, searching for someone who can explain why the magic is fading and why magical creatures are suddenly dying. They consult sphinxes, battle kraken, and negotiate with dragons. But the closer they get to the dark truth of what’s happening, the clearer it becomes: no one else can fix this. If the Archipelago is to be saved, Mal and Christopher will have to do it themselves.

Katherine Rundell’s story crackles and roars with energy and delight. It is brought vividly to life with more than 60 illustrations, including a map and a bestiary of magical creatures.

A PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, KIRKUS REVIEWS, AND SHELF AWARENESS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

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The Sherlock Society

James Ponti

A New York Times bestseller!

In the tradition of Nancy Drew, four kids and one grandfather in Miami tackle a decades-old mystery in this first book full of “atmosphere, history, and lively humor” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) in the Sherlock Society middle grade series from New York Times bestselling, Edgar Award–winning author James Ponti!

Siblings Alex and Zoe Sherlock take their last name as inspiration when choosing a summer job. After all, starting a detective agency has to be better than babysitting (boring), lawn mowing (sweaty), or cleaning out the attic (boring and sweaty). Their friends Lina, an avid bookworm, and Yadi, an aspiring cinematographer, join the enterprise, and Alex and Zoe’s retired reporter grandfather offers up his sweet aquamarine Cadillac convertible and storage unit full of cold cases.

The group’s first target is the long-lost treasure supposedly hidden near their hometown Miami. Their investigation into the local doings of famed gangster Al Capone leads them to a remote island in the middle of the Everglades where they find alarming evidence hinting at corporate corruption.

Together with Grandpa’s know-how and the kids’ intelligence—plus some really slick gadgets—can the Sherlock Society root out the conspiracy?

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Witchlings

Claribel A. Ortega

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!

Perfect for fans of Wicked and KPop Demon Hunters. This is a page-turning adventure about fitting in, standing out, and the magical power of friendship.

Every year, in the magical town of Ravenskill, Witchlings who participate in the Black Moon Ceremony are placed into covens and come into their powers as full-fledged witches.

And twelve-year-old Seven Salazar can't wait to be placed in the most powerful coven with her best friend! But on the night of the ceremony, in front of the entire town, Seven isn't placed in one of the five covens. She's a Spare!

Spare covens have fewer witches, are less powerful, and are looked down on by everyone. Even worse, when Seven and the other two Spares perform the magic circle to seal their coven and cement themselves as sisters, it doesn't work! They're stuck as Witchlings--and will never be able to perform powerful magic.

Seven invokes her only option: the impossible task. The three Spares will be assigned an impossible task: If they work together and succeed at it, their coven will be sealed and they'll gain their full powers. If they fail... Well, the last coven to make the attempt ended up being turned into toads. Forever.

But maybe friendship can be the most powerful magic of all...

With action-packed adventure, a coven of quirky witchlings, Claribel A. Ortega's signature humor, and girl-power vibes, you won't be able to put down this middle-grade Latine witch story, perfect for fans of Amari and the Night Brothers or Harry Potter.

 

Accelerated Reading Level 5.6

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Keeping Pace

Laurie Morrison

Laurie Morrison's Keeping Pace is a poignant middle-grade novel about friends-turned-rivals training for a half-marathon--and rethinking what it means to win and what they mean to each other.

Grace has been working for years to beat her former friend Jonah Perkins's GPA so she can be named top scholar of the eighth grade. But when Jonah beats her for the title, it feels like none of Grace's academic accomplishments have really mattered. They weren't enough to win--or to impress her dad. And then the wide, empty summer looms. With nothing planned and no more goals or checklists, she doesn't know what she's supposed to be working toward.

Eager for something to occupy her days, Grace signs up for a half-marathon race that she and Jonah used to talk about running together. Jonah's running it, too. Maybe if she can beat Jonah on race day, she'll feel OK again. But as she begins training with Jonah and checking off a new list of summer goals, she starts to question what--and who--really matters to her. Is winning at all costs really worth it?

Engaging and heartfelt, Keeping Pace is about wanting to win at all costs--and having to learn how to fail.

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Four Eyes

Rex Ogle

A humorous and heartwarming middle-grade graphic memoir about fitting in, facing bullies, and finding the right pair of glasses.

Sixth grade isn't as great as Rex thought it would be. He's the only kid who hasn't had a growth spurt, and the bullies won't let him forget it. His closest friend is unreliable, at best. And there's a cute girl in his class, who may or may not like hiim back. With so much going on, everything is a blur -- including Rex's vision! So when he discovers that he needs glasses, and his family can only afford the ugliestpair in the store, any hope Rex had of fitting in goes completely out of focus.

In this true coming-of-age story, Rex has his sights set on surviving sixth grade, but now he's got to find a way to do it with glasses, no friends, and a family that just doesn't get it!

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Bye Forever, I Guess

Jodi Meadows

Can a guarded gamer girl lower her shield for a new friend... or more-than-friend?

"EARNEST AND LAUGH-OUT-LOUD... PITCH PERFECT."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

Thirteen-year-old Ingrid's been living a double life. At school, she's the Girl With Dead Parents, her popular friend Rachel's charity case. Online, things are different: she crushes it in her favorite MMORPG, geeks out in her favorite fantasy fandom, and runs a popular social media account. If only real life were that easy.

But when Ingrid finally stands up to Rachel and "starts drama," it suddenly feels like she has no life at all . . . and nowhere to sit at lunch.

Until she gets a supersweet wrong-number text from a mystery boy at her school, and everything starts to go right. Spending time together playing Ancient Tomes Online as "Stitches" and "Traveler" makes her feel like she's really connecting with someone. But when she begins to suspect that Traveler may be a popular classmate who is WAY above her in the cool-kid food chain--and whose original text was actually intended for Rachel--she faces a difficult choice. Can they be friends IRL? She wants to open up, but getting close to people has hurt her before.

Is making real friends only fantasy after all?

Bye Forever, I Guess is the fresh, funny, and deeply sweet middle-grade debut of New York Times bestselling author Jodi Meadows (MY LADY JANE). Speaking to the messiness of middle-school friendships (and first loves), this is a warm, witty, enormously entertaining book--and a love letter to geek culture, gaming, and the healing power of fantasy.

"HILARIOUS... Charming, funny, and endearing."--Kirkus Reviews

"The most DELIGHTFUL middle-grade romcom I've ever read!"--Ellen Oh, award-winning author of Finding Junie Kim

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Jennifer Chan Is Not Alone

Tae Keller

In her first novel since winning the Newbery Medal for When You Trap a Tiger, Tae Keller offers a gripping and emotional story about friendship, bullying, and the possiblity that there's more in the universe than just us.

Sometimes middle school can make you feel like you're totally alone in the universe . . . but what if we aren't alone at all?

Thanks to her best friend, Reagan, Mallory Moss knows the rules of middle school. The most important one? You have to fit in to survive. But then Jennifer Chan moves in across the street, and that rule doesn’t seem to apply. Jennifer doesn’t care about the laws of middle school, or the laws of the universe. She believes in aliens—and she thinks she can find them.

Then Jennifer goes missing. Using clues from Jennifer’s journals, Mallory goes searching. But the closer she gets to answers, the more Mallory has to confront why Jennifer might have run . . . and face the truth within herself.

Tae Keller lights up the sky with this insightful story about shifting friendships, right and wrong, and the power we all hold to influence and change one another. No one is ever truly alone.

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The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest

Aubrey Hartman

A Newbery Honor Award Book!

A fox and a badger begrudgingly team up to change their destinies in this endearing middle grade novel--perfect for fans of Kate DiCamillo and Katherine Applegate.

Featuring black-and-white illustrations throughout, this critically acclaimed novel brings Deadwood Forest to life through both words and art.

"Heartbreaking, marvelously funny, and generously redemptive." ―Kirkus, starred review

Clare is the undead fox of Deadwood Forest. Here, leaves grow in a perpetual state of fall: not quite dead, but not quite alive--just like Clare. Long ago, he was struck by a car, and, hovering between life and death, he was given the choice to either cross into the Afterlife or become an Usher of wandering souls. Clare chose the latter: a solitary life of guiding souls to their final resting place.

Clare's quiet and predictable days are met with upheaval when a badger soul named Gingersnipes knocks on his door. Despite Clare's efforts to usher her into the Afterlife, the badger is unable to leave Deadwood. This is unprecedented. Baffling. A disturbing mystery which threatens the delicate balance between the living and the dead.

Desperate for help, Clare and Gingersnipes set out on a treacherous journey to find Hesterfowl--the visionary grouse who recently foretold of turmoil in Deadwood. But upon their arrival, Hesterfowl divulges a shocking revelation that leaves Clare devastated, outraged, and determined to do anything to change his fate.

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The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman

Gennifer Choldenko

Everyone will be rooting for a happy ending for Hank, a boy struggling to hold his family together when his mom doesn't come home, in this gripping story from Newbery Honor winner Gennifer Choldenko.

“One of those rare and important books . . . Hank Hooperman may well be the most resourceful, courageous, and loving big brother in the history of children’s literature.”—Katherine Applegate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The One and Only Ivan

A CALIBA GOLDEN POPPY AWARD WINNER • A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL AND KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

When eleven-year-old Hank’s mom doesn’t come home, he takes care of his toddler sister, Boo, like he always does. But it’s been a week now. They are out of food and mom has never stayed away this long… Hank knows he needs help, so he and Boo seek out the stranger listed as their emergency contact.

But asking for help has consequences. It means social workers, and a new school, and having to answer questions about his mom that he's been trying to keep secret. And if they can't find his mom soon, Hank and Boo may end up in different foster homes--he could lose everything. 

Gennifer Choldenko has written a heart-wrenching, healing, and ultimately hopeful story about how complicated family can be. About how you can love someone, even when you can’t rely on them. And about the transformative power of second chances.

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Popcorn

Rob Harrell

Winner of The Schneider Family Book Award 

The beloved author of Wink is back with a hilarious and moving story about coping with anxiety on a day when everything is going wrong

Andrew’s just trying to make it through Picture Day, which is easier said than done when it seems like the whole world is out to get him—from a bully to a science experiment gone wrong to a someone else’s juice snot (don’t ask).

But as Andrew goes through the school day, and as one thing after another goes wrong, that little kernel of worry in his stomach is getting hotter and hotter, until it threatens to pop and turn into a public panic attack, his worst fear. He tries to keep his anxiety at bay, but the news that his grandmother with Alzheimer’s is missing is too much.

Interspersed with humorous spot art and “anxiety file” panels that depict the real, difficult feelings of anxiety and OCD and real tips for coping, this is a poignant, personal, and laugh-out-loud funny story about letting go of control and accepting help—all while trying to get the perfect school picture.

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The Enigma Girls

Candace Fleming

A Robert F. Sibert Honor Book. With numerous starred reviews and accolades, from award-winning author Candace Fleming, comes the powerful and fascinating story of the brave and dedicated young women who helped turn the tides of World War II for the Allies, with their hard work and determination at Bletchley Park.

"Events are brought to dramatic life through a treasure trove of photographs--which show the goings-on at Bletchley and the sobering progress of the war--and through the author's meticulous research." -- The New York Times Book Review

"You are to report to Station X at Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire, in four days time....That is all you need to know." This was the terse telegram hundreds of young women throughout the British Isles received in the spring of 1941, as World War II raged. As they arrived at Station X, a sprawling mansion in a state of disrepair surrounded by Spartan-looking huts with little chimneys coughing out thick smoke--these young people had no idea what kind of work they were stepping into. Who had recommended them? Why had they been chosen? Most would never learn all the answers to these questions.

Bletchley Park was a well-kept secret during World War II, operating under the code name Station X. The critical work of code-cracking Nazi missives that went on behind its closed doors could determine a victory or loss against Hitler's army. Amidst the brilliant cryptographers, flamboyant debutantes, and absent-minded professors working there, it was teenaged girls who kept Station X running. Some could do advanced math, while others spoke a second language. They ran the unwieldy bombe machines, made sense of wireless sound waves, and sorted the decoded messages. They were expected to excel in their fields and most importantly: know how to keep a secret.

Candace Fleming is the award-winning and highly acclaimed author of Crash from Outer Space, The Curse of the Mummy, and many other nonfiction books for young readers. With her canny and compelling narrative voice she makes history come alive. The recipient of five starred reviews, and thick with tension and suspense, The Enigma Girls is an extraordinary and relatively unknown story of World War II that will fascinate readers who will be thrilled to see young people playing such an important role in the wartime effort.

Scholastic Focus is the premier home of thoroughly researched, beautifully written, and thoughtfully designed works of narrative nonfiction aimed at middle-grade and young adult readers. These books help readers learn about the world in which they live and develop their critical thinking skills, so that they may become dynamic citizens who are able to analyze and understand our past, participate in essential discussions about our present, and work to grow and build our future.

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And Then, Boom!

Lisa Fipps

A gripping new novel in verse by the author of the Printz Honor-winning Starfish, featuring a poverty-stricken boy who bravely rides out all the storms life keeps throwing at him

Joe Oak is used to living on unsteady ground. His mom can’t be depended on as she never stays around long once she gets “the itch,” and now he and his beloved grandmother find themselves without a home. Fortunately, Joe has an outlet in his journals and drawings and takes comfort from the lessons of comic books—superheroes have a lot of “and then, boom” moments, where everything threatens to go bust but somehow they land on their feet. And that seems to happen a lot to Joe too, as in this crisis his friend Nick helps them find a home in his trailer park. But things fall apart again when Joe is suddenly left to fend for himself. He doesn’t tell anyone he’s on his own, as he fears foster care and has hope his mom will come back. But time is running out—bills are piling up, the electricity’s been shut off, and the school year’s about to end, meaning no more free meals. The struggle to feed himself gets intense, and Joe finds himself dumpster diving for meals. He’s never felt so alone—until an emaciated little dog and her two tiny pups cross his path. And fate has even more in store for Joe, because an actual tornado is about to hit home—and just when it seems all is lost, his life turns in a direction that he never could have predicted.

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The Partition Project

Saadia Faruqi

In this engaging and moving middle grade novel, Saadia Faruqi writes about a contemporary Pakistani American girl whose passion for journalism starts a conversation about her grandmother's experience of the Partition of India and Pakistan--and the bond that the two form as she helps Dadi tell her story.

When her grandmother comes off the airplane in Houston from Pakistan, Mahnoor knows that having Dadi move in is going to disrupt everything about her life. She doesn't have time to be Dadi's unofficial babysitter--her journalism teacher has announced that their big assignment will be to film a documentary, which feels more like storytelling than what Maha would call "journalism."

As Dadi starts to settle into life in Houston and Maha scrambles for a subject for her documentary, the two of them start talking. About Dadi's childhood in northern India--and about the Partition that forced her to leave her home and relocate to the newly created Pakistan.

As details of Dadi's life are revealed, Dadi's personal story feels a lot more like the breaking news that Maha loves so much. And before she knows it, she has the subject of her documentary.

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365 Days to Alaska

Cathy Carr

Cathy Carr's 365 Days to Alaska is a charming debut middle-grade novel about a girl from off-the-grid Alaska adjusting to suburban life.

Eleven-year-old Rigel Harman loves her life in off-the-grid Alaska. She hunts rabbits, takes correspondence classes through the mail, and plays dominoes with her family in their two-room cabin. She doesn't mind not having electricity or running water--instead, she's got tall trees, fresh streams, and endless sky.

But then her parents divorce, and Rigel and her sisters have to move with their mom to the Connecticut suburbs to live with a grandmother they've never met. Rigel hates it in Connecticut. It's noisy, and crowded, and there's no real nature. Her only hope is a secret pact that she made with her father: If she can stick it out in Connecticut for one year, he'll bring her back home.

At first, surviving the year feels impossible. Middle school is nothing like the wilderness, and she doesn't connect with anyone . . . until she befriends a crow living behind her school. And if this wild creature has made a life for itself in the suburbs, then, just maybe, Rigel can too.

365 Days to Alaska is a wise and funny debut novel about finding beauty, hope, and connection in the world no matter where you are--even Connecticut.

"Rigel's big heart made my own heart ache. A funny and poignant fish-out-of-water tale with all the right feels and an important reflection on how we can all find our way home." --John David Anderson, author of Ms. Bixby's Last Day

"Rigel's suspenseful journey toward finding a home for her brave and wild heart is one that will help us all discover the beauty and uniqueness of where we are." --Francisco X. Stork, author of Marcelo in the Real World

"Readers will want to travel alongside Rigel as she struggles to survive the halls of middle school as well as she did the Alaskan bush. 365 Days to Alaska is a wonderful debut novel about compassion, belonging, and finding your way home when you feel lost in the wilderness." --Lynne Kelly, author of Song for a Whale

"Cathy Carr's debut is a poignant novel about family and truth, particularly the uncomfortable truths between fathers and daughters, told in a voice full of insight, love, and humor. She's an author to watch, full of wisdom and exquisite heart." --Carrie Jones, NYT bestselling author of the Need and Time Stoppers series

"Rigel Harman isn't just any outsider--she's an Alaskan Bush outsider. Carr's empathic and outstanding debut novel will move readers of all ages, creating internal acceptance not only for Rigel but also for ourselves." --Bethany Hegedus, author of Grandfather Gandhi

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Worst-Case Collin

Rebecca Caprara

This poignant middle grade novel in verse follows twelve-year-old Collin who manages his anxiety by mapping out survival plans for any disaster or worst-case scenario. 

Collin is always prepared for something to go wrong. Ever since he lost his mom in a car accident, he's been journaling about how to overcome things like avalanches, riptides, or even a bad case of halitosis. Meanwhile, Collin's father grows more distant by the day, and has started hoarding things throughout their house. Determined to hide his home life from his friends, Collin navigates middle school alongside the hilarious and clueless Liam, and Georgia, who Collin may have feelings for. Can Collin learn to be vulnerable around those he loves, even when he can't control every possible scenario?

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I Am Not a Robot

Joanna Stern

What happens when intelligent machines aren't just in our pockets but are also driving our cars, making our decisions, folding our laundry, and educating our kids?

You've heard the hype: AI will make us healthier, give every child a personalized tutor, run our businesses more efficiently, return hours of free time to our overworked brains, and make discoveries previously unimagined by humankind. The AI future is going to be unlike any other technological revolu­tion. But what does that really mean? And will AI truly make life better?

To find out, award-winning journalist Joanna Stern surrendered her life to artificial intelligence for one year. The results are both hilarious and unsettling.

I Am Not a Robot is like a time machine trip to the very near future, where AI promises to be your doctor, chauffeur, teacher, masseuse, coworker, thera­pist, financial planner, chef, housekeeper, and even . . . romantic partner. Your colleague might be using ChatGPT to write emails at work, but Joanna used AI tools and robots to do household chores, to manage her health, and to transport her family on vacation. If there was a decision to make or a task to do, she let AI go first. Along the way, she conducted exclusive interviews with the tech leaders building this future, then reported back from the front lines as your funny, no-nonsense tour guide.

Of course, tech's sunny promises never tell the whole story, and that's what Joanna is here to share. Filled with illustrations and photographs, this book offers less hype, more clarity, and as little jargon as humanly (or robotically) possible. It's an AI guide for ordinary people--not the tech bros who tried to sell you a cruise to the metaverse or an NFT of a cartoon monkey.

This book is not the definitive story, because we're only a few years into the AI revolution. But after a year of living as a human lab rat, Joanna deliv­ers one of the clearest--and funniest--pictures yet of what's really happening and what it means for you.

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True Crime Patricia Cornwell

Patricia Cornwell

#1 New York Times bestselling author Patricia Cornwell finally tells the story that rivals all of the works that precede it: her own.



"Let's start, and end, with this: Patricia Cornwell's autobiography, TRUE CRIME, could be the best book she's ever written. And I've read them all!" --James Patterson



Patricia Cornwell is best known for her international bestselling thriller series about forensic pathologist Dr. Kay Scarpetta. Every story comes from somewhere, and Scarpetta's began when Patricia Cornwell embedded herself in a morgue.



In this achingly honest memoir, Cornwell excavates her own life, detailing her traumatic childhood being raised by neglectful parents, her father abandoning the young family on Christmas day, her mother being institutionalized twice, an abusive foster family, and developing a parental relationship with evangelist Billy Graham's wife Ruth. Cornwell depicts a harrowing hospitalization and near-death car accident. She unflinchingly shares overcoming obstacles that later gave her the ambition to become an award-winning police reporter. From there it was research in a medical examiner's office that would turn into a full-time job. She would become a forensic expert and worldwide publishing phenomenon.

Cornwell leaves no stone unturned in this deeply candid account of her life, offering inspiring insight into what made her into the international sensation she is today.

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The Things We Never Say

Elizabeth Strout

Pulitzer Prize–winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Strout’s new novel tells the story of a chance incident that sparks a powerful realization in a beloved teacher’s life—a poignant meditation on loneliness, friendship, parenthood, and the importance of truth in a capsizing world

Artie Dam is living a double life. He spends his days teaching history to eleventh graders, expanding their young minds, correcting their casual cruelties, and lending a kind word to those who need it most. He goes to holiday parties with his wife of three decades, makes small talk with neighbors, and, on weekends, takes his sailboat out on the beautiful Massachusetts Bay. He is, by all appearances, present and alive. But inside, Artie is plagued by feelings of isolation. He looks out at a world gone mad—at himself and the people around him—and turns a question over and over in his mind: How is it that we know so little about one another, even those closest to us?

And then, one day, Artie learns that life has been keeping a secret from him, one that threatens to upend his entire world. Once he learns it, he is forced to chart a new course, to reconsider the relationships he holds most dear—and to make peace with the mysteries at the heart of our existence.

Elizabeth Strout, as we have come to expect, delivers a moving exploration of the human condition—one that brims with compassion for each and every one of her indelible characters. With exquisite prose and profound insight, The Things We Never Say takes one man’s fears and loneliness and makes them universal. And in the same breath, captures the abiding love that sustains and holds us all.

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Along Came a Spider

Raymond McGrath

Spring is here! The leaves are green. The sky is blue. The flowers are in bloom. And there's a new bird in town . . .

Bird is finally out on his own, but he's having a hard time. Finding the perfect tree is anything but easy. Building a perfect nest isn't going well. As for making friends? That's proving to be the biggest test of all. That's when Spider swings by, catching Bird's eye. But they can't possibly be best friends . . . or can they?

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Serendipity

Gabbie Benda

Serendipity is the luckiest kid in the world. But what happens when the luckiest kid in the world becomes extraordinarily unlucky, in this debut graphic novel.

Serendipity is your classic overachiever. She's class president, lead in the school play, and star of the basketball team. She's also incredibly lucky, like, wins everything all the time lucky, even random radio raffles.

Which is how she finds herself with free tickets to the town carnival where an accident curses her with bad luck FOREVER.

And just like that Serendipity's luck really does seem to run out. Missed shots, fumbled lines, and a slip in the polls. Can it get any worse? Oh yes it can. Permanent bad hair days.

Serendipity becomes convinced the curse is real. She's definitely not disorganized or spread too thin. Nope, it's all the curse. And she'll have to find a way to reverse it soon.

Hilariously charming and illustrated in sugar pink hues, this graphic novel is a treat for kids who love middle school dramas and adorable, if impulsive characters. It's a perfect story for overstressed overachievers looking for a warm reminder that stepping back doesn't mean stepping down. In fact, sharing the spotlight with good friends is perhaps the luckiest thing of all.

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PAWS: The Trouble with Leo

Nathan Fairbairn

The girls of PAWS have a bone to pick with a group of rival dog walkers in the fifth book of this heartwarming and hilarious graphic novel series that is the Baby-Sitters Club for pets!

It's been seven whole dog years of PAWS (or just one if you're a human), and business is at an all-time high! But after a regrettable run-in with Gabby's arch-nemesis, Leo, things take an unfortunate turn. The two have an argument and Leo leaves the girls with an ominous message: "You're not the only one who can walk dogs..." 

It's not long before the girls notice flyers advertising a new dog walking business, SCAMPS. Sure enough, Leo and friends Brandon and Nolawi are behind it. And when Gabby and Mindy take some not-so-righteous retribution on these PAWS copycats, what could just be a little healthy competition turns into an all-out turf war.

In the midst of it all, Mindy gets stuck doing a group project with Brandon, bringing her face to face with the enemy. But is it possible they have more in common than not? As the battle between the two groups escalates, and neither side is playing fair, the girls are forced to reconsider who the true villain of this story might really be.

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Tough Times

Raúl the Third

"Outrageously creative! Kids will drink in every imaginative detail in El Toro's wild world!" --Jeff Kinney, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series

From the Eisner Award Nominated World of ¡Vamos! series, Tough Times finds everyone's favorite young luchador fighting a losing streak in an action-packed, graphic-novel-style El Toro & Friends paper-over-board reader by New York Times bestselling, three-time Pura Belpré Award-winning author-illustrator Raúl the Third.

The rookie Kid Toro hasn't won a match in a long time. He loses to every wrestler he fights, from Al "the Crane" Scorpio to Prickly Pear to Burrobot. It feels like he'll never win again!

Luckily, his coach, Ricky Raton, won't let him give up so easily. As he reminds his young fighter what he does best, Kid Toro starts to realize that, when you get knocked down, getting back up makes all the difference.

Tackling Spanish phrases and packed full of humor, these Eisner-nominated early reader graphic novels are essential for readers who want an action-packed story and lots of laughs.

For more fun with El Toro & Friends, check out:

 

  • Tag Team
  • Tacos Today
  • Team Up
  • Training Day
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Big Nate: Code Red!

Lincoln Peirce

Mischievous, imaginative sixth-grader Nate Wright is a favorite of middle grade readers everywhere. Thanks to his hilarious schemes, grand ideas, and unusual approach to friendship, there's never a dull moment with Big Nate!

Sixth-grade phenom Nate Wright is a force, whether on the soccer field, a master of pranks, or as the school newspaper's cartoonist, and now he's using his talents to launch a new podcast. Spring fever is in the air, both on the baseball field and school crushes, and Nate worries that the worst team name in history may hurt his mojo. Nate's friends do their best to keep him in check, but the star of Lincoln Peirce's bestselling series is determined to overcome any obstacle: surprise locker partners, a detention-happy teacher, or even cafetorium duty with Coach John. In Big Nate: Code Red, Nate and friends pull out all the stops!

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The Adventures of Tubby Nugget: Escape from Nuggetville #1

Jenine Pastores

Embark on an unforgettable journey with social media sensation Tubby Nugget in this delightful graphic novel!

Welcome to Nuggetville, a quaint town on Planet Nüg that the adorable and ever-optimistic Tubby Nugget calls home. Life there is sweet, filled with playful friends, delicious snacks, and endless creativity.

But when the time comes for Tubby to take part in the customary Dunking ceremony to become a golden nugget—and say goodbye to the life he's always known as a little nug—he realizes that he yearns for something different. Can his heart feel at home somewhere new? Join Tubby on a daring journey as he bravely defies tradition to stay true to himself. 

Whether you're a longtime fan of Tubby Nugget or new to his adventures, this graphic novel promises to be a nugget of joy in your reading collection. Grab your favorite snack and get ready to embark on an extraordinary adventure with Tubby Nugget!

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Camp Monster

Kate Messner

New York Times bestselling author Kate Messner invites you to Camp Monster in this fun-filled young middle-grade graphic novel series perfect for fans of InvestiGators.

Tasha's family has run Camp Yeti for generations, but these days there just aren't enough Yetis to fill the bunks. This summer they are rebranding as CAMP MONSTER--a superfun summer camp experience for ALL of monster-kind. Tasha can't wait to show off all the camp traditions she loves!

But things get off to a rocky start--the goblins are causing a ruckus, the ogre is a total diva, and the werewolf keeps disappearing. This is not the perfect summer Tasha had hoped for. Then a series of mysterious mishaps occurs . . . someone is trying to sabotage Camp Monster! Can these monsters set aside their differences to find out who is behind the hijinks?

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The Cursed Spotlight

Mina Finch

An action-packed fantasy series for middle grade fans of K-pop and the hottest animated film of the decade!

Every year, one trainee is chosen for the coveted Spotlight Solo, but legends say every winner is cursed. When Nari is selected, her anxieties spiral as shadow demons twist the superstition into a weapon. The group fractures under fear until Taeyang uncovers the truth behind the curse. To protect Nari, they must rally together and prove that friendship shines brighter than fear.

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Dragon Girl and the Awakened Flames

Jenny Moore

An orphan girl discovers she has dragon blood--the key to immortality. Hunted by an evil necromancer, she must learn to control her emerging powers if she is going to stop him.

"A hero forged in fiercest flame, A child of iron and pain. By blood shall heal and chasm seal A kingdom torn in twain."--The Final Prophecy from the Tome of Terrible Tomorrows*

*Also known as Odolf's prophecy. (But only by Odolf!)

All the best stories and adventures start with a knock at the door... Or the thwump of a dragon's tail at the entrance to her cave, in the case of Emba Oak. But then nothing about Emba's story is normal; from the scales on her arms and legs, to the shocking discovery that she hatched out of a dragon's egg. Even more shocking is the news that an evil sorcerer is after her dragon blood and will do anything to get his hands on it. Can Emba keep herself safe or will her loved ones pay the price?

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The Mighty Macy

Kwame Alexander

A young girl finds her voice--and discovers the power of speaking up for herself and her community--in this sweet and humorous chapter book by award-winning, #1 bestselling author Kwame Alexander. Perfect for fans of Ivy + Bean and Ruby and the Booker Boys.

"A winning narrative about the power of language and learning to stand up for one's beliefs." ―Publishers Weekly, starred review

When Macy gets book one of The Mighty Zora series for her birthday, she stays up until 11:34pm finishing the book.

But the next day, when Macy gets to her school library, eager to check out book two, she finds the door locked with a sign explaining that the library will now only be open a few days a week due to budget cuts. Even worse, she finds out her father won't be home to help her figure out what to do, as he will be traveling to a museum in Montgomery, Alabama to read a poem about civil rights.

With help from her fellow third graders, support from her mom, and encouragement from poems written and hidden for her by her father, Macy must find her voice and learn the power of advocating for herself and her community.

Can Macy learn to be Mighty?

★ "Tender and powerful, this unique chapter book in verse is a delight ... highly recommended for elementary fiction shelves." School Library Journal, starred review

★ "An excellent choice for independent readers and classroom read-alouds. Like Macy, this story is one of a kind."Booklist, starred review

★ "Unputdownable." Kirkus Reviews, starred review

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Mystery on Macaw Mountain

María José Fitzgerald

Birds of a feather solve crime together in this exciting middle grade mystery! When eight endangered macaws are stolen from a bird sanctuary in the Mayan ruins of Copán, four sleuthing cousins must find out who took them—and why.

Nico and his cousins don't have much in common, but they're all excited to visit the Mayan ruins at Copán and witness the release of the scarlet macaws. Nearly extinct in Honduras, eight of these majestic birds are about to be introduced to a brand new bird sanctuary. But on the eve of the big day the birds are stolen!

Who could have planned this bewildering bird heist—and why? Nico and his cousins are determined to find out—and anyone could be a suspect: poachers, developers, Mama's annoying novio . . . The investigation will take them from bustling downtown Copán to the mist-shrouded ruins of Macaw Mountain, uniting the cousins as they unravel a plot far stranger than any of them could have imagined.

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Revenants Return

James Riley

The fate of magic rests in the hands (and claws) of a cranky dragon, a feisty apprentice...and a prince who may not be all he seems? Get ready for the sequel to the hilarious New York Times bestselling fantasy adventure The Dragon's Apprentice—from the beloved author of the Story Thieves series!

You were warned to stay away from THE DRAGON’S APPRENTICE. It was forbidden for a good reason, as it told the story of a village girl named Ciara finding her own book of magic and learning spells from a dragon of all things. These are dangerous ideas, and no one should be allowed to see them.

Fortunately, Ciara’s story didn’t end there, or she might have doomed us all. No, thankfully, a true hero to the Draconic Empire, Prince Aiden, has come to Ciara’s village to stop her and her teacher, Scorch the dragon. The prince, like his father the Emperor, is a powerful magic-user. And Aiden uses his power to keep us safe from strange, forbidden books. If anyone can stop Ciara from teaching others magic and therefore summoning the horrible Revenants that once defeated the Dragon Mage herself, it’s the Empire’s beloved prince.

Let’s just hope that Ciara can’t spread her knowledge of magic before the prince can find her and put an end to her evil deeds once and for all…

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The Lighthouse at the World's End

Amy Sparkes

Nine and her friends must hunt down the priceless stargold locket to fend off a dangerous witch in the fourth and final book in the adventurous, magical, and brilliantly funny New York Times bestselling House at the Edge of Magic series.

Nine and her friends are headed to the mortal realm in search of the only thing that will shake a very tricky witch off their tail: a priceless stargold locket. It lies hidden in the Nest of a Thousand Treasures, guarded by Nine’s old foe—the formidable gangmaster of all the thieflings in London.

Even if Nine can get her hands on the locket, the friends must find a way to release its power— and for that they must travel through the World Between Worlds to the lighthouse on the Isle of Illusion, where nothing is quite as it seems…

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Stealing the Score

Sylvia Liu

The World Cup is coming to town!

 

Soccer superfans Ethan, Sasha, and Mateo are thrilled that the biggest sporting event in the world is coming to their backyard. When a contest offering a once-in-a-lifetime chance to attend the World Cup is announced, they are all ready to do whatever it takes to win. To do so, they must complete a scavenger hunt throughout Miami to find a replica pair of the lucky cleats worn by their favorite player, El Botín (or The Boot).

 

Best friends Ethan, a competitive soccer player, and Sasha, an online footy gamer, are wary of privileged soccer influencer Mateo at first. But they can't seem to stop crossing paths with him, and reluctantly join forces. What starts as a strictly strategic alliance to solve the scavenger hunt clues takes a turn when El Botín's real cleats go missing. The fate of the whole tournament could be in jeopardy--unless the new friends can uncover the truth!

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Destiny of the Diamond Princess

Sherri Winston

The Princess Diaries meets From the Desk of Zoey Washington in this story about a girl who is reconnected with her birth family, only to discover that she is an African princess and the key to unlocking an ancient curse.

For her twelfth birthday, the only thing Zahara-Grace wants is to figure out who she is. She knows she has the best mom and grandpa around, she knows she loves her friends, and she knows she likes to make a difference in her community. But she also knows she's adopted, and she wants to learn more about that side of herself. Zahara-Grace is thrilled when her mom let's her take a DNA test, but she never could have imagined that her biological grandfather would find her. And she definitely never imagined he'd be the king of a small African country!

Now torn between two worlds, Zahara-Grace is even less sure of who she is. Her worlds collide when a mummy exhibit opens at the local museum, showcasing the history and legends of her biological family's country-including an ancient cult who believes with the help of a living heir, they can awaken the mummified remains of a powerful king and conquer the world. Learning she's a princess may have turned Zahara-Grace's life upside down, but now her life is in actual danger. And in order to survive, she must find a way to embrace both sides of herself.

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Make New Friends

Joshua David Stein

An empathetic and reassuring picture book about the loaded question that every "new kid" or socially anxious child dreads: "Did you make any new friends today?"

A New York Times Best Children's Books of the Year!

Tomasso doesn't know anyone at his new school and has no one to play with at recess. So, knowing his dad will ask, he resolves to make a few new friends.

Each day his crew grows; there's Roland (a foam ball), Coco (a milk carton), and Karen (a very pink eraser). But when his dad insists on having his friends over for pizza, Tomasso knows that soon his secret will be out. Will his dad welcome his new friends, even if they're not who he expects?

Written for any child who struggles with making friends or social anxiety, and featuring warm, witty illustrations, Make New Friends is both silly and sincere, inviting kids to trust the unconditional love and acceptance of a parent.

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A Spoonful of the Sea

Hyewon Yum

On her birthday, a girl is presented with a bowl of miyeokguk, seaweed soup--instead of the cake she wants. As she stirs her soup, her mother tells her how mothers eat it after giving birth and how it is served on birthdays to honor them; about haenyeo, women who dive into the ocean's depths to harvest shellfish and seaweed; and how, many mothers ago, a pregnant haenyeo saw a whale eating seaweed after giving birth and tried it after having her own baby--creating a tradition that would continue for generations of daughters to come.

Award-winning picture book creator Hyewon Yum has crafted a luminous and heartfelt celebration of motherhood, heritage, and the deep-rooted connection between women and nature.

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Leo's Lobo

Melissa Cristina Márquez

Melissa Cristina Márquez pens another story perfect for young readers and pet owners! Leo is on the search for the "perfect" pet and stumbles upon one in an unexpected place. But in this colorful and quirky picture book, he quickly learns that sometimes raising a pet requires a village.

Leo is thrilled when he and his family enter a shelter so he can adopt a new pet, but after searching for a while, Leo doesn’t feel the connection he had hoped for and leaves feeling disappointed. On the way home, he and his family see a busy marketplace and find another shelter hidden inside: one for magical creatures! There Leo connects with an alebrije, their bond forming before they can even leave the shelter. But he quickly learns just how much responsibility comes with raising a pet. 

Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, globally renowned shark scientist, and author of Mother of Sharks and Sea of Constellations, returns celebrating Mexican culture, fantastical creatures, and community in this picture book encouraging readers to seek support when needed. Maria Gabriela Gama's whimsical art brings the story to life and draws readers in as they learn alongside Leo the importance of asking for help, a lesson we can all use.

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A Bear, a Man, and a Donut Van

Daniel Bernstrom

An Amazon Best Book of the Month

Kirkus Reviews, starred review
BookPage, starred review

Hungry as always, Bear finally feasts on DONUTS in his third picture book adventure. With delightful art, perfect rhyme, and the series’ indelible screwball appeal, A Bear, a Man, and a Donut Van will have everyone in stitches and demanding repeat readings!

Everyone’s favorite hungry bear is back! This time Bear discovers a van full of donuts—YUM! Bear climbs in the van, but the unsuspecting donut man doesn't see what's going on. Until... he looks in his rear view mirror, and OMG!!! What should a donut man do when a bear is eating donuts in his van?

Here is a road trip neither bear nor man will ever forget—with mooses, traffic jams, and a giant forest donut spill. With mayhem and fun on every page, the critically acclaimed duo of Daniel Bernstrom and Brandon James Scott are at their best in this high-stakes joyride through millions of donuts, perfect for toddlers and new readers alike.

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My Abuela Is a Bruja

Mayra Cuevas

From an award-winning author comes a vibrant and heartwarming story of the bond between grandmother and grandchild, with a touch of Puerto Rican magic!

A New York Public Library Best Book of the Year! 
A Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature's Best Books of the Year! 


My abuela is a bruja.
There is magic in everything she does.

There is nothing more magical than a grandmother's love. But one lucky girl suspects her grandmother has actual magic. It's in the tun-tun-tun of the way she dances salsa, in the warmth of her hugs, and the delicious smell of her cooking. The granddaughter wonders: will I have magic of my own one day?

Follow the magic in this heartfelt picture book that features extensive backmatter that includes two special recipes from Mayra Cuevas and uplifiting illustrations from Lorena Alvarez Gómez.

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Community Snowman

Deborah Kerbel

Building a snowman becomes a community effort, in this wordless story about a cold winter day that snowballs into a warm neighborhood gathering.

One morning, a girl wakes up to discover that it has snowed overnight. After breakfast she starts building a snowman -- and soon realizes that it's easier and more fun to do with some help!

Other kids join in to help roll the balls that make up the snowman's body. A passing teenager helps them reach to place the head. Then more neighbors come along and each contribute something unique from their packed lunches or winter ensembles: a pickle for a nose, bagel halves for the ears, lychee buttons, a shawl ...

The final touch comes in the form of a poppy pin placed by a veteran over the snowman's heart. The snowman smiles as the community members pause to admire their work. And when the crowd disperses, the girl and her grandfather stay behind to share a snack and warmth with someone who needs them.

Inspired by a real "community snowman" built by neighbors, author Deborah Kerbel has crafted a narrative about serendipitous connections, working together and paying it forward. These themes -- and more! -- are brought to life by the comic brilliance of Tine Modeweg-Hansen.


 

Key Text Features

wordless

panels

illustrations

 

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3

Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7

Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

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Elizabeth II In Private. in Public. Her Story.

Robert Hardman

A celebration of the life of Queen Elizabeth II on the centenary of her birth, by the bestselling author of The Making of a King and Queen of Our Times.

Elizabeth II was not born to reign. Like that other great queen in modern history, Victoria, the throne came to her by indirect means. Yet she would become one of the most beloved monarchs in history, surpassing almost every entry in the royal record book.

As a child, her idyllic life on the royal fringe was transformed first by the scandalous love life of her wayward uncle and then by war. Despite multiple attacks on the family home, she watched and learned from her father has he led his nation through much suffering to victory, falling in love along the way.

At the age of just twenty-five—a young wife and mother of two—she suddenly found herself head of state of much of the Earth, with the greatest statesman of the age as her senior adviser.

Her coronation was a moment of national rejuvenation, though swiftly followed by the first of many challenges and crises – personal, political, and global - which would test her over seven decades. The highs and lows of ordinary family life, for her, would be mercilessly scrutinised and magnified through the lens of the world’s media. Unlike Shakespeare’s monarchs, the dramatists would set to work in her own lifetime.

Yet she also managed to remain an endlessly fascinating mystery to the end, revered and mourned worldwide.

No one has written more authoritatively on the life of Elizabeth II than Robert Hardman, the only biographer to have interviewed the entire Royal Family. On the centenary of her birth, amid all the commemorating and celebrating, it is time to bring the whole extraordinary story of her life to a new audience in a fresh, accessible, concise portrait—one which will enthrall those who have now come to realize that Elizabeth II was not merely the most famous woman in the world, captured on banknotes, coins, and The Crown. She was one of history’s all-time greats, and this finely-written and original narrative reveals why.

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Where the Music Had to Go

Jim Windolf

Persuasive, captivating, and bursting with insight, this dual biography by acclaimed New York Times journalist Jim Windolf dives into the surprisingly supportive, occasionally rivalrous, and always fertile relationship between Bob Dylan and the Beatles, uncovering how they inspired and transformed each other as songwriters, recording artists, and cultural icons.

From Dylan’s initial dismissal of the Beatles as being for “teenyboppers” to his realization that they were “pointing the direction where music had to go”—and from the Beatles’ obsessive spinning of early Dylan records to their impromptu renditions of fifteen Dylan songs during the 1969 Get Back sessions—the book captures the moments that pushed Dylan to “go electric” and inspired the Beatles to deepen their lyrics. Highly entertaining and packed with backstage anecdotes, Where the Music Had to Go is a deep-focus portrait of a heretofore unexamined relationship, one full of camaraderie, competition, and mutual evolution.

More than a music biography, this is a front-row seat to the forces that shaped an era—an unmissable experience for music lovers, pop-culture buffs, and anyone curious about the magic that happens when legends collide.

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Rocket's Red Glare James Patterson

James Patterson

From the world's #1 bestselling author: they're ex-Special Forces. They're on American soil. Their code name is "Rocket's Red Glare." 



Nat Phillips leads an elite roster of special operators. They are ex-Special Forces, communications specialists, and intelligence officers. Phillips is a brilliant strategist and battle-tested leader who inspires total loyalty in his team. Now these decorated veterans of international warfare are at home and on stand-by--until a presidential campaign is interrupted by murder. 



Suddenly, the plan is no longer the stuff of Mission: Impossible. Emergency operations happening not overseas but in the centers of American power, from Nantucket to Washington, DC. This national crisis is real.



 

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The Shippers Katherine Center

Katherine Center

Featuring beautiful spray-painted edges. One of the hottest, fastest-rising rom-com stars delivers her latest swoon-worthy novel about a destination wedding on a cruise ship.

After a whole lifetime of being bad at love, JoJo Burton decides to solve her intimacy issues once and for all at her sister's destination wedding on a cruise ship. With the help of a little pop psychology, she diagnoses herself with a fixation on the neighborhood guy who was her first crush and first kiss (and who just happens to be a newly-divorced wedding guest ), and she decides to woo him during the cruise for some long-delayed closure. Only problem is, her sister's a little busy being a bride at the moment--so JoJo ropes in her childhood bestie, Cooper Watts, to be her wing man. Cooper: who RSVPed no, but then showed up, anyway. Cooper: who left town without a word four years earlier and moved to London. Cooper: who was, if she's honest, the worst heartbreak of JoJo's life. It's bliss for her to see him again, and it's agony, too--and the more they team up for Project Conquest, the more she obsesses over questions she can't bring herself to ask.

Shipboard antics ensue in this witty, heart-tugging, childhood-friends-to-lovers romance--as JoJo and Cooper fake flirt, slow dance, share a cabin, sing duets, treat sunburns, get jealous, rescue each other over and over, and finally, at last, figure it all out in the most blissful, swoony, romantic way.

No one does summer romance quite like Katherine Center. THE SHIPPERS will take readers on the cruise of a lifetime in a story awash with romantic longing, top-notch banter, long-held secrets . . . and true love rediscovered.

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Through Mom's Eyes

Sheinelle Jones

From the beloved Today show host Sheinelle Jones comes an inspiring collection of heartfelt life-lessons from hard working moms who raised some of our favorite celebrities.

When Sheinelle Jones launched “Through Mom’s Eyes,” a recurring Today show segment interviewing celebrities’ mothers about raising successful kids, she had an ulterior motive—she wanted to bring all their wisdom to bear on raising her own three children. So she asked Lin-Manuel Miranda’s mom about staying present with kids while balancing a demanding career, talked with Lady Gaga’s mom about how to recognize bullying, and got tips from Steph Curry’s mom on making sure even future NBA royalty does his chores. She has since interviewed dozens of remarkable women and gathered a candid, warm, and insightful collection of valuable lessons about life, love, and parenthood.

Now in her first book, Through Mom’s Eyes, Sheinelle is ready to share even more of those life-changing secrets with the world. Combining insights from celebrity mothers with her own journey through modern parenting, Sheinelle reveals how to make it through the hard parts of motherhood and still tap into the joys of it with empathy, generosity, and solidarity. Through Mom’s Eyes is a beautiful celebration of those who are the guiding light for their loved ones—mothers.

Featuring advice from the moms of:
Lady Gaga * Kevin Durant * Matthew McConaughey * Venus and Serena Williams * Lin-Manuel Miranda * Steph Curry * Padma Lakshmi * Tyra Banks * Donnie and Mark Wahlberg * Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski * Jessica and Ashlee Simpson * Shaquille O’Neal * Brandon Maxwell * The Jonas Brothers * Thomas Rhett

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Monsters in the Archives

Caroline Bicks

A fascinating, first-of-its-kind exploration of Stephen King and his most iconic early books, based on groundbreaking research and interviews with King—all conducted by the first scholar to be given extended access to his private archives

“A treat for fans of Stephen King.”—Paul Tremblay
“A master class in craft—and a peek behind the curtain.”—Stephen Graham Jones
“Illuminating and original.”—Amy Tan
“It will be treasured by admirers of King’s novels and is a must read for anyone curious about how great books get written.”—James Shapiro, Professor of English, Columbia University

A LIT HUB MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE YEAR

After Caroline Bicks was named the University of Maineʼs inaugural Stephen E. King Chair in Literature, she became the first scholar to be granted extended access by King to his private archives, a treasure trove of manuscripts that document the legendary writerʼs creative process—most of them never before studied or published. The year she spent exploring King’s early drafts and hand-written revisions was guided by one question millions of Kingʼs enthralled and terrified readers (including her) have asked themselves: What makes Stephen King’s writing stick in our heads and haunt us long after we’ve closed the book?

Bicks focuses on five of his most iconic early works—The Shining, Carrie, Pet Sematary, ʼSalemʼs Lot, and Night Shift—to reveal how he crafted his language, story lines, and characters to cast his enduring literary spells. While tracking King’s margin notes and editorial changes, she discovered scenes and alternative endings that never made it to print but that King is allowing her to publish now. The book also includes interviews Bicks had with King along the way that reveal new insights into his writing process and personal history.

Part literary master class, part biography, part memoir and investigation into our deepest anxieties, Monsters in the Archives—authorized by Stephen King himself—is unlike anything ever published about the master of horror. It chronicles what Bicks found when she set out to unearth how King crafted some of his scariest, most iconic moments. But it’s also a story about a grown-up English professor facing her childhood fears and getting to know the man whose monsters helped unleash them.

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Joyful, Anyway Kate Bowler

Kate Bowler

New York Times bestselling author and Duke University professor Kate Bowler offers a profound, funny, and deeply human case for joy that doesn’t depend on everything getting better.

Joyful, Anyway is colorful and layered, unafraid of the occasional gut-punch of raw feeling and vulnerability—much like Kate Bowler herself. She suffers no fools, especially the toxic optimists.”—Jerry Seinfeld

“A book to take you through life’s aftermaths.”—Katherine May, New York Times bestselling author of Wintering

You can’t always be happy, but you can be joyful, anyway.

We live in a culture convinced that chasing happiness will optimize our bodies, our minds, our relationships, our lives. But in the meantime, bad news usually stays bad: illness, chronic pain, grief, and disappointment don’t obey our timelines or vision boards. We are left wondering why, if we’re doing everything right, life still feels so hard.

Honest and bracingly tender, Joyful, Anyway proves that experiencing joy does not depend on resolving everything that makes life difficult. Drawing on a decade of living with serious illness and a lifetime studying America’s obsession with progress, Kate Bowler shows why people so busy chasing happiness miss out on actual joy.

Joy isn’t something you can optimize or manufacture—it finds us at the edge of expectation, when life interrupts our scripts. Joyful, Anyway gives language for the ache we all carry and practices for “putting yourself in the way of joy”: loosening control, introducing novelty, choosing charity, and staying open to the surprising, technicolor moments that pull us back into life.

Joy reminds us that no matter what, life is still worth loving. For every time we ask is this it?, joy will answer: There is more.

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Against Breaking on the Power of Poetry

Ada Limón

24th Poet Laureate of the United States Ada Limón inspires us to see poetry as much more than just words—as a powerful force for healing, a call to action, and a vibrant celebration of humanity’s many voices.

Ada Limón—celebrated poet laureate and 2023 MacArthur fellow—takes us on an inspiring journey into a world where poetry is both a soothing balm for the soul and a spark for transformation. With her blend of accessible yet profound prose, Limón delivers a powerful message: poetry has the ability to heal, connect, and remind us of our shared humanity.

Limón’s mission to make poetry approachable shines brightly in this slim but impactful book. Recognized as a 2024 Time magazine Woman of the Year for her commitment to bringing poetry into everyday lives, Limón passionately argues that poetry is essential to understanding ourselves—our tenderness, courage, imperfections, and our deep, unshakable worthiness of love.

Drawing from her own experiences as the 24th US poet laureate, Limón shares how poetry connects us not only to each other but to the natural world. This theme is at the heart of her project You Are Here, which celebrates the beauty of our environment and our place in it. Her prose, like her poetry, feels like an open invitation—welcoming readers of all backgrounds to explore the richness of human experience through verse.

Fans of Robin Wall Kimmerer, Matthew Zapruder, or Jesmyn Ward will find a kindred spirit in Against Breaking—which offers a refuge, a reminder of the resilience and beauty found within us and all around us. As Limón writes with heartfelt clarity, “If you need to remember what makes us human, tender, brave, flawed, and worthy of love, you need poetry.”

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American Patriarch The Life of George Washington

H. W. Brands

"Bestselling historian and Pulitzer Prize finalist H. W. Brands explores the life of George Washington, the man who, by his singular virtues, led the American army to independence and set the fledgling republican government on its path to democracy and freedom George Washington was a singular figure in American history, and he remains unmatched. In his military career, Washington was more than just a leader; he was the embodiment of the American Revolution. As the first president of the United States, he established the norms and expectations that have shaped the presidency ever since. Other men gained military fame; some of these subsequently became president. But none so towered above his contemporaries in both war and peace. From his early military career and role among the Virginia gentry, to his leadership during the American Revolution and reluctant return to public service as the first president of the United States, American Patriarch brings to life the man who became an embodiment of the virtues of America's founding. Within a few years of his 1799 death, Washington was linked in the popular mind to a golden age of civic virtue-an association that continues centuries after his death. In a vivid narrative that confounds expectations, Brands portrays a Washington who perseveres through a shocking series of failures and setbacks, acknowledging his weaknesses but attributing to him a fundamentally solid character and uncovering the qualities that made him an iconic American leader"-- Provided by publisher.

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The Divorce Freida McFadden

Freida McFadden

A brand-new, gripping thriller from Freida McFadden, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Housemaid!

What is a happily ever after really worth?

Naomi was living the quintessential love story. Boy meets girl. They fall in love, get married, buy a dream house, start a family...

Then--he kicks her out, hires the city's best divorce lawyers, drains their accounts, and takes up with a 20-something.

It's a brutal end to the story. Naomi should accept defeat: move into a dingy apartment, get back into the workforce, and piece together the shattered remains of her life.

Except, why should she?

Instead, Naomi fixates on her husband's new girlfriend. What begins as cynical curiosity soon twists into obsession--and then into something far darker. As Naomi uncovers secrets she never imagined, she realizes her own life may be in danger.

But if it keeps her perfect family intact, isn't it worth it?

In The Divorce, #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author Freida McFadden delivers a razor-sharp, subversive thriller where love curdles into vengeance, and survival becomes the most dangerous game of all.

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RFK Jr. the Rise and Fall

Isabel Vincent



From award-winning journalist and author Isabel Vincent, a revelatory portrait of RFK Jr., tracing his astonishing journey from young socialite to environmental activist, his battles with addiction, and his rise to the Trump administration's Secretary for Health and Human Services, based on untapped material and the author's interviews with dozens of sources close to him. Born into one of the most storied families in American history, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has spent his life grappling with the weight of his family's legacy, the struggles of his own personal demons, and his quest to carve out a distinct identity as an environmental crusader, public health critic, and political maverick. With unparalleled depth, RFK JR. portrays a man whose public life has often been in conflict with his private battles.

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Ironwood Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly

Sworn to protect a scenic island meant to be far from the evils of the mainland, Detective Sergeant Stilwell can feel danger closing in.



Detective Sergeant Stilwell knows that his posting on Catalina Island is no paradise, but to most residents, it seems blissfully separated--by twenty-two miles of ocean--from the troubles of Los Angeles County. But now a threat is coming to his safe haven.



Acting on a tip from a confidential informant, Stilwell and his deputies watch a plane land in the middle of the night at the Airport in the Sky, a remote airstrip in the mountains. A duffel bag of drugs is dropped and the deputies move in, but things quickly go sideways. While Stilwell chases the fleeing pickup man into the mountainside brush, shots are fired on the runway and the plane flies off.



An internal inquiry follows, putting Stilwell on the bench until he is cleared of responsibility for the disastrous operation. But he is determined to find out who brought deadly violence to his island, and begins his own secret investigation into the drug deal gone wrong.



While under orders to remain in the sheriff's substation, he finds in the lost and found a valuable backpack that was never claimed. He traces it to a woman who disappeared while hiking on the island four years ago. But then why was the pack only turned in two months back? Now thoroughly intrigued, he follows the mystery all the way to the LAPD's Open-Unsolved Unit and Detective Renée Ballard.



Stilwell and Ballard work the case from both sides of the channel, and soon realize they are on the trail of a criminal who revels in taunting the authorities. Meanwhile, frustrated at being shut out of an investigation on his own island, Stilwell risks his already shaky standing in the department to pursue a case whose reach is wider than he ever imagined.



Page-turning, packed with intrigue, and bringing together an unstoppable investigative team, Ironwood continues the Catalina series with all of Michael Connelly's signature "relentless narrative drive...evocative atmosphere, realistic dialogue, and well-developed characters" (Washington Review of Books).

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The Mother-Daughter Book Club Susan Patterson

Susan Patterson

The Mother-Daughter Book Club is Susan and James Patterson's new novel, the follow-up to Things I Wish I Told My Mother--the New York Times bestselling, book club favorite praised novel.



"An entertaining book ... As friends talk books, hopes, dreams ... and dishy revelations ... it's romantic love--both old and new ... that drive[s] the story forward." --Kirkus Reviews



Between their busy lives and their far-flung residences, the Mother-Daughter Book Club--four longtime college friends and their five daughters--more often discuss the books on their nightstands via 2 a.m. texts than in-person meetings. And maybe it's just as well, after what happened at their last get-together ... 



So it's an emotional reunion when they finally gather again, this time on the spectacular shores of Italy's Lake Como. Sightseeing excursions, reminiscing fuled by "Como-politans," and a hint of vacation romance all build toward the book club's trademark "Night of Secrets." 



These friends, and sometime rivals, are close readers--of novels, memoirs, and of each other. But as the years and the distance cast shadows and doubt, confidences and sympathies turn into surprising revelations.

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Chasing the Clouds Away

Debbie Macomber

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber comes an uplifting story of an unforgettable chance encounter between a successful yet jaded businessman and a woman who sees—but also expects—the best in everyone, sparking an unlikely romance that challenges their assumptions about generosity, trust, and the gifts of unforeseen love.

Maisy Gallagher has her own dreams, but when her father passes away, she selflessly sets them aside to help her family. Despite knowing it was the right thing to do, she can’t help but wish for the road not taken.

Chase Furst, the hardened heir to a financial empire, is on the other hand primarily focused on his own life and on his work as a bank executive. His childhood was marred by his mother’s struggle with addiction, and left him cynical and emotionally distant.

But then Chase meets Maisy, a beautiful woman full of optimism and kindness who can see past his defenses. To his surprise and annoyance, she offers to help him during a time of need, and declines his offer of payment. Instead, she asks him to pay it forward—and not with money or a quick fix, but through an act of true selflessness. At a loss, Chase doesn’t know where to begin.

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Young King Lerone Martin

Lerone Martin

From a preeminent King scholar, the origin story of the man, minister, and civil rights hero who would lead the nation and change the world.

We know who Martin Luther King, Jr. became, but who was he at the beginning of his life? How did his youth inform his outlook and his approach to activism and service?

Before Martin Luther King, Jr. was a civil rights leader, the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, and a global hero, he was an emotional boy, and a middling high school student devoted to fashion, dancing, and dating. As he headed to college, he left the Jim Crow South for a summer job that would test his oratory skills preaching in the tobacco fields of Connecticut and ultimately give him a sense of hope for a life of racial peace and harmony.

Lerone A. Martin, Centennial Professor at Stanford University and the Faculty Director of the Martin Luther King Institute, traces the youthful roots of this legendary American to reveal the makings of a mighty force. Filled with revelations and written with compassion, Young King offers a new understanding of the influential preacher and activist's emotional life, his youthful confusion about his future and career direction, his inspiration to fight for justice, his teenage missteps, and his first revelations of courage. As America undergoes another era of turmoil and change, this powerful biography offers encouragement for readers at a similar moment of life and provides an understanding of how greatness comes to light.

Martin illuminates both King's weaknesses and the social failures that shaped him, including the brutal racism he endured growing up. This vital and essential work is a testament to how history shapes a leader.

Young King includes rarely seen black-and-white photographs of an adolescent MLK from his high school days and college years.

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Cherry Baby Rainbow Rowell

Rainbow Rowell

#1 New York Times bestselling author Rainbow Rowell returns with a breathtakingly honest novel about a woman who lost everything -- and isn't sure she wants it back.

Everybody knows that Cherry's husband, Tom, is in Hollywood making a movie . . .

Almost nobody knows that he isn't coming home.

Tom is the creator of Thursday--a semi-autobiographical webcomic that's become an international phenomenon.

Semi-autobiographical. That means there's a character in this movie based on Cherry . . . "Baby."

Wide-hipped, heavy-chested, double-chinned Baby.

Cherry never wanted this. No fat girl wants to see herself caricatured on the page--let alone on the big screen. But there's no getting away from it. Baby looks so much like Cherry that strangers recognize her at the grocery store.

While her soon-to-be ex-husband is in Los Angeles getting rich and famous and being the internet's latest boyfriend, Cherry is stuck in Omaha taking care of the dog he always wanted and the house they were going to raise a family in . . . and wondering who she's supposed to be without him.

Cherry had promised to love Tom through thick and thin.

She'd meant it.

One night, Cherry decides to leave all her problems, including Tom's overgrown puppy, at home. She ventures out to see her favorite band play her favorite album . . . and someone recognizes her from across the room.

Russ Sutton knew Cherry when she was a young art student with a fondness for pin-up dresses and patent leather heels. Before Tom.

Russ knows Cherry. He likes Cherry.

And best of all . . . he's never heard of Thursday.

Tender, funny, and utterly human, Cherry Baby is Rainbow Rowell's richest, most surprising--sexiest--novel yet.

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A Woman's Place Danielle Steel

Danielle Steel

A bold young woman defies society’s expectations in the early 1900s to love and lead in this gripping novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author Danielle Steel.

In April 1912, twenty-three-year-old Lady Victoria Oldbrooke is traveling with her beloved father from England on the maiden voyage of the Titanic. But when the ship strikes an iceberg and lifeboats are lowered with women and children first, Lord Alfred gives his place to another, and they are separated. Before he goes down with the ship, he asks his friend Bert Banning, a mill owner from Manchester, to promise he’ll marry his daughter and care for her.

Devastated by the loss of Lord Alfred, Victoria and Bert take comfort in their growing friendship. Bert accepts his role as her guardian but, as friendship turns to deeper feelings, hesitates to propose. Not only is he forty years her senior, but her marrying an industrialist will cause Victoria to be ostracized by the aristocratic world she comes from. But she marries Bert and—cruelly shunned by everyone she knows, even family friends—moves to his home in Manchester.

Isolated from her familiar universe and peers, she becomes fascinated by Bert’s business and learns all she can about it. When he meets a tragic end, she steps into his shoes and applies everything she has learned, in spite of opposition from all sides. Taking on the risks, the hard decisions, and the responsibilities, Victoria has the sheer grit that it takes to make a difference in a man’s world and change the limitations women have had to face and defy for centuries.

A stirring portrait of a strong woman who carves out her own place against all odds, this is a novel that will linger long after the final page is turned.

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Last One Out Jane Harper

Jane Harper

From the New York Times bestselling author of Exiles and The Dry comes a captivating new novel set in a modern ghost town.

Carralon Ridge, a once vibrant village in rural New South Wales, has become a shell of itself, its houses and buildings bought up and left to rot by the mining company operating at its borders. A decade into its slow death, surrounded by industrial noise and swathed in thick layers of dust, the skeletal town is all but abandoned, with just a handful of residents clinging onto what remains.

After years of scorning those who left the Ridge behind as it fell into ruin, Ro never imagined she'd become one of them. But everything changed when she lost her son. Five years ago, Sam vanished while visiting during a break from college, leaving behind a rental car with his belongings inside. Sam had loved Carralon Ridge, and had been working on an oral history of the town to preserve its legacy before it vanished altogether. It wasn't long after his disappearance that the rest of the family began to crumble away too.

But when Ro returns to Carralon Ridge to be with her husband and daughter on the anniversary of Sam's disappearance, she begins to suspect that something important was overlooked in his case. Because while nothing can stop Carralon Ridge from dying, someone seems to want to make sure that its secrets die with it.

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Hope Rises David Baldacci

David Baldacci

Walter Nash began a journey down a dark path of seemingly no return, and now he finds himself questioning everything that got him there in this thrilling sequel to Nash Falls from #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci.



Walter Nash, working under the alias of Dillon Hope, is on the road to revenge after becoming an informant for the FBI against a global criminal operation headed up by Victoria Steers. Steers has ripped everything Nash held dear away from him. He has nothing left to lose and with long, rigorous training under his belt the gentle and sensitive Nash has transformed into something he never thought he'd be: a physically imposing man with lethal skills. And now he has only goal left in life: taking down Victoria Steers.



In order to succeed, he's going to need to cross enemy lines and work the job from the inside. But Steers is shrewd and only brings those she trusts completely into her inner circle. Nash must rely on every ounce of his hard-earned skills in order to prove himself an ally to Steers if he's ever going to get close enough to decimate her criminal empire.



Yet, despite hating the woman for destroying his life, Nash finds himself oddly drawn to Steers in ways that he never could've imagined. And what he ultimately discovers will turn all he believed upside down, forcing Nash to do something truly unfathomable.



So, will the truth set Nash free?



Or end him?

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Take Up Space, Y'all

Tess Holliday

Make your own rules and treat your body well in this uplifting, inspirational, and fact-filled guide to navigating social media, taking care of yourself, and loving your body by top plus-size model Tess Holliday and award-winning author Kelly Coon. 



A USA Today Bestseller!



Take Up Space, Y'all gives teen readers a joyful, can't-put-this-down reading experience with advice and colorful anecdotes from body positivity activist, top plus-size model, and inclusivity consultant, Tess Holliday. Tess Holliday has been on a mission to shift society's mindset on what is beautiful, what is healthy, and what matters most of out life and living authentically. Now she and co-author, Kelly Coon, are combating the immense pressures society places on teens--from grades to social status to looks--and acknowledging these can have a negative impact on one's physical and mental health. Let Tess, Kelly, and various professionals guide you to taking up all the space you need by:

  • making good eating choices for your body
  • choosing fashion that defines you
  • steering clear of social media trolls
  • seeking help from trusted adults in hard situations
  • and more!

Through fun quizzes, bit-sized stories from Tess's life, writing prompts, and digestible sidebars, this guide is sure to empower you to unleash self-love and to conquer societal pressures while having fun at the same time.

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Bright Before Us Like a Flame

Sasa Aakil

For ten years, Shout Mouse Press has championed the voices of young writers, publishing their authentic and necessary stories. Now, this landmark anthology of youth writing celebrates a decade of storytelling-and invites readers to pick up their pens and write the path ahead. Spanning memoir, poetry, fiction, comics, and children's literature, Bright Before Us, Like a Flame is more than a retrospective-it's a creative writing resource and a call to action. Taking its title from Langston Hughes' poem "Youth," this collection ignites both hope for the future and the power to shape it. Through stories of immigration, identity, social justice, and resilience, young authors confront today's most urgent topics with insight and empathy. Their words challenge, inspire, and invite readers to add their own voices to the conversation. What's Inside: ¿ A diverse collection of youth-authored memoirs, poetry, fiction, comics, and children's literature, featuring underrepresented voices. ¿ Creative writing prompts and behind-the-scenes insights to inspire students and emerging writers to tell their own stories. ¿ Intergenerational conversations with award-winning guest authors, exploring the role of storytelling in social change. ¿ Discussion questions for middle and high school classrooms, book clubs, and creative writing workshops. At a time of uncertainty and urgent global challenges, these young authors remind us: Words have power. Stories create change. And the future is yours to write. Perfect for: ¿ Aspiring young writers looking for inspiration, mentorship, and creative guidance. ¿ Educators and librarians seeking an engaging, diverse, and inclusive classroom writing resource for middle and high school students. ¿ Readers who believe in the power of storytelling to spark dialogue and transform communities. "Compelling voices share their truths and invite teens to answer back." -- Kirkus Reviews "Powerhouse anthology highlighting the works of diverse young writers." -- Booklife "This book is a gift! Bright Before Us Like a Flame is a celebration of the autonomy of youth. The anthology serves as both an examination of young people's interior lives and an invitation to readers interested in knowing the awe of self-expression." -- #1 New York Times bestselling author Jason Reynolds

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May's Too-Big Pizza

A. T. Woehling

May and her siblings make homemade pizza for their big family in this second book in the zany and exhilarating Level 1 Ready-to-Read series about a lovable and rambunctious family of ten!

May has a big family. And when they decide to make homemade pizza together, it keeps getting bigger and bigger! Can May and her brothers and sisters solve their pizza problem?

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100 Days! (An All Are Welcome Early Reader)

Alexandra Penfold

Celebrate 100 days of learning in this Step 2 Early reader featuring the beloved characters from the New York Times Bestselling picture book All Are Welcome! Perfect for emerging readers who are proud to show what they are learning in school.

The kids from All Are Welcome are celebrating a new milestone in school: 100 days! How do they celebrate? They each bring 100 things to school to share. They’ve learned so much with their friends, and they’ve only just begun!

Step 2 Readers use basic vocabulary and short sentences to tell simple stories. They are ideal for children who recognize familiar words and can sound out new words with help. Perfect for children who are ready to read on their own!

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Barney: Everyone Is Super!

Ilanit Oliver

Get ready for a superhero adventure in Barney’s World with this Level 1 reader!

Barney and his pals, Mel, Vivie, and David can’t wait to play superheroes! But David’s feeling quiet today. He doesn’t want to play the same way as his friends. With some help from their favorite purple dinosaur, Mel and Vivie learn that everyone has their own special superpower—no matter how they like to play!

Based on an action-packed, music-filled adventure from Barney’s WorldTM, as seen on Max, Cartoon Network, and YouTube!

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Ellie Finds Her Voice

Callie Barkley

In the thirtieth book of the Critter Club series, Ellie recovers her love for singing to help an injured fox.

Ellie is heartbroken when she has a less-than-great audition for a singing contest. The Critter Club decides to cheer her up with a snowy trip to the mountains, where they’ve volunteered to help a fox sanctuary with an injured fox. When the fox takes a liking to Ellie’s singing, Ellie realizes she must regain confidence in her own voice.

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, The Critter Club chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

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Hedgehog Whodunit: the Carousel Caper

Heather Preusser

Get ready to join Hitch the Hedgehog and his sidekick, Vinnie the Rat, on a whirlwind adventure that proves even the smallest creatures can solve the biggest mysteries. This charming, hilarious, and fully illustrated chapter book will captivate young readers and encourage their problem-solving and critical thinking skills.

It's merry-go-round mischief for Hitch the hedgehog! Hitch, a shrewd and edgy hedgehog detective, and his food-loving sidekick, Vinnie, are back with another mystery to solve: someone's stolen the wooden cheetah from the City Zoo's carousel, and, according to Vinnie, "The longer it takes to pinpoint those pranksters who took that cheetah, the more animals they'll likely steal, which could mean more pinching, more plundering, more pilfering! IT'LL TURN WILD AROUND HERE!"

A wild and ruckus-filled zoo is exactly what Hitch does not want, so he agrees to postpone his nap and solve the case. But that's easier said than done. From sneaky meerkats to a dramatic cabbage-eating contest, Hitch and Vinnie must navigate a series of comical and challenging events to catch the culprits and let Hitch take a nap, once and for all.

Through clever deduction, teamwork, and a few hilarious mishaps, Hitch and Vinnie manage to outwit the thieves and restore order to the carousel. Their journey is filled with witty dialogue, humorous illustrations, and engaging twists that keep readers on the edge of their seats.

Hedgehog Whodunit: The Carousel Caper is a delightful and engaging chapter book that encourages young readers to solve puzzles and think critically. It's sure to inspire budding detectives and provide animal enthusiasts with endless enjoyment.

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Teen Skincare: the Ultimate No Nonsense Guide

Caroline Hirons

What every teen needs to feel great in their own skin - now a Sunday Times bestseller! 

 

Being a teenager is hard - add in hormones, breakouts and an avalanche of dubious TikTok 'hacks', and it's easy to feel overwhelmed.

In Teen Skincare, world-renowned skincare expert Caroline Hirons cuts through the noise to deliver the straight-talking, no-nonsense guide every teen - and their parents - have been waiting for. Forget filters, fads and viral gimmicks; this book is all about real, effective advice that genuinely works.

Packed with easy-to-follow routines, myth-busting insights and budget-friendly product recommendations, Teen Skincare helps teens take control of their skin with confidence. Inclusive, practical and relatable, with advice from a dermatologist, nutritionist and psychologist, this book goes beyond the surface, offering a holistic approach to self-care and well-being.

No unrealistic promises, no pressure to be perfect. Just the tools, tips and truths every teen needs to feel great in their own skin and build habits that last a lifetime.

Say goodbye to confusion and hello to confidence.

Caroline Hirons's book Teen Skincare was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 2025-06-21.

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The New Baseball Bible

Dan Schlossberg

Discover how the players’ approach, use of equipment, and even salaries and schedules have changed over time. Learn the origin of team and player nicknames, fun facts about the All-Star Game and World Series, and so much more.

For Yankee and Red Sox fans, for Dodger and Giant fans, for Cubs and Cardinal fans, for every baseball fan, The New Baseball Bible serves as the perfect gift for fans of America’s pastime. 

For fans of baseball trivia, the third edition of The New Baseball Bible, first published as The Baseball Catalog in 1980 and now fully up to date, is sure to provide something for everyone, regardless of team allegiance. The book covers the following topics: beginnings of baseball, rules and records, umpires, how to play the game (i.e., strategy), equipment, ballparks, famous faces (i.e., Hank Aaron vs. Babe Ruth), managers, executives, trades, the media, big moments in history, the language of baseball, superstitions and traditions, spring training, today’s game, and much more. 

Veteran sportswriter Dan Schlossberg weaves in facts, figures, and famous quotes, discusses strategy, and provides stats and images—many of them never previously published elsewhere.

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Play It Forward

Togethxr

New from TOGETHXR--the sports media company that set the sports world on fire with their defining statement "EVERYONE WATCHES WOMEN'S SPORTS"--this inspiring collection of stories shines a light on the grit, smarts, and determination of record-setting and boundary-breaking female athletes around the world and across sports.

Play It Forward features twenty-five inspirational stories of badass women from all corners of the sports universe, curated by TOGETHXR, a sports media companyfounded by legends Sue Bird, Alex Morgan, Simone Manuel, and Chloe Kim. From profiles of professional athletes and Olympians at the top of their game to everyday women putting in the work without a crowd, these are true tales of fierce competitors, dedicated teammates, and passionate advocates who are all too accustomed to hearing the word "no." Each story highlights an inspiring athlete or team who is defying expectations and rebelling against inequality in big and small ways, including:

  • Indigenous women forming a softball team in Mexico
  • Older women finding friendship and purpose through competitive swimming
  • A woman mountain-climbing her way out of oppression in Afghanistan
  • WNBA players developing a voice for social justice and influencing a pivotal election
  •  


For sports fans of all ages, Play it Forward celebrates and elevates the gutsy true stories of activists and dreamers who are changing the game, and the world of sports, for the better.

WORLD'S GREATEST ATHLETES: A foreword and afterword by world-class athletes and Olympians Alex Morgan and Sue Bird set the stage and offer key context for this inspirational collection of stories of women who are defying the odds and breaking the rules.

STORIES FROM ACROSS WOMEN'S SPORTS: TOGETHXR created the viral sensation "Everyone Watches Women Sports" that caught fire during the record-breaking NCAA 2024 Women's Basketball Tournament. Their ongoing mission is to elevate women's sports coverage in a space where culture, activism, lifestyle, and sports converge. In this powerhouse book, TOGETHXR gathers celebrity and everyday stories to create a breadth of inspiration from powerful women across a range of sports, from basketball, soccer, and hockey to swimming, gymnastics, rowing, and professional bowling.

CELEBRATION OF ATHLETES AT ALL AGES: These stories will appeal to generations of sports fans--from those who fought the early battles of Title IX to young women just lacing up their sneakers, ready to take on the world.

ENGAGING JOURNALISM: The stories are contemporary and underreported features covering athletes and teams that will be new to many readers. ULTIMATE GIFT FOR WOMEN: This is a perfect present for women to give women: mom to daughter, daughter to mom, grandmother to granddaughter, friend to friend, and many more.

Perfect for:

  • Athletes and sports enthusiasts
  • Parents, coaches, teachers, mentors
  • Viewers of college and pro sports, the Women's World Cup, and the Olympics
  • Fans of books about current events, feminism, or strong women
  • Readers of Strong is the New Pretty and the Rebel Girls series
  • Birthday, Mother's Day, holiday, or graduation gifts for teens and adults
  • Resource for celebrating International Women's Day and International Women in Sports Day
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How the Word Is Passed (Adapted for Young Readers)

Clint Smith

Adapted from Clint Smith's #1 New York Times bestselling and universally acclaimed How the Word Is Passed, this must-read narrative takes readers to historical sites across America, exploring the legacy of slavery to help readers make sense of our nation's past and present, and be better stewards of their own future.



Beginning in his own hometown of New Orleans, Clint Smith leads young readers through an unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks--those that are honest about the past and those that are not--offering an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation's collective history, and ourselves.



How the Word Is Passed illustrates how some of our country's most essential stories are hidden in plain view--whether in places we might drive by on our way to school, holidays such as Juneteenth, or entire neighborhoods (like downtown Manhattan) on which the brutal history of the trade in enslaved people has been deeply imprinted.



Informed by scholarship and brought alive by the story of people living today, this adaptation of Clint Smith's #1 bestselling, award-winning work of nonfiction offers kids a new understanding of the hopeful role that memory and history can play in making sense of our country, and shows how they can reckon with the past and present to become better stewards of their future.

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Bad Sister

K. R. Alexander

"Chelsea knows that her sister is dead. But she also knows that Angelica never really went away. Ever since that tragic day, Angelica has been around. Talking to her. Listening to her. Being her truest friend. No one else can see Angelica, and Chelsea has learned to lie about her existence, because nobody else would believe it. It's their secret... until Chelsea makes a new friend and Angelica becomes jealous. Jealous enough to hurt someone. Chelsea's biggest secret has become her biggest fear"--

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The Firefly Crown

Yxavel Magno Diño

An unlucky sorcerer must learn to wield her insect magic in this charming middle grade fantasy that's perfect for fans of Impossible Creatures and Witchlings.

In the empire, magic determines your fate. But Yumi is tired of being a failed Cricket. Their magic is lousy and boring. She dreams instead of the sparkling magic of Fireflies, whose powers rival the sun. If only she could harness her talents like other magicians. . . For now, Yumi is ignored by even the crickets who are supposed to follow her spells. 

Then, Yumi gets a chance to prove herself sooner than expected when all sorcerers are summoned for the princess's coronation. But everything falls apart when the Firefly Crown is stolen, leaving the empire defenseless against the Ghost Swarm, a horde of undead bugs. Worse, Yumi is blamed. Suddenly this lowly Cricket is the empire's most wanted. To clear her name and protect her loved ones, Yumi must find the real thief. But can a Cricket really save the day?

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The Last Ember

Lily Berlin Dodd

A New York Times Bestseller! Impossible Creatures meets The Mysterious Benedict Society in this epic, fast-paced upper-middle grade fantasy full of dragon-like creatures, heroic hijinks, battle-forged friendships, and sharp humor.

★ "Expert worldbuilding with a rip-roaring plot." ―Publishers Weekly, starred review 
★ "Reminiscent of The Golden Compass."Booklist, starred review 
"Fans of The Princess Bride and Terry Pratchett's work will devour this series opener." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

New York Public Library Best Book of the Year • Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year Junior Library Guild Selection • New York Times Bestseller

Aerimanders are extinct. Or so the government would have you think. Centuries ago, the Kingdom of Glaucus decreed the destruction of these dangerous, dragon-like creatures whose deadly flame could level entire cities and upend world orders.

But when twelve-year-old Eva Alexander, a wealthy chemistry student in the city of Porttown, walks into a fashionable department store and walks out (accidentally) with the world’s last aerimander egg, everything changes. Suddenly, Eva is the target of unwanted attention—including from the Thieves’ Union, a mysterious organization with a rebellious streak and fingers in every pie in Porttown. The Union orders its youngest member, the orphaned dairy delivery boy Dusty St. Ichabod, to steal the egg from Eva. Which is far easier said than done.

When Eva and Dusty meet one autumn night under extraordinary circumstances, an epic game of cat and mouse unfolds across the Kingdom. Initially at odds, the unlikely pair must come together to navigate a maze of sinister crime syndicates, elite boarding schools, and an incredibly slow getaway pony named Gourd—all while fighting to keep the egg out of the hands of power-hungry Eoin Parnassus, Director of Kingdom Secrets. As the duo races against time, their fates and that of the whole world are at stake. Because there’s one question no one dares to ask: What happens when the egg hatches?

The Last Ember is the first installment in an action-packed fantasy adventure about a powerful creature, those who seek to exploit it, and those who are willing to protect it at all costs.

With stained edges, a map, and 6" x 9" trim, the book's package is as lush as its storytelling.

The First Flame: Aerimander Chronicles Book 2 takes flight in Fall 2026!

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All the Things We Found

Joanne Levy

Ruthie is finally getting used to the new normal: her parents' divorce, having a stepdad and (annoying) stepbrothers and trying not to think too much about before.

When her mom starts feeling sick, Ruthie's relieved it's nothing serious...until her mom tells her she's pregnant again. Their family suffered a loss three years ago and it was devastating. How could her mom risk that again?

At least Ruthie has her best friend and her dog to help comfort her, as well as her favorite book series that always cheers her up: The Unicorns of Faravelle Forest. When Ruthie unexpectedly meets Ally, an older woman in the park where she takes her dog to play, she learns Ally is grieving a loss too, and the two develop an unlikely friendship. Though the journey is never smooth, Ruthie eventually realizes there's comfort to be found in expressing your feelings and cherishing the memory of those you've loved.

The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Praise for Joanne Levy:

★ "A heartfelt and expertly written tale of loss, family, and friendship that will have readers blinking back their tears...Beautiful and sincere."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review for Sorry for Your Loss



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Mixing Magics

Clare Edge

Young witch Ber uncovers buried secrets tying her family's coven to the demon dimension in this sequel to Accidental Demons, perfect for fans of Witchlings and Aru Shah and the End of Time! 

Bernadette Crowley feels like she's finally getting a handle on her diabetes diagnosis. At least, she can finally manage to not summon a demon every time she checks her blood sugar. But without her Grandma Orla, who disappeared into the demon dimension while protecting their family's coven, even big wins don't seem to matter as much. 

Frustrated that no one is trying hard enough to rescue Grandma Orla, Ber takes matters into her own hands, using her growing powers to try to reach the demon dimension. But nothing can prepare her for the truth, a history that ties together her family and demons back generations and a betrayal that has haunted them for years. 

With her friends Cai and Phoebe and her alert dog Clio, Ber must venture into the unknown to save her grandma and the magical world as a whole.

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Aarzu All Around

Marzieh Abbas

“Heartfelt and triumphant.” —Rajani LaRocca, Newbery Honor–winning Author of Red, White, and Whole

A cricket-loving Pakistani girl stifled by patriarchal expectations disguises herself as a boy to get a job to pay her sister’s medical bills in this “lyrical action-packed debut full of determination and grit” (Reem Faruqi, award-winning author of Golden Girl).

Living with her aunt and patriarchal uncle in Karachi, Pakistan, recently orphaned twelve-year-old Aarzu detests the way she and her younger sister get treated like extras and excluded from all the fun stuff. Aarzu dreams of playing cricket, just like her male cousins and the neighborhood boys in the streets, but her uncle will hear nothing of it. According to him, girls ought to master the art of making round rotis, not play sports.

When her sister requires urgent medical treatment but finances are tight, Aarzu decides to earn money herself. She hears of a part-time job at a bungalow near her school—but it’s only open to boys. Aarzu has no choice but to disguise herself as a turban-wearing boy to get the gig.

Now, Aarzu must find a way to balance school, work, chores, and secret cricket practices—all without burning out or getting caught by her uncle—or else her dreams of making the girls cricket team and her quest to save her sister will crumble around her.

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Ghoul Summer

Tracy Badua

In this beachside ghost story that's perfect for fans of Erin Entrada Kelly and Wednesday, twelve-year-old Barnaby is forced to spend his summer helping his grandpa move, only to be confronted by Maxwell--a moody ghost boy with some unfinished business.

Barnaby had grand plans for his summer. He should've been spending his days watching movies and gaming with his friends. Instead, his parents drag him to the boring beach town of Sunnyside to help his grandpa move.

Just when he thinks this summer can't get any worse, a ghost boy named Maxwell shows up in their vacation rental home to kick Barnaby and his family out.

Barnaby tries everything to get rid of Maxwell on his own. But when his attempts fail and Maxwell actually becomes stronger, Barnaby realizes that there's only one solution to his ghost troubles: helping Maxwell figure out his unfinished business. If he doesn't, the ghost might ditch the rental home for Barnaby's body instead.

With the clock counting down to the end of the trip, Barnaby is forced to enter an uneasy truce with Maxwell to find the truth--or be haunted forever.

  • Perfect for Halloween reading
  • A charming cozy seasonal pick
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D. J. Rosenblum Becomes the G. O. A. T.

Abby White

"A fresh new voice, Abby White delivers the perfect dose of humor and heartbreak with her debut D.J. Rosenblum Becomes the G.O.A.T. Readers will root for D.J. as she navigates a new home, friends, even a crush, with such insight and truth. A standout especially-young adult from an exciting new voice!"

-- Lilliam Rivera, author of Barely Floating

"Such a fun read!" -- Rick Riordan

WHERE: Middle Woods, Briar, Ohio

VICTIM: Rachel Simon

HERO: D.J. Rosenblum

VILLAINS: ???

It's the beginning of the school year--and Briar's newest resident, D.J. Rosenblum, is not here for it. Ever since her cousin Rachel died, D.J.'s family has been a mess: Her aunt and uncle are catatonic. Her mom is even more scatterbrained than usual. She had to postpone her bat mitzvah a whole year. Worst of all, she and her mom had to move--leaving her best friend, Eva, behind.

Briar does have one redeeming factor, though: Here, in Rachel's hometown, D.J. can finally get to the bottom of her cousin's death. With the help of a chatty journalist and a queen-bee hacker, D.J. can fill in the last days of Rachel's life. And if she can just figure out her Torah portion--with help from her cute tutor, Jonah--maybe, just maybe, she'll be able to solve a bigger mystery.

For fans of Looking for Alaska and Never Have I Ever comes Abby White's debut novel, D.J. Rosenblum Becomes the G.O.A.T. It's a basket of matzo ball soup dumplings for anyone learning to chart their own path, navigate new friendships and crushes, and figure out how to love--and live--after loss.

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A Year Without Home

V. T. Bidania

A poignant novel in verse about a Hmong girl losing and finding home in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. For fans of Jasmine Warga and Veera Hiranandani.

"As gripping as it is informative and as beautiful as it is heartbreaking, A Year Without Home does what all great books do: spark curiosity, ignite compassion, and leave its readers changed for the better. The young people who read V.T. Bidania's story will feel energized and empowered to make their future kinder, more peaceful, and more just than either the past or our present."Jarrett Lerner, award-winning author-illustrator of A Work in Progress

For eleven-year-old Gao Sheng, home is the lush, humid jungles and highlands of Laos. Home is where she can roll down the grassy hill with her younger siblings after her chores, walk to school, and pick ripe peaches from her family’s trees.

But home becomes impossible to hold onto when the communist government takes over after U.S. troops pull out of the Vietnam War. The communists will be searching for any American allies, like Gao Sheng’s father, a Hmong captain in the Lao Army who fought alongside the Americans against the Vietnamese. If he’s caught, he’ll be killed.

As the adults frantically make plans – contacting family, preparing a route, and bundling up their silver and gold, Gao Sheng wonders if she will ever return to her beloved Laos and what’s to become of her family now. Gao Sheng only knows that a good daughter doesn’t ask questions or complain. A good daughter doesn’t let her family down. Even though sometimes, she wishes she could be just a kid rolling down a grassy hill again.

On foot, by taxi and finally in a canoe, Gao Sheng and her family make haste from the mountains to the capitol Vientiane and across the rushing Mekong River, to finally arrive at an overcrowded refugee camp in Thailand. As a year passes at the camp, Gao Sheng discovers how to rebuild home no matter where she is and finally find her voice.

Inspired by author V.T. Bidania’s family history, A Year Without Home illuminates the long, difficult journey that many Hmong refugees faced after the Vietnam War.

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The Ordinary and Extraordinary Auden Greene

Corey Ann Haydu

In this poignant, magical tale by the acclaimed author of Eventown, two girls find themselves dropped into each other's world--and must face down dragons they've only imagined.

Auden "Denny" Greene is happiest with her friend Runa, creating stories set in their imaginary land of Sorrowfeld, where princesses rule and cursed dragons are a constant danger. But now that they are turning twelve, Runa seems ready to give up on the magic of Sorrowfeld just when Denny needs it the most...

Princess Auden is the last remaining princess of Sorrowfeld--and on her twelfth birthday, she will be expected to vanquish the dragons that took her family. Only, when a swarm attacks her birthday celebration, all she can do is run...

But suddenly. Auden is in Denny's world. And Denny is in Auden's.

The two Audens have switched places. No one but them has any idea. And now, each girl must come into her own power in order to fight the other's dragons.

The magical beasts of Impossible Creatures meet the body-swap of Freaky Friday, set in a world as fantastical as Wicked's Oz!

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At the Speed of Gus

Richard Scrimger

A smartly funny and sympathetic story about being different and understanding that there is more than one way to see the world.This new novel from middle grade master Richard Scrimger will reach so many kids who need to see that their brains are a gift.

Augustus (Gus) Constantine's brain moves fast, and not necessarily on a straight track. His mind (and mouth) operates at a different speed than everyone else he knows. This might have something to do with the fact that Gus has ADHD. Sometimes it feels like the best thing about him, and sometimes it lands him in a load of trouble.

For example, one morning, Gus takes morning announcements wildly off script. Even though he hears nothing but laughter from fellow students at Pendrell Elementary, he's finally pushed Miss Funn (who's anything but) and Principal Gorby (who's getting tired of Gus's endless jokes and unfiltered stream of consciousness) to the limit.

Now he's suspended for two whole days. With nothing else to do, Gus takes up his sister's invitation to take the ferry to meet her at her college. But on the ferry, Gus's thoughts begin to race. He's having trouble concentrating and can't calm down. At the speed of Gus's brain, the ride gets wilder and wilder, until it's hard to tell what's real from what's imagined. But despite the convoluted road he takes, can he still find a way to get to his destination?

Fast-paced, funny and deeply sympathetic, At the Speed of Gus is about not always fitting, but figuring out how to find your own way.

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Talia's Codebook for Middle School

Marissa Moss

From the creator of Amelia's Notebook--the series that launched the hybrid diary format--book two in this series filled with doodles, graphs, and puzzles draws mathletes and code breakers deeper into the wilds of middle school.

With help from her trusty notebook, Talia thinks she has cracked the codes of middle school--what to wear, what to say, what not to say. But knowledge and mastery don't always equate, and codes are like homework: just when you think you're caught up, a new batch arrives. Luckily math brims with codes, and Talia, with her knack for observations and deductions, understands math. As part of a newly merged coed math team, Talia must navigate not only her own struggles with competition, leadership, and stage fright, but also the girl-boy codes and her jealousy of the team's "perfect" new captain. Being on the same team, it turns out, doesn't always mean you're friends, but it does give you the space to try. Second in a charming spin-off series from the creator of the phenomenally popular Amelia books, this doodle-dense, STEM-centric diary will delight and engross readers navigating unfamiliar social terrain.

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The Moon Without Stars

Chanel Miller

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The Newbery Honor–winning author of Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All explores the way growing up, finding friends, and discovering who you are can be both awkward and empowering in this heartfelt middle school novel.

★ "Genuine and poignant; has the makings of a modern classic.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

At the beginning of seventh grade, Luna knows who she is: an observant, quiet girl who loves writing and making zines with her best friend, Scott. But when one of their zines takes off, Luna is somehow swept up into the popular group and learns just how much of herself she's going to have to compromise to stay there. Will she give up her writing? Her best friend? What about her own beliefs about who she is and what she stands for?

Featuring author-illustrator Chanel Miller’s signature line drawings, The Moon Without Stars is a deeply personal and often funny novel about what it means to lose and then find yourself again during the vulnerable, life-changing years of middle school.

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The Other Side of Imani

Lisa Springer

A story about finding your voice alongside your real self, The Other Side of Imani is a heartfelt, fresh, and powerful middle grade contemporary debut that's perfect for fans of Front Desk, That Girl Lay Lay, and Just Right Jillian.

Ever since she could remember, thirteen-year-old Imani has wanted to be a fashion designer.

But fashion designers are bold, out-there, and in your face. And despite her unique sense of style, Imani has trouble fitting in, let alone standing out. Entering her new school's design competition for a scholarship to the nearby arts high school seems like the perfect way to make new friends and get closer to her dream of being a designer.

Then Imani's designs are stolen by one of her classmates, and Imani is forced to enter the competition anonymously, under a virtual persona of her own creation--"Estelle." When Estelle then goes viral, Imani must figure out how to be her "real" self as she finds her true friends and her voice... all while hoping to win the competition.

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Down Came the Spiders

Ally Russell

Arachnophobia meets Five Nights at Freddy's in this middle grade horror novel perfect for fans of K.R. Alexander and Mary Downing Hahn.

Can you outrun eight legs?

Twelve-year-old Andi loves everything about spiders -- they're endlessly fascinating creatures. So when she finds a species she's never seen before at a classmate's Halloween party, she's over the moon. Until the spiders start to behave in unusual and threatening ways, that is. They can camouflage themselves incredibly well, they can jump higher than she's ever seen, and their webs are strong. Maybe even strong enough to trap a person . . .

Andi and her friends Carly and Devon try to find an adult to help, but make a terrifying discovery: the parent chaperones have been immobilized by the spiders. As the only ones who know what's going on, Andi, Carly, and Devon will have to take on the spiders themselves -- before it's too late!

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Big Bub, Small Hat

Alastair Heim

A monster wants to wear a hat that is too small for his head in this funny Ready-to-Go! Ready-to-Read, the third book in the Big Bub series.

Big Bub the monster wants to wear a hat, but it is too small. What will he do? He will get creative—and silly too—in this follow-up to Big Bub, Small Tub and Big Bub, Small Car!

Perfect for kids at the beginning of their reading journeys, Big Bub, Small Hat was written for children who have learned the alphabet and are ready to start reading! And what better way to get kids excited than with a hilarious story with words they can read on their own?

Each Ready-to-Go! Ready-to-Read includes a note to parents explaining what their child can expect, a guide at the beginning for readers to become familiar with the words they will encounter in the story, and reading comprehension questions at the end. Each Ready-to-Go! story contains about 100 words and features sight words, rhyming words, and repetition to help children reinforce their new reading skills. In this book, readers will learn twenty-two sight words and sixteen words from seven word families. So come on and get reading!

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Live Stream (Game Quest #2)

Ash Wu

The second in a new highly illustrated chapter book series set in both a Minecraft-style video game world and the real world of elementary school where friendships will be tested, courage will be discovered, and teamwork will always win!

Kat, Tai, and Alex are obsessed with the video game Otherworld. They strategize and play together all the time but are famous for their arguments while playing. They can't help being passionate about what they love!

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Light It Up! (Avatar Legends Bending Academy: Fire #1)

Ash J. Wu

Four young Firebenders enter their island’s regional Firebending Tournament in the first book of this new original chapter book series taking place in the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender!

Adaki dreams of being a powerful Firebender, but at eleven years old, he feels like he’s not where he should be. So when the chance to train with his school’s best firebending master arises, Adaki jumps at the opportunity, even though it means he and his friends will have to compete in a tournament full of older kids with more experience—and more attitude. When training does not go as planned—what do cooking and math have to do with being a Firebender?—Adaki begins to wonder: Can he and his friends overcome their inexperience and defeat the older competitors?

This funny, action-packed story is the first in a new illustrated chapter book series set in the world of Avatar Legends, perfect for young readers who love stories about adventure and friendship!

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Salmon Run

Annie Chen

A Junior Library Guild Gold Selection

★ "The art is a wonder in both style and effectiveness. . . This is an exemplary use of illustrations to convey the biological processes that are often unseeable to humans. R*" - Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

An exquisitely presented account of the life cycle of a Pacific salmon that is sure to entice young naturalists with its accessible design and inviting and informative text

She begins as a tiny orange egg . . . smaller than a pea! Salmon Run follows a Pacific coho salmon as she begins her journey in the freshwater rivers of Washington State, travels to the vast Pacific Ocean, and finally returns to the place of her birth to spawn and begin the cycle of life once again.

During this arduous adventure that spans hundreds of miles, she will grow and change through five distinct stages of life: egg, alevin, fry, smolt, and adult. From river to estuary to ocean, she will hide from predators, search for food, and encounter a range of marine environments.

With a careful balance of scientific accuracy and luminous illustrations, Salmon Run invites young readers to explore the remarkable life of this keystone species in the North Pacific ecosystem--and the magic of its journey home.

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Wish Upon a Star: The Science, Magic and Meaning of Stars

Catherine Ard

A beautifully illustrated non-fiction book about stars for children aged 7+, covering the science, their various forms in nature, and the myths, stories and symbolism that they have inspired.

A richly illustrated guide to the myths, histories and science of stars. Covering their various forms, including constellations and galaxies, how we study stars and our connections to stars, including navigation, astronomy, art and mythology from around the world.

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Burst Your Bubble!

Joyce Grant

"How algorithms limit your access to information and determine your worldview - and what you can do about it! We are all in an information bubble, whether we realize it or not. The content that fills our bubble is the product of all the likes, clicks, and shares we have made online. Every time we click on something, the internet's algorithms assume we like it--and give us more and more of the same. Inside our bubble, we are isolated from things we don't like and only see the things we do like. We gradually lose sight of perspectives and points of view that are different from our own. This book helps kids recognize the deliberateness of social media, understand how they got inside their filter bubble, and motivate them to expand their world view. As a result, they will think more critically about everything they read online and consider how they can embrace points of view that are different from their own. The book pulls back the curtain on some of the digital products and media young people use. It shows how deliberately game creators and social media owners are in pursuit of their users' money, time, and attention. It outlines the personal and societal dangers of being in a bubble and being unaware of it. It will also show young people that their information bubble is not just online. The friends we choose, the activities we pursue, and even our beliefs are shaped by the information we access. Burst Your Bubble! helps kids become aware of their bubble and understand how it limits their perspective of the world. Then it will help them to burst that bubble!"--

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Soup's on Around the World

Denyse Waissbluth


From the creators of Teatime Around the World, this poetic picture book takes readers ages 4-8 across the globe exploring different soups and soup traditions!

Soup's on. A tasty treat.
Fill your bowl up. Time to eat!

Through vibrant illustrations and heartwarming text, Soup's On Around the World invites readers on a flavorful journey of soups across the globe, each with its own unique history and traditions!

Every soup tells its own story, revealing fascinating stories such as:
 

  • The popular Chinese dish, Wonton Soup, is over 1000 years old
  • In Finland, a unique Christmas dried fruit soup is served as a sweet dessert, topped with whipped cream
  • Bitter-leaf Soup, a traditional dish from West Africa, was first used to treat illnesses
  • French Onion Soup was possibly invented by a king!


Bright, detailed pictures by acclaimed artist Chelsea O'Byrne brings to life Denyse Waissbluth's joyous celebration of soup. With sidebars full of delicious facts, this second title in the Taste the World series is a celebration of diversity and deliciousness exploring a beloved food--soup!--and all the tasty ways we can enjoy a bowl (or two!).

The second book in the Taste the World series

Discover the world through food in this vibrant picture book series that celebrates culture and diversity. Taste the World takes young readers on a delicious journey, introducing them to different traditions, cultures and countries, and the unique dishes that bring communities together. With rich illustrations and poetic stories, this series inspires curiosity, appreciation for global cultures, and the joy of sharing a meal.

 

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LEGO Minecraft Visual Dictionary (Library Edition)

Elizabeth Dowsett

Explore the adventurous world of LEGO Minecraft with DK's latest Visual Dictionary!

Explore the adventurous world of LEGO Minecraft with DK's latest Visual Dictionary!

Journey through 13 years of LEGO Minecraft and discover everything you need to know about iconic locations, items, and mobs. See every brick-built detail of the hostile warden, investigate the Iron Golem Fortress, and uncover different biome's flora and fauna. Learn all about your favorite LEGO Minecraft characters and mobs--from Alex and Steve to villagers and creepers. Meet the LEGO Minecraft team and uncover exclusive behind-the-scenes facts.

Find out everything you need to know about LEGO Minecraft in this must-have guide for fans!

© 2024 Mojang AB.
©2024 The LEGO Group.

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Through the Telescope: Mae Jemison Dreams of Space

Charles R. Smith Jr.

Explore the wonders of the universe in this mesmerizing, poetic ode to trailblazing astronaut Mae Jemison, from Coretta Scott King Honor author Charles R. Smith, Jr.

 

How far to the stars?

This is what a little girl named Mae Jemison wonders as she peers through her telescope and dreams of space. Someday she will make it there, but for now she wonders, learns, and is inspired by the vastness of the universe.

Astronaut, physician, and engineer Mae Jemison's passion would eventually lead to her becoming the first Black woman in space!

Through the Telescope focuses on what first inspired a young Mae Jemison to reach for the stars. Charles R. Smith, Jr. is the award-winning author of the Coretta Scott King Honor Book, Twelve Rounds of Glory, and many other popular and acclaimed titles. His gorgeous text places a spotlight on an American trailblazer who inspires kids everywhere to follow their dreams. Debut illustrator Evening Monteiro's captivating portrayal of a young Mae Jemison is sure to grab young readers' attention!

Perfect for kids who love space exploration and for readers of Hidden Figures and The Undefeated.

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The Six Triple Eight

Tonya Abari



 

A powerful and vibrantly illustrated account of the resilience and dedication of the unsung Black heroines who played a major role in World War II. Perfect for fans of Hidden Figures, Opal Lee and What It Means to Be Free, and Tyler Perry's blockbuster film The Six Triple Eight.

In 1944, the United States was facing a unique wartime crisis--too much mail! Millions of letters and packages, stacked from floor to ceiling, sat unsent in cold, dark warehouses, with no one to sort through the backlog and no way to deliver mail to the troops.

Enter the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion.

Formed of Black women who had advocated fiercely for their right to enlist in the U.S. military, the "Six Triple Eight" battalion had one special task: sort and send the mail. It wasn't easy, but the Six Triple Eight got to work!

Putting in long hours to send out each piece of mail in record time, they had a four-word motto that powered them through: "No mail, low morale!" As they helped deliver support to the soldiers on the frontlines, these women proved there was nothing they couldn't do!

Former teacher turned multigenre writer and editor Tonya Abari and debut illustrator Lance Evans honor these women with a stunning nonfiction picture book sure to educate and inspire future generations.

The Six Triple Eight is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection!

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The Chemistry Between Art and Science

Jen White

An inspiring look at how observation, patience, and creativity fuel our discoveries in art and science.

Art and science are often treated as two completely different fields, but if we look closer we might discover that artists and scientists have a lot in common. Like curiosity and imagination! And when they work together, art and science can explain the mysteries of the universe. Like how paleontologists study fossils and paleo artists bring those findings to life with brilliant color. 

Beautifully illustrated by debut author-illustrator Jen White, The Undeniable Chemistry between Art and Science follows two children on a journey in which they discover how interconnected these two subjects are, and how they both lift the other up in inspiring ways. With nods to groundbreaking artist-scientists like George Washington Carver and Maria Sibylla Merian as well as the role of art and science in climate change solutions, space travel, and more, this picture book is perfect for kids who just want to ask questions and create, create, and create! Back matter includes more about careers in STEAM, DIY activities, a glossary, a bibliography, and more.

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

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Crumbs

Danie Stirling

An IndieBound Bestseller

Falling in love just got sweeter in this charming, romantic YA graphic novel from WEBTOON, the #1 digital comic platform. Ray, a young seer struggling with her powers, discovers first love and friendship in her town's magic bakery.

In a very special town, there's an even more unusual bakery with a selection of baked treats hand-crafted to help your dreams come true. For Ray, a quiet young woman with special powers of her own, the order is always the same: a hot tea with a delicious side of romance.

When Ray meets Laurie, the kind barista who aspires to be a professional musician, she gets a real taste of love for the first time. But even with a spark of magic, romance isn't so simple. Both Ray and Laurie are chasing their own dreams and even when Ray starts to see the future, she can't predict her fate with Laurie.

Based on the beloved webcomic from WEBTOON, this sweet coming-of-age story of friendship and first love comes to life in graphic novel format with gorgeous illustrations and exclusive content.

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