City of Light, City of Dark by Avi and Brian Floca

Avi's ground-breaking graphic novel gets a stunning new cover to celebrate its twentieth anniversary!

Two kids fight to save their city from eternal winter in this gripping fantasy by Newbery Medalist Avi, illustrated by three-time Sibert Honoree Brian Floca.

"To begin with, there were these Kurbs. These Kurbs owned an Island... With their power they controlled both day and night... Years ago, when people first came to the Kurbs' Island, they wanted to build themselves a city."

The Kurbs give people light and warmth to establish a city, on one condition: The people must return the Power every year or risk losing the city forever. This system works for centuries until evil Mr. Underton tries to steal the Power. If he succeeds, the Kurbs will take back the City, reducing it to a dark and frozen tundra. It's up to Carlos and Sarah to find the Power, housed in a subway token, and keep the City safe, despite secrets of Sarah's history that are entwined with the token. What ensues is a race against darkness. A race against the lies of the past. And most of all, a race against time.

Half a Chance by Cynthia Lord

A moving new middle-grade novel from the Newbery Honor author of RULES. When Lucy's family moves to an old house on a lake, Lucy tries to see her new home through her camera's lens, as her father has taught her -- he's a famous photographer, away on a shoot. Will her photos ever meet his high standards? When she discovers that he's judging a photo contest, Lucy decides to enter anonymously. She wants to find out if her eye for photography is really special -- or only good enough. As she seeks out subjects for her photos, Lucy gets to know Nate, the boy next door. But slowly the camera reveals what Nate doesn't want to see: his grandmother's memory is slipping away, and with it much of what he cherishes about his summers on the lake. This summer, Nate will learn about the power of art to show truth. And Lucy will learn how beauty can change lives . . . including her own.

Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson

NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author James Swanson delivers a riveting account of the chase for Abraham Lincoln's assassin. Based on rare archival material, obscure trial manuscripts, and interviews with relatives of the conspirators and the manhunters, CHASING LINCOLN'S KILLER is a fast-paced thriller about the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth: a wild twelve-day chase through the streets of Washington, D.C., across the swamps of Maryland, and into the forests of Virginia.


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El Deafo by Cece Bell

Cece loses her hearing from spinal meningitis, and takes readers through the arduous journey of learning to lip read and decipher the noise of her hearing aid, with the goal of finding a true friend. This warmly and humorously illustrated full-color graphic novel set in the suburban '70s has all the gripping characters and inflated melodrama of late childhood: a crush on a neighborhood boy, the bossy friend, the too-sensitive-to-her-Deafness friend, and the perfect friend, scared away. The characters are all rabbits. The antics of her hearing aid connected to a FM unit (an amplifier the teacher wears) are spectacularly funny. When Cece's teacher leaves the FM unit on, Cece hears everything: bathroom visits, even teacher lounge improprieties It is her superpower. She deems herself El Deafo! inspired in part by a bullied Deaf child featured in an Afterschool Special. Cece fearlessly fantasizes retaliations. Nevertheless, she rejects ASL because it makes visible what she is trying to hide. She ventures, "Who cares what everyone thinks!" But she does care. She loathes the designation "special," and wants to pass for hearing. Bell tells it all: the joy of removing her hearing aid in summer, the troubles watching the TV when the actor turns his back, and the agony of slumber party chats in the dark. Included is an honest and revealing afterword, which addresses the author's early decision not to learn ASL, her more mature appreciation for the language, and her adage that, "Our differences are our superpowers."—Sara Lissa Paulson, School Library Journal


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The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier

The Night Gardener follows two abandoned Irish siblings who travel to work as servants at a creepy, crumbling English manor house. But the house and its family are not quite what they seem. Soon the children are confronted by a mysterious spectre and an ancient curse that threatens their very lives. With Auxier’s exquisite command of language, The Night Gardener is a mesmerizing read and a classic in the making.


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Mountain Dog by Margarita Engle

When Tony’s mother is sent to jail, he is sent to stay with a great uncle he has never met in Sierra Nevada. It is a daunting move—Tony’s new world bears no semblance to his previous one. But slowly, against a remote and remarkable backdrop, the scars from Tony’s troubled past begin to heal.

With his Tió and a search-and-rescue dog named Gabe by his side, he learns how to track wild animals, is welcomed to the Cowboy Church, and makes new friends at the Mountain School. Most importantly though, it is through Gabe that Tony discovers unconditional love for the first time, in Mountain Dog by Margarita Engle. ~ Kirkus Review



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Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

The story begins with a vacuum cleaner. And a squirrel. Or, to be more precise, a squirrel who gets sucked into a Ulysses Super Suction wielded by Flora’s neighbor, Mrs. Tickham. The rather hairless squirrel that is spit out is not the same one that went in. That squirrel had only one thought: “I’m hungry.” After Flora performs CPR, the rescued squirrel, newly named Ulysses, is still hungry, but now he has many thoughts in his head. Foremost is his consideration of Flora’s suggestion that perhaps he is a superhero like The Amazing Incandesto, whose comic-book adventures Flora read with her father. (Drawing on comic-strip elements, Campbell’s illustrations here work wonderfully well.) Since Flora’s father and mother have split up, Flora has become a confirmed and defiant cynic. Yet it is hard to remain a cynic while one’s heart is opening to a squirrel who can type (“Squirtl. I am . . . born anew”), who can fly, and who adores Flora. Newbery winner DiCamillo is a master storyteller, and not just because she creates characters who dance off the pages and plots, whether epic or small, that never fail to engage and delight readers. Her biggest strength is exposing the truths that open and heal the human heart. She believes in possibilities and forgiveness and teaches her audience that the salt of life can be cut with the right measure of love. ~Ilene Cooper, Booklist

The Moon Over High Street, by Natalie Babbitt

12-year-old Joe has a secret he has never told anyone. For as long as he can remember, Joe has wanted to study the moon. He's worried that something bad might happen to it and then it will have to go away, so he wants to learn how to protect it.

Joe will be spending the summer with his Aunt Myra in Midville. Joe is nervous about the visit. He doesn't want to leave his friends because he's worried that they will forget about him. But, upon Joe's arrival, he discovers that Midville isn't so bad. And it doesn't hurt that Aunt Myra's neighbor, 12-year-old Beatrice, is beautiful and wants to spend time with him!
 
One fateful day, Joe and Beatrice meet Mr. Boulderwall, one of the richest men in the world. Mr. Boulderwall also has a secret. He needs to find someone to run his company when he retires, and he decides that Joe is the perfect candidate! But this would mean that Joe wouldn't be able to help the moon. He would have to focus on business instead.
 
Can Joe admit that his love of the moon is more important than wealth? Or will Joe keep his secret for the rest of his life and never tell anybody about his dream? Find out in The Moon Over High Street by Natalie Babbitt.


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Secrets at Sea, by Richard Peck

The adorable tale of a family of mice stowaways on an adventurous ship's journey. In the beloved tradition of The Borrowers, The Tale of Despereaux, and The Cricket in Times Square, here is an irresistible adventure story about the tiny creatures who secretly live among us humans, as only Newbery Medal winner Richard Peck could imagine it. Set on a grand cruise ship to England in 1887, this beautifully illustrated tale of a charming family of mice is full of laughs, near misses, and surprises. Multiple-award-winning author Richard Peck at his best and most playful!


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Ungifted by Gordon Korman

Donovan Curtis is an impulse-driven prankster who, at the start of Ungifted, manages to alienate both the students and faculty of his middle school. First he mocks the basketball team over the school PA system with a derisive cheer and then he whacks the school's statue of Atlas with a stick, knocking the huge globe off and sending it rolling down the hill where it smashes into the gymnasium and stops the big game. When Donovan ends up on the carpet, the district superintendent accidentally adds his name to the roll of gifted students at the Academy for Scholastic Distinction. Although he flounders at his new school, Donovan ends up humanizing a program that focuses on academic achievement and ignores the social aspects of students' success. From his first day when he startles the robotics team by naming their robot, to his saving the class from summer school by drafting his pregnant sister as the answer to a missed credit in Human Development, Donovan finds that his gift lies in helping the smart kids by teaching them how to be "normal." Using an ancestor who survived the Titanic as inspiration, Donovan has a goofy kindness that charms characters and readers alike. Reminiscent of Stanley Yelnats and Joey Pigza, he careens through life much like the out-of-control globe from Atlas's statue. The story is told from the points of view of various characters (each chapter titled with an Un-word), and readers hear from teachers and administrators, students-both gifted and not-and family members. The message is tolerance, and Korman expertly and humorously delivers it in an unpretentious and universally appealing tale. ~Jane Barrer, School Library Journal 


Click here to watch the book trailer for Ungifted! 



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