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Six thousand years ago, people first came to the hillside and a story began. A Neolithic girl, Roman twins, a herbalist's daughter, an orphaned bird-scarer, an archaeologist's niece, three children without a home. Each faced their troubles on that ancient downland. All found healing in the place that Granny Down calls home.

Wilderness, weather, history, archaeology and folklore infuse each tale. With gorgeous illustrations of the wildlife and surrounding landscape at different points in history, this glorious full-colour, gift book is a celebration of the enduring power of nature and lives well lived.

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Discover stories of fear, triumph, and spectacular celebration in this warm-hearted novel of interconnected stories that celebrates the diversity of South Asian American experiences in a local community center.

Discover stories of fear, triumph, and spectacular celebration in the fictional town of Maple Grove, New Jersey, where the local kids gather at the community center to discover new crushes, fight against ignorance, and even save a life. Cheer for Chaya as she wins chess tournaments (unlike Andrew, she knows stupid sugary soda won't make you better at chess), and follow as Jeevan learns how to cook traditional food (it turns out he can cook sabji-- he just can't eat it).

These stories, edited by bestselling and award-winning Pakistani-American author Hena Khan, are filled with humor, warmth, and possibility. They showcase a diverse array of talented authors with heritage from the Indian subcontinent, including beloved favorites and rising stars, who each highlight the beauty and necessity of a community center that everyone calls home.

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Jules adores her older-by-one-year sister, Sylvie.

Sylvie: beautiful like their mother.
Sylvie: supreme maker of tiny snow families.
Sylvie: faster than fast.

Sylvie: gone.

Into thin air, Sylvie goes missing, and as Jules stumbles in grief, a fox cub is born. A shadow fox, spirit and animal in one. From the minute the cub opens her eyes, she senses something very wrong. Someone—Jules.

Jules: steadfast like their father.
Jules: supreme maker of tiny snow foxes.
Jules: collector of rocks.

Jules: heartbroken.

Who is this Jules? Who is this Sylvie she cries out for? And why does the air still prickle with something unsettled? As that dark unknown grows, the fates of the girl Jules and the fox cub, laced together with wishes and shadowy ties, are about to collide.

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New York Times and international bestseller recommended by President Barack Obama and Bill Gates, with gorgeous full-color illustrations and concise, easy to comprehend text for readers of all ages.

One hundred thousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one—homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us?

In this first volume of the full-color illustrated adaptation of his groundbreaking book, renowned historian Yuval Harari tells the story of humankind’s creation and evolution, exploring the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be “human.” From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens challenges us to reconsider accepted beliefs, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and view specific events within the context of larger ideas.

Featuring 256 pages of full-color illustrations and easy-to-understand text covering the first part of the full-length original edition, this adaptation of the mind-expanding book furthers the ongoing conversation as it introduces Harari’s ideas to a wide new readership.

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Who is the mysterious bloodstained man who stops their coach? Why is no one around when Lance and the rest of Year Six arrive at the brand new Crater Lake activity centre? But this is just the beginning of the school trip from hell; a fight for survival that sees five pupils band together to save their classmates from an alien fate far worse than death. But whatever happens, they must Never. Ever. Fall asleep!

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The Haunting Of Aveline Jones by Phil Hickes.

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The Haunting Of Aveline Jones by Phil Hickes.

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A must-read!

Aveline Jones loves reading ghost stories, so a dreary half-term becomes much more exciting when she discovers a spooky old book. Not only are the stories spine-tingling, but it once belonged to Primrose Penberthy, who vanished mysteriously, never to be seen again. Intrigued, Aveline decides to investigate Primrose's disappearance.

Now someone... or something is stirring. And it is looking for Aveline.

Turn on your torches and join Aveline Jones in her first charmingly spooky mystery, from debut author Phil Hickes.

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The Unforgotten Coat by Fank Cotrell Boyce

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The Unforgotten Coat by Fank Cotrell Boyce

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Two refugee brothers from Mongolia are determined to fit in with their Liverpool schoolmates, but bring so much of Mongolia to Bootle that their new friend and guide, Julie, is hard-pressed to know truth from fantasy as she recollects a wonderful friendship that was abruptly ended when Chingis and his family were forced to return to Mongolia. Told with the humour, warmth and brilliance of detail which characterizes Frank Cottrell Boyce's writing, this magical and compelling story is enriched by stunning and atmospheric Polaroid photos.

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Ghosts are alive on the island of Nantucket.

You can hear them in the wind, and in the creaks of the old homes. They want to be remembered. And, even more, they want to protect what was once theirs.

The ghosts seem to have chosen a few local kids to be their messengers—and to help save the island. But in this mystery, the line between those who haunt and those who are haunted is a thin one, and the past and the present must come to terms with one another in order to secure the future.

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For fans of Katherine Rundell, try this...

War is creeping across Europe but has not yet reached Safiyyah and her family. For the moment, Paris is still a free city, and life at the Grand Mosque is ordered and calm; Muslims, Jews and Christians live harmoniously together.

It happens gradually: an influx of refugees, the exodus of many wealthy Parisians, and most of the government. Then the dramatic arrival of German soldiers and the imposition of a curfew. And later, the shortage of food and the introduction of draconian laws against Jews.

Safiyyah feels helpless as she witnesses the impact of war. But as she starts to notice unexplained irregularities around the mosque, it becomes clear that some great act of rebellion is happening right under her nose. And despite the dangers, she is determined to play her part.

Focusing on the experiences of a small group of individuals, Safiyyah’s story shines a spotlight on an under-recognised pocket of resistance from World War II when hundreds of Jews were led to safety via underground passages from the Grand Mosque.

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Genre: Graphic Novel. Historical Fiction meets Fairy Tale.

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Snow White: A Graphic Novel by Matt Phelan

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Snow White: A Graphic Novel by Matt Phelan

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In this fairy-tale retelling, Snow White is updated to the late 1920s, with the stock-market crash and the early days of the Great Depression shaping the narrative.

he scene: New York City, 1928. The dazzling lights cast shadows that grow ever darker as the glitzy prosperity of the Roaring Twenties screeches to a halt. Enter a cast of familiar characters: a young girl, Samantha White, returning after being sent away by her cruel stepmother, the Queen of the Follies, years earlier; her father, the King of Wall Street, who survives the stock market crash only to suffer a strange and sudden death; seven street urchins, brave protectors for a girl as pure as snow; and a mysterious stock ticker that holds the stepmother in its thrall, churning out ticker tape imprinted with the wicked words "Another . . . More Beautiful . . . KILL." In a moody, cinematic new telling of a beloved fairy tale, extraordinary graphic novelist Matt Phelan captures the essence of classic film noir on the page—and draws a striking distinction between good and evil.

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'Life can be tough in your last year of primary school. Tests to take, preparing for the change to high school." Nate is ready for it all, knowing his best friend PS at his side - they’ve been inseparable since Nursery. But when they are put in two different classes and PS finds a new friend in Turner, the school bully, his world turns upside-down. As he struggles to make sense of this and forge new friendships, he’ s dealt another blow when his youngest brother, Dylan, is rushed into hospital. His new teacher, Mr Joshua, sees a spark inside of Nate that’ s lit by his love of reading and writing and shows him how to use this to make sense of what’ s going on. But with so much working against him, and anger rising inside him, will this be enough? This powerful and lyrical story, told in verse, about finding your place in the world and the people that matter within it explores themes of family, identity, belonging, navigating friendships, and the hardships of everyday life in a working class family in the North of England. With line drawings by award-winning illustrator, Joe Todd-Stanton.

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“Because feeling good about yourself doesn't come from changing how you look," she says. "It comes from changing how you see yourself. Learning to see yourself the way the people who love you see you.”Seventh grade is not going well for Will Levine. Kids at school bully him because of his funny-looking chin. His science teacher finds out about the turtles he spent his summer collecting from the marsh behind the school and orders him to release them back into the wild. For his bar mitzvah community service project, he has to go to the hospital to visit RJ, an older boy struggling with an incurable disease. Unfortunately, Will hates hospitals.

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Genre: fantasy

Mickey is angry all the time: at his divorced parents, at his sister, and at his two new stepmoms, both named Charlie. And so he can't resist the ad inside his pack of gum: "Do you ever wish everyone would go away? Buy The Anti-Book! Satisfaction guaranteed." He orders the book, but when it arrives, it's blank--except for one line of instruction: To erase it, write it. He fills the pages with all the things and people he dislikes . . .

Next thing he knows, he's wandering an anti-world, one in which everything and everyone familiar is gone. Or are they? His sister soon reappears--but she's only four inches tall. A tiny talking house with wings looks strangely familiar, as does the mysterious half-invisible boy who seems to think that he and Mickey are best buds. The boy persuades Mickey to go find the Bubble Gum King--the king, who resides at the top of a mountain, is the only one who might be able help Mickey fix the mess he's made.

The Anti-Book by Raphael Simon | Goodreads

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The longest night of Charlie Noon by Christopher Edge

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The longest night of Charlie Noon by Christopher Edge

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Genre: horror and fantasy

“If you go into the woods, Old Crony will get you.”

Secrets, spies or maybe even a monster… What lies in the heart of the wood? Charlie, Dizzy and Johnny are determined to discover the truth, but when night falls without warning they find themselves trapped in a nightmare. Lost in the woods, strange dangers and impossible puzzles lurk in the shadows. As time plays tricks, can Charlie solve this mystery and find a way out of the woods? But what if this night never ends…?

The Longest Night of Charlie Noon by Christopher Edge | Goodreads

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Time Travelling with a Hamster by Ross Welford

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Time Travelling with a Hamster by Ross Welford

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Genre: science fiction

“My dad died twice. Once when he was thirty nine and again four years later when he was twelve.

The first time had nothing to do with me. The second time definitely did, but I would never even have been there if it hadn’t been for his ‘time machine’…”

When Al Chaudhury discovers his late dad’s time machine, he finds that going back to the 1980s requires daring and imagination. It also requires lies, theft, burglary, and setting his school on fire. All without losing his pet hamster, Alan Shearer…

Time Travelling with a Hamster by Ross Welford | Goodreads

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Genre: fantasy

"There are three questions that I need to find the answers to:
-Where am I?
-What am I doing here?
- And... Who am I?"

When a young girl wakes up in the middle of the desert, she has no idea who she is. She's wearing one shoe, a silky black dress, and she's carrying a strange, heavy case.

She meets Tarni, who is on a mysterious quest of her own. Together, the two girls trek across the vast and ever-changing Australian Outback in search of answers. Except both are also hiding secrets...

The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell | Goodreads

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The Silly Book of Side-Splitting Stuff by Andy Seed

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The Silly Book of Side-Splitting Stuff by Andy Seed

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Genre: non-fiction & humour

A funny book full of silly facts, jokes, names, names and stories, plus the silliest things to do ever! With interactive content, it will keep kids entertained for hours.

The Silly Book of Side-Splitting Stuff by Andy Seed | Goodreads

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Genre: realistic fiction

Jack craves adventure, even if it means getting into trouble at school. He thinks he can get away with it as his mum is too busy to notice. But then she suggests that he comes along with her on a work trip – and doesn't tell them where they're going.

As Jack spins further out of control, his mum eventually becomes concerned - and shocks him by suggesting a trip together.

But this will be no relaxing holiday. Soon Jack finds himself on an expedition deep into the rainforest, far from anything he's ever known. He wanted an adventure - but has he plunged into real danger?

Wild by Ele Fountain | Goodreads

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Genre: fantasy

Return to a Once Upon a Time where anything is possible . . . Rumaysa: Ever After is the enchanting sequel to Radiya Hafiza's Rumaysa: A Fairytale – a gorgeously empowering and funny story that spins the classic fairytale to show that anyone can be a hero.

Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the fiercest one of all?

Ever since she escaped her tower, Rumaysa has been searching the land, far and wide, determined to find her long lost parents. But after she receives a mysterious invitation from Saira White, Queen of Bishnara, she is soon pulled into a dark, magical adventure, that threatens her own happily ever after . . .
Rumaysa: Ever After by Radiya Hafiza | Goodreads

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Genre: humour

Julia is very short for her age, but by the end of the summer run of The Wizard of Oz, she'll realize how big she is inside, where it counts. She hasn't ever thought of herself as a performer, but when the wonderful director of Oz casts her as a Munchkin, she begins to see herself in a new way. As Julia becomes friendly with the poised and wise Olive - one of the adults with dwarfism who've joined the production's motley crew of Munchkins - and with her deeply artistic neighbor, Mrs. Chang, Julia's own sense of self as an artist grows. Soon, she doesn't want to fade into the background and it's a good thing, because her director has more big plans for Julia!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30201160-short?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_30

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Genre: historical fiction (and a little fantasy)

Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica.

Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. And ultimately, pulled by the invisible thread of destiny, their suspenseful solo stories converge in an orchestral crescendo.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22749539-echo?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_11

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Genre: realistic fiction

Unfortunately, Roy’s first acquaintance in Florida is Dana Matherson, a well-known bully. Then again, if Dana hadn’t been sinking his thumbs into Roy’s temples and mashing his face against the school-bus window, Roy might never have spotted the running boy. And the running boy is he was running away from the school bus, carried no books, and–here’s the odd part–wore no shoes. Sensing a mystery, Roy sets himself on the boy’s trail. The chase introduces him to potty-trained alligators, a fake-fart champion, some burrowing owls, a renegade eco-avenger, and several extremely poisonous snakes with unnaturally sparkling tails.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13083.Hoot?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_4

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Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo

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Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo

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Genre: fantasy

It begins, as the best superhero stories do, with a tragic accident that has unexpected consequences. The squirrel never saw the vacuum cleaner coming, but self-described cynic Flora Belle Buckman, who has read every issue of the comic book Terrible Things Can Happen to You!, is the just the right person to step in and save him. What neither can predict is that Ulysses (the squirrel) has been born anew, with powers of strength, flight, and misspelled poetry—and that Flora will be changed too, as she discovers the possibility of hope and the promise of a capacious heart.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16052012-flora-ulysses?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_45

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

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Genre: realistic fiction

"How about a story? Spin us a yarn."
Instantly, Phoebe Winterbottom came to mind. "I could tell you an extensively strange story," I warned.
"Oh, good!" Gram said. "Delicious!"
And that is how I happened to tell them about Phoebe, her disappearing mother, and the lunatic.

As Sal entertains her grandparents with Phoebe's outrageous story, her own story begins to unfold — the story of a thirteen-year-old girl whose only wish is to be reunited with her missing mother.

In her own award-winning style, Sharon Creech intricately weaves together two tales, one funny, one bittersweet, to create a heartwarming, compelling, and utterly moving story of love, loss, and the complexity of human emotion.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53496.Walk_Two_Moons?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

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Genre: realistic fiction

Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnats. Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys’ detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the boys build character by spending all day, every day digging holes exactly five feet wide and five feet deep. There is no lake at Camp Green Lake. But there are an awful lot of holes.

It doesn’t take long for Stanley to realize there’s more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake. The boys are digging holes because the warden is looking for something. But what could be buried under a dried-up lake? Stanley tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and

punishment—and redemption.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38709.Holes

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt 

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt 

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Genre: historical fiction

Doomed to - or blessed with - eternal life after drinking from a magic spring, the Tuck family wanders about trying to live as inconspicuously and comfortably as they can. When ten-year-old Winnie Foster stumbles on their secret, the Tucks take her home and explain why living forever at one age is less a blessing that it might seem. Complications arise when Winnie is followed by a stranger who wants to market the spring water for a fortune.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/84981.Tuck_Everlasting?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_17

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Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick [series]

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Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick [series]

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Genre: realistic fiction

Two boys – a slow learner stuck in the body of a teenage giant and a tiny Einstein in leg braces – forge a unique friendship when they pair up to create one formidable human force. A wonderful story of triumph over imperfection, shame, and loss.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8953.Freak_the_Mighty?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=O7RlXSjJpj&rank=1

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Genre: adventure

There are no polar bears left on Bear Island. At least, that’s what April’s father tells her when his scientific research takes them to a faraway Arctic outpost.

But one night, April catches a glimpse of something distinctly bear shaped loping across the horizon. A polar bear who shouldn’t be there—who is hungry, lonely and a long way from home.

Fusing environmental awareness with a touching story of kindness, The Last Bear will include full-page black-and-white illustrations as well as a note from the author with facts about the real Bear Island and the plight of the polar bears.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53327890-the-last-bear?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

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Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens [series]

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Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens [series]

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Genre: mystery

When Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong set up their very own deadly secret detective agency at Deepdean School for Girls, they struggle to find any truly exciting mysteries to investigate. (Unless you count the case of Lavinia's missing tie. Which they don't, really.)

But then Hazel discovers the Science Mistress, Miss Bell, lying dead in the Gym. She thinks it must all have been a terrible accident -- but when she and Daisy return five minutes later, the body has disappeared. Now the girls know a murder must have taken place... and there's more than one person at Deepdean with a motive.

Now Hazel and Daisy not only have a murder to solve: they have to prove a murder happened in the first place. Determined to get to the bottom of the crime before the killer strikes again (and before the police can get there first, naturally), Hazel and Daisy must hunt for evidence, spy on their suspects and use all the cunning, scheming and intuition they can muster. But will they succeed? And can their friendship stand the test?

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18070753-murder-most-unladylike?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_22#CommunityReviews

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When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed [graphic novel]

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When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed [graphic novel]

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Genre: biography/nonfiction

Omar and his younger brother, Hassan, have spent most of their lives in Dadaab, a refugee camp in Kenya. Life is hard there: never enough food, achingly dull, and without access to the medical care Omar knows his nonverbal brother needs. So when Omar has the opportunity to go to school, he knows it might be a chance to change their future . . . but it would also mean leaving his brother, the only family member he has left, every day.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51864234-when-stars-are-scattered?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_24

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Genre: science fiction

When they first arrived, they came quietly and stealthily as if they tip-toed into the world when we were all looking the other way.

Ade loves living at the top of a tower block. From his window, he feels like he can see the whole world stretching out beneath him.

His mum doesn't really like looking outside - but it's going outside that she hates.

She's happier sleeping all day inside their tower, where it's safe.

But one day, other tower blocks on the estate start falling down around them and strange, menacing plants begin to appear.

Now their tower isn't safe anymore. Ade and his mum are trapped and there's no way out . . .

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18657652-boy-in-the-tower?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_12

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Genre: science fiction

Imagine having the perfect friend, one who never steals, lies or bullies. Now you can, with the TrooFriend 560, the latest in artificial intelligence! What can go wrong with a robot buddy? Especially one that’s developing human characteristics and feelings, and who has just run away with her human?

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49109161-troofriend?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_10

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Isaiah Dunn is My Hero by Kelly J. Baptist

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Isaiah Dunn is My Hero by Kelly J. Baptist

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Genre: realistic fiction

A coming-of-age tale about a boy who discovers a love of poetry after finding his late father's journal.

Isaiah is now the big man of the house. But it's a lot harder than his dad made it look. His little sister, Charlie, asks too many questions, and Mama's gone totally silent.

Good thing Isaiah can count on his best friend, Sneaky, who always has a scheme for getting around the rules. Plus, his classmate Angel has a few good ideas of her own--once she stops hassling Isaiah.

And when things get really tough, there's Daddy's journal, filled with stories about the amazing Isaiah Dunn, a superhero who gets his powers from beans and rice. Isaiah wishes his dad's tales were real. He could use those powers right about now!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43203634-isaiah-dunn-is-my-hero?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=2V30xNS681&rank=1

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No Ballet Shoes in Syria by Catherine Bruton

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No Ballet Shoes in Syria by Catherine Bruton

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Genre: realistic fiction
Aya is eleven years old and has just arrived in Britain with her mum and baby brother, seeking asylum from war in Syria.

When Aya stumbles across a local ballet class, the formidable dance teacher spots her exceptional talent and believes that Aya has the potential to earn a prestigious ballet scholarship.

But at the same time, Aya and her family must fight to be allowed to remain in the country, to make a home for themselves, and to find Aya’s father – separated from the rest of the family during the journey from Syria.

With beautiful, captivating writing, wonderfully authentic ballet detail, and an important message championing the rights of refugees, this is classic storytelling – filled with warmth, hope and humanity.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43684586-no-ballet-shoes-in-syria?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_24

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Genre: fantasy
Desperate to become a shark caller to avenge the death of her parents, Blue Wing is instead charged with befriending infuriating newcomer Maple. At first they are angry and out of sync with the island and each other. But when the tide breathes the promise of treasure, can they overcome their differences and brave the deadliest shark in the ocean?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51610439-the-shark-caller?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_16

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Skandar and the Unicorn Thief by A.F. Steadman [series]

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Skandar and the Unicorn Thief by A.F. Steadman [series]

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Genre: fantasy
If you are a fan of Percy Jackson, this is the series for you!

Skandar Smith has always yearned to leave the Mainland and escape to the secretive Island, where wild unicorns roam free. He’s spent years studying for his Hatchery exam, the annual test that selects a handful of Mainlander thirteen-year-olds to train to become unicorn riders. But on the day of Skandar’s exam, things go horribly wrong, and his hopes are shattered…until a mysterious figure knocks on his door at midnight, bearing a message: the Island is in peril and Skandar must answer its call.

Skandar is thrust into a world of epic sky battles, dangerous clashes with wild unicorns, and rumors of a shadowy villain amassing a unicorn army. And the closer Skandar grows to his newfound friends and community of riders, the harder it becomes to keep his secrets—especially when he discovers their lives may all be in graver danger than he ever imagined.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58438136-skandar-and-the-unicorn-thief?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=tkkLMie4kj&rank=1

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Skandar and the Unicorn Thief (Skandar, #1)

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Read 1,085 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Soar into a breathtaking world of heroes and unicorns as you've never seen them before i...

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Genre: adventure
From his seat in the tiny aeroplane, Fred watches as the mysteries of the Amazon jungle pass by below him. He has always dreamed of becoming an explorer, of making history and of reading his name amongst the lists of great discoveries. If only he could land and look about him.

As the plane crashes into the canopy, Fred is suddenly left without a choice. He and the three other children may be alive, but the jungle is a vast, untamed place. With no hope of rescue, the chance of getting home feels impossibly small.

Except, it seems, someone has been there before them.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Explorer-Katherine-Rundell/dp/1408882191

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Genre: fantasy and adventure
Nobody visits Eerie-on-Sea in the winter. Especially not when darkness falls and the wind howls around Maw Rocks and the wreck of the battleship Leviathan, where even now some swear they have seen the unctuous malamander creep…

Herbert Lemon, Lost-and-Founder at the Grand Nautilus Hotel, knows that returning lost things to their rightful owners is not easy – especially when the lost thing is not a thing at all, but a girl. No one knows what happened to Violet Parma’s parents twelve years ago, and when she engages Herbie to help her find them, the pair discover that their disappearance might have something to do with the legendary sea-monster, the Malamander. Eerie-on-Sea has always been a mysteriously chilling place, where strange stories seem to wash up. And it just got stranger...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43132607-malamander?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_10

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Genre: realistic fiction
A California girl born and raised, Mai can't wait to spend her vacation at the beach. Instead, though, she has to travel to Vietnam with her grandmother, who is going back to find out what really happened to her husband during the Vietnam War. Mai's parents think this trip will be a great opportunity for their out-of-touch daughter to learn more about her culture. But to Mai, those are their roots, not her own. Vietnam is hot, smelly, and the last place she wants to be. Besides barely speaking the language, she doesn't know the geography, the local customs, or even her distant relatives. To survive her trip, Mai must find a balance between her two completely different worlds.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22477286-listen-slowly?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus

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Genre: historical fiction
It is 1940 and Anna, 9, Edmund, 11, and William, 12, have just lost their grandmother. Unfortunately, she left no provision for their guardianship in her will. Her solicitor comes up with a preposterous plan: he will arrange for the children to join a group of schoolchildren who are being evacuated to a village in the country, where they will live with families for the duration of the war. He also hopes that whoever takes the children on might end up willing to adopt them and become their new family--providing, of course, that the children can agree on the choice.

Moving from one family to another, the children suffer the cruel trickery of foster brothers, the cold realities of outdoor toilets, and the hollowness of empty tummies. They seek comfort in the village lending library, whose kind librarian, Nora Muller, seems an excellent candidate--except that she has a German husband whose whereabouts are currently unknown. Nevertheless, Nora's cottage is a place of bedtime stories and fireplaces, of vegetable gardens and hot, milky tea. Most important, it's a place where someone thinks they all three hung the moon. Which is really all you need in a mom, if you think about it.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53399305-a-place-to-hang-the-moon?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=QWvm3Lc8ab&rank=1

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Giver by Lois Lowry

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Giver by Lois Lowry

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Genre: science fiction
Only available in the Secondary School library
Life in the community where Jonas lives is idyllic. Designated birthmothers produce newchildren, who are assigned to appropriate family units. Citizens are assigned their partners and their jobs. No one thinks to ask questions. Everyone obeys. Everyone is the same. Except Jonas.

Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community. Gradually Jonas learns that power lies in feelings. But when his own power is put to the test—when he must try to save someone he loves—he may not be ready. Is it too soon? Or too late?

Told with deceptive simplicity, this is the provocative story of a boy who experiences something incredible and undertakes something impossible. In the telling it questions every value we have taken for granted and reexamines our most deeply held beliefs.
https://www.amazon.com/Giver-Quartet-Lois-Lowry/dp/0544336267

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

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Genre: historical fiction
Only available in the Senior School Library
Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously—and at great risk—documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7824322-between-shades-of-gray?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_23

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

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Genre: realistic fiction
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life...until now.

Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15937108-counting-by-7s?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Glass Sentence by S.E. Grove [series]

# data[].attributes.subject
⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Glass Sentence by S.E. Grove [series]

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Genre: fantasy
Only available in the Senior School Library
She has only seen the world through maps. She had no idea they were so dangerous.

Boston, 1891. Sophia Tims comes from a family of explorers and cartologers who, for generations, have been traveling and mapping the New World—a world changed by the Great Disruption of 1799, when all the continents were flung into different time periods.  Eight years ago, her parents left her with her uncle Shadrack, the foremost cartologer in Boston, and went on an urgent mission. They never returned. Life with her brilliant, absent-minded, adored uncle has taught Sophia to take care of herself.

Then Shadrack is kidnapped. And Sophia, who has rarely been outside of Boston, is the only one who can search for him. Together with Theo, a refugee from the West, she travels over rough terrain and uncharted ocean, encounters pirates and traders, and relies on a combination of Shadrack’s maps, common sense, and her own slantwise powers of observation. But even as Sophia and Theo try to save Shadrack’s life, they are in danger of losing their own.

The Glass Sentence plunges readers into a time and place they will not want to leave, and introduces them to a heroine and hero they will take to their hearts. It is a remarkable debut.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18668056-the-glass-sentence?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_18

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Hatchet by Gary Paulsen [series]

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Hatchet by Gary Paulsen [series]

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Genre: adventure
Brian is on his way to Canada to visit his estranged father when the pilot of his small prop plane suffers a heart attack. Brian is forced to crash-land the plane in a lake--and finds himself stranded in the remote Canadian wilderness with only his clothing and the hatchet his mother gave him as a present before his departure.

Brian had been distraught over his parents' impending divorce and the secret he carries about his mother, but now he is truly desolate and alone. Exhausted, terrified, and hungry, Brian struggles to find food and make a shelter for himself. He has no special knowledge of the woods, and he must find a new kind of awareness and patience as he meets each day's challenges. Is the water safe to drink? Are the berries he finds poisonous?

Slowly, Brian learns to turn adversity to his advantage--an invading porcupine unexpectedly shows him how to make fire, a devastating tornado shows him how to retrieve supplies from the submerged airplane. Most of all, Brian leaves behind the self-pity he has felt about his predicament as he summons the courage to stay alive.

A story of survival and of transformation, this riveting book has sparked many a reader's interest in venturing into the wild.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50.Hatchet?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=RYH4uq4nKb&rank=1

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The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh by Helen Rutter [series]

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The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh by Helen Rutter [series]

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Genre: humour
When life is funny, make some jokes about it.

Billy Plimpton has a big dream: to become a famous comedian when he grows up. He already knows a lot of jokes, but thinks he has one big problem standing in his way: his stutter.

At first, Billy thinks the best way to deal with this is to . . . never say a word. That way, the kids in his new school won’t hear him stammer. But soon he finds out this is NOT the best way to deal with things. (For one thing, it’s very hard to tell a joke without getting a word out.)

As Billy makes his way toward the spotlight, a lot of funny things (and some less funny things) happen to him. In the end, the whole school will know --

If you think you can hold Billy Plimpton back, be warned: The joke will soon be on you!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56337814-the-boy-who-made-everyone-laugh?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_31

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Brother's Keeper by Julie Lee

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try Brother's Keeper by Julie Lee

# data[].attributes.body
Genre: historical fiction
Can two children escape North Korea on their own?

North Korea. December, 1950.

Twelve-year-old Sora and her family live under an iron set of rules: No travel without a permit. No criticism of the government. No absences from Communist meetings. Wear red. Hang pictures of the Great Leader. Don't trust your neighbors. Don't speak your mind. You are being watched.

But war is coming, war between North and South Korea, between the Soviets and the Americans. War causes chaos--and war is the perfect time to escape. The plan is simple: Sora and her family will walk hundreds of miles to the South Korean city of Busan from their tiny mountain village. They just need to avoid napalm, frostbite, border guards, and enemy soldiers.

But they can't. And when an incendiary bombing changes everything, Sora and her little brother Young will have to get to Busan on their own. Can a twelve-year-old girl and her eight-year-old brother survive three hundred miles of war zone in winter?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52130749-brother-s-keeper?ref=nav_sb_ss_3_16

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Call of the Wild by Jack London

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Call of the Wild by Jack London

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Genre: adventure & animal
Part St. Bernard, part Scotch shepherd, Buck is a sturdy crossbreed canine accustomed to a comfortable life as a family dog -- until he's seized from his pampered surroundings and shipped to Alaska to be a sled dog. There, the forbidding landscape is as harsh as life itself during the gold rush of the 1890s. Forced to function in a climate where every day is a savage struggle for survival, Buck adapts quickly. Traces of his earlier existence are obliterated and he reverts to his dormant primeval instincts, encountering danger and adventure as he becomes the leader of a wolf pack and undertakes a journey of nearly mythical proportions.
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/call-of-the-wild-jack-london/1116664291

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⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat

# data[].attributes.subject
⭐⭐Need a challenge? Try The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat

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Genre: fantasy
As assistant to Mangkon’s most celebrated mapmaker, twelve-year-old Sai plays the part of a well-bred young lady with a glittering future. In reality, her father is a conman—and in a kingdom where the status of one’s ancestors dictates their social position, the truth could ruin her. Sai seizes the chance to join an expedition to chart the southern seas, but she isn’t the only one aboard with secrets. When Sai learns that the ship might be heading for the fabled Sunderlands—a land of dragons, dangers, and riches beyond imagining—she must weigh the cost of her dreams.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58308834-the-last-mapmaker?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_17

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Genre: historical fiction
On a spring morning in 1986, neighbors Valentina Kaplan and Oksana Savchenko wake up to an angry red sky. A reactor at the nuclear power plant where their fathers work--Chernobyl--has exploded. Before they know it, the two girls, who've always been enemies, find themselves on a train bound for Leningrad to stay with Valentina's estranged grandmother, Rita Grigorievna.

In 1941 Rifka must flee Kiev before the Germans arrive. Her journey is harrowing and fraught with danger because Germans and Russians alike will revile her for her Jewish blood.

In both time periods, the girls must learn who to trust and how to have hope in the midst of horrible events.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40939440-the-blackbird-girls?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_19

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Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai [graphic novel]

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Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai [graphic novel]

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Genre: humour
When eleven-year-old Jingwen moves to a new country, he feels like he's landed on Mars. School is torture, making friends is impossible since he doesn’t speak English, and he's often stuck looking after his (extremely irritating) little brother, Yanghao.

To distract himself from the loneliness, Jingwen daydreams about making all the cakes on the menu of Pie in the Sky, the bakery his father had planned to open before he unexpectedly passed away. The only problem is his mother has laid down one major rule: the brothers are not to use the oven while she's at work. As Jingwen and Yanghao bake elaborate cakes, they'll have to cook up elaborate excuses to keep the cake making a secret from Mama.

Told in prose and graphic novel elements, this middle-grade novel is about a boy's immigration experience, his annoying little brother, and their cake-baking hijinks!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40032385-pie-in-the-sky?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

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Genre: realistic fiction
This Newbery Honor Book is a heartfelt and witty story about feeling different and finding acceptance--beyond the rules. Twelve-year-old Catherine just wants a normal life. Which is near impossible when you have a brother with autism and a family that revolves around his disability. She's spent years trying to teach David the rules-from "a peach is not a funny-looking apple" to "keep your pants on in public"-in order to stop his embarrassing behaviors. But the summer Catherine meets Jason, a paraplegic boy, and Kristi, the next-door friend she's always wished for, it's her own shocking behavior that turns everything upside down and forces her to ask: What is normal?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/222458.Rules?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_9

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The Evil Wizard Smallbone by Delia Sherman

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The Evil Wizard Smallbone by Delia Sherman

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Genre: fantasy
When twelve-year-old Nick runs away from his uncle’s in the middle of a blizzard, he stumbles onto a very opinionated bookstore. He also meets its guardian, the self-proclaimed Evil Wizard Smallbone, who calls Nick his apprentice and won’t let him leave, but won’t teach him magic, either. It’s a good thing the bookstore takes Nick’s magical education in hand, because Smallbone’s nemesis—the Evil Wizard Fidelou—and his pack of shape-shifting bikers are howling at the borders. Smallbone might call himself evil, but compared to Fidelou, he’s practically a puppy. And he can’t handle Fidelou alone. Wildly funny and cozily heartfelt, Delia Sherman’s latest is an eccentric fantasy adventure featuring dueling wizards, enchanted animals, and one stray boy with a surprising knack for magic.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25191266-the-evil-wizard-smallbone?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_25

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Pay Attention, Carter Jones by Gary D. Schmidt

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Pay Attention, Carter Jones by Gary D. Schmidt

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Genre: realistic fiction & sport
Carter Jones is astonished early one morning when he finds a real English butler, bowler hat and all, on the doorstep—one who stays to help the Jones family, which is a little bit broken.

In addition to figuring out middle school, Carter has to adjust to the unwelcome presence of this new know-it-all adult in his life and navigate the butler's notions of decorum. And ultimately, when his burden of grief and anger from the past can no longer be ignored, Carter learns that a burden becomes lighter when it is shared.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37763409-pay-attention-carter-jones?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_27

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Genre: realistic fiction
Nine-year-old Betita knows she is a crane. Papi has told her the story, even before her family fled to Los Angeles to seek refuge from cartel wars in Mexico. The Aztecs came from a place called Aztlan, what is now the Southwest US, called the land of the cranes. They left Aztlan to establish their great city in the center of the universe-Tenochtitlan, modern-day Mexico City. It was prophesized that their people would one day return to live among the cranes in their promised land. Papi tells Betita that they are cranes that have come home.

Then one day, Betita's beloved father is arrested by Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) and deported to Mexico. Betita and her pregnant mother are left behind on their own, but soon they too are detained and must learn to survive in a family detention camp outside of Los Angeles. Even in cruel and inhumane conditions, Betita finds heart in her own poetry and in the community she and her mother find in the camp. The voices of her fellow asylum seekers fly above the hatred keeping them caged, but each day threatens to tear them down lower than they ever thought they could be. Will Betita and her family ever be whole again?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41945957-land-of-the-cranes?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_18

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Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty [series]

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Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty [series]

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Genre: mystery
Serafina has never had a reason to disobey her pa and venture beyond the grounds of the Biltmore estate. There’s plenty to explore in her grand home, although she must take care to never be seen. None of the rich folk upstairs know that Serafina exists; she and her pa, the estate’s maintenance man, have secretly lived in the basement for as long as Serafina can remember.

But when children at the estate start disappearing, only Serafina knows who the culprit is: a terrifying man in a black cloak who stalks Biltmore’s corridors at night. Following her own harrowing escape, Serafina risks everything by joining forces with Braeden Vanderbilt, the young nephew of the Biltmore’s owners. Braeden and Serafina must uncover the Man in the Black Cloak’s true identity... before all of the children vanish one by one.

Serafina’s hunt leads her into the very forest that she has been taught to fear. There she discovers a forgotten legacy of magic, one that is bound to her own identity. In order to save the children of Biltmore, Serafina must seek the answers that will unlock the puzzle of her past.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23507745-serafina-and-the-black-cloak?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_28

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Genre: realistic fiction
Life is quiet and ordinary in Amal’s Pakistani village, but she had no complaints, and besides, she’s busy pursuing her dream of becoming a teacher one day. Her dreams are temporarily dashed when–as the eldest daughter–she must stay home from school to take care of her siblings. Amal is upset, but she doesn’t lose hope and finds ways to continue learning. Then the unimaginable happens–after an accidental run-in with the son of her village’s corrupt landlord, Amal must work as his family’s servant to pay off her own family’s debt.

Life at the opulent Khan estate is full of heartbreak and struggle for Amal–especially when she inadvertently makes an enemy of a girl named Nabila. Most troubling, though, is Amal’s growing awareness of the Khans’ nefarious dealings. When it becomes clear just how far they will go to protect their interests, Amal realizes she will have to find a way to work with others if they are ever to exact change in a cruel status quo, and if Amal is ever to achieve her dreams.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36086513-amal-unbound?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_8

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Genre: realistic fiction
Minni lives in the poorest part of Mumbai, where access to water is limited to a few hours a day and the communal taps have long lines. Lately, though, even that access is threatened by severe water shortages and thieves who are stealing this precious commodity—an act that Minni accidentally witnesses one night. Meanwhile, in the high-rise building where she just started to work, she discovers that water streams out of every faucet and there’s even a rooftop swimming pool. What Minni also discovers there is one of the water mafia bosses. Now she must decide whether to expose him and risk her job and maybe her life. How did something as simple as access to water get so complicated?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55586848-thirst?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_13

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The Girl Who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson

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The Girl Who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson

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Genre: fantasy
Found abandoned in a bear cave as a baby, 12-year-old Yanka has always felt out of place in her small village. When she wakes up to find that her legs have become bear legs, she sets off into the forest to discover who she is, on a journey that takes her from icy rivers to smouldering mountains, with an ever-growing group of misfits alongside her... Interwoven with traditional stories of bears, princesses and dragons, Yanka's journey is a gorgeously lyrical adventure from the best-selling author of The House With Chicken Legs.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43893965-the-girl-who-speaks-bear?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=Qw4ylsRJiu&rank=1

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Genre: humour
The Unteachables are a notorious class of misfits, delinquents, and academic train wrecks. Like Aldo, with anger management issues; Parker, who can’t read; Kiana, who doesn’t even belong in the class—or any class; and Elaine (rhymes with pain). The Unteachables have been removed from the student body and isolated in room 117.

Their teacher is Mr. Zachary Kermit, the most burned-out teacher in all of Greenwich. He was once a rising star, but his career was shattered by a cheating scandal that still haunts him. After years of phoning it in, he is finally one year away from early retirement. But the superintendent has his own plans to torpedo that idea—and it involves assigning Mr. Kermit to the Unteachables.

The Unteachables never thought they’d find a teacher who had a worse attitude than they did. And Mr. Kermit never thought he would actually care about teaching again. Over the course of a school year, though, room 117 will experience mayhem, destruction—and maybe even a shot at redemption.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39855034-the-unteachables?ref=nav_sb_ss_2_12

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Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas [graphic novel]

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Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas [graphic novel]

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Genre: realistic fiction
Bree can't wait for her first day at her new middle school, Enith Brigitha, home to the Mighty Manatees--until she's stuck with the only elective that fits her schedule, the dreaded Swim 101. The thought of swimming makes Bree more than a little queasy, yet she's forced to dive headfirst into one of her greatest fears. Lucky for her, Etta, an elderly occupant of her apartment building and former swim team captain, is willing to help.

With Etta's training and a lot of hard work, Bree suddenly finds her swim-crazed community counting on her to turn the school's failing team around. But that's easier said than done, especially when their rival, the prestigious Holyoke Prep, has everything they need to leave the Mighty Manatees in their wake.

Can Bree defy the odds and guide her team to a state championship, or have the Manatees swum their last lap--for good?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58842729-swim-team?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=YYonhQUV4A&rank=1

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The Aquanaut by Dan Santat [graphic novel]

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The Aquanaut by Dan Santat [graphic novel]

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Genre: fantasy
Ever since her father was lost at sea, Sophia has been moping around Aqualand, the marine theme park her dad and uncle created. But Sophia's world is turned upside down when an "aquanaut" breaks into the park's research lab. To her amazement, Sophia discovers that the aquanaut is not what it seems -- inside lives a band of four goofy sea creatures! And when they all realize that Aqualand has evolved into something much darker than Sophia's dad had envisioned, Sophia is determined to help the aquanaut crew free the park's captive marine life before it's too late.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57468672-the-aquanaut?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_8

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Genre: adventure and animal
For Vega and her family, salmon is life. And Vega is learning to be a salmon finder, preparing for the day when she will be her family’s matriarch. But then she and her brother Deneb are separated from their pod when a devastating earthquake and tsunami render the seascape unrecognizable. Vega must use every skill she has to lead her brother back to their family. The young orcas face a shark attack, hunger, the deep ocean, and polluted waters on their journey. Will Vega become the leader she’s destined to be?

A Whale of the Wild weaves a heart-stopping tale of survival with impeccable research on a delicate ecosystem and threats to marine life.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49086131-a-whale-of-the-wild?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_17

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The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart by Stephanie Burgis [series]

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The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart by Stephanie Burgis [series]

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Genre: fantasy
Aventurine is a brave young dragon ready to explore the world outside of her family's mountain cave . . . if only they'd let her leave it. Her family thinks she's too young to fly on her own, but she's determined to prove them wrong by capturing the most dangerous prey of all: a human.

But when that human tricks her into drinking enchanted hot chocolate, she's transformed into a puny human without any sharp teeth, fire breath, or claws. Still, she's the fiercest creature in these mountains--and now she's found her true passion: chocolate. All she has to do is get to the human city to find herself an apprenticeship (whatever that is) in a chocolate house (which sounds delicious), and she'll be conquering new territory in no time . . . won't she?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26869762-the-dragon-with-a-chocolate-heart?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_34

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Genre: mystery
Things never seem to go as easily for thirteen-year-old Frankie as they do for her twin sister, Tess. Unlike Tess, Frankie is neurodivergent, with diagnoses of ADHD and autism spectrum and attention processing disorders. Frankie can't stand to be touched, loud noises bother her, she's easily distracted, she hates changes in her routine, and she has to go see a therapist while other kids get to hang out at the beach. It also means Frankie has trouble making friends. She did have one--Colette--but they're not friends anymore. It's complicated.

Then, just weeks before the end of seventh grade, Colette unexpectedly shows up at Frankie's door. The next morning, Colette vanishes. Now, after losing Colette yet again, Frankie's convinced that her former best friend left clues behind that only she can decipher, so she persuades her reluctant sister to help her unravel the mystery of Colette's disappearance before it's too late.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52454063-tornado-brain?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=MrvNgsq7NH&rank=1

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Genre: realistic fiction
When Jameela Mirza is picked to be feature editor of her middle school newspaper, she’s one step closer to being an award-winning journalist like her late grandfather. The problem is her editor-in-chief keeps shooting down her article ideas. Jameela’s assigned to write about the new boy in school, who has a cool British accent but doesn’t share much, and wonders how she’ll make his story gripping enough to enter into a national media contest.

Jameela, along with her three sisters, is devastated when their father needs to take a job overseas, away from their cozy Georgia home for six months. Missing him makes Jameela determined to write an epic article—one to make her dad extra proud. But when her younger sister gets seriously ill, Jameela’s world turns upside down. And as her hunger for fame looks like it might cost her a blossoming friendship, Jameela questions what matters most, and whether she’s cut out to be a journalist at all...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43822031-more-to-the-story?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=E3l8QXuB1X&rank=1

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The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

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The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

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Genre: fantasy
Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch in the forest, Xan, is kind and gentle. She shares her home with a wise Swamp Monster named Glerk and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon, Fyrian. Xan rescues the abandoned children and deliver them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing the babies with starlight on the journey.

One year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. Xan decides she must raise this enmagicked girl, whom she calls Luna, as her own. To keep young Luna safe from her own unwieldy power, Xan locks her magic deep inside her. When Luna approaches her thirteenth birthday, her magic begins to emerge on schedule--but Xan is far away. Meanwhile, a young man from the Protectorate is determined to free his people by killing the witch. Soon, it is up to Luna to protect those who have protected her--even if it means the end of the loving, safe world she’s always known.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28110852-the-girl-who-drank-the-moon?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=aomX3u3XU9&rank=1

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Genre: humour and animal
Ever since Cosmo became a big brother to Max ten years ago, he's known what his job was: to protect his boy and make him happy. Through many good years marked by tennis balls and pilfered turkey, torn-up toilet paper and fragrant goose poop, Cosmo has doggedly kept his vow. Until recently, his biggest problems were the evil tutu-wearing sheepdog he met on Halloween and the arthritis in his own joints. But now, with Dad-scented blankets appearing on the couch and arguing voices getting louder, Cosmo senses a tougher challenge ahead. When Max gets a crazy idea to teach them both a dance routine for a contest, how can Cosmo refuse, stiff hips or no? Max wants to remind his folks of all the great times they've had together dancing -- and make them forget about the "d" word that's making them all cry.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43679816-i-cosmo?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_8

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Genre: realistic fiction and animal
The summer Opal and her father, the preacher, move to Naomi, Florida, Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket—and comes out with a dog. A big, ugly, suffering dog with a sterling sense of humor. A dog she dubs Winn-Dixie. Because of Winn-Dixie, the preacher tells Opal ten things about her absent mother, one for each year Opal has been alive. Winn-Dixie is better at making friends than anyone Opal has ever known, and together they meet the local librarian, Miss Franny Block, who once fought off a bear with a copy of WAR AND PEACE. They meet Gloria Dump, who is nearly blind but sees with her heart, and Otis, an ex-con who sets the animals in his pet shop loose after hours, then lulls them with his guitar.

Opal spends all that sweet summer collecting stories about her new friends and thinking about her mother. But because of Winn-Dixie or perhaps because she has grown, Opal learns to let go, just a little, and that friendship—and forgiveness—can sneak up on you like a sudden summer storm.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/357664.Because_of_Winn_Dixie?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_21

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Genre: realistic fiction and animal
Pax was only a kit when his family was killed, and “his boy” Peter rescued him from abandonment and certain death. Now the war front approaches, and when Peter’s father enlists, Peter has to move in with his grandpa. Far worse than being forced to leave home is the fact that Pax can’t go. Peter listens to his stern father—as he usually does—and throws Pax’s favorite toy soldier into the woods. When the fox runs to retrieve it, Peter and his dad get back in the car and leave him there—alone. But before Peter makes it through even one night under his grandfather’s roof, regret and duty spur him to action; he packs for a trek to get his best friend back and sneaks into the night. This is the story of Peter, Pax, and their independent struggles to return to one another against all odds. Told from the alternating viewpoints of Peter and Pax.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22098550-pax?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_3

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Genre: realistic fiction
From fixing the class computer to repairing old radios, twelve-year-old Iris is a tech genius. But she's the only deaf person in her school, so people often treat her like she's not very smart. If you've ever felt like no one was listening to you, then you know how hard that can be.

When she learns about Blue 55, a real whale who is unable to speak to other whales, Iris understands how he must feel. Then she has an idea: she should invent a way to "sing" to him! But he's three thousand miles away. How will she play her song for him?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40645658-song-for-a-whale?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_16

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The Smartest Kid in the Universe by Chris Grabenstein [series]

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The Smartest Kid in the Universe by Chris Grabenstein [series]

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Genre: humour
12 year old Jake's middle school is about to be shut down. Jake and his friends know their school's worth saving-if they could only figure out how! When Jake spies a bowl of jellybeans at the hotel where his mom works, he eats them. But uh-oh-those weren't just jellybeans, one of the scientists at his mom's conference is in the process of developing the first ingestible information pills. And THAT'S what Jake ate.

Before long, Jake is the smartest kid in the universe. But the pills haven't been tested yet. And when word gets out about this new genius, people want him. The government. The mega corporations. Not all of them are good people! Can Jake navigate all the ins and outs of his newfound geniusdom (not to mention the ins and outs of middle school!) AND use his smarts to figure out how to save his school? (Hint-it will take someone smart enough to decipher an almost forgotten pirate legend!) It turns out, sometimes even the smartest kid has a lot to learn!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51457162-the-smartest-kid-in-the-universe?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_32

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Real Friends by Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham [series] [graphic novel]

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Real Friends by Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham [series] [graphic novel]

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Genre: realistic fiction
When best friends are not forever . . .

Shannon and Adrienne have been best friends ever since they were little. But one day, Adrienne starts hanging out with Jen, the most popular girl in class and the leader of a circle of friends called The Group. Everyone in The Group wants to be Jen's #1, and some girls would do anything to stay on top . . . even if it means bullying others.

Now every day is like a roller coaster for Shannon. Will she and Adrienne stay friends? Can she stand up for herself? And is she in The Group—or out?

Newbery Honor author Shannon Hale and New York Times bestselling illustrator LeUyen Pham join forces in this graphic memoir about how hard it is to find your real friends—and why it's worth the journey.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31145178-real-friends?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_12

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Genre: mystery and animal
12 year old Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt Fitzroy has got a murder on his hands and trouble on his tail. Henry, the hippopatamus at the brand-new nationally known FunJungle, has gone belly up. Even though it's claimed he died of natural causes, Teddy smells something fishy and it sure ain't the polar bear's lunch. Dealing with the zoo's top brass proves to be nothing but a waste of time. They want to see any trace of Henry's death disappear like yesterday's paper. So Teddy sets out to find the truth. With the help of Summer McCraken, a fiesty girl with secrets of her own, the two narrow down their prime suspects. Is it Martin Del Gato, FunJungle's head of operations who dislikes kids and hates animals even more? Or J.J McCraken, the owner of FunJungle and Summer's father, who has more concern for the dough he's raking in than the animals in the zoo? As their investigation goes on, Teddy gets squeezed on all sides to quit asking questions—or Henry won't be the only one to turn up dead. The deeper Teddy and Summer get, the more the danger mounts—because when it comes to hippo homicide, the truth can't be kept in a cage!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6760793-belly-up?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_8

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A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz [series]

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A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz [series]

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Genre: fantasy
In this mischievous and utterly original debut, Hansel and Gretel walk out of their own story and into eight other classic Grimm-inspired tales. As readers follow the siblings through a forest brimming with menacing foes, they learn the true story behind (and beyond) the bread crumbs, edible houses, and outwitted witches.

Fairy tales have never been more irreverent or subversive as Hansel and Gretel learn to take charge of their destinies and become the clever architects of their own happily ever after.
https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/7825557

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The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

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The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

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Genre: realistic fiction and animal
Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.

Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11594337-the-one-and-only-ivan?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_21

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Genre: horror and mystery
Meet the Sinister-Winterbottoms: brave Theo, her timid twin, Alexander, and their older sister, Wil. They’re stuck for the summer with their Aunt Saffronia, who doesn’t know how often children need to eat and can’t use a smartphone, and whose feet never quite seem to touch the floor when she glides—er—walks.

When Aunt Saffronia suggests a week pass to the Fathoms of Fun Waterpark, they hastily agree. But the park is even stranger than Aunt Saffronia. The waterslides look like gray gargoyle tongues. The employees wear creepy black dresses and deliver ominous messages. An impossible figure is at the top of the slide tower, people are disappearing, and suspicious goo is seeping into the wave pool.

Something mysterious is happening at Fathoms of Fun, and it’s up to the twins to get to the bottom of it. The mystery, that is. NOT the wave pool. Definitely NOT the wave pool. But are Theo and Alexander out of their depth?
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/671534/wretched-waterpark-by-kiersten-white/

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Genre: historical fiction
13-year-old Cash and 12-year-old twins Fitch and Bird are struggling to pilot their way through the problems of middle school and life with a fairly dysfunctional family. But it’s January 1986 and everybody’s attention is on the soon-to-launch Challenger space shuttle mission. Astronaut-wannabe Bird hopes that exciting event will help them find a better family orbit.
https://www.pluggedin.com/book-reviews/we-dream-of-space/

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I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day

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I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day

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Genre: historical fiction
All her life, Edie has known that her mom was adopted by a white couple. So, no matter how curious she might be about her Native American heritage, Edie is sure her family doesn’t have any answers.

Until the day when she and her friends discover a box hidden in the attic—a box full of letters signed “Love, Edith,” and photos of a woman who looks just like her.

Suddenly, Edie has a flurry of new questions about this woman who shares her name. Could she belong to the Native family that Edie never knew about? But if her mom and dad have kept this secret from her all her life, how can she trust them to tell her the truth now?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39087436-i-can-make-this-promise?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_23

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There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom by Louis Sachar

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There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom by Louis Sachar

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Genre: humour
Bradley Chalkers is the oldest kid in the fifth grade. He tells enormous lies. He picks fights with girls. No one likes him—except Carla, the new school counselor. She thinks Bradley is sensitive and generous, and knows that Bradley could change, if only he weren't afraid to try. But when you feel like the most-hated kid in the whole school, believing in yourself can be the hardest thing in the world...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/236056.There_s_a_Boy_in_the_Girls_Bathroom?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_36

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Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein

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Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein

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Genre: fantasy and mystery
Kyle Keeley is the class clown, popular with most kids, (if not the teachers), and an ardent fan of all games: board games, word games, and particularly video games. His hero, Luigi Lemoncello, the most notorious and creative gamemaker in the world, just so happens to be the genius behind the building of the new town library.

Lucky Kyle wins a coveted spot to be one of the first 12 kids in the library for an overnight of fun, food, and lots and lots of games. But when morning comes, the doors remain locked. Kyle and the other winners must solve every clue and every secret puzzle to find the hidden escape route. And the stakes are very high.

In this cross between Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and A Night in the Museum, Agatha Award winner Chris Grabenstein uses rib-tickling humor to create the perfect tale for his quirky characters. Old fans and new readers will become enthralled with the crafty twists and turns of this ultimate library experience.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16054808-escape-from-mr-lemoncello-s-library?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_35

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Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia [series]

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Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia [series]

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Genre: fantasy
Seventh-grader Tristan Strong feels anything but strong ever since he failed to save his best friend when they were in a bus accident together. All he has left of Eddie is the journal his friend wrote stories in. Tristan is dreading the month he’s going to spend on his grandparents’ farm in Alabama, where he’s being sent to heal from the tragedy. But on his first night there, a sticky creature shows up in his bedroom and steals Eddie’s journal. Tristan chases after it — is that a doll? — and a tug-of-war ensues between them underneath a Bottle Tree. In a last attempt to wrestle the journal out of the creature’s hands, Tristan punches the tree, accidentally ripping open a chasm into the MidPass, a volatile place with a burning sea, haunted bone ships, and iron monsters that are hunting the inhabitants of this world. Tristan finds himself in the middle of a battle that has left black American gods John Henry and Brer Rabbit exhausted. In order to get back home, Tristan and these new allies will need to entice the god Anansi, the Weaver, to come out of hiding and seal the hole in the sky. But bartering with the trickster Anansi always comes at a price. Can Tristan save this world before he loses more of the things he loves?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39884337-tristan-strong-punches-a-hole-in-the-sky?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_40

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Genre: fantasy
When Lily and her family move in with her sick grandmother, a magical tiger straight out of her halmoni's Korean folktales arrives, prompting Lily to unravel a secret family history. Long, long ago, Halmoni stole something from the tigers. Now they want it back. And when one of the tigers approaches Lily with a deal--return what her grandmother stole in exchange for Halmoni's health--Lily is tempted to agree. But deals with tigers are never what they seem! With the help of her sister and her new friend Ricky, Lily must find her voice...and the courage to face a tiger.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44901877-when-you-trap-a-tiger?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_21

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The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau [series]

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The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau [series]

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Genre: science fiction
Many hundreds of years ago, the city of Ember was created by the Builders to contain everything needed for human survival. It worked…but now the storerooms are almost out of food, crops are blighted, corruption is spreading through the city and worst of all—the lights are failing. Soon Ember could be engulfed by darkness…

But when two children, Lina and Doon, discover fragments of an ancient parchment, they begin to wonder if there could be a way out of Ember. Can they decipher the words from long ago and find a new future for everyone? Will the people of Ember listen to them?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/307791.The_City_of_Ember?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_17

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Genre: realistic fiction
Melody is not like most people. She cannot walk or talk, but she has a photographic memory; she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. She is smarter than most of the adults who try to diagnose her and smarter than her classmates in her integrated classroom - the very same classmates who dismiss her as mentally challenged because she cannot tell them otherwise. But Melody refuses to be defined by cerebral palsy. And she's determined to let everyone know it - somehow.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6609765-out-of-my-mind?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_14

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The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare

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The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare

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Genre: historical fiction
After Matt and his father build a wilderness cabin in Maine, Matt’s dad leaves him in charge and journeys to collect the rest of the family. When Matt is attacked by a swarm of bees, a Native American chief and his grandson, Attean, nurse Matt back to health. The chief sends Attean to learn English from Matt. The young Indian behaves badly, however, and Matt learns it’s because white men killed Attean’s parents. Matt and Attean eventually become friends and teach each other ways to survive. When Matt’s family is late in returning, Attean invites Matt to join his tribe.
https://www.pluggedin.com/book-reviews/sign-of-the-beaver/

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Genre: historical fiction
Esperanza thought she'd always live with her family on their ranch in Mexico--she'd always have fancy dresses, a beautiful home, and servants. But a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to flee to California during the Great Depression, and to settle in a camp for Mexican farm workers. Esperanza isn't ready for the hard labor, financial struggles, or lack of acceptance she now faces. When their new life is threatened, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her difficult circumstances--Mama's life, and her own, depend on it.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/89763.Esperanza_Rising?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=2hctes5GaR&rank=1

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Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

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Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

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Genre: realistic fiction and mystery
Aven Green loves to tell people that she lost her arms in an alligator wrestling match, or a wildfire in Tanzania, but the truth is she was born without them. And when her parents take a job running Stagecoach Pass, a rundown western theme park in Arizona, Aven moves with them across the country knowing that she’ll have to answer the question over and over again.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33986447-insignificant-events-in-the-life-of-a-cactus