The Accidental Adventures of India McAllister


Charlotte Agell - 2010
    She lives in Maine with her artist mom and their dog, Tofu. Her father lives in the next town over with his new partner, Richard and their bird, Beatrice Strawberry. India – named for the ink, not the subcontinent – was adopted from China as a baby. Being the only Chinese girl in her small town fuels India's search for identity. India reports in her own words and drawings about life, adventures (many with her good friend Colby) and all things annoying as well as what makes her happy. First three on the happy list: Tofu, Bird, and Colby!The Accidental Adventures of India McAllister is a 2011 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

The Legend of Jimmy Spoon


Kristiana Gregory - 1990
    So when two Shoshoni boys offer him a horse, Jimmy sneaks away from his family in Salt Lake City to follow the boys. When Jimmy arrives at the Shoshoni camp, he discovers that he is expected to stay--as a member of the tribe! Inspired by the memoirs of a white man who actually lived with Chief Washakie's tribe as a boy in the mid-1800s, The Legend of Jimmy Spoon is a compelling coming-of-age adventure.

Fancy Nancy: Stellar Stargazer!


Jane O'Connor - 2011
    So nothing could make her happier than a special sleepover under the stars with her dad and her little sister, JoJo. Together, Nancy and JoJo wish on stars, moon bathe, and even eat astronaut ice cream! But when rain clouds cover up the stars, what's a stellar stargazer to do?Fancy Nancy: Stellar Stargazer!, full of celestial facts and sparkling illustrations, is perfect for young explorers.Best of all, take the glow-in-the-dark cover outside at night to launch your own fancy stargazing adventure. Ready? Three . . . two . . . one . . . Blastoff!

Abraham Lincoln: The Great Emancipator


Augusta Stevenson - 1932
    With these lively, inspiring, ficitonalized biographies - easily read by children of eight and up - today's youngster is swept right into history.

Swing Sideways


Nanci Turner Steveson - 2016
                                                 Annie has been promised a summer of freedom in the country. Freedom from a difficult school year, freedom from her fake “friends” back in the city, and, most of all, freedom from her mom’s life-governing spreadsheets and rigid schedules.When Annie meets California, who is visiting her grandfather’s farm, it seems she has found the perfect partner for the summer she’s always craved. Especially when California offers Annie a real-life adventure: if she and Annie can find the ponies her mom rode as a girl, surely it will remind her mom how wonderful the farm is—and fix what’s broken between her mom and her grandfather.But Annie’s summer of freedom is sprinkled with secrets, and everything she has learned about bravery and love will be put to the test when the truth behind the ultimate secret changes her life forever.

The Locked Garden


Gloria Whelan - 2009
    They are headed to their new home—the grounds of an asylum for the mentally ill. Their father, a doctor, has been hired to treat its patients while the girls are under the strict and watchful eye of their aunt Maude. The towering asylum, the murmuring patients with their tormented pasts, the exquisite locked garden at the center of the grounds—Verna perceives forbidden mystery and enchantment everywhere. Even Aunt Maude's temper will not keep her from striking out on her own exciting adventures.But is Verna ready to confront all the secrets and emotions that have been locked within—even those of her own heart?

Paris Pan Takes the Dare


Cynthea Liu - 2009
    Finding out a girl died mysteriously years ago while on the Dare-right near Paris's new house, no less-is bad enough, but the unmistakably ghost like noises coming out of the broken-down shed at the edge of the Pan's property? Definite deal breaker. All Paris wants is to make friends, try to fit in, and not have to deal with a dead girl. But everyone has to take the Dare, and the new girl's turn is up. . . .

The Case of the Cursed Dodo


Jake G. Panda - 2014
    The name's Jake G. Panda, and trouble seems to follow me wherever I go. I work in the protection racket at a flophouse for endangered critters called the Last Resort. I'm the hotel snoop. The resident fuzz. It's my job to keep these guests safe and outta harm's way. This is the first of my many misadventures. A wild and woolly mystery involving a lost suitcase, a green bird, and a bunch of double-crossing animals. I'm calling this jungle noir The Case of the Cursed Dodo.This hilarious first installment of The Endangered Files follows Jake, a hardboiled panda detective, and an unusual cast of endangered creatures on a globe-trotting adventure that will appeal to young and old alike.

Ruby Reinvented


Ronni Arno - 2015
    As the only child of model-turned-TV-host Celestine Cruz and pro-baseball star Zack Miller, she has everything a twelve-year-old girl could want. Well, except for real friends. After a disastrous birthday party where she discovers her supposed BFFs are only friends with her because her parents are uber-famous, she finds a place as far from fake and phony Hollywood as she can get: a boarding school in Camden, Maine. In her desperation to distance herself from her star-studded parents and the paparazzi who trail them, Ruby tells her new friends that she’s an orphan. She feels awful about lying, but once she starts, it’s hard to come clean. Plus, now that nobody’s comparing her to her perfect parents, Ruby can finally let her own talents as a dress designer take center stage. When Ruby finds herself connecting with a cute boy who really did lose his parents, she’s torn between who she is and who she’s pretending to be. And with Parents’ Weekend approaching, she must find a way to keep her secret—without losing her new best friend, the trust of her first crush, and the chance to shine as the designer of her very own fashion show.

Baby Brains Superstar


Simon James - 2005
    and Mrs. Brains played music to their baby before he was even born. Not only is their bundle of joy amazingly smart, but he's also a musical genius! After mastering the tuba, cello, drums, and electric guitar, Baby Brains declares from his stroller that "rock 'n' roll is where it's at," and soon he's preparing to headline the biggest outdoor concert in the world. Dazzling custom-made outfit . . . (single) hair expertly styled . . . being lowered by helicopter onto the massive stage as an enormous crowd roars — what could possibly keep Baby Brains from making rock 'n' roll history?

Visions


Lauren Klever - 2012
    Owen is given glimpses of horrible things that have happened and is driven to fix them but it’s a dangerous life and he’s been told he has to keep it a secret. Homework and chores are bad enough when you’re in eighth grade but now this? He already hated school and now he must stand up to school bullies and even bigger ones out in the world beyond the school’s doors. Now it’s a race to see if Owen can master his special ability before the dark watchers destroy him or turn him to the side of evil and chaos.Everyone needs a hero and sometimes the best ones are the unintentional ones. Owen is that kind of guy as he searches for purpose, acceptance and morality. He isn’t perfect, he doesn’t always do things right, but he has the greater good at heart – always.You are invited to follow Owen as he journeys through the darkest walk he has ever taken; where he captures images of the underbelly of society, a place he never knew existed and didn’t want to see. After you read Visions, will you be looking under your bed and double checking your closet? Please enter the Secret Watchers universe if you dare but beware – you may be sucked right into the good versus evil suspense of jaw-clenching action and never want to leave.

There Will Be Bears


Ryan Gebhart - 2014
    These days, Bright just wants to be seen with the cool jocks who make fun of Tyson’s Taylor Swift obsession and dorky ways. So when Grandpa Gene has to move to a nursing home that can manage his kidney disease, Tyson feels like he’s losing his only friend. Not only that, but Tyson was counting on Grandpa Gene to take him on his first big hunt. So in defiance of Mom and Dad’s strict orders, and despite reports of a scary, stalking, man-eating grizzly named Sandy, the two sneak off to the Grand Tetons. Yes, there will be action, like shooting and dressing a six-hundred-pound elk. Is Tyson tough enough? There will be heart-pounding suspense: is Grandpa Gene too sick to handle the hunt, miles away from help? And, oh yes, there will be bears...

The Periodic Table: Elements with Style!


Simon Basher - 2007
    Designed to resemble popular networking Web sites, the pages of this book feature "homepages" for each of the chemical elements -- complete with witty and informative profiles written by the elements themselves, plus a personally chosen picture.

Thirteen Ways to Sink a Sub


Jamie Gilson - 1982
    And she's sinking fast. Hobie's certain 4B will never be so lucky. Their regular fourth grade teacher, Mr. Star, is as healthy as a horse. The very next day, though, Mr. Star rushes out of the room -- "indisposed," the principal says -- and Hobie and his classmates hear "s-u-b." They are prepared. No stranger could possibly withstand the volley from their vast arsenal of sub sinkers. Except, perhaps, Miss Ivanovitch. It soon becomes clear that it might not be the sub who sinks -- this time, it might just be the students.

Ten in a Bed


Allan Ahlberg - 1989
    Occupying her bed, they all refuse to budge until Dinah tells them a bedtime story. Ahlberg is also author of Woof!.