Switchers


Kate Thompson - 1997
    Then she meets Kevin, another switcher with a very different life than hers. Together, they face a mystery that threatens to bring about disaster.

The Man Who Loved Clowns


June Rae Wood - 1992
    If no one notices her, then no one willnotice her uncle Punky either. Punky is a grown man with a child's mind. Delrita loves him dearly and can't stand people making fun of his Down Syndrome. But when tragedy strikes, Delrita's quiet life— and Punky's— are disrupted forever. Can she finally learn to trust others, for her own sake and Punky's? This story captures the joy and sorrow that come when we open our hearts to love. Author Biography: June Rae Wood lives near Windsor, Missouri.

Flight of the Fantail


Steph Matuku - 2018
    Only a few of the teenagers survive; they find their phones don’t work, there’s no food, and they’ve only got their wits to keep them alive. There’s also something strange happening here. Why are the teenagers having nosebleeds and behaving erratically, and why is the rescue effort slow to arrive? To make it out, they have to discover what’s really going on and who or what is behind it all.

No Coins, Please


Gordon Korman - 1984
    Dennis is in heaven - he thinks he and his friend Rob have scored the perfect summer jobs. But Rob quickly points out what Dennis never factored in - the group of boys they're now completely responsible for. That includes Artie Geller - Donald Trump in a 10-year-old's body. Artie gives his counsellors the slip whenever possible to set up new business opportunities. Dennis and Rob soon learn they can't control Artie, and that they have to hide every one of his schemes from the tour boss to protect their own skins.Visions of beautiful female counsellors are replaced by visions of bankruptcy... and the FBI.

The Science of Breakable Things


Tae Keller - 2018
    Neely is looking for when he says everyone in class must answer an important question using the scientific method. But Natalie's botanist mother is suffering from depression, so this is The Question that's important to Natalie. When Mr. Neely suggests that she enter an egg drop competition, Natalie has hope. Eggs are breakable. Hope is not.Natalie has a secret plan for the prize money. She's going to fly her mother to see the Cobalt Blue Orchids--flowers that survive against impossible odds. The magical flowers are sure to inspire her mother to love life again. Because when parents are breakable, it's up to kids to save them, right?An extraordinary story about the coming-of-age moment when kids realize that parents are people, too, and that talking about problems is like taking a plant out of a dark cupboard and giving it light. Think THE FOURTEENTH GOLDFISH meets THE THING ABOUT JELLYFISH.

Searching for David's Heart: A Christmas Story


Cherie Bennett - 1998
    Then she meets the boy who received David's heart in an organ transplant, and learns that life truly does go on.A journey of faith, hope, and love.Life at Darcy's house isn't always easy. Money is tight, and her parents argue a lot. Darcy's shy and quiet with most people, but it's not like that with her brother, David. He and Darcy are soul mates. Until David gets a girlfriend, that is, and starts to treat Darcy as if she were a pest. Darcy is hurt and humiliated, and one day after a huge fight, Darcy runs off. David chases after her and is killed in a shocking accident. Darcy is sure his death is her fault.Then Darcy's parents decide to donate David's heart for transplant. Darcy believes that if she can find David's heart, even if it's beating in someone else's body, she will have found her brother, and in some way he will still be alive. And so the search for David's heart begins.

The Eagle Tree


Ned Hayes - 2016
    They are his passion and his obsession, even after his recent falls—and despite the state’s threat to take him away from his mother if she can’t keep him from getting hurt. But the young autistic boy cannot resist the captivating pull of the Pacific Northwest’s lush forests just outside his back door.One day, March is devastated to learn that the Eagle Tree—a monolithic Ponderosa Pine near his home in Olympia—is slated to be cut down by developers. Now, he will do anything in his power to save this beloved tree, including enlisting unlikely support from relatives, classmates, and even his bitter neighbor. In taking a stand, March will come face-to-face with some frightening possibilities: Even if he manages to save the Eagle Tree, is he risking himself and his mother to do it?Intertwining themes of humanity and ecology, The Eagle Tree eloquently explores what it means to be part of a family, a society, and the natural world that surrounds and connects us.

Lucky Broken Girl


Ruth Behar - 2017
    Ruthie Mizrahi and her family recently emigrated from Castro's Cuba to New York City. Just when she's finally beginning to gain confidence in her mastery of English and enjoying her reign as her neighborhood's hopscotch queen, a horrific car accident leaves her in a body cast and confined her to her bed for a long recovery. As Ruthie's world shrinks because of her inability to move, her powers of observation and her heart grow larger. She comes to understand how fragile life is, how vulnerable we all are as human beings, and how friends, neighbors, and the power of the arts can sweeten even the worst of times.

Brendon Chase


B.B. - 1944
    A classic story of survival and adventure from the author of The Little Grey Men.

Rooftoppers


Katherine Rundell - 2013
    True, there were no other recorded female survivors from the shipwreck which left baby Sophie floating in the English Channel in a cello case, but Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help. Her guardian tells her it is almost impossible that her mother is still alive, but that means still possible. You should never ignore a possible. So when the Welfare Agency writes to her guardian threatening to send Sophie to an orphanage, she takes matters into her own hands and flees to Paris to look for her mother, starting with the only clue she has - the address of the cello maker. Evading the French authorities, she meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers - urchins who live in the sky. Together they scour the city for Sophie's mother before she is caught and sent back to London, and most importantly before she loses hope.

The Categorical Universe of Candice Phee


Barry Jonsberg - 2013
    Candice has solutions.Candice Phee isn't your typical twelve- year-old. She has more than her fair share of quirks. But she has the very best of intentions and unwavering determination to make sure everyone around her is happy. Which is no easy feat when you're dealing with a pet fish with an identity crisis, a friend who believes he came from another dimension, an age-old family feud, and a sick mom. But she is on a mission. And she's going to fix it all, even if it means risking sea sickness, guarding an edge of a cliff, and dancing in the rain. Her methods might be unique, but Candice will do whatever it takes to restore order to her world and make sure everyone is absolutely, categorically happy again. Hilariously honest and wonderfully touching, "The Categorical Universe of Candice Phee" will have you rooting for the underdog and celebrating the oddball in each of us.

Breathing Room


Marsha Hayles - 2012
    Evvy is frightened by her new surroundings; the rules to abide are harsh and the nurses equally rigid. But Evvy soon falls into step with the other girls in her ward. There’s Sarah, quiet but thoughtful; Pearl, who adores Hollywood glamour; and Dena, whose harshness conceals a deep strength. Together, the girls brave the difficult daily routines. Set in 1940 at a time of political unrest throughout the U.S. and Europe, this thought-provoking novel sheds light on a much-feared worldwide illness. Hundreds of thousands of people died each year of TB, and many ill children were sent away to sanatoriums to hopefully recover. This is a masterful novel—both eloquent and moving—that gives voice to those who fought hard to overcome the illness.

The Summer I Saved the World . . . in 65 Days


Michele Weber Hurwitz - 2014
    Her beloved grandma died last year; her parents work all the time; her brother's busy; and her best friend is into clothes, makeup, and boys. While Nina doesn't know what "her thing" is yet, it's definitely not shopping and makeup. And it's not boys, either. Though . . . has Eli, the boy next door, always been so cute?   This summer, Nina decides to change things. She hatches a plan. There are sixty-five days of summer. Every day, she'll anonymously do one small but remarkable good thing for someone in her neighborhood, and find out: does doing good actually make a difference? Along the way, she discovers that her neighborhood, and her family, are full of surprises and secrets.   In this bighearted, sweetly romantic novel, things may not turn out exactly as Nina expects. They might be better.

Coming Home


Lauren Brooke - 2000
    This powerful series follows Amy Fleming through the loss of her mother and her struggle to continue the work at Heartland-a refuge for abused and abandoned horses.

Agnes Cecilia


Maria Gripe - 1978
    After experiencing several inexplicable incidents, lonely Nora receives a strangely lifelike doll, which leads her to discover long-hidden secrets about her family.