The Flying Hockey Stick


Jolly Roger Bradfield - 1966
    Not for a moment did he doubt that a series of electric cords would provide the proper thrust for his vehicle or that a common fan could pull it high into the air, over tall buildings and across vast oceans.Surely such faith and determination will assure that his name will be forever linked with those other pioneers of flight history -- Orville and Wilbur Wright, Charles Lindberg and Neil Armstrong.Book Details: Format: Hardcover Publication Date: 2/1/2007 Pages: 64 Reading Level: Age 3 and Up

From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Scholastic Literature Guides)


Terry Cooper - 1997
    Each guide includes an author biography, background information, summaries, thought-provoking discussion questions, as well as creative, cross-curricular activities and reproducibles that motivate students.

Third Grade Angels


Jerry Spinelli - 2012
    Simms, will hold a competition every month to see which student deserves to be awarded "the halo" - which student is best-behaved, kindest to others, and, in short, perfect. Suds is determined to be the first to earn the halo, but he's finding the challenge of always being good to be more stressful than he had anticipated. Does he have to be good even outside of school? (Does he have to be nice to his annoying little sister?) And if Mrs. Simms doesn't actually see him doing a good deed, does it even count?A warm, funny return to elementary school from master storyteller Spinelli.

Strike Three, You're Dead


Josh Berk - 2013
    Unfortunately, he's no player himself (according to him, he's "the worst there ever was.") But he'd make a heck of an announcer. He gets a lot of practice sitting with his best friends, Mike and Other Mike, watching Phillies games from their lawn couch—a sweet outdoor TV arrangement Mike's dad hooked them up with. Being a real announcer is his dream, and he gets his chance to prove himself when he enters an "Armchair Announcer" contest and wins. The prize: he gets to be the broadcaster, live, for one inning at a real Phillies game.The game goes very wrong, though. Before Lenny gets to do his inning, a young, promising pitcher fresh out of the minors literally drops dead on the mound. The official verdict is that he died of a heart attack, but Lenny has a hunch there's something more going on. So he and the Mikes set out to investigate. The suspects are many, and though the trio barks up the wrong tree a few times, they are always right on the heels of the real killer. . . .From the Hardcover edition.

Bridge to America


Linda Glaser - 2005
    As he and his mother, brother, and sisters struggle to stay alive, nine-year-old Fivel is hungry, is cold, is a rascal, is goodhearted, longs for his father, and is afraid for their lives. Will the money from America ever come? Has their father forgotten about them, perhaps even found another family? When will the next horrific Cossack raid come? Here is an absorbing, ultimately hopeful novel that creates an unforgettable portrait of a family, a time, and the bridging of two worlds.

Unstoppable


Tim Green - 2012
    As a foster kid in a cruel home, he knows his dream of one day playing in the NFL is a long shot.Then Harrison is brought into a new home with kind, loving parents—his new dad is even a football coach. Harrison's big build and his incredible determination quickly make him a star running back on the junior high school team.On the field, he's practically unstoppable. But Harrison's good luck can't last forever. When a routine sports injury leads to a devastating diagnosis, it will take every ounce of Harrison's determination not to give up for good.

The Complete Dive Trilogy, #1-3


Gordon Korman - 2003
    What they find, though, is much more than fish - it's sunken treasure. Can they salvage it without anyone else getting to it first? Will the prospect of wealth set them against one another? And what about those sharks . . . . The Deep What lies in the Deep? Not just coral and sand. Not just undersea creatures that have never seen the light. No, the deep holds something even more mysterious and valuable. Kaz, Dante, Adriana, and Star started the summer thinking they were going to study marine life. Now they've found sunken treasure. And they're not the only ones who want to keep it. The Danger In 1665, a British vessel named the Griffin sank with a priceless amount of gold on board. Now, centuries later, four kids are trying to raise the Griffin's treasure from the sea. Kaz, Dante, Adriana, and Star must take the biggest risks of their lives...and discover that they won't be able to trust anybody - even themselves.

Windcatcher


Avi - 1991
    He's sailing with the wind, maneuvering through the narrow channels between the offshore islands with amazing skill. And he'sjust learned to sail! But suddenly Tony is confused. Which way had he come? Which way is he headed? And who are the mysterious couple with the high powered motor boat who are to busy searching beneath the water to answer his call for help?Tony does some searching on his own. What he discovers leads him on a daring hunt for a 200-year-old shipwreck . . . and a dangerous confrontation with treasure hunters who will stop at nothing to keep Tony from learning their secret.

Bull Rider


Marilyn Halvorson - 1989
    His dad was one ride away from a National Championship when he got trampled to death. Layne wants to be able to give his dad that championship--by winning it for him. What he doesn't want, though, is to end up like his father and die in the rodeo arena. When the chance comes, Layne realizes he must face up to his greatest fear. With the help of his friend Jana, and his bratty younger sister, Layne learns to reach deep inside and trust himself.Also available in French.

How to Read a Story


Kate Messner - 2015
    (A good one.)Step Two: Find a reading buddy. (Someone nice.)Step Three: Find a reading spot. (Couches are cozy.)Now: Begin.Accomplished storytellers Kate Messner and Mark Siegel chronicle the process of becoming a reader: from pulling a book off the shelf and finding someone with whom to share a story, to reading aloud, predicting what will happen, and—finally—coming to The End. This picture book playfully and movingly illustrates the idea that the reader who discovers the love of reading finds, at the end, the beginning.

Taking Sides


Norma Klein - 1982
    She wonders what living with Dad will be like, even though she's always felt closer to her father. But is it right to love one parent more than another?There are other adjustments Nell has to make...like sharing a room with five-year-old Hugo...and having hamburgers and tuna fish a lot. And what if Dad marries the woman he's been dating? Nell can't imagine what it would be like to have helpless Arden for a stepmother.

The Brooklyn Nine


Alan Gratz - 2009
    1908: Walter Snider, batboy for the Brooklyn Superbas, arranges a team tryout for a black pitcher by pretending he is Cuban.1945: Kat Snider of Brooklyn plays for the Grand Rapids Chicks in the All-American Girls Baseball League.1981: Michael Flint fi nds himself pitching a perfect game during the Little League season at Prospect Park.And there are fi ve more Schneiders to meet.In nine innings, this novel tells the stories of nine successive Schneider kids and their connection to Brooklyn and baseball. As in all family histories and all baseball games, there is glory and heartache, triumph and sacrifi ce. And it ain't over till it's over.

The Starplace


Vicki Grove - 1999
    At first Frannie ignores Celeste, then the two girls are chosen to be in a special vocal ensemble and they find themselves becoming friends. But others are not so quick to accept the idea of racial integration, and Frannie discovers a dark secret from the town's past that threatens her friendship with Celeste.

Gone Missing


Jean Ure - 2007
    Jean Ure returns with more warmth and wit in a brilliant book about what happens when two girls decide to run away from home.Fourteen-year-old Jade is fed up with fighting with her mum and step-dad, and her shy sixteen-year-old friend Honey is having a miserable time with her mum, but when Jade decides they should both run away, Honey isn't so sure.It's only when they get to London and things don't work out quite how they expected that Honey shows she has hidden depths, and Jade realises that home is not so bad after all…

The Shy Little Angel


Ruth Brown - 1998
    Against Gabriel