Book picks similar to
A Sense of Magic by Kate McNair
ya
fiction
young-adult
school-stories
Eva
Peter Dickinson - 1988
Her mother leans over the bed and begins to explain. A traffic accident, a long coma . . .But there is something, Eva senses, that she’s not being told. There is a price she must pay to be alive at all. What have they done, with their amazing medical techniques, to save her?
A Kestrel for a Knave
Barry Hines - 1968
Treated as a failure at school, and unhappy at home, Billy discovers a new passion in life when he finds Kes, a kestrel hawk. Billy identifies with her silent strength and she inspires in him the trust and love that nothing else can, discovering through her the passion missing from his life. Barry Hines's acclaimed novel continues to reach new generations of teenagers and adults with its powerful story of survival in a tough, joyless world.
The Secret Language
Ursula Nordstrom - 1960
Her housemother is very strict, she's terribly homesick and the other girls don't seem to have any time for a shy new girl. Then Vicky meets Martha Sherman, and everything changes. Martha introduces Vicky to pie-beds, midnight feasts and all the other wonderful things about boarding school. She even teaches Vicky a secret language that only the two of them share. Soon, with Martha' s help, Vicky finds herself thinking of Coburn Home School as home....Written by acclaimed children' s book editor Ursula Nordstrom, this is an enchanting story about two young girls who share a special friendship while away at school. Originally published in 1960, this enchanting story of two young girls who develop a special friendship-- and a secret language-- while away at school is the only novel ever written by renowned children's book editor Ursula Nordstrom. 'Nordstrom' s gentle, acutely observed picture of the boarding-school world catches the essential fascination of that special community and at the same time, deals with certain problems common to any little girl adjusting to a new school.' -- The New York Times Mary Chalmers is the illustrator of many books for young readers, including the I Can Read Book Marigold and Grandma on the Town by Stephanie Calmenson, and Easter Parade, which she also wrote. She lives with her three cats in Greenbelt, MD. An ALA Notable Children' s Book of 1960 An ALA Notable Children' s Book of 1960. Originally published in 1960, this enchanting story of two young girls who develop a special friendship-- and a secret language-- while away at school is the only novel ever written by renowned children' s book editor Ursula Nordstrom. 'Nordstrom' s gentle, acutely observed picture of the boarding-school world catches the essential fascination of that special community and at the same time, deals with certain problems common to any little girl adjusting to a new school.' -- The New York Times Mary Chalmers is the illustrator of many books for young readers, including the I Can Read Book Marigold and Grandma on the Town by Stephanie Calmenson, and Easter Parade, which she also wrote. She lives with her three cats in Greenbelt, MD.
Charlotte's Web
E.B. White - 1952
B. White, author of Stuart Little and The Trumpet of the Swan, is a classic of children's literature that is "just about perfect." This high-quality paperback features vibrant illustrations colorized by Rosemary Wells!Some Pig. Humble. Radiant. These are the words in Charlotte's Web, high up in Zuckerman's barn. Charlotte's spiderweb tells of her feelings for a little pig named Wilbur, who simply wants a friend. They also express the love of a girl named Fern, who saved Wilbur's life when he was born the runt of his litter.E. B. White's Newbery Honor Book is a tender novel of friendship, love, life, and death that will continue to be enjoyed by generations to come. This edition contains newly color illustrations by Garth Williams, the acclaimed illustrator of E. B. White's Stuart Little and Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series, among many other books.
Run, Zan, Run
Cathy MacPhail - 1996
‘I told you I'd get you, didn't I? Well,' her next words sent shivers through Katie. ‘Tonight's the night.'Katie is being bullied at school - and cannot get anyone to believe her. She feels frightened and alone . . . until one day when she is cornered by Ivy and her fellow bullies on the town dump. Katie is terrified, there is nowhere left to run. But suddenly, as if by magic, a girl called Zan rises from the rubbish in the dump and leaps to Katie's defense. But Zan is not willing to talk to Katie - all she wishes to do is keep her identity a secret. Slowly Katie learns the truth about Zan, and when she does, she realises Zan has much more to lose than the safety of her cardboard box. A gripping story that really brings the issue of bullying to a head.
Carrie's War
Nina Bawden - 1973
Carrie and Nick are billeted in Wales with old Mr Evans, who is so mean and cold, and his timid mouse of a sister, Lou, who suddenly starts having secrets. Their friend Albert is luckier, living in Druid's Bottom with warm-hearted Hepzibah Green and the strange Mister Johnny, who can talk to animals but not to human beings. Carrie and Nick visit him there whenever they can for Hepzibah makes life exciting and enticing with her stories and delicious cooking. Gradually they begin to feel more at ease in their war-time home, but then, in trying to heal the rift between Mr Evans and his estranged sister, and save Druid's Bottom, Carrie does a terrible thing which is to haunt her for years to come. Carrie revisits Wales as an adult and tells the story to her own children.
The Sacrifice
Kathleen Benner Duble - 2005
In Salem, Massachusetts, witches have been found, and widespread fear and panic reign mere miles from Abigail's home of Andover. When two girls are brought from Salem to identify witches in Andover, suspicion sweeps the town as well-respected members of the community are accused of witchcraft. It isn't long before chaos consumes Andover, and the Faulkners find themselves in the center of it all when friend turns themselves in the center of it all when friend turns against friend, neighbor against neighbor, in a desperate fight for the truth. At the heart of this gripping story are Abigail and her sister, Dorothy, who together must find a way to persevere during a period marked by terror, adversity, and ignorance.Told from Abigail's point of view and based on actual events in the author's own family histoy, "The Sacrifice" offers a unique perspective of the Salem witch trials by delving into the devestating effects the trials had not just in Salem but throughout Massachusetts.
In a Blue Velvet Dress
Catherine Sefton - 1994
But she arrives to find that she and her father have switched suitcases, and she is stranded with no books! Her aunt and uncle are nice enough, but the only book in their house is the telephone directory. And their town has no bookstore or library. But on her first night at the Hildreths', Jane discovers a small book with a faded cover on her nightstand. In the morning, it is gone. The next night, another book appears. Jane seems to have a mysterious friend who knows just what she needs. . .
Shug
Jenny Han - 2006
And she's about to become your new best friend. Annemarie Wilcox, or Shug as her family calls her, is beginning to think there's nothing worse than being twelve. She's too tall, too freckled, and way too flat-chested. Shug is sure that there's not one good or amazing thing about her. And now she has to start junior high, where the friends she counts most dear aren't acting so dear anymore -- especially Mark, the boy she's known her whole life through. Life is growing up all around her, and all Shug wants is for things to be like they used to be. How is a person supposed to prepare for what happens tomorrow when there's just no figuring out today?
A Girl Called Boy
Belinda Hurmence - 1982
A pampered young African-American girl finds herself mysteriously transported back in time to the days of slavery.