Book picks similar to
Molly and the Great American Family by Cynthia Blair


children-s-lit
middle-grade
when-i-was-little
young-adult

Whale Boy


Nicola Davies - 2013
    But when a terrible storm wrecks his home, Michael is forced to take a job working for a rich, mysterious newcomer named Spargo.Spargo asks Michael to search for one thing in the deep waters around Rose Town - whales . . .

The 39 Clues #1-11


Rick Riordan - 2012
    The 39 Clues - 1-11 Book Set - The 39 Clues Card Pack - The Maze of Bones - One False Note- The Sword Thief- Beyond The Grave - The Black Circle - 39 Clues 6: In Too Deep - 39 Clues 7: The Viper's Nest - 06 39 Clues 8 - 39 Clues 9: Storm Warning - 39 Clues 10: Into the Gauntlet - plus new 11th book Vespers rising

The Twyning


Terence Blacker - 2012
    When the king dies, leaving the kingdom in upheaval, only Efren dares to journey into the human world, where he discovers a human doctor’s plan to destroy London’s entire rat population. Meanwhile, Peter, otherwise known as Dogboy, does odd jobs for both the scheming doctor and the town ratcatcher. But his gift for understanding animals — even rats — forces him to decide where his allegiances truly lie. Dogboy and Efren, along with the waifish girl Caz and her pet rat, Malaika, set out to test the strengths of friendship and loyalty against the gut-wrenching cruelties of the world.

Horseradish


Lemony Snicket - 2007
    Witty and irreverent, Horseradish is a book with universal appeal, a delightful vehicle to introduce Snicket's uproariously unhappy observations to a crowd not yet familiar with the Baudelaires' misadventures.

The Night of the Solstice


L.J. Smith - 1987
    Four children set out to rescue a sorceress held captive in a parallel world.

Tilly and the Bookwanderers


Anna James - 2018
    A curl-up-on-the-sofa debut from a uniquely talented author.Eleven year-old Tilly has lived above her grandparents' bookshop ever since her mother disappeared shortly after she was born. Like the rest of her family, Tilly loves nothing more than to escape into the pages of her favourite stories.One day Tilly realises that classic children's characters are appearing in the shop through the magic of `book wandering' - crossing over from the page into real life.With the help of Anne of Green Gables and Alice in Wonderland. Tilly is determined to solve the mystery of what happened to her mother all those years ago, so she bravely steps into the unknown, unsure of what adventure lies ahead and what dangers she may face.

PathFinder


Angie Sage - 2014
    She receives help from ExtraOrdinary Wizard Septimus Heap and Ex–ExtraOrdinary Wizard Marcia Overstrand, but the Lady’s brother, the Darke Sorcerer Oraton-Marr, has a plan that will put everyone Tod holds dear in danger. To save her people, Tod must embrace her identity as a PathFinder and navigate the often dangerous Ancient Ways.Full of Angie Sage’s characteristic humor and heart, PathFinder celebrates the joy of discovering one’s own personal Magyk, and of choosing the path that lets that Magyk flourish and grow.Perfect for anyone who can’t get enough of the world of Septimus Heap!

O. C. W. : A Young Boy's Search For His Mother


Carla M. Pacis - 2001
    Pacis tells a story familiar to many families. A mother leaves her loved ones to work in Hong Kong, hoping to make a better life for her husband and children. Her departure, however, threatens to tear apart the very family she leaves for love.

Skulduggery Pleasant #1-3


Derek Landy - 2013
    Oh yes, and dead.Book 2: Vengeous. Dusk. Sanguine. Three of the deadliest killers alive are in town to resurrect an unstoppable creature of horrifying power… and only Skulduggery and Valkyrie stand in their way.Book 3: You’ve seen it all before: some bad guy wants to bring about the end of the world. A few people get hurt, sure, but everything’s all right in the end. Well… not this time.

Evernight


Ross MacKenzie - 2020
    It was only defeated thanks to the skill and bravery of the Witches. But now the Evernight is about to return, released by the evil Mrs Hester, and the only spell that might stop it is lost, deep below the great city of King’s Haven.Then orphan Larabelle Fox stumbles across a mysterious wooden box while treasure-hunting in the city’s sewers. Little does she realise she is about to be catapulted into an adventure, facing wild magic and mortal danger – and a man who casts no shadow . . .

Uncles, Aunts and Elephants: A Ruskin Bond Treasury


Ruskin Bond - 2014
    A baby elephant would do . . . But, if he brings his mother too, There’s Dad’s garage. He wouldn’t mind. To elephants, he’s more than kind. But I wonder what my Mum would say If their aunts and uncles came to stay!Ruskin Bond has regaled generations of readers for decades. This delightful collection of poetry, prose and non-fiction brings together some of his best work in a single volume. Sumptuously illustrated, Uncles, Aunts and Elephants: Tales from Your Favourite Storyteller is a book to treasure for all times.

Grosse Pointe Girl: Tales from a Suburban Adolescence


Sarah Grace McCandless - 2001
     The new girl in town, Emma Harris, must prove herself hip to the rigid rules of adolescent conformity. The quest for cool, she discovers, is one long final exam. To pass she must be cruel to be kind (ditching her best friend for the popular crowd), dress to impress (trading her favorite Esprit shirt for three plastic bracelets), and master the art of seduction (puckering up with Mulberry Stain or Peaches 'n' Cream lip gloss). Life is all about making choices -- the right ones. Will Emma's social acrobatics put her on the short list for that coveted country club membership? Will the digits of her zip code pass muster? If her parents split up, will the gossip help or hurt her in the rankings? Grosse Pointe Girl serves as an indispensable road map through the dysfunction privilege brings. So put on your Guess? jeans and your jelly shoes and come along for the ride to the adolescent days that time forgot, but you never will.

Steve Jobs: American Genius


Amanda Ziller - 2012
    By pushing boundaries and always thinking one step ahead, Jobs became an icon, equally as famous for his advanced ideas and design aesthetic as his sleek black turtlenecks. What inspired him? How did he do his job? What made him the man he was?Here is Steve Jobs—the innovator, the rebel, the genius—in an incisive biography of a man who changed the world. Also includes quotes from and about Jobs, chronologies detailing Jobs’s achievements, and source notes.

Taffy of Torpedo Junction


Nell Wise Wechter - 1957
    For readers of all ages, the book brings to life the dramatic wartime events on the Outer Banks, where German U-boats turned an area around Cape Hatteras into 'Torpedo Junction' by sinking more than sixty American vessels in just a six-month period in 1942. "Taffy" has been enjoyed by young and old alike since it was first published in 1957.

The Chain Between Worlds


Johnathon Nicolaou - 2021
    11 years later when seemingly ordinary 16-year-old Lincoln runs away from yet another foster home, heading to his favoured spot in New York City, he is attacked by a dog, a monstrous three headed dog the size of a truck. Becoming marked, a string of attacks follow, only ending when he is saved by El, Ben, and AJ, a group of enhanced people known as Ascendants. Discovering the world is not as it seems, with Sorcerers, Nature Spirits and demonic monsters all hiding in plain sight, he learns that he is a long-lost Ascendant himself; discovering that the chain his father left him was at the centre of a conspiracy that resulted in his abandonment and his father’s subsequent disappearance.