The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet


Reif Larsen - 2009
    Spivet for iPad. A brilliant, boundary-leaping debut novel tracing twelve-year-old genius map maker T.S. Spivet's attempts to understand the ways of the worldWhen twelve-year-old genius cartographer T.S. Spivet receives an unexpected phone call from the Smithsonian announcing he has won the prestigious Baird Award, life as normal-if you consider mapping family dinner table conversation normal-is interrupted and a wild cross-country adventure begins, taking T.S. from his family ranch just north of Divide, Montana, to the museum's hallowed halls. T.S. sets out alone, leaving before dawn with a plan to hop a freight train and hobo east. Once aboard, his adventures step into high gear and he meticulously maps, charts, and illustrates his exploits, documenting mythical wormholes in the Midwest, the urban phenomenon of "rims," and the pleasures of McDonald's, among other things. We come to see the world through T.S.'s eyes and in his thorough investigation of the outside world he also reveals himself. As he travels away from the ranch and his family we learn how the journey also brings him closer to home. A secret family history found within his luggage tells the story of T.S.'s ancestors and their long-ago passage west, offering profound insight into the family he left behind and his role within it. As T.S. reads he discovers the sometimes shadowy boundary between fact and fiction and realizes that, for all his analytical rigor, the world around him is a mystery. All that he has learned is tested when he arrives at the capital to claim his prize and is welcomed into science's inner circle. For all its shine, fame seems more highly valued than ideas in this new world and friends are hard to find. T.S.'s trip begins at the Copper Top Ranch and the last known place he stands is Washington, D.C., but his journey's movement is far harder to track: How do you map the delicate lessons learned about family and self? How do you depict how it feels to first venture out on your own? Is there a definitive way to communicate the ebbs and tides of heartbreak, loss, loneliness, love? These are the questions that strike at the core of this very special debut.Now a major motion picture directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and starring Kyle Catlett and Helena Bonham Carter.

Little Miss Mary and The Big Monster Makeover


Gleb Toropov - 2007
    However, instead of being petrified by the apparition, Mary decides to help the hideous beast by giving him a makeover. In the process, it is Mary who undergoes the biggest transformation.

Barbarians at the PTA


Stephanie Newman - 2020
    After a rage-inducing scandal and the realization that her dreamy fiancé is faker than a faux Fendi purse, she moves her psychology practice and 10-year-old daughter, Rachel, to Mayfair Close, an idyllic Westchester, NY, suburb known for its manicured lawns and excellent schools. The transition is initially seamless; several PTA moms befriend Victoria, her already busy practice booms, and Rachel finds a group of friends. But before anyone can say “helicopter mom,” in walks Lee DeVry. Wealthy, glamorous and perfectly toned, the PTA president is everything Victoria is not. Vic tries to fit in with Lee and the other SUV driving, athleisure-wearing mothers. At first, she manages to balance the demands of her practice, single parenthood, and her budding romance with Jim, a handsome school administrator. All seems well until Rachel is suddenly targeted, first by the girls at school, and then by an anonymous cyberbully. As Rachel spirals, becoming isolated, playing hooky, and exhibiting signs of depression and disordered eating, Victoria vows to find out who has been messing with her daughter.  After she learns a secret that will help her rescue her child, Vic faces the ultimate dilemma: should she expose the bully publicly, despite the potential consequences to her professional reputation and relationships with Rachel and Jim? A hilarious, sharp, and hope-filled debut, Barbarians at the PTA will have you cheering for badass moms everywhere who go to the ends of the earth for their children—and will leave you wanting more from Dr. Stephanie Newman.

The Mum Hunt


Gwyneth Rees - 2003
    Her own mother died when she was just a baby, and her father is still heartbroken over it. Plus he works far too much and hasn’t gone out in ages. By Esmie’s reckoning he needs help—whether he’s asked for it or not. So Esmie, her older brother Matthew, and their French nanny, Juliette, place an advert in the Lonely Hearts column of the newspaper. But what they’re looking for and what Esmie’s father is looking for might not be the same thing. Just whose hunt is this anyway?From the Hardcover edition.

The Vowel Family: A Tale of Lost Letters


Sally M. Walker - 2008
    Sometimes they're visited by their very special aunt, Cyndy. As each child is born, the family becomes more complete--and each additional Vowel also makes the text easier to read! Because if you can imagine life without the Vowels, tlkng wld b vr hrd. Rdng wld b pzzlng. Are you ready to play the Vowel game?

How to Avoid Extinction


Paul Acampora - 2016
    Now, Gram's decided to roam farther than ever. And despite his misgivings, Leo's going along for the ride. With his seventeen-year-old cousin, Abbey, and an old, gassy dog named Kermit, Leo joins Gram in a big, old Buick to leave their Pennsylvania home for a cross-country road trip filled with foldout maps, family secrets, new friends, and dinosaur bones.

Underdog


Markus Zusak - 1999
    "I vowed that if I ever got a girl I would treat her right and never be bad or dirty to her or hurt her, ever." Cameron Wolfe is a dirty boy. He knows it. His brother Rube knows it, because he's one too. they could change - but what would it take?

Basketball (or Something Like It)


Nora Raleigh Baskin - 2005
    Basketball clinics, a revolving door of coaches, incensed parents, and the importance of the right sneakers—is that what the game is about? Told from the perspective of four unlikely friends, Nora Raleigh Baskin's poignant novel focuses on the action, drama, and fun of playing ball and explores what it takes to be a winner of the game—both on the court and off.

Jim and the Universe


D.M. Green - 2017
    One day, walking home from school, he meets a woman who introduces him to the magical power of the Universe and soon his whole life changes. This is a heartwarming, funny story that carries an important message about how to live. One reader said: 'It has brought a tear to my eye; made me laugh out loud; taken me back to some bad memories of many, many years ago; and resonated with my life now. Inspired, truly inspired.' Some have hailed it 'food for the soul', while others believe it 'reveals the simplicity and magic of life.' This is a book for everyone, adults and children alike. It may just change your life. To find out more about the book, you can follow the author's blog here: https://faithisyoursafeplace.wordpres... or follow him on Twitter @JimsDMGreen

Silver Toe Shoes Mari-chan #1-6


Kimiko Uehara - 1993
    

I Capture the Castle


Dodie Smith - 1948
    By the time the last diary shuts, there have been great changes in the Mortmain household, not the least of which is that Cassandra is deeply, hopelessly, in love.

Sister North


Jim Kokoris - 2003
    Newly addicted to watching Sister North, a nun with a popular television show, Sam embarks on a trip to Lake Eagleton, Wisconsin, to see the nun personally, seeking forgiveness and spiritual guidance. In Lake Eagleton, he finds out much more about Sister North, himself, and falling in love than he ever expected. "Sister North" is a novel of forgiveness and hope that takes a poignant and humorous look at what passes for love and faith in the twenty-first century.

The Complete Chi's Sweet Home, Part 1


Kanata Konami - 2015
    A multiple New York Times Best Seller and two-time winner of the Manga.Ask.Com Awards for Best Children's Manga, Konami Kanata's tale of a lost kitten has been acclaimed by readers worldwide as an excellent example of a comic that has truly been accepted by readers of all-ages.Presented in a brand new larger omnibus format, this edition compiles nearly 480 pages of Kitty cartoon tales, including two never before translated shorts from Konami Kanata's FukuFuku franchise, making The Complete Chi's Sweet Home a must have for every cat lover out there.Contains volumes 1-2-3 and three bonus cat comics!Chi is a michievous newborn kitten who, while on a leisurely stroll with her family, finds herself lost. Seperated from the warmth and protection of her mother, feels distraught. Overcome with loneliness she breaks into tears in a large urban park meadow., when she is suddenly rescued by a young boy named Yohei and his mother. The kitty is then quickly and quietly whisked away into the warm and inviting Yamada family apartment…where pets are strictly not permitted.

One Last Thing Before I Go


Jonathan Tropper - 2012
    His fleeting fame as the drummer for a one-hit wonder rock band is nearly a decade behind him. His ex-wife is about to marry a terrific guy. And his Princeton-bound teenage daughter Casey has just confided in him that she’s pregnant—because Silver is the one she cares least about letting down.So when Silver learns that he requires emergency life-saving heart surgery, he makes the radical decision to refuse the operation, choosing instead to spend what time he has left to repair his relationship with Casey, become a better man, and live in the moment—even if that moment isn’t going to last very long. As his exasperated family looks on, Silver grapples with the ultimate question of whether or not his own life is worth saving.

The Grand Plan to Fix Everything


Uma Krishnaswami - 2011
    But when her mother reveals some big news, it does not at all jibe with the script Dini had in mind. Her family is moving to India. And not even to Bombay, which is the “center of the filmi universe” (and home to Dini’s all-time most favorite star, Dolly Singh). No, they’re moving to a teeny, tiny town that she can’t even find on a map: Swapnagiri. It means Dream Mountain, a sleepy little place where nothing interesting can happen.... But wait a movie minute! Swapnagiri is full of surprises like rose petal milk shakes, mischievous monkeys, a girl who chirps like a bird, and...could it be…Dolly herself?