Book picks similar to
The Ghosts in the Castle by Zetta Elliott


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The Hidden Summer


Gin Phillips - 2013
    Nell struggles with the thought of not only losing her best friend, but also losing the only person in whom Nell finds refuge from the difficulties she faces at home. Determined to find a place of their own, Nell and Lydia spend the summer hiding out in an abandoned golf course where Nell and Lydia find mysterious symbols scattered throughout the grounds. As they reveal the secret of the symbols, Nell discovers she isn't the only one seeking haven and begins to uncover what’s really been hidden all along, finally allowing herself to be truly seen. Hidden Summer is a quietly beautiful coming of age story about self-discovery, family, and friendship. An elegantly written children’s book debut from an award-winning author in the vein of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and for fans of Moon Over Manifest.

Athlete vs. Mathlete


W.C. Mack - 2013
    His brother, Russell, rocks the school boards. These twin brothers couldn't be more different. They've long kept the peace by going their separate ways, but all that is about to change. The new basketball coach recruits Russell for the seventh grade team and a jealous Owen has to fight to stay in the game. When someone tries to steal Russell's spot as captain of the mathlete team, will the two be able to put aside their differences in order to save his position? Or will they be sidelined?Perfect for fans of Matt Christopher and Andrew Clements alike, this is a lighthearted and hilarious look at what happens when brains meets brawn meets basketball.

Ways to Live Forever


Sally Nicholls - 2008
    I am eleven years old. I collect stories and fantastic facts. By the time you read this, I will probably be dead." Sam loves facts. He wants to know about UFOs and horror movies and airships and ghosts and scientists, and how it feels to kiss a girl. And because he has leukaemia he wants to know the facts about dying. Sam needs answers to the questions nobody will answer. "Ways To Live Forever" is the first novel from an extraordinarily talented young writer. Funny and honest, it is one of the most powerful and uplifting books you will ever read.

Akata Witch


Nnedi Okorafor - 2011
    Born in New York, but living in Aba, Nigeria, twelve-year old Sunny is understandably a little lost. She is albino and thus, incredibly sensitive to the sun. All Sunny wants to do is be able to play football and get through another day of school without being bullied. But once she befriends Orlu and Chichi, Sunny is plunged in to the world of the Leopard People, where your worst defect becomes your greatest asset. Together, Sunny, Orlu, Chichi and Sasha form the youngest ever Oha Coven. Their mission is to track down Black Hat Otokoto, the man responsible for kidnapping and maiming children. Will Sunny be able to overcome the killer with powers stronger than her own, or will the future she saw in the flames become reality?

Caddy's World


Hilary McKay - 2011
    This colourful and hilarious series will make you wish you were part of the family! Best friends, boyfriends, problem parents, pink hair. Brothers, sisters, fireworks and unexpected babies. Welcome to Caddy's World.Travel back to when Caddy was a young girl and Rose had not been born, in this moving and comical prequel to the award-winning Saffy's Angel. 'Full of warmth, vitality and irrepressible good humour' Guardian Saffy's Angel won the Whitbread Children's Book Award, and book 3, Permanent Rose, was shortlisted for the same award, celebrating McKay's talent for conveying the anarchic bedlam of family life.

Stargirl


Jerry Spinelli - 2000
    Ages 12+Leo Borlock follows the unspoken rule at Mica Area High School: don't stand out--under any circumstances! Then Stargirl arrives at Mica High and everything changes--for Leo and for the entire school. After 15 years of home schooling, Stargirl bursts into tenth grade in an explosion of color and a clatter of ukulele music, enchanting the Mica student body.But the delicate scales of popularity suddenly shift, and Stargirl is shunned for everything that makes her different. Somewhere in the midst of Stargirl's arrival and rise and fall, normal Leo Borlock has tumbled into love with her.In a celebration of nonconformity, Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the fleeting, cruel nature of popularity--and the thrill and inspiration of first love.

Absolutely Truly


Heather Vogel Frederick - 2014
    With two older brothers and two younger sisters clamoring for attention, her mother back in school, and everyone up to their eyebrows trying to keep Lovejoy's Books afloat, Truly feels more overlooked than usual. So she pours herself into uncovering the mystery of an undelivered letter she finds stuck in a valuable autographed first edition of Charlotte's Web, which subsequently goes missing from the bookshop. What's inside the envelope leads Truly and her new Pumpkin Falls friends on a madcap treasure hunt around town, chasing clues that could spell danger.

The Map to Everywhere


Carrie Ryan - 2014
    To Master Thief Fin, an orphan from the murky pirate world of the Khaznot Quay, the Map is the key to finding his mother. To suburban schoolgirl Marrill, it's her only way home after getting stranded on the Pirate Stream, the magical waterway that connects every world in creation. With the help of a bumbling wizard and his crew, they must scour the many worlds of the Pirate Stream to gather the pieces of the Map to Everywhere--but they aren't the only ones looking. A sinister figure is hot on their tail, and if they can't beat his ghostly ship to find the Map, it could mean the destruction of everything they hold dear! Heart-pounding escapades and a colorful cast of characters will have readers setting sail through this wholly original and unforgettable tale.

The Blacksmith and The Apprentice - Life Inside Minecraft!: Legends & Heroes Issue 1 (Stone Marshall's Legends & Heroes)


Stone Marshall - 2015
     The Stone Marshall Studio is developing a new series: Legends & Heroes A hybrid of comic-book style illustrations and short stories. Each issue is fun, challenging, and engaging. These interrelated stories follow a series of characters on a journey through life in Minecraft. Relatable characters, thrilling action, and colorful illustrations will suck in readers and leave them excited to read the next adventure! Secrets await! Solve the puzzle, uncover secrets! The Blacksmith and The Apprentice: Issue 1 The ancient art of blacksmithing is a thing of beauty. A lot of hard work goes into the process. It’s very complicated, really. Stoking the flames to many small, contained fires—making lumps of metal into differently shaped items of metal—hitting said lumps of metal with hammers to turn them into different weapons. You can shape metals into whatever item you want. Okay, it might not be a very interesting job, but apprenticing with the best blacksmith in the kingdom is a huge opportunity. Blacksmiths make the tools everyone needs to get about in their day-to-day lives. It’s a very prestigious and impressive position, although this honor is lost when the position is held by Dane, a youthful boy who dreams of greater adventure! Luckily, Dane has a skilled master to reign in his daydreaming. Viegar has quite an interesting past. From his years on the Royal Guard to his close relationship with the previous king, he’s quite a friend to have on your side. There is one other apprentice, Snip, who is much more passionate about his duties than Dane. Between the three of them, they churn out powerful weapons and protective armor, usually with no thanks to Dane. Of course, no cast of characters would be complete without the big man in charge—in this case, a king. By almost anyone’s account, he’s a good and fair ruler, but there is no one in power without enemies. Though Viegar and his workers only want to help their wonderful king, there are still plenty who wish to do him harm. But Dane can only imagine such things. It’s not as if he’d ever be in the position to really make any sort of difference or be in any place of power. Right? And though his apprenticeship is mundane and boring, the young man gets a few moments of excitement. Every once in a while, his master Viegar lets him venture out past the village to visit the caravan, where he can trade and buy supplies. It’s the most excitement Dane ever gets in his line of work. Sometimes, he gets to meet interesting people. Sometimes, he hears interesting things. And maybe, just maybe, he sometimes hears of a new opportunity for himself. But who would want to give up such a life as an esteemed apprentice? But of course, destiny and desire are not always what you expect . . .

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes


Jonathan Auxier - 2011
    One fateful afternoon, he steals a box from a mysterious traveling haberdasher—a box that contains three pairs of magical eyes. When he tries the first pair, he is instantly transported to a hidden island where he is presented with a special quest: to travel to the dangerous Vanished Kingdom and rescue a people in need. Along with his loyal sidekick—a knight who has been turned into an unfortunate combination of horse and cat—and the magic eyes, he embarks on an unforgettable, swashbuckling adventure to discover his true destiny.Be sure to read the companion book, Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard.

The Shamer's Daughter


Lene Kaaberbøl - 2000
    To Dina, however, these powers are not a gift but a curse. Surrounded by fear and hostility, she longs for simple friendship.But when her mother is called to Dunark Castle to uncover the truth about a bloody triple murder, Dina must come to terms with her power--or let her mother fall prey to the vicious and revolting dragons of Dunark.

Pig-Heart Boy


Malorie Blackman - 1997
    All you want is a normal life. But most normal kids don't need heart transplants.So there's this doctor. He says there's a chance for you. But he also says it's experimental, controversial and risky. And it's never been done before.Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal, this is a powerful, thought-provoking story from the award-winning Malorie Blackman.

The Complete Big Nate: #6 (amp! Comics for Kids)


Lincoln Peirce - 2015
    Presented in a numbered series of e-books, each containing one year's worth of strips, this is a goldmine for all Big Nate fans to see many cartoons that have never been published in books. Aspiring cartoonist Nate Wright is the star of Big Nate. As a popular middle-grade book character, Nate is 11 years old, four-and-a-half feet tall, and the all-time record holder for detentions in school history. He's a self-described genius and sixth grade Renaissance Man. Nate, who lives with his dad and older sister, has a habit of annoying his family, friends, and teachers with his sarcasm.

The Greatest Spy Who Never Was


David Codd - 2019
    Schoolboy turned super spy. Both stupidly dangerous and dangerously stupid. Thirteen year old Hugo’s life is turned upside down (or is it downside up?) when his part-time job as a toilet boy in secret organisation, SICK, is unexpectedly upgraded eight levels to that of a spy. His first assignment - to go deep undercover with Agent One and assist him in any way he can. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. Very wrong. A robbery at the Bottle Bank. Diamond smuggling at the Pearly Gates Cemetery. The theft of priceless artifact, Coocamba’s Idol. Hugo is there on each and every occasion, but then so, too, is someone else. Wrinkles, the town of Crooked Elbow’s oldest criminal mastermind. She needs to be stopped and fast. No, quicker than that. Double fast. Before it's too late. In a battle of good versus evil, young versus old, ugly versus even uglier, there can only be one winner ... and it better be Hugo otherwise we're all in trouble! A laugh-out-loud, thrill-a-minute adventure story for children aged 9-12.

The Fowl Twins


Eoin Colfer - 2019
    Beckett is blonde, messy and sulks whenever he has to wear clothes. Myles is fanatically neat, he has an IQ of 170, and he wears a fresh suit every day like his older brother, Artemis Fowl.Perhaps you have heard of the Fowl family and their adventures? This Fowl adventure is filled with the most unusual of individuals: an immortal duke, a miniature troll, a nunterrogator and a Police Specialist that's 42% elf. And of course, the Fowl twins - one a certified genius with a criminal leaning, and the other possessing an unusual talent that has not been fully explored... yet!Here begins the second documented cycle of Fowl Adventures.The first in a breath-taking new series from global superstar Eoin Colfer. Set in the multi-million bestselling world of ARTEMIS FOWL.