The Power of Poppy Pendle


Natasha Lowe - 2012
    When, as an infant, Poppy unexpectedly performs her first bit of magic, her parents, Edith and Roger, know their dream has come true. Their daughter has inherited the family gift.But as Poppy grows up she isn’t as thrilled about her magical talents. Even though she was born into a long line of witches, has inherited the extraordinary gifts of famed Great-Grandmother Mabel, and is enrolled at the exclusive Ruthersfield Academy, a school for witchcraft, she wants to be a baker instead. Making yummy lemon cakes, buttery almond cookies, chocolate melt-aways, and caramel crunch cookies is Poppy’s passion—and it makes her happy. Poppy Pendle has no choice but to take matters into her own hands. “Whose life is it anyway?” she asks.

The Sleepwalkers


Viviane Schwarz - 2012
    But before they go, they must conjure and train three new replacements. Who else will look after the Sleepwalking House and be there to answer the call of a child frozen with fear, trapped in a nightmare? Faced with a series of cliff-hanging dream predicaments, the three brave new heroes tackle the weird and the wild in this tale about pulling together as a team and having the confidence to stand up to your fears.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon


Grace Lin - 2009
    Minli's mother, tired of their poor life, chides him for filling her head with nonsense. But Minli believes these enchanting stories and embarks on an extraordinary journey to find the Old Man of the Moon and ask him how her family can change their fortune. She encounters an assorted cast of characters and magical creatures along the way, including a dragon who accompanies her on her quest. Source: Jacket flap

Yorick and Bones


Jeremy Tankard - 2020
    He speaks like it too. “Forsooth, my joy, I barely can contain!”Bones is the hungry dog who did the digging. Though he cannot speak, he can chomp.What will become of these two unlikely companions? Will Yorick ever find the friend he seeks? Will Bones ever find a tasty treat that does not talk back?The course of true friendship never did run smooth.

Summer of the Monkeys


Wilson Rawls - 1976
    Jay Berry Lee's grandpa had an explanation, of course--as he did for most things. The monkeys had escaped from a traveling circus, and there was a handsome reward in store for anyone who could catch them. Grandpa said there wasn't any animal that couldn't be caught somehow, and Jay Berry started out believing him . . .But by the end of the "summer of the monkeys," Jay Berry Lee had learned a lot more than he ever bargained for--and not just about monkeys. He learned about faith, and wishes coming true, and knowing what it is you really want. He even learned a little about growing up . . .This novel, set in rural Oklahoma around the turn of the century, is a heart-warming family story--full of rich detail and delightful characters--about a time and place when miracles were really the simplest of things...

Arabel's Raven


Joan Aiken - 1972
    In Arabel's Raven, Mr Jones, while driving his taxi, notices something bedraggled in the road. He stops and discovers an injured raven. He takes it home and his four-year-old daughter Arabel falls in love at first sight. 'His name is Mortimer,' she announces and Mortimer has found a home. A series of thefts and a robber quarrel are only two of the dramas in this delightful tale in which Mortimer and Arabel find their ways straight to the reader's heart.This story was originally published in the collection, Tales of Arabel's Raven.

Kneeknock Rise


Natalie Babbitt - 1970
    Everyone shudders in horror--delicious horror--whenever the Megrimum's unearthly wail floats down to the village. Before long, Egan is climbing the Rise to find a practical explanation for those wails.

Root Magic


Eden Royce - 2021
    Her beloved grandmother has just passed away. The local police deputy won’t stop harassing her family. With school integration arriving in South Carolina, Jez and her twin brother, Jay, are about to begin the school year with a bunch of new kids. But the biggest change comes when Jez and Jay turn eleven—and their uncle, Doc, tells them he’s going train them in rootwork.Jez and Jay have always been fascinated by the African American folk magic that has been the legacy of her family for generations—especially the curious potions and powders Doc and Gran would make for the people on their island. But Jez soon finds out that her family’s true power goes far beyond small charms and elixirs...and not a moment too soon. Because when evil both natural and supernatural comes to show itself in town, it’s going to take every bit of the magic she has inside her to see her through.

The Boy, the Bird and the Coffin Maker


Matilda Woods - 2017
    There he makes coffins for the great and small, but being the only coffin maker in town can be lonely. That is until a little boy and a magical bird enter his life and change it forever.

Granted


John David Anderson - 2018
    Bixby’s Last Day and Posted, comes Granted, a hilarious, heartfelt, and unforgettable novel about a fairy-in-training and her first wish-granting assignment.Everyone who wishes upon a star, or a candle, or a penny thrown into a fountain knows that you’re not allowed to tell anyone what you’ve wished for. But even so, rest assured: There is someone out there who hears it.Ophelia Delphinium Fidgets is no ordinary fairy—she is a Granter: one of the select few whose job it is to venture beyond the boundaries of the Haven and grant the wishes of unsuspecting humans every day. It’s the work of the Granters that generates the magic that allows the fairies to do what they do and to keep the Haven hidden and safe. But with worldwide magic levels at an all-time low, this is not as easy as it sounds. On a typical day, only a small fraction of the millions of wishes made get granted. And even granting those promised few means navigating a human world fraught with danger.Today, however, is anything but typical. Because today Ophelia is going out on her first assignment. And she’s about to discover that getting what you truly want takes much more than a handful of fairy dust.

The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop


Kate Saunders - 2012
    Long ago, its famous chocolate-makers were clever sorcerers. Now evil villains are hunting the secret of their greatest recipe. The terrifying power of this magic chocolate could destroy the world.The children are swept into a thrilling battle, helped by an invisible cat, a talking rat and the ghost of an elephant.

Unplugged


Gordon Korman - 2021
    So, when his father’s private jet drops him in the middle of Little Rock, Arkansas, at a wellness camp called the Oasis, Jett can’t believe it. He’s forced to hand over his cell phone, eat grainy veggie patties, and participate in wholesome activities with the other kids.At the Oasis, he meets Grace, who is his polar opposite. She thrives in the wellness atmosphere and resents Jett’s terrible attitude. Then there’s Tyrell, who suffers from a dizzying list of food allergies that render him constantly itchy. And also Brooklynne, a girl who definitely seems to be hiding something.As the weeks go on, Jett starts to get used to the unplugged life and even bonds with the other kids over their discovery of a baby lizard-turned-pet, Needles. But he can’t help noticing that the adults at the Oasis are acting really strange…Jett is determined to get to the bottom of things, but can he convince the other kids that he is no longer just a spoiled brat making trouble?

Greenglass House


Kate Milford - 2014
    The creaky smuggler’s inn is always quiet during this season, and twelve-year-old Milo, the innkeepers’ adopted son, plans to spend his holidays relaxing. But on the first icy night of vacation, out of nowhere, the guest bell rings. Then rings again. And again. Soon Milo’s home is bursting with odd, secretive guests, each one bearing a strange story that is somehow connected to the rambling old house. As objects go missing and tempers flare, Milo and Meddy, the cook’s daughter, must decipher clues and untangle the web of deepening mysteries to discover the truth about Greenglass House—and themselves.

Willa of the Wood


Robert Beatty - 2018
    Steal without a trace.Willa, a young night-spirit, is her clan's best thief. She creeps into the cabins of the day-folk under cover of darkness and takes what they won't miss. It's dangerous work--the day-folk kill whatever they don't understand--but Willa will do anything to win the approval of the padaran, the charismatic leader of the Faeran people.When Willa's curiosity leaves her hurt and stranded in the day-folk world, she calls upon the old powers of her beloved grandmother, and the unbreakable bonds of her forest allies, to escape. Only then does she begin to discover the shocking truth: that not all of her day-folk enemies are the same, and that the foundations of her own Faeran society are crumbling. What do you do when you realize that the society you were born and raised in is rife with evil? Do you raise your voice? Do you stand up against it?As forces of unfathomable destruction encroach on her forest home, Willa must decide who she truly is, facing deadly force with the warmest compassion, sinister corruption with trusted alliance, and finding a home for her longing heart.

The Nine Lives of Alexander Baddenfield


John Bemelmans Marciano - 2013
     One day, Alexander has an astonishing idea.  Why not transplant the nine lives from his cat into himself?  Suddenly, Alexander has lives to spare, and goes about using them up, attempting the most outrageous feats he can imagine.  Only when his lives start running out, and he is left with only one just like everyone else, does he realize how reckless he has been. With its wickedly funny story and equally clever illustrations, this is dark humor at its most delicious.