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Maggie Lou Meets Her Match

Arnolda Dufour Bowes

In this sequel to Maggie Lou, Firefox, the irrepressible Maggie Lou acquires a new cousin, and a horse -- both of whom have minds of their own.

When Uncle Bobby gets married, Maggie Lou suddenly finds herself with a new cousin, Rosie. Rosie is the same age as Maggie. She also has a fabulous head of curls, although hers are red. And Rosie knows everything about horses and riding -- something Maggie Lou has longed to do.

A rivalry sparks between the girls from the start at Uncle Bobby and Aunt Bonnie's wedding, which features an all-you-can-eat dessert table, as well as lots of energetic dancing. On Rosie's horse farm, Maggie experiences her share of humiliations as she learns how to ride on a pony so short that her feet can touch the ground.

Eventually the cousins become allies and wreak some hair-raising mischief, including a secret midnight horseback ride. And in the end they are joined by friends and family to train, hilariously, for the famous Otipîm'sowak Race -- a Métis voyageur relay -- carrying on a family tradition.

Throughout it all, Maggie remains stubborn and enthusiastic, as she navigates the new challenges of defeat, rivalry and family change.

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Wolf Girl #2: The Great Escape

Anh Do

The Great Escape is the second book in the Wolf Girl series, a thrilling middle grade series about a young girl, separated from her family, who has to learn to survive with only her new canine family by her side, from Australian bestselling author and stand-up comedian Anh Do.

At first, Gwen is overjoyed to see another human after being alone in the wild. But all that changes when she is thrown into the back of a van and stolen away to a prison camp. The situation looks dire--how will her pack find her? Where is her human family? Are the other kids in the camp friends or enemies? But Eagle is fast, the dogs are brave, and bars and fences are no match for the one and only Wolf Girl!

With black-and-white illustrations on every page, The Great Escape is perfect for action fans and emergent readers. It's the second book from Anh Do, beloved comedian, artist, and bestselling author of The Happiest Refugee and the WeirDo series.

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Ride or Die

Delilah S. Dawson

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A sleepover at an amusement park turns into a night of terror in this scary middle school read from the New York Times bestselling author of Mine and Camp Scare.

Tonight is Brie’s chance to finally be accepted by the Ems—the most popular girls at school. If she can just keep one potentially reputation-ending secret under wraps, she’ll have the best night of her life, screaming on scary rides and running the Wildwoods amusement park with her new friends.

But when the Ems take a game of truth or dare too far, Brie ends up alone in a creepy abandoned section of the park. There, she meets a group of cool older teens that invite her to join them. They seem friendly enough.

Little does Brie know she’s about to come face to face with a reawakened evil that wants to take her on the ride of her life...make that her death.

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What the Woods Took

Courtney Gould

Devin Green wakes in the middle of the night to find two men in her bedroom. No stranger to a fight, she calls to her foster parents for help, but it soon becomes clear this is a planned abduction—one everyone but Devin signed up for. She’s shoved in a van and driven deep into the Idaho woods, where she’s dropped off with a cohort of equally confused teens. Finally, two camp counselors inform them that they've all been enrolled in an experimental therapy program. If the campers can learn to change their self-destructive ways—and survive a fifty-days hike through the wilderness—they’ll come out the other side as better versions of themselves. Or so the counselors say.

Devin is immediately determined to escape. She’s also determined to ignore Sheridan, the cruel-mouthed, lavender-haired bully who mocks every group exercise. But there’s something strange about these woods—inhuman faces appearing between the trees, visions of people who shouldn't be there flashing in the leaves—and when the campers wake up to find both counselors missing, therapy becomes the least of their problems. Stranded and left to fend for themselves, the teens quickly realize they’ll have to trust each other if they want to survive. But what lies in the woods may not be as dangerous as what the campers are hiding from each other—and if the monsters have their way, no one will leave the woods alive.

Atmospheric and sharp, What the Woods Took is a poignant story of transformation that explores the price of becoming someone—or something—new.

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Lady's Knight

Amie Kaufman

Gwen is sick of hiding--hiding the fact that she's taken over her father's blacksmithing duties, hiding her attraction to girls, hiding her yearning for glory as a knight.

Meanwhile, Lady Isobelle of Avington, queen bee of the castle, has never once considered hiding who she is--until now. She's been chosen as the grand prize in the Tournament of Dragonslayers, to be given to whichever knight can claim her hand. And for the first time in her life, she can't talk her way out of trouble.

When Isobelle discovers Gwen's knightly ambitions, they hatch a scheme together--Gwen will joust in the tournament, disguised as Sir Gawain. Winning means freedom for Isobelle, and glory for Gwen. Losing means... well, let's not go there.

One thing's for sure: Falling in love was never the plan.

But the best laid plans...are often trampled all over by dragons.

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The Ink Witch

Steph Cherrywell

For fans of Amari and the Night Brothers and The Okay Witch comes a hilarious and affirming cozy fantasy about the adventures of a girl who discovers she is the descendant of a powerful witch coven.

Becca Slugg is bored. It's the tail end of summer, and it feels like she's done nothing but run errands for her family's Cape Disappointment Beach Inn, argue with her frustratingly overprotective mother, and have one-sided conversations with the giant spider living by the dumpsters out back.

When Becca wishes for something to happen, she doesn't expect her wish to manifest in the form of an unwelcome visit from her mom's sinister and estranged sister, Malatrice. It turns out Becca's aunt is a powerful witch--and when she doesn't get the help she wants from Becca's mom, she unleashes a devastating ink spell. Becca is left with a mindless puppet for a mother and a whole lot of questions--like Can I castspells with the ink in my veins, too?

With the help of Natalya, her mother's tarantula familiar, and Oddvar, a friendly troll living in the motel's ice machine, a distraught but determined Becca sets out to uncover her own magical abilities and find the ingredients for a potion that will cure her mother. Besides, how hard can it be to find mermaid eggs, troll teeth, and the most precious possession of a Witch-Queen?
This magical adventure is equal parts hilarious and exhilarating, with a sassy, talking tarantula being just the tip of the iceberg.

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A Feast for the Eyes

Alex Crespo

On the dreary Oregon coast, an all-seeing beast--known as the Watcher--lies in wait. When Shay and her girlfriend, Lauren, get into a fight over whether to go public with their clandestine relationship, they awaken the creature. Although Lauren is badly injured, the girls escape with their lives but can't shake the feeling of the creature's eyes tracking them. 

Meanwhile, aspiring photographer Zoe is desperate to put together a portfolio worthy of earning a scholarship to attend art college. Her photography teacher praises her skill but urges her to select more daring subjects for her submissions--a tall task when Zoe's camera acts as a barrier between herself and the rest of the world.

As rumors swirl about Lauren's injuries, Shay remains steadfast in that the Watcher is to blame, not her. She asks for Zoe's help in snapping a photo of the local legend. Proof would help Shay clear her name and certainly be daring enough for Zoe's scholarship. Together with their friends Jack and Parker, they set out to expose the Watcher before its ever-creeping eyes cast the secrets they're all keeping from the town--and one another--into the light. 

Eerily atmospheric and as piercing as a pair of eyes on the back of your head, Alex Crespo's LGBTQ+ supernatural thriller is a poignant story about the prices we pay to keep our secrets hidden--sometimes for good reason. Through creeping tension and mounting horror, readers will furiously turn the pages with their breaths held.

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Roll for Danger: the Cursed Catacombs

Nick Eliopulos

Adventure awaits in this middle-grade fantasy series that invites young readers to step into the shoes of of the story's hero! Combining elements of table-top roleplaying and pick-your-poison storytelling, a roll of the dice determines whether you'll score a legendary win...or an epic fail.

Set in a classic high-fantasy setting, Seth is last-surviving apprentice of the great wizard Bristleboor. One day, Bristleboor sends Seth on a mission to find an elusive flower that grows in the tunnels under the castle they live in. Aided by an imprisoned imp named Calivore, Seth traverses the tunnels and comes upon monsters to fight and puzzles to solve while learning secrets about himself...and his master. By the end, he and the reader will need to make choices about where and with whom their loyalties lie and what kind of hero they want to become. 

In this new adventure series from Nick Eliopulos and featuring art by Ethan M. Aldridge, the reader becomes the character, getting to make their own choices about how the story will unfold. Or do they? Some chapters will present options to choose from while others will ask the reader to roll a six-sided die and let fate decide their path. It's an interactive reading experience like no other that will allow young readers to tap into a Dungeon & Dragons style of storytelling while giving them an early introduction to pick-your-poison gamebooks and table-top roleplaying.

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If We Survive This

Racquel Marie

Flora Braddock Paz is not the girl who survives. A colorful creative who spends as much time fearing death as she does trying to hide that fear from her loved ones, she’s always considered herself weak. But half a year into the global outbreak of a rabies mutation that transforms people into violent, zombielike "rabids," she and her older brother, Cain, are still alive. With their mom dead, their dad missing, and their Los Angeles suburb left desolate, they form a new plan: venture out to the secluded Northern California cabin they vacationed in growing up—their best chance at a safe haven and maybe even seeing their dad again.

The dangers of the world have changed, but so has Flora. Still, their journey up the state is complicated by encounters with familiar faces, hidden truths, new allies, and painful memories of the whole family’s final time making this trip the previous year. And for Flora, one thing inevitably remains: No matter how far you run, death is never far behind.

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The Raven Boys

Maggie Stiefvater

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them--until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can't entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn't believe in true love, and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she's not so sure anymore.

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Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire

Don Martin

WELCOME TO FOXFIRE

The rules here are simple:

Don’t look in the trees.

Don’t whistle in the woods at night.

Don’t answer if you hear your
name called.

And remember . . . everything wants.

Verity Vox is a witch-in-training who has never met a problem her spells can’t solve. But when a cryptic plea for help sends her to the forgotten coal mining town of Foxfire, she soon learns even magic has its limits.

Verity discovers a curse was laid years ago by a traveling magician who vanished into the ancient Appalachian hills to seek greater power. Crops won’t grow. Bellies go hungry. Even treasured possessions fall apart. What’s worse, people have gone missing amidst rumors that they’ve sought out the magician who is lying in wait for those foolish or desperate enough to strike a deal with him.

The witch must break the curse, find a missing girl, and solve the mystery of what’s really under the mountain before the town falls forever into the clutches of the monster lurking in the hills.
 

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Death in the Cards

Mia P. Manansala

Danika Dizon is a natural problem-solver. Thanks to her private investigator mom and mystery author dad, she's equipped with the skills to offer guidance to anxious classmates who come to her for a tarot reading between classes. For a price, of course.

But when one of her clients vanishes shortly after they're dealt a death card, the girl’s younger sister Gaby begs Danika to figure out what went wrong. Danika takes on the case, thinking it's the perfect way to prove to her parents that she should be an official investigator in the family’s detective agency.

What starts off as a compelling challenge quickly devolves into something darker as Danika and Gaby peel back layer after layer of the secret life the missing girl has been living. A life that those involved would do anything to keep from being revealed…

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What the River Knows

Isabel Ibañez

Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera belongs to the glittering upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires, and like the rest of the world, the town is steeped in old world magic that’s been largely left behind or forgotten. Inez has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents—who frequently leave her behind.

When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in partnership with his Egyptian brother-in-law. Yearning for answers, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and a golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping before he died. But upon her arrival, the old world magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parent’s disappearance than what her guardian led her to believe.

With her guardian’s infuriatingly handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parent’s disappearance—or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that will kill her.

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How to Survive a Slasher

Justine Pucella Winans

Few people can say they faced the infamous Satterville Wolf Man and lived. But CJ Smith can.

She doesn't talk about that, though.

CJ has survived the horror movie that is her life by following one rule: blend in and stay out of it. But that's hard to do when your trauma gets turned into a bestselling book series. The Slasherville books are a true crime phenomenon, documenting the Wolf Man massacres that changed CJ's life forever. CJ hates everything about the books and their fans, but at this point she's just grateful there aren't any more murders to write about.

Until one day when an unpublished Slasherville book shows up on her doorstep predicting new Wolf Man killings. CJ is sure it's a bad prank. But then the events in the book start coming true, and when CJ breaks her one rule, the Final Girl-the person who, according to the book, was supposed to stop the Wolf Man-ends up dead. Suddenly, blending in and staying out of it is not an option, and CJ will have to use everything she knows about the rules of horror to make it out alive.

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The Lightyears Between Us

Shannon K. English

Seventeen-year-old noble Will Arrex and her classmate Paige Tarrant were destined to be bitter rivals. Where Will is ice cold and painfully poised--everything an Arrex should be--Tarrant is a firecracker, unafraid to speak her mind.

Every twenty-five years, students aboard the Eden Space Station are chosen by lottery to pilot the Laikas--a fleet of ships sent on exploratory missions, humanity's last hope to find a habitable world. As the only daughter of a powerful politician, Will was not supposed to be one of them.

When Will and Tarrant wind up piloting Laika 15 together, their mutual hatred begins to thaw. But all seems lost when they discover the Eden's darkest secret...Laika 15 was never meant to come home.

Trapped in the vastness of space on an impossible mission, Will and Paige must bridge the lightyears keeping them apart if they want to survive.

 

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The Buried and the Bound

Rochelle Hassan

As the only hedgewitch in Blackthorn, Massachusetts—an uncommonly magical place—Aziza El-Amin has bargained with wood nymphs, rescued palm-sized fairies from house cats, banished flesh-eating shadows from the local park. But when a dark entity awakens in the forest outside of town, eroding the invisible boundary between the human world and fairyland, run-of-the-mill fae mischief turns into outright aggression, and the danger—to herself and others—becomes too great for her to handle alone. 

Leo Merritt is no stranger to magical catastrophes. On his sixteenth birthday, a dormant curse kicked in and ripped away all his memories of his true love. A miserable year has passed since then. He's road-tripped up and down the East Coast looking for a way to get his memories back and hit one dead end after another. He doesn't even know his true love's name, but he feels the absence in his life, and it's haunting. 

Desperate for answers, he makes a pact with Aziza: he’ll provide much-needed backup on her nightly patrols, and in exchange, she’ll help him break the curse. 

When the creature in the woods sets its sights on them, their survival depends on the aid of a mysterious young necromancer they’re not certain they can trust. But they’ll have to work together to eradicate the new threat and take back their hometown... even if it forces them to uncover deeply buried secrets and make devastating sacrifices.

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Mirror to Mirror

Rajani LaRocca

Rajani LaRocca, recipient of a Newbery Honor and Walter Award for Red, White, and Whole, is back with an evocative novel in verse about identical twin sisters who do everything together--until external pressures threaten to break them apart.

Maya is the pragmatic twin, but her secret anxiety threatens to overwhelm her.

Chaya is the outgoing twin. When she sees her beloved sister suffering, she wants to tell their parents--which makes Maya feel completely betrayed. With Maya shutting her out, Chaya makes a dramatic change to give her twin the space she seems to need. But that's the last thing Maya wants, and the girls just drift further apart.

The once-close sisters can't seem to find their rhythm, so they make a bet: they'll switch places at their summer camp, and whoever can keep the ruse going longer will get to decide where they both attend high school--the source of frequent arguments. But stepping into each other's shoes comes with its own difficulties, and the girls don't know how they're going to make it.

This emotional, lyrical story will speak to fans of Ali Benjamin, Padma Venkatraman, and Jasmine Warga.

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Orbiting Jupiter

Gary D. Schmidt

In this riveting novel, two boys discover the true meaning of family and the sacrifices it requires.

Two-time Newbery Honor winner Gary D. Schmidt delivers the shattering story of Joseph, a father at thirteen, who has never seen his daughter, Jupiter.

After spending time in a juvenile facility, he's placed with a foster family on a farm in rural Maine. Here Joseph, damaged and withdrawn, meets twelve-year-old Jack, who narrates the account of the troubled, passionate teen who wants to find his baby at any cost.

When Jack meets his new foster brother, he knows three things about him:

  • Joseph almost killed a teacher.
  • He was incarcerated at a place called Stone Mountain.
  • He has a daughter. Her name is Jupiter. And he has never seen her.

What Jack doesn't know, at first, is how desperate Joseph is to find his baby girl. Or how urgently he, Jack, will want to help.

But the past can't be shaken off. Even as new bonds form, old wounds reopen. The search for Jupiter demands more from Jack than he can imagine.

This tender, heartbreaking novel is Gary D. Schmidt at his best. He is the author of the Printz Honor and Newbery Honor Book Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy; Okay for Now, a National Book Award finalist; and The Wednesday Wars, a Newbery Honor Book, among his many acclaimed novels for young readers.

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Shot Clock

Caron Butler

Former NBA All-Star Caron Butler and acclaimed author Justin A. Reynolds tip off the first book in a new middle grade series about a young boy trying to make his mark on an AAU basketball team coached by a former NBA star in his hometown. Perfect for fans of The Crossover and the Track series. A Junior Library Guild Selection!

Tony loves basketball. But the game changed recently when his best friend, Dante, a hoops phenom, was killed by a police officer. Tony hopes he can carry on Dante's legacy by making the Sabres, the AAU basketball team Dante took to two national championships.

Tony doesn't make the team, but Coach James likes what he sees from Tony at tryouts and offers him another chance: join the team as the statistician. With his community reeling and the team just finding its footing on the court, can Tony find a path to healing while helping to bring the Sabres a championship?

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The Outlaws Scarlett and Browne

Jonathan Stroud

Action! Humor! Fantasy! "Kicking off a new series with a bang (several bangs, in fact), Stroud sends two young fugitives with murky pasts fleeing murderous pursuers across a fractured future Britain." —Kirkus Reviews, starred

Scarlett McCain is a shoot-first ask-questions-later kind of outlaw. She scrapes by on bank heists, her wits—and never looking back.
 
She’s on the run from her latest crime when she comes across Albert Browne. He is the sole survivor of a horrific accident, and against her better judgement, Scarlett agrees to guide him to safety.
 
This is a mistake. Soon there are men with dogs and guns and explosives hot on their heels. Scarlett’s used to being chased by the law, but this is extreme. It was only a little bank she’d robbed . . .
 
As they flee together across the wilds, fighting off monstrous beasts, and dodging their pursuers, Scarlett comes to realize that Albert Browne is hiding a terrible secret. And that he may be the most dangerous threat of all.
 
In this fast-paced, quick-witted whirlwind of a story, Jonathan Stroud introduces two unlikely allies—the outlaws Scarlett and Browne—who are about to become the most notorious renegades in all that’s left of Britain.

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When the World Was Ours

Liz Kessler

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Emily Windsnap series, Liz Kessler, comes a “brutally honest and totally believable” (Booklist, starred review) story of three young friends whose fates are intertwined during the devastation of the Holocaust—based on a true story.

Three friends. One memory. 
Vienna. 1936. 

Three young friends—Leo, Elsa, and Max—spend a perfect day together, unaware that around them Europe is descending into a growing darkness and that they will soon be cruelly ripped apart from one another. With their lives taking them across Europe—to Germany, England, Prague, and Poland—will they ever find their way back to one another? Will they want to?

Inspired by a true story, When the World Was Ours is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking and that shows how the bonds of love, family, and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hopeless of times.

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The Witch Haven

Sasha Peyton Smith

A New York Times Bestseller 

The Last Magician meets The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy in this “spectacular, singular, and spellbinding” (Casey McQuiston, New York Times bestselling author of Red, White & Royal Blue) historical fantasy following a young woman who discovers she has magical powers and is thrust into a battle between witches and wizards.

In 1911 New York City, seventeen-year-old Frances Hallowell spends her days as a seamstress, mourning the mysterious death of her brother months prior. Everything changes when she’s attacked and a man ends up dead at her feet—her scissors in his neck, and she can’t explain how they got there.

Before she can be condemned as a murderess, two cape-wearing nurses arrive to inform her she is deathly ill and ordered to report to Haxahaven Sanitarium. But Frances finds Haxahaven isn’t a sanitarium at all: it’s a school for witches. Within Haxahaven’s glittering walls, Frances finds the sisterhood she craves, but the headmistress warns Frances that magic is dangerous. Frances has no interest in the small, safe magic of her school, and is instead enchanted by Finn, a boy with magic himself who appears in her dreams and tells her he can teach her all she’s been craving to learn, lessons that may bring her closer to discovering what truly happened to her brother.

Frances’s newfound power attracts the attention of the leader of an ancient order who yearns for magical control of Manhattan. And who will stop at nothing to have Frances by his side. Frances must ultimately choose what matters more, justice for her murdered brother and her growing feelings for Finn, or the safety of her city and fellow witches. What price would she pay for power, and what if the truth is more terrible than she ever imagined?

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Louder Than Hunger

John Schu

A New York Times bestseller!
A Schneider Family Book Award Honor Book

"Every so often a book comes along that is so brave and necessary, it extends a lifeline when it's needed most. This is one of those books." --Katherine Applegate, author of the Newbery Medal-winning, The One and Only Ivan

Revered teacher, librarian, and story ambassador John Schu explores anorexia--and self-expression as an act of survival--in the New York Times bestseller wrenching and transformative novel-in-verse.

But another voice inside me says, 
We need help. 
We're going to die.

Jake volunteers at a nursing home because he likes helping people. He likes skating and singing, playing Bingo and Name That Tune, and reading mysteries and comics aloud to his teachers. He also likes avoiding people his own age . . . and the cruelty of mirrors . . . and food. Jake has read about kids like him in books--the weird one, the outsider--and would do anything not to be that kid, including shrink himself down to nothing. But the less he eats, the bigger he feels. How long can Jake punish himself before he truly disappears? A fictionalized account of the author's experiences and emotions living in residential treatment facilities as a young teen with an eating disorder, Louder than Hunger is a triumph of raw honesty. With a deeply personal afterword for context, this much-anticipated verse novel is a powerful model for muffling the destructive voices inside, managing and articulating pain, and embracing self-acceptance, support, and love.

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Ghost

Jason Reynolds

A National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature.
Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read. 

Ghost wants to be the fastest sprinter on his elite middle school track team, but his past is slowing him down in this first electrifying novel of the acclaimed Track series from Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award–winning author Jason Reynolds.

Ghost. Lu. Patina. Sunny. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team—a team that could qualify them for the Junior Olympics if they can get their acts together. They all have a lot to lose, but they also have a lot to prove, not only to each other, but to themselves.

Running. That’s all Ghost (real name Castle Cranshaw) has ever known. But Ghost has been running for the wrong reasons—it all started with running away from his father, who, when Ghost was a very little boy, chased him and his mother through their apartment, then down the street, with a loaded gun, aiming to kill. Since then, Ghost has been the one causing problems—and running away from them—until he meets Coach, an ex-Olympic Medalist who sees something in Ghost: crazy natural talent. If Ghost can stay on track, literally and figuratively, he could be the best sprinter in the city. Can Ghost harness his raw talent for speed, or will his past finally catch up to him?

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Knockout

K.A. Holt

Levi just wants to be treated like a typical kid. As a baby, he had a serious disease that caused him respiratory issues. He's fine now, but his mom and overprotective brother still think of him as damaged, and his schoolmates see him as the same class clown he's always been. He feels stuck. So when his dad—divorced from his mom—suggests he take up boxing, he falls in love with the sport. And when he finds out about a school with a killer boxing team and a free-study curriculum, it feels like he's found a ticket to a new Levi. But how can he tell his mom about boxing? And how can he convince his family to set him free?

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The Girl Who Sang

Estelle Nadel

A heartrending graphic memoir about a young Jewish girl's fight for survival in Nazi occupied Poland, The Girl Who Sang illustrates the power of a brother's love, the kindness of strangers, and finding hope when facing the unimaginable. 

Born to a Jewish family in a small Polish village, Estelle Nadel—then known as Enia Feld—was just seven years old when the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939. Once a vibrant child with a song for every occasion, Estelle would eventually lose her voice as, over the next five years, she would survive the deaths of their mother, father, their eldest brother and sister, and countless others.

A child at the mercy of her neighbors during a terrifying time in history, The Girl Who Sang is an enthralling first-hand account of Estelle's fight for survival during World War II. She would weather loss, betrayal, near-execution, and spend two years away from the warmth of the sun—all before the age of eleven. And once the war was over, Estelle would walk barefoot across European borders and find remnants of home in an Austrian displaced persons camp before finally crossing the Atlantic to arrive in New York City—a young woman carrying the unseen scars of war.

Beautifully rendered in bright hues with expressive, emotional characters, debut illustrator Sammy Savos masterfully brings Estelle story of survival during the Holocaust to a whole new generation of readers. The Girl Who Sang is perfect for fans of March, Maus, and Anne Frank's Diary.

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The Strongest Heart

Saadia Faruqi

A Schneider Family Book Award Honoree From beloved middle grade author Saadia Faruqi comes a poignant exploration of the impact of mental illness on families--and the love and hope that it takes to begin telling a different tale.

Mo is used to his father's fits of rage. When Abbu's moods shake the house, Mo is safe inside his head, with his cherished folktales: The best way to respond is not to engage. Apparently, his mama knows that too--which is why she took a job on the other side of the world, leaving Mo alone with Abbu.

With Mama gone, the two move to Texas to live with Mo's aunt and cousin, Rayyan. The two boys could not be more different. Rayyan is achievement-driven and factual; Mo is a "bad kid." Still, there is a lot to like about living in Texas. Sundays at the mosque are better than he'd expected. And Rayyan and his aunt become a real family to Mo.

But even in a warm home and school where he begins to see a future for himself, Mo knows that the monster within his father can break out and destroy their fragile peace at any moment...

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Desert Challenge

Bear Grylls

"Sophie loves activity camp . . . but is terrified of insects. It's so bad that she won't go into the tent on her own, just in case something flies at her, or she steps on a creepie-crawlie. But when she's given a compass by one of the other boys on the campsite, Sophie is magically transported to the desert on an adventure where they're impossible to avoid! With the help of survival expert Bear Grylls as her guide, she will learn how to withstand the extreme temperatures of the desert and how to spot mirages, encounter giant camel spiders, deadly scorpions and snakes . . . but will Sophie overcome her fear of insects back in the real world? And who will she give the compass to next?."--

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Frankie and Friends: The Lost Tooth

Christine Platt

Frankie's first loose tooth might fall out during the Kids' Journalism Conference. How can she help the Tooth Fairy find her when she's away from home?

Breaking news! Ace junior reporter Frankie has her first loose tooth. All of her toys are excited, and Nina Simone the cat gives a joyful purr. Frankie can't wait to see what the Tooth Fairy brings her. It might even be a brand-new book like her friend Pedro received! Robert the robot calculates that Frankie's tooth will fall out in about a week. But that means it will happen when Frankie is away at the Kids' Journalism Conference with Mama. What if the Tooth Fairy can't find Frankie when she's not at her house? Can Frankie and her plucky toys come up with a plan to contact the Tooth Fairy so Frankie doesn't miss out? Young journalists will learn more vocabulary of the trade in this latest adventure featuring our star reporter and her endearing friends.

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Blast from the Past (Geronimo Stilton #84)

Geronimo Stilton

When you're with Geronimo Stilton, it's always a fabumouse adventure!

Geronimo and Trap set out to open their own vintage store. Amongst their inventory is a very special jacket. But someone wants to steal it! Can Geronimo keep it safe?

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Guardian of the Sea

Jordan Quinn

Prince Lucas visits the underwater mermaid kingdom in this twenty-second magical adventure of The Kingdom of Wrenly series!

After many years, the mysterious mermaids have finally opened their gates to the Kingdom of Wrenly. No one is more excited than Prince Lucas and Clara, who are visiting the underwater castle for a royal ball! But when they arrive under the sea, the children discover that not every mermaid is happy about the new visitors from the mainland…

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, The Kingdom of Wrenly chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

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How to Spy a Spy

Cam Higgins

In the adorable fifteenth book of the Good Dog series, a feathery friend brings a little mystery to the Davis family farm.

There are no secrets on Bo’s family farm. The animals all know each other, and there’s always a serene atmosphere. But when Bo runs into a surprise visitor while wrapping up his morning chores, a feather-raising mystery is brought to light. Can Bo help his new friend quack the case? Or could there be more to this tail than meets the eye?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Good Dog chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

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Unicornia: the Cupcake Contest

Ana Punset

Cupcakes, baking, and . . . unicorns! This third sparkling adventure in an upbeat series will captivate chapter book readers.

When the Unicornia cupcake contest is announced, the entire kingdom gets baking! Of course, this is Unicornia, so every ingredient is magical. From cotton candy sugar to glittery frosting, there are so many amazing ingredients to be discovered. Can Claudia and her friends master the art of magical baking in time for the competition? Find out in this sparkle-dusted adventure packed with cakes, bakes, and unicorns!

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Emily's Cupcake Chaos!

Coco Simon

Emily and her friends cater a school dance in this fifth book in the Cupcake Diaries: The New Batch chapter book series, the little sister series to the bestselling Cupcake Diaries. Includes black and white illustrations throughout and eye-catching glitter on the cover!

Emily can’t believe it when her older sister, Katie, asks the Mini Cupcake Club to bake cupcakes for the school dance. Emily really wants to impress Katie and make her proud. She tells the Mini Cupcake Club their cupcakes have to be absolutely perfect. But as soon as she says that, things start to go wrong. Can Emily save the day—and her cupcakes?

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Double Creature Feature

Andres Miedoso

Desmond and Andres are on the edge of their seats in this twenty-fifth installment of Desmond Cole Ghost Patrol series!

Grab some popcorn and soda—there’s a double feature playing at the Kersville movie theater! But when the monster from the movie literally jumps out from the screen, it’s up to the Ghost Patrol to send it home before the end credits roll. Double the movies, double the scares!

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Desmond Cole Ghost Patrol chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

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Rosey Stink Badger

Suzanne Selfors

Willow, the great-granddaughter of Mother Nature, recruits the help of a stink badger in this second book in the charmingly whimsical chapter book series from bestselling and award-winning author Suzanne Selfors.

When Willow agreed to house-sit for her grandmother, Mother Nature, she had no idea how difficult it would be. The songbirds rudely wake her up at dawn. Mrs. Hedgehog serves worm pancakes for breakfast. And the to-do list is even longer than it was yesterday! 

To make matters worse, a feisty queen bee has moved into the chicken coop, sending Mother Nature’s beloved chickens into a tizzy. There’s only one critter who can catch the bee’s monarch: the stink badger. But no one ever visits or talks to them because, if disturbed, they’ll spray a horrid stench from their bottoms. 

Can Willow be brave enough to care for the natural balance in Mother Nature’s absence by facing one dangerous foe to get rid of another?

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Heartwood Hotel: Family Forever

Kallie George

Courage, kindness, and adventure abound in this charming, illustrated chapter book series! While the search for a golden acorn has Fernwood Forest all a-fluster, Mona the mouse plans a surprise of her own to bring all the animals together.

Everything is humming at the Heartwood Hotel one year after the forest fire. Yet Mona the mouse feels like something is missing. Something besides the Golden Acorn--a legendary treasure buried and forgotten long ago. When a stranger turns up at the Heartwood with a map, suddenly the whole forest is taking part in a big treasure hunt and the hotel's regular activities are turned upside down.

But Mona has an idea to get things back to normal: throw a surprise birthday party for Mr. Heartwood! As the Heartwood attracts treasure hunters--well-meaning and otherwise--and as Mona's best friend Tilly seems to be pulling away, Mona feels like her plans are slipping through her paws! Who will find the legendary treasure? And what if danger finds the hotel first?

This next installment of the Heartwood Hotel chapter book series is another cozy adventure through an imaginative woodland, complete with charming black-and-white illustrations, comforting themes, and a classic feel.

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You're Amazing, Anna Hibiscus!

Atinuke

The final title in the critically acclaimed series about Anna Hibiscus, who lives in Africa with her large extended family, by an internationally renowned Nigerian storyteller

In the eighth title of the series about the universally loved Anna Hibiscus, Anna is worried. Her twin brothers have boundless energy. They won't stop climbing and they can't keep out of trouble! Meanwhile Grandfather is tired and can't stay awake. In the final book of this wonderfully charming illustrated series, Anna Hibiscus proves just how amazing she is.

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Wednesday Wilson Looks on the Fright Side

Bree Galbraith

How does a girl get trick-or-treaters to come to her house? Leave it to Wednesday Wilson to find a way! Wednesday Wilson is devastated to learn that her house is on the Do-Not-Knock List for Halloween because her moms don’t give out candy. Thankfully, Wednesday has come up with an awesome treat idea that’s sure to draw crowds to her house anyway: slime! She’s even planning to turn slime into her next business venture. There are just a few things she’ll have to overcome first to pull off Halloween, such as a haunted house, a giant robot spider and the scariest thing of all – the Emmas! Candy’s great, but fans know the real treat this Halloween will be a new Wednesday Wilson story!

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Zoomi and Zoe and the Tricky Turnaround

Corey Ann Haydu

The Princess in Black meets Monsters, Inc. in this zany, heartwarming series for early readers 4 to 8 years old!

Sparkly, silly, and perfect for early readers, Corey Ann Haydu and Anne Appert’s winning series tackles life’s first big changes with whimsy and heart.

In GlumbleGlibble, one ritual is certain: when something hard happens, it’s called a Tricky Turnaround. And when it does, a Happy Helpful Human from the “real” world will help you through it.

But when Zoomi’s best friend moves away and Zoe arrives, she doesn’t seem very happy. Or helpful. Or excited about the party Zoomi threw for her—complete with toothbrushes and tuba music. In fact, Zoe may be in a Tricky Turnaround of her own. Can Zoomi and Zoe help each other with the trickiest parts of growing up, like saying goodbye to friends and making new ones?

“This wholly magical, wholly child-centered story of GlumbleGlibblers and the humans who love them reads like rolling down a rainbow mud slide to find a picnic waiting at the bottom. With cake, of course.”—Liz Garton Scanlon, author of the Bibsy Cross series

Read about more of their adventures in Zoomi and Zoe and the Sibling Situation and Zoomi and Zoe and the Camp Catastrophe!

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Jack and the Beanstink

Chris Grabenstein

Fee, fi, fo, FUN!

It's story time again at Hickleberry Elementary with Stinky the stuffed skunk--and this time the class is reading the classic Jack and the Beanstalk! Everyone knows the story ends with the giant falling from the sky, but only Stinky knows what happened next! Jack went on to sell all those golden eggs and become a billionaire, while Hubert the giant wound up stranded on the ground, far from home.

With no one to help him and nowhere to turn, Hubert has no choice but to put his giant skills to work where they're valued the most--on the basketball court! He joins the Droolville Dribblers, but will Hubert sink the buzzer beater and find his way home

This second stinky story is the first-ever chapter book series from beloved New York Times bestselling authors Chris and J. J. Grabenstein, filled with page after page of hilarious illustrations by acclaimed artist Alex Patrick. Stinky's Stories is the perfect series for young, reluctant, and emergent readers--or any kid who just loves to laugh.

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Detective Duck: the Case of the Missing Tadpole (Detective Duck #2)

Henry Winkler

Detective Duck: The Case of the Missing Tadpole is a hysterical, full-color chapter book adventure from New York Times bestselling creators--Emmy Award-winning actor Henry Winkler, children's book author Lin Oliver, and Caldecott Medal-winning author-illustrator Dan Santat

Willow Feathers McBeaver, aka Detective Duck, is a crime-solving (and very precocious) little duck. She and her animal pals live on Dogwood Pond, a beautiful pond in New England adjacent to Lazy Days, a human campground. Dogwood Pond has always been a pristine spot with clear water, abundant wildlife, and shady willow trees, but now it is encountering puzzling problems--mysteries that arise from human-caused disruptions in nature, such as water pollution, refuse, warming climate, and human encroachment.

When Tad the Tadpole goes missing, Detective Duck and her friends in the Pond Squad are on the case. What first seemed like a simple search and rescue mission gets more complicated when her friends find a pipe leaking a strange brown liquid and a cluster of peculiar blue-green plants that make it difficult for the pond creatures to breathe.

Fortunately, Detective Duck is on the job, solving these puzzling mysteries before they get out of hand and destroy their habitat! The Pond Squad will have to work together to clean up their environment and bring Tad home in this charming new mystery.

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Wrath of the Rain God

Karla Arenas Valenti

Twins coping with moving to a new city get swept back in time by a magical book in this first book in the Legendarios chapter book series that’s Magic Tree House meets Heroes in Training! 

Nine-year-old twins, Emma and Martín, couldn’t be more different in their personalities, interests, and even their looks. But one thing they absolutely agree on is that moving from Cuernavaca, Mexico, to Illinois is a terrible idea. Unfortunately, they’re not given a choice when their dad lands his dream job as a middle school principal in Chicago. To help the twins stay connected to their Mexican heritage, their abuela gifts them a book of Mexican legends. The book turns out to be more than a going away present…it’s a magical item that transports them directly into the legends!

In the first legend, Emma and Martín encounter Tlaloc, the god of rain. Tlaloc is angry because his lightning bolt has been stolen, and his rage is manifesting as a torrential downpour over the ancient city of Texcoco. The rain won’t stop until the lightning bolt has been returned, so Emma and Martín set out to recover it. 

Will they find Tlaloc’s bolt in time to help the people of Texcoco save their home? Or will the wrath of the rain god mark the end of this legendary city?

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Temple of Secrets (Legends of Lotus Island #4)

Christina Soontornvat

From three-time Newbery honor recipient Christina Soontornvat comes a thrilling fantasy series about kids who can transform into amazing animals!

Return to Lotus Island!

Plum is facing the most difficult test of her Guardian powers yet. Lotus Island is in danger, and there's not much time to save this special place.

Power-hungry Councilor Yurn is headed to the island with a ship full of hoverbots and a devious plan in mind: he means to take over Lotus Island and build a new city there. His plan will destroy the fragile ecosystem, including the island's precious lotus plants. When the Guardians learn that their unique powers are dependent on the lotus flowers, they realize just how much is at stake if Yurn succeeds. Plum must rely on her smarts, her Guardian powers, and most importantly--her friends--to save Lotus Island and all it stands for.

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Sona Sharma, a Friend Indeed

Chitra Soundar

Sona decides to run for class leader! But her friend Joy is running, too. Does Sona really want to lead, or just to win? Chitra Soundar shines a light on democracy in the latest book in this charming series.

Sona's class is excited when Miss Rao announces that there will be an election for class leader. But when Pradeep, who is always boasting, says he would be the best choice, Sona knows she doesn't want him to win. So Sona stands up and volunteers to be a candidate, too! Strangely, her best friends, Joy and Renu, don't seem happy about it--in fact, they stop talking to Sona altogether. When it turns out that Joy also wants to run for class leader, Sona doesn't know what to do. It's true that Joy has some great ideas for the class, and Sona hasn't thought much beyond stopping Pradeep from winning, but Sona entered the race first and doesn't want to drop out. With advice and support from her family, Sona realizes that no one can become a leader on their own. Readers can explore election terms and ideas along with Sona, as well as a glossary of Indian words (like bonda, a delicious South Indian doughnut) at the back.

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Sayonara Magic

Mora

The Tanaka triplets are back with more magic, more mischief, and even more family chaos than before! This second illustrated chapter book in the Sayonara Magic series blends a beautiful black-and-white manga art style with engaging, easy-to-read text that's perfect for young readers.

Rendered in a gorgeous, manga-esque art style and with engaging prose, readers will love reading about how Hiro, Akira, and Naoki work together to use their magic and get out of all sorts of chaos (even if it's of their own making . . . ).

In this book, the triplets must avoid a magical inspector, try to save a family wedding from supernatural creatures, and figure out a way to get home after they've been accidentally sent back in time!

Perfect for anime and manga enthusiasts, authors Burakkuberi and Kumanakris expertly blend comics with traditional prose, making the Sayonara Magic series the perfect bridge books for young, emerging, and English as Second Language (ESL) readers.

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Orris and Timble: Lost and Found

Kate DiCamillo

"DiCamillo packs intense feelings into and between the lines of her simply phrased tale, set off perfectly by Mok's spare, neatly drawn barnyard settings. . . Sensitive and quietly enthralling." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Every friendship faces challenges. Orris and Timble are back in a poignant and evocatively illustrated tale of trust from a two-time Newbery Medalist.

Orris the rat and Timble the owl are unlikely friends. Each night, Timble visits Orris in the barn and listens to his stories. But Timble is growing up, and one evening when the owl doesn't appear as usual Orris wonders if Timble has forgotten him. Is their friendship over? Or could it be that Timble has a tale of his own to share? Illustrated with wistful tenderness, the second title in a projected trilogy to feature this charmingly offbeat pair masterfully explores the stories we tell ourselves, the stories we tell each other, and the binding magic of friendship.

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Sunflower Hour

Poppy Green

Sophie Mouse visits a sunflower field in the summer in this twenty-second sweet book in The Adventures of Sophie Mouse!

All summer long, Sophie Mouse has been looking forward to the one golden hour when the sunflowers are in their best bloom. She has even planned a whole picnic to celebrate! But no one seems as interested in the sunflowers as Sophie is. How can she convince everyone to stop and smell the flowers?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Sophie Mouse chapter books are perfect for beginning readers!

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Mindy Kim and the Fun Family Vacation

Lyla Lee

Fresh Off the Boat meets Junie B. Jones in this adorable chapter book series following Mindy Kim, a young Asian American girl—in this twelfth and final novel, Mindy and her family vacation to South Korea.

Mindy is so excited to go back to Korea—not only are she, Dad, and Julie going to the popular tourist spot, Jeju Island, it’s baby Charlie’s first big international trip! Mindy can’t wait for some lazy days on the beach and to see the natural sites unique to the island. But the trip gets off to a rocky start, and Mindy finds herself hoping this first vacation together won’t be memorable for all the wrong reasons!

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The Monster Storm (Seashell Key #2)

Lourdes Heuer

The Monster Storm is the second book in author Lourdes Heuer and award-winning illustrator Lynnor Bontigao's young chapter book series Seashell Key--perfect for fans of Princess in Black and Mercy Watson--about a diverse community of kids living in a beautiful seaside town!

It's fall on the island of Seashell Key! A monster storm is on the horizon, but that won't stop Mateo from entering the fall festival competitions, or Sophia and Sasha from showing off their swimming skills. When the storm finally hits, Eli, Ezra, and Elana gather around the flashlight to tell spooky stories about the monster of Seashell Key--that is if they can agree on what the monster actually is! When the storm finally passes, the gang has to work together to find Pixie the dog--hopefully before the monster of Seashell Key finds her!

Filled with a vibrant cast and lots of fall fun, this is a great addition to an exciting new chapter book series.

The Seashell Key series

Seashell Key (#1)

The Monster Storm (#2)

The Lucky Day (#3)

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Get Well, Pug: a Branches Book (Diary of a Pug #12)

Kyla May

This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line, Branches, aimed at newly independent readers. With easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page, these books will boost reading confidence and stamina. Branches books help readers grow!

Bub is so excited to perform in Bella's pet choir with Duchess and Luna. But then Bub hurts his leg and he has to wear a BIG BAD CONE! He's crushed that the cone doesn't match his costume. Can Bub's friends convince him that the show must go on?

With full-color artwork throughout, this funny and charming diary-format early chapter book is perfect for anyone who believes a furry pal is the best kind of friend.

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The Only Ghost in School

Tara J. Hannon

Desmond Cole Ghost Patrol meets Casper the Friendly Ghost in this hilarious first book of a highly illustrated full-color chapter book series about finding friendship and being the new kid at school—perfect for early, emerging, and reluctant readers.

For Ghostie, life in Scareville is perfect. But everything changes when his parents announce that they’re moving to Smithville.

Now Ghostie is the ONLY ghost at Smithville Elementary, and he is scaring his classmates just by existing. While his parents embrace their new human world, Ghostie feels more alone than ever. Will he be able to make friends and fit in?

With charming full-color art throughout, this first book in the Only Ghost chapter book series highlights how you can discover connections in differences and how you don’t have to fit in to find belonging.

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Henry Heckelbeck and the Not-So-Dark Day

Wanda Coven

In this eighteenth Henry Heckelbeck adventure, Henry’s town is in a blackout!

There’s a blackout in Brewster, which means that school is canceled! Henry Heckelbeck plays flashlight limbo with his friends, makes shadow puppets, and eats up all the ice cream in the freezer before it melts. Henry is having such a great day, he starts to wish that the lights never come back on!

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Henry Heckelbeck chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

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Lucy Lancaster Is Totally in Control

Willow Coven

Lucy wishes her magical hiccups away when her cousin comes to visit in this third book in a chapter book series full of magical mishaps and everyday childhood adventures.

Lucy Lancaster is determined to have the perfect weekend with her cousin Skye. If only her hiccups wouldn’t get in the way of her plans! Finally Lucy decides to stop her hiccups, once and for all. But how do you cure a case of magical hiccups?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Lucy Lancaster chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.

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Hashtag Danger!

Ryder Windham

Transformers: EarthSpark is a kids animated series from Nickelodeon and Hasbro introducing the first Transformers bots to be born on Earth, streaming on Paramount+!

Hashtag gets lured into a trap in this chapter book featuring a brand-new original story!

When Hashtag sees a contest online to win a meet and greet with one of her favorite pop stars, she can’t resist entering, despite the warnings from her Malto siblings. When she wins the prize, her Terran sister Twitch insists on going with her. The Maltos were right—the whole contest turns out to be a Decepticon trap! Can Hashtag and Twitch escape before it’s too late?

TRANSFORMERS © 2025 Hasbro. Transformers: EarthSpark TV series © 2025 Hasbro/Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Marvel After-School Heroes Ultimate Adventure Collection!

Terrance Crawford

Save the day with this paper over board bind-up of the first four original chapter books in the Marvel After-School Heroes series with black-and-white illustrations throughout!

New York City has no shortage of villains putting young heroes to the test in these exciting stories. First, Miles Morales teams up with Princess Shuri of Wakanda to save the Stark Center. Then, Gwen Stacy has to balance her responsibilities as a super hero and a student, and Princess Shuri uses her technological know-how to save her friends. Finally, Ghost-Spider teams up with an unlikely ally.

This bind-up is perfect for Marvel fans beginning to read on their own or for reading aloud!

This action-packed paper over board bind-up includes:
Miles Morales Untangles a Web
Ghost-Spider’s Unbreakable Mission
Shuri Takes Control
Reptil & Ghost-Spider Join Forces!

© 2025 MARVEL

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Your Turn Marisol Rainey

Erin Entrada Kelly

Horn Book Fanfare

Two-time Newbery Medal winner Erin Entrada Kelly's alter ego--the effervescent Marisol Rainey--returns in this illustrated school story about overcoming stage fright and taking your turn that is just right for fans of Ramona, Clementine, and Ivy & Bean.

Under normal circumstances, Marisol loves language arts class. Mrs. Ruby is her favorite teacher and always makes her feel special...until the day Mrs. Ruby makes a horrible, terrible, downright dreadful announcement: All the kids have to write their own haiku. As if that's not bad enough, they have to read their haiku in front of the whole class! Marisol would rather swim through a pack of jellyfish than get up in front of the whole class to read anything, much less a haiku.
Maybe she can stay home sick. Maybe she can transfer to another school. Maybe she can conjure a spell that makes her disappear.
Or maybe, just maybe, she'll figure out a way to take her turn.
Told in short chapters with illustrations by the author on almost every page, this stand-alone addition to the Maybe Marisol series continues to uplift the small but mighty Marisol. Your Turn Marisol Rainey celebrates the joys of friendship, the triumph of overcoming fears, and the power of believing in yourself.
 

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Super Rabbit Boy Vs. the Gigabot!: a Branches Book (Press Start! #16)

Thomas Flintham

Super Rabbit Boy must face the biggest robot the world has ever seen in the latest page-turning installment of this USA Today bestselling series!

Pick a book. Grow a Reader!

This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line, Branches, aimed at newly independent readers. With easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page, these books will boost reading confidence and stamina. Branches books help readers grow!

Super Rabbit Boy is ready to enjoy a relaxing day off until meanie King Viking shows up at his door. King Viking has a giant problem -- his biggest robot ever, the Gigabot, has been stolen. Now the robot thief is taking the Gigabot straight toward Animal Town! King Viking can't get the Gigabot back on his own, so he has no choice... he has to ask Super Rabbit Boy for help! Will Super Rabbit Boy find a way to stop the giant Gigabot? And who is the robot thief?

Thomas Flintham's full-color artwork on every page brings energy and fun to this action-packed, gaming-themed series!

Press Start! is now streaming as an NBC Peacock original series!

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This Delicious Death

Kayla Cottingham

From the author of the New York Times bestselling My Dearest Darkest comes another incredible sapphic horror. When four best friends with a hunger for human flesh attend a music festival in the desert they discover a murderous plot to expose and vilify the girls and everyone like them. This summer is going to get gory.

Two years ago, a small percentage of population underwent a transformation known as the Hollowing. Those affected were only able to survive by consuming human flesh. The people who went without quickly became feral, turning on their friends and family. Luckily, scientists were able to create a synthetic version of human meat that would satisfy their hunger. As a result, humanity slowly began to return to normal.

Cut to Zoey, Celeste, Valeria, and Jasmine, four hollow girls living in Southern California. As a last hurrah before graduation they decide to attend a musical festival in the heart of the desert. They have a cooler filled with seltzer, vodka, and Synflesh... and are ready to party.

But on the first night of the festival Val goes feral and ends up killing and eating a boy in one of the bands. As other festival guests start disappearing around them the girls soon discover someone is targeting people like them. And if they can't figure out how to stop it, and soon, no one at the festival is getting out alive.

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Practical Rules for Cursed Witches

Kayla Cottingham

Magic is in Delilah Bea’s blood. Her absentee father is the world’s most famous cursebreaker, while all the women in her family are fated to never find true love. So when Delilah sets out to complete her magical Calling and gain her full powers as a witch, she has the perfect task in mind—breaking the Bea family curse.

But Delilah’s Calling is hijacked by Kieran Pelumbra, the spoiled son of the most powerful family in the country, and breaking his curse suddenly becomes her official assignment. Every generation, a pair of Pelumbra twins is doomed, with one twin draining the other of their life and magic. Kieran grows weaker while his sister, Briar, becomes…something monstrous. 

As Delilah and the twins set out on their quest, they quickly realize that breaking the Pelumbra curse isn’t going to be simple. For one thing, the rest of the Pelumbra family doesn’t actually want their curse broken—and they’ve sent hunters after the trio to ensure they fail. For another, something about Briar gets under Delilah’s skin, distracting her and making her want to kiss the perpetually grumpy look off her face. But with time running out for the twins and Delilah’s own true love curse getting in the way, they may not stand a chance of finding their happily ever after.

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Bring Me Your Midnight

Rachel Griffin

Tana Fairchild's fate has never been in question. Her life has been planned out since the moment she was born: she is to marry the governor's son, Landon, and secure an unprecedented alliance between the witches of her island home and the mainlanders who see her very existence as a threat.

Tana's coven has appeased those who fear their power for years by releasing most of their magic into the ocean during the full moon. But when Tana misses the midnight ritual--a fatal mistake--there is no one she can turn to for help...until she meets Wolfe.

Wolfe claims he is from a coven that practices dark magic, making him one of the only people who can help her. But he refuses to let Tana's power rush into the sea, and instead teaches her his forbidden magic. A magic that makes her feel powerful. Alive.

As the sea grows more violent, her coven loses control of the currents, a danger that could destroy the alliance as well as her island. Tana will have to choose between love and duty, between loyalty to her people and loyalty to her heart. Marrying Landon would secure peace for her coven but losing Wolfe and his wild magic could cost her everything else.

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Audre & Bash Are Just Friends

Tia Williams

Meet Audre. Junior class president. Debate team captain. Unofficial student therapist. Desperately in need of a good time. 

Meet Bash. Mysterious new senior. Everybody's crush. Tall, floppy, great taste in jewelry. King of having a good time.

It's the last day of school at Cheshire Prep, Brooklyn's elite academy--and Audre Mercy-Moore's life is a mess. Her dad cancelled her annual summer visit to his Malibu beach house. Now? She's stuck in a claustrophobic apartment with her mom, stepdad, and one-year-old sister (aka the Goblin Baby). 

Under these conditions, she'll never finish writing her self-help book--i.e., the key to winning over Stanford's admissions board. 

Cut to Bash Henry! Audre hires him to be her "fun consultant." His job? To help her complete the Experience Challenge--her list of five wild dares designed to give her juicy book material. She'll get inspo; he'll get paid. Everybody wins. 

He isn't boyfriend material. And she's not looking for one. Can they stay professional despite their obvious connection? 

Fun fact: Audre Mercy-Moore first appeared in the New York Times bestseller Seven Days in June and now stars in her own story!

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Always Be My Bibi

Priyanka Taslim

Bibi Hossain was supposed to get her first kiss this summer.

Too bad her father finds out and grounds her for breaking his most arcane rule: No boys until your sister gets married.

Just when Bibi thinks she’ll be stuck helping him at their popular fried chicken chain until school reopens, her oh-so-perfect older sister Halima drops a bombshell: she’s marrying the heir of a princely estate turned tea garden in Bangladesh. Soon, Bibi is hopping on the next flight to Sylhet for Halima’s Big Fat Bengali Wedding, hoping Abbu might even rethink the dating ban while they’re there.

Unfortunately, the stuffy Rahmans are a nightmare—especially Sohel, the groom’s younger brother. The only thing they can agree on is that their siblings are not a good match. But as the two scheme to break their siblings up, Bibi finds it impossible to stay away from the infuriatingly handsome boy.

Could her own happily ever after be brewing even as she stirs up trouble for her sister’s engagement—or is there more steeping at the tea estate than Bibi knows?

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Among Ghosts

Rachel Hartman

A few things to know about the town of St. Muckle’s: It’s too out-of-the-way to interest greedy lords, and too damp and muddy for marauding dragons to burn. And anyone, from a humble serf to a runaway nun, may earn their freedom by living for a year and a day within the town walls. Seven years ago, Charl and his mother fled to St. Muckle’s and made it their safe-haven, building a new life in this so called Peasant’s Paradise. But when Charl sees something impossible—a ghost—soon the embers of his past are threatening to engulf his world in flame. A tragic accident is quickly followed by murder, a deadly plague, and a mercenary dragon. 

Charl manages to escape to an abandoned abbey outside of town, but finds no safety within those ruined walls. A treacherous nun, a chorus of murdered girls, and the fearsome Battle Bishop await, ready to ensnare him in a complex web of history, magic and fate. For some things should never be forgotten, however much they haunt us, and Charl will need all his wisdom and resiliency if he is to fight for the world he knows…and the people he calls home.

Discover more critically-acclaimed fantasy from Rachel Hartman!
Seraphina
Shadow Scale
Tess of the Road

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The Grove

Brooks Whitney Phillips

Fifteen-year-old Pip and seventeen-year-old Sissy aren't just sisters, they're best friends. Every year, they wait eagerly for the traveling carnival to put its stakes down in their tiny Florida town. It's the only time when the girls can abandon their endless chores on the family's orange grove and give in to pure joy. And the only time Pip and Sissy can forget their many troubles . . . living on the brink of poverty, Mama's despair, and Daddy's perpetual anger.

With the arrival of the carnival, the girls’ slow, small lives suddenly feels bigger and brighter. But this year, something is different. Once the carnival leaves, with the charming young sword-swallower with it, Sissy grows increasingly distant from Pip and is soon no more than a stranger in their house. Pip grows closer to her friend Silas as a result, but when Sissy's shocking secret is revealed, the three unwittingly find themselves in a desperate situation that will change them all forever. In the land of the sweetest fruits, Pip must find her way through the soured hopes and bitter regrets of her family to finally break free of the grove.

Set against the class and economic tensions of early 1960s America, this stark yet hopeful novel tells a compelling story about the inescapable bonds of sisterhood and the lies we tell ourselves to survive.

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Under the Neon Lights

Arriel Vinson

Sixteen-year-old Jaelyn Coleman lives for Saturdays at WestSide Roll, the iconic neighborhood roller rink. On these magical nights, Jae can lose herself in the music of DJ Sunny, the smell of nachos from the concession, and the crowd of some of her favorite people—old heads, dance crews, and other regulars like herself. Here, Jae and other Black teens can fully be themselves.

One Saturday, as Jae skates away her worries, she crashes into the cutest boy she’s ever seen. Trey’s dimples, rich brown skin, and warm smile make it impossible for her to be mad at him though. Best of all, he can’t stop finding excuses to be around her. A nice change for once, in contrast with her best friend’s cold distance of late or her estranged father creeping back into her life.

Just as Jae thinks her summer might change for the better, devastating news hits: Westside Roll is shutting down. The gentrification rapidly taking over her predominantly Black Indianapolis neighborhood, filling it with luxury apartments and fancy boutiques, has come for her safe-haven. And this is just one trouble Jae can’t skate away from.

Debut author Arriel Vinson’s lyrical and contemplative story of young Black love and coming of age in Indianapolis ushers in an exciting new voice in YA literature.

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A Treachery of Swans

A. B. Poranek

Can two girls—one enchanted, one the enchantress—save their kingdom and each other?

Two hundred years ago, a slighted deity stole the magic from Auréal and vanished without a trace. But seventeen-year-old Odile has a plan. All her life, her father, a vengeful sorcerer, has raised her for one singular task: infiltrate the royal palace and steal the king’s crown, an artefact with enough power to restore magic. But to enter the palace, she must assume the identity of a noblewoman. She chooses Marie d’Odette: famed for her beauty, a rumored candidate for future queen…and Odile’s childhood-friend-turned-sworn-enemy.

With her father’s help, Odile transforms Marie into a swan and takes her place at court. But when the king is brutally murdered and her own brother is accused, her plans are thrown into chaos. Desperate to free her brother, Odile is forced to team up with none other than elegant, infuriating Marie, the girl she has cursed…and the girl she can’t seem to stop thinking about despite her best efforts.

To make matters worse, there are whispers that the king’s murder was not at the hands of man, but beast. Torn between loyalty to her father and her growing feelings for Marie, Odile becomes tangled in a web of treachery and deceit. To save her kingdom, she must find the true path to magic…and find the real killer before they—or it—strikes again.

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The Unexpected Consequence of Bleeding on a Tuesday

Kelsey B. Toney

High school senior Delia Bridges has the most amazing mom and sister, a killer GPA--and periods that are so painful they make her scream, pass out, and throw up. Though she doesn't know it yet, Delia has endometriosis, an affliction plaguing millions of people that is notoriously difficult to diagnose.

Pain makes everything harder, but Delia is just one semester away from graduating from Stockwood Prep and pursuing her dream of becoming the kind of doctor she's never had: one who takes her symptoms seriously. But when she breaks a rule for the first time ever and is caught using marijuana at school to manage her pain, Delia is expelled.

Her expulsion jeopardizes her college acceptance, her planned mentorship, and everything she had carefully planned for years. Without her academic success and no closer to a diagnosis, is Delia anything more than her period?

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Predatory Natures

Amy Goldsmith

When Lara Williams gets a summer job aboard the luxury train the Banebury, she thinks she’s landed a five-star escape from her past. Even after she learns that her ex-friend Rhys, who she definitely did not have feelings for before their relationship imploded, is one of her coworkers, she’s determined to make things work.

But on the first day of their journey, the trip takes a strange turn. Two mysterious carriages filled with an array of beautiful and rare plants are attached to the Banebury in the middle of the night.

And with them comes a pair of siblings. Wealthy, mysterious, and charismatic, Gwen and Gwydion claim the plants they’re transporting are for research, but Lara can’t shake the feeling that there’s something . . . otherworldly about the strange blooms. Something that will stop at nothing to ensure the Banebury never reaches its destination.

Soon Lara will learn: You can’t outrun your troubles. You have to grab them by their roots. And if she can’t unearth the secrets of the Banebury, they might drag her down for good. . . .

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That Devil, Ambition

Linsey Miller

There is only one school worth graduating from, and it creates as many magicians as it does graves...

First in his class and last in his noble line, Fabian Galloway's only hope of a good future is passing his elite school's honors class. It's only offered to the best thirteen students, and those students have a single assignment: kill their professor.

If they succeed, their student debt is forgiven. However, if an assassination attempt fails or the professor is alive at the end of the year, the students' lives are forfeit.

And dealing with the professor, a devil summoned solely to kill or be killed, is no easy task.

Fabian isn't worried, though. He trusts his best friends--softhearted math genius Credence and absent-minded but insightful Euphemia--to help. After all, that's why he befriended them.

As the months pass and their professor remains impossibly alive, the trio must use every asset they have to survive. Or else failure will be on their academic records--and their tombstones--forever.

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You've Awoken Her

Ann Davila Cardinal

Gabi should be thrilled to be visiting his best friend for the summer. But with its mansions, country clubs, and Ruth's terrible new boyfriend, Frost Thurston, this summer horror setting in the Hamptons is the last place he wants to be. And then Gabi witnesses a woman being dragged under the ocean by what looks like a tentacle . . .

When no one--not the police or anyone else--seems to care, Gabi starts to wonder if maybe the beachside town's bad vibes and cosmic horror are more real than he thought. As the number of "accidental" deaths begins to climb, the Thurston family name keeps rising to the top. And what's worse is that all the signs point to something lurking beneath the water--something with a hunger for blood.

Can Gabi figure out how the two are intertwined and put an end to the string of deaths . . . before becoming the water's next victim?

  • Perfect for Halloween reading
  • Ideal for fans of the supernatural
  • For teens who love dark and scary stories
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Call Your Boyfriend

Olivia A. Cole

Cynical but sensitive Beau Carl is on a mission. She needs to know if ultra-popular Maia Moon—the girl she’s been secretly hooking up with for months—really has feelings for her. But when she shows up at the last big party of the year before prom, she sees Maia about to kiss someone else.

Sweet, inexperienced Charm Montgomery is the “someone else.” And she’s ecstatic that she’s been reading Maia’s flirty behavior in their tutoring sessions correctly. But when the kiss is interrupted and Maia accepts an elaborate promposal from her douchey, popular boyfriend just a few days later, both Charm and Beau end up heartbroken.

There’s only one thing for them to do—get her back. And the only way to do that is for Beau to tutor Charm on how she can get their former crush to fall for her so hard that Maia will dump her ex…and then get dumped for once.

As their plan starts working, Beau and Charm grow closer too, in a way neither expected. But are either of them ready to let go of their scheme to take a chance on something a little sweeter—and scarier—than revenge?

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The Yomigaeri Tunnel

Kelly Murashige

Monika can’t bring herself to celebrate her last summer before college. She’s still grieving the loss of the one classmate who didn’t make it to graduation, a boy named Shun with whom she had a complicated relationship.

Then, during her final Japanese Club meeting, Monika hears about the Yomigaeri Tunnel. According to a local urban legend, those who venture into this mythological passageway undergo harrowing trials to confront their hidden secrets and worst fears. It’s said that anyone who makes it through is rewarded with the ability to resurrect one soul from the dead.

Monika jumps at the chance to bring back Shun—but she’s not alone. Sharp-tongued and fierce Shiori is hell-bent on reviving her mother and won’t let anyone stop her. As Monika and Shiori confront the ghosts of their pasts, they have to decide: Are they friends, or foes?

With fantastical twists, this emotional, offbeat book about hope and healing is an essential read for anyone who’s ever needed a friend in the darkness.

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Pretty Girl County

Lakita Wilson

Girls like Reya Samuels always come from Prince George’s County. Reya is rich and she’s not afraid to show it—she wears designer clothes, drives a custom pink Audi, and lives in a neighborhood tucked behind a fancy cast iron gate. She works hard, but she can get anything she wants with a snap.

Sommer Watkins is from Seat Pleasant, where the cast iron gates are significantly smaller—and attached to the windows, where most folks are still trying to make ends meet. Every day for Sommer is a hustle, working at her dad’s bookstore, and using her art skills to scrounge up enough scholarship money for her dream school, Spelman.

Reya and Sommer used to be BFFs—back when Reya lived in Seat Pleasant, too. Now the girls are from different stratospheres—but when Reya desperately needs help to prove to FIT admissions officers that she has what it takes to make it in fashion, the only person who can help is Sommer. Reya promises to help Sommer in return—she’ll pay her for her services, helping Sommer afford the school her parents can’t.

As the girls work together, slowly they begin to trust each other again. But when new relationships push them both, and Sommer’s dad’s bookstore is suddenly in danger of closing, old wounds bubble up. Can the girls find a way to repair their friendship and stay true to themselves along the way?

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Island Creatures

Margarita Engle

Every day, Vida reads to the creatures at the wildlife rescue center and dreams of her childhood in Cuba, where she and her best friend Adán adventured through the island rescuing animals from harm. Unbeknownst to her, Adán has also moved to Florida and is feeling trapped in his new home, buffeted by the stormy fights between his abuelo and papi. When a chance encounter with a captive fox leads to their reunion, Vida and Adán are able to find refuge from the cruelty that surrounds them in their soaring, rekindled romance.

Their love reaches new heights as they work together at the zoo that rescues rare species, but soon they realize that this peace is only temporary. Much like the wildlife they want to protect, Vida and Adán are caught in a cycle of distrust and heartlessness. As old family grudges and painful memories come to light, can they and their families learn to heal and forgive each other for a brighter, kinder future?

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Difficult Girls

Veronica Bane

After the incident last year, Greta Riley Green is looking for reinvention—a fresh start—and a job at Hyper Kid Magic Land, the local amusement park, seems like the perfect way to forge a new path . . . no matter what it takes.

So when fate pulls Greta into Mercy Goodwin’s orbit, it feels like things are looking up. Beautiful and confident, Mercy dazzles audiences daily. And at the first party of the summer, she picks Greta to confide in. Mercy has a secret to share, if Greta will just meet her the next day. It’s a sign that Greta’s truly fitting in.

Only, when the time comes, Mercy is a no-show—as she is everyday after that—and Greta knows something’s wrong. She can’t help thinking back to the night of the party. Did Mercy seem upset? Terrified, even? Could she be in trouble? It wouldn’t be the first time a talented young performer came to a sinister end at Hyper Kid. . . .

Of course, Greta has her own issues with the past, and the more she uncovers Hyper Kid’s secrets, the more her own threaten to surface. This job was meant to be a reboot, a summer without trouble. But trouble, it seems, finds Greta, and her past—and the bloody past of Hyper Kid—is about to catch up with her.

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This Side of Falling

Eunice Chan

Not real. The mantra seventeen-year-old Nina repeats to herself the morning after her almost-boyfriend, Ethan Travvers, jumped onto the tracks in front of a freight train. The two words that keep the truth just far enough away so the loss can’t touch her, grief can’t break her. After all, there is the family image to uphold, especially when her dad’s startup begins to flounder. Maintaining the illusion of wholeness and success is everything to Nina’s mom and grandma.

The pretense is working—until Nina’s all-star older sister, Carmen, is dismissed from college and abruptly returns home. Carmen’s arrival and strange behavior dig up buried memories, leading Nina to wonder if there is more to the story of Ethan than even she knew. The truth is not what she wants to believe: about Carmen, about Ethan, but mostly, about herself.

Emotionally layered and unflinchingly honest, this novel will resonate with readers who love deeply affecting stories that tackle teen heartache in the vein of Kathleen Glasgow and Laura Nowlin.

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That Kind of Girl

Natalie C. Anderson

Sixteen-year-old amateur sleuth Roxie is shrewd, nimble, cunning, and only a little bit damaged. She also has a real knack for finding things, making her the perfect go-to detective for her rich classmates at St. Margaret when they’re looking to retrieve the things they’ve “lost"— no questions asked. So when queen bee Kirsten Montgomery-Wiggins pays Roxie a hefty sum to track down a mysterious blonde who “stole” her phone, Roxie accepts. Although Kirsten and Roxie have bad blood between them, Roxie could really use the cash. But that same night, Roxie finds Kirsten murdered in her mansion, and police zero in on her as a prime suspect.

On the outskirts of town in a trailer park, Inez, a part-time maid and part-time sex-worker, keeps finding blood everywhere. Crusted in her earring, threaded into her shoelace. She should really toss her shoes so there’s nothing to tie her to the body. How could the night have gone so wrong? She really thought she was working her way to a better life, but now she could be headed to jail if the wrong someone puts two and two together.

Roxie doesn’t know who she’s looking for and Inez doesn’t know who she’s hiding from. But all roads seem to lead to Montgomery House, as Roxie works to clear her own name and Inez attempts to stay one step ahead of the law and the men who hurt her.

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Love Unmasked

Becky Dean

People pleaser Evie Whitmore can’t believe her art and architecture class trip has brought her to Venice—home of gondolas and crumbling palazzos, and the inspiration for both her art and her hidden passion, Elven Realms, a series of novels set in the very city she’s about to explore.

Rumors about an underground Elven Realms fan club swirl, and Evie, wearing a costume and mask, sneaks out at night to find it. There’s no way she can tell anyone what she’s doing—not her friends, and certainly not Gabriel Martinez, the bad boy loner she’s been partnered with on the trip.

But Evie’s not the only one on this clandestine quest. She collides with someone else in disguise—a stranger whose eyes hold secrets. He calls himself Angelo, and he too loves the novels. Venice is a labyrinth, and as they unravel clues together, their connection deepens. Who is Angelo, really? And who does Evie want him to be?

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This Book Might Be About Zinnia

Brittney Morris

Two moments in time. Two very different girls. And one story that connects them both.

It’s the year 2024, and Zinnia Davis is on a mission to ace her personal essay. But when an admissions rep hints that her adoption story is “lacking heart,” she has to figure out a new spin. Frankly, Zinnia doesn’t know much about her birth parents; that is, until her favorite author releases a new novel—Little Heart—about a princess with a heart-shaped birthmark on her forehead and separated from her mother at birth…just like Zinnia. Could this be her birth mother?

Flashback to 2006, and teenager Tuesday Walker is barely making it through high school after experiencing a loss that had her on leave for months. To cope, Tuesday writes a series of entries in a journal, but when the journal is lost, it feels like reliving the trauma all over again. Tuesday’s search for the journal uncovers dangerous secrets about her past, her crush, and her own mother’s story.

If Tuesday isn’t careful in her search, Zinnia will have to reap the consequences in the present.

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Painting Through the Rough

David Aro

From school to sports, Dex is a high achiever. With a big executive for a mom and former collegiate athlete for a dad, success might as well be his middle name. But with the constant pressure to push himself, Dex's temper gets the best of him, again--this time on the green at golf tryouts. While serving a suspension from school sports, Dex discovers a new side of himself after artsy Hazel Green asks for his help on a painting. When her colorful paints mix with his pencil sketches, it grounds him in a way he's never felt before. But Hazel's home life threatens her ability to attend their private school. And Dex needs to figure out if he can control his fiery emotions as he returns to sports without her by his side. Can he risk the future he and his parents envisioned to follow his heart?

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Wendy's Ever After

Julie Wright

Wendy Darling has grown into a stunning young woman. Her days are filled with social gatherings and elegant balls, but her nights are alive with memories of fighting pirates, soaring through the skies, and other wild escapades through Neverland with Peter Pan--the boy who never grew up.

When Wendy meets a handsome and mysterious stranger, there's something about him that feels familiar yet elusive. His eyes sparkle with a mischief that tugs at Wendy's heartstrings, reminding her of Peter. Intrigued and a bit unnerved, Wendy finds herself inexplicably drawn to this handsome young man and soon finds herself back in Neverland.

Caught between the allure of her past and the promise of the future, Wendy must navigate a perilous new journey, rediscovering the courage and wonder that once defined her youth. As she battles old foes and forges allies with new friends, Wendy is torn between her memories of a boy she once loved and the man who has stolen her heart.

 

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Leave It on the Track

Margot Fisher

Morgan “Moose” Shaker barely survived the fire that killed her fathers in their beloved roller rink in small-town Utah. Now she has to move to Portland, Oregon to live with her much older half sister, Eden. Eden’s doing her best, but she’s hardly ready to be a parent to a sixteen-year-old she hasn’t seen in years. Plus, barely-out-of-the-closet Moose worries that she’s not ready for super-affirming, rainbow-flags-everywhere Portland. Her anxiety and frustration are at peak levels.

Fortunately, Moose finds an outlet for her emotions and a surprising group of friends in roller derby. Her teammates help her grieve her dads and confront her queer imposter syndrome. And even though it's against league rules, she might be falling for a teammate.

Heartfelt, funny, and romantic, this debut will make you want to lace up your skates, pull on your pads, and hit the track.

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Marisol Acts the Part

Elle Gonzalez Rose

Actress Marisol Polly-Rodriguez might be entering her flop era. After wrapping up a hit show, she’s neither booked nor busy. Not to mention, her former costar turned boyfriend, Miles, recently dumped her for being an “unserious” performer. Can you imagine?

To prove to Miles—and online trolls—that she takes her craft very seriously, Marisol lands a role on the same upcoming drama series he does. But with the eccentric director constantly rewriting her lines and a snobby castmate trying to upstage her, Marisol quickly realizes that her hope of nabbing an award nomination might be a pipe dream.

The only person she doesn’t have to put on a performance for is the show’s leading lady, Jamila. Marisol hasn’t been able to look away from her since their first audition. Falling for Jamila wasn’t part of Marisol’s plan, but even the most dedicated actors go off script sometimes, right?

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Girls of Dark Divine

E. V. Woods

In the legendary ballet theatre of New Kora, the girls onstage enchant the audience each night with their grace and divine beauty. Before Emberlyn was the star of the show, it was her dream to become one of them . . . until she learned the price of their living nightmare.

A magical curse binds the girls to the show's mastermind, Malcolm, whose invisible strings wield their limbs as if they are marionettes . . . and the commands don’t stop when the curtain comes down. Each dancer is destined to turn to dust once the curse consumes her. 

When the troupe is invited to perform in the glitzy city of Parlizia, Emberlyn knows this could be her best chance to save them all. She meets an elusive boy made of shadows who has a magical connection to the girls. Together, they work to unravel the haunting truth about their creation and fight for their survival. But the cost of freedom might be too high, and as Emberlyn dances closer to the edge of darkness, she realizes she might break the curse . . . or break her own heart forever.

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All the Tomorrows After

Joanne Yi

Each night, Winter Moon counts her earnings dreaming of escape. Once she’s saved enough, she and her grandmother can finally take flight and disappear. But when her spiteful mother steals her money and blows through it all in one day, Winter is forced to turn to her estranged father, who recently reappeared in her life after being absent for more than a decade. They agree upon a simple contract: she spends time with him in exchange for payment.

It’s not easy reconciling the past and the present, though, and when she’s struck with a sudden loss, Winter flounders in grief and rage. The only person offering a hand is Joon, the new boy at school who sees Winter when no one else does.

When Winter discovers a secret her father has been keeping from her, things get even more complicated. As she navigates grief, first love, and forgiveness, Winter begins to forge connections, new and old, that make her question everything: her future, her conviction to disappear, and what it really means to be family. Winter knows that broken things can never be fixed, but can they come back together in a different way?

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Sometimes the Girl

Jennifer Mason-Black

Eighteen-year-old Holiday needs to sort her life out.

She's still shaken from her brother's recent suicide attempt; still pining over her ex, Maya; and still struggling to write again after a long dry spell. To earn enough money for a rebalancing trip with Maya, Holi gets a short-term job: organizing the attic of acclaimed author Elsie McAllister. It's an unglamorous gig with a difficult boss. Elsie—whose fame rests on a single novel published decades ago—is in her nineties, in failing health, and fiercely protective of her privacy. But as Holi sorts through the attic's surprising contents, she realizes there's much more to Elsie than the novel that made her a legend.

Unearthing Elsie's secrets will change how Holi sees art, life, and the way they intertwine, as she grapples with choices that will redefine her own path.


 

 

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Frankly in Love

David Yoon

An Instant New York Times Bestseller • A William C. Morris YA Debut Award Finalist • An Asian Pacific American Librarians Association Honor Book

“Extraordinary . . . a beautifully layered novel about first love, tribalism and that brief, magical period when kids have one foot in high school, one foot out the door. . . Yoon explores themes of racism, forgiveness and acceptance without getting earnest or preachy or letting anyone off the hook.” —New York Times

Two friends. One fake dating scheme. What could possibly go wrong?

Frank Li has two names. There's Frank Li, his American name. Then there's Sung-Min Li, his Korean name. No one uses his Korean name, not even his parents. Frank barely speaks any Korean. He was born and raised in Southern California.

Even so, his parents still expect him to end up with a nice Korean girl--which is a problem, since Frank is finally dating the girl of his dreams: Brit Means. Brit, who is funny and nerdy just like him. Brit, who makes him laugh like no one else. Brit . . . who is white.

As Frank falls in love for the very first time, he's forced to confront the fact that while his parents sacrificed everything to raise him in the land of opportunity, their traditional expectations don't leave a lot of room for him to be a regular American teen. Desperate to be with Brit without his parents finding out, Frank turns to family friend Joy Song, who is in a similar bind. Together, they come up with a plan to help each other and keep their parents off their backs. Frank thinks he's found the solution to all his problems, but when life throws him a curveball, he's left wondering whether he ever really knew anything about love—or himself—at all.

In this moving debut novel David Yoon takes on the question of who am I? with a result that is humorous, heartfelt, and ultimately unforgettable.

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A First Time for Everything

Dan Santat

*Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature* 

A middle grade graphic memoir based on bestselling author and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat's awkward middle school years and the trip to Europe that changed his life. 

Dan's always been a good kid. The kind of kid who listens to his teachers, helps his mom with grocery shopping, and stays out of trouble. But being a good kid doesn't stop him from being bullied and feeling like he's invisible, which is why Dan has low expectations when his parents send him on a class trip to Europe.

At first, he's right. He's stuck with the same girls from his middle school who love to make fun of him, and he doesn't know why his teacher insisted he come on this trip. But as he travels through France, Germany, Switzerland, and England, a series of first experiences begin to change him—first Fanta, first fondue, first time stealing a bike from German punk rockers... and first love.

Funny, heartwarming, and poignant, A First Time for Everything is a feel-good coming-of-age memoir based on New York Times bestselling author and Caldecott Medal winner Dan Santat's awkward middle school years. It celebrates a time that is universally challenging for many of us, but also life-changing as well.

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The Prettiest

Brigit Young

The Prettiest is an incisive, empowering novel by Brigit Young about standing up for yourself and those around you.

“All middle school girls AND boys (especially boys!) should read this book.” —Alan Gratz, New York Times–bestselling author of Refugee

THE PRETTIEST: It’s the last thing Eve Hoffmann expected to be, the only thing Sophie Kane wants to be, and something Nessa Flores-Brady knows she’ll never be . . . until a list appears online, ranking the top fifty prettiest girls in the eighth grade.

Eve, ranked number one, can't ignore how everyone is suddenly talking about her looks—and her body.
Sophie, always popular and put together, feels lower than ever when she's bullied for being number two.
Nessa isn't on the list at all, but she doesn't care. Or does she?

Eve, Nessa, and Sophie are determined to get justice—or at least revenge. But as these unlikely vigilantes become fiercely loyal friends, they discover that the real triumph isn't the takedown. It's the power that comes from lifting one another up.


A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2020

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The Golden Hour

Niki Smith

From the author of The Deep & Dark Blue comes a tender graphic novel, perfect for our time, that gently explores themes of self-discovery, friendship, healing from tragedy, and hope for a better tomorrow.

Struggling with anxiety after witnessing a harrowing instance of gun violence, Manuel Soto copes through photography, using his cell-phone camera to find anchors that keep him grounded. His days are a lonely, latchkey monotony until he's teamed with his classmates, Sebastian and Caysha, for a group project.


Sebastian lives on a grass-fed cattle farm outside of town, and Manuel finds solace in the open fields and in the antics of the newborn calf Sebastian is hand-raising. As Manuel aides his new friends in their preparations for the local county fair, he learns to open up, confronts his deepest fears, and even finds first love.

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Lady Knight

Amalie Howard

The daughter of a duke defies the rules of London high society with the help of the resident rake—who just so happens to be her brother’s best friend—in this fun teen historical romance from the USA Today bestselling author of Queen Bee.


“A ridiculously romantic, womanist, hilarious, and hugely entertaining romance that had me smiling and swooning from start to finish.” —Elizabeth Everett, USA Today bestselling author of the Damsels of Discovery series

Lady Zenobia “Zia” Osborn, a duke’s daughter, is frustrated that her entire life has been predetermined. What good is skill or intelligence if one is forced to suffocate it because of one’s sex? She’d much rather make her mark on the world than bat her eyelashes for the ton.

Zia only comes alive in the Lady Knights, a clandestine social club for rebellious girls. In it, she is free to compose music, fence, read controversial literature, and save orphans from destitution by any means necessary. Aside from her closest confidantes, no one knows about Zia’s indecorous other life. . . .

Until Mr. Rafi Nasser, a rogue with secrets of his own, finds out. Shocked yet intrigued by his best friend’s younger sister, he agrees to keep Zia’s secret—if only to help her avoid utter scandal.

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Cupid's Revenge

Wibke Brueggemann

For fans of Casey McQuiston and Alice Oseman, a girl falls for her best friend’s crush in Cupid’s Revenge, a queer young adult rom-com from Wibke Brueggemann that’s equal parts hilarious and swoon-worthy.

It was never Tilly’s intention to fall in love, but Cupid will get you when you least expect it. That’s exactly what happens when Tilly’s best friend, Teddy, ropes Tilly into a plan to woo his dream girl, aspiring actress Katherine Cooper-Bunting. It turns out Teddy’s not the only one who finds her dreamy.

But Katherine is off-limits. The only thing more important than Tilly’s feelings for someone she just met is not hurting Teddy, whose heart has been broken in the past.

Avoiding temptation is easier said than done, as Teddy convinces Tilly to help him audition for a local play as a way to get to know Katherine better—a complete horror for someone who grew up in an artsy family but doesn’t have a creative bone in her body. On top of dealing with her growing feelings for the girl she shouldn’t like (but who may like her back), Tillie is still grieving a loss while navigating her grandfather’s recent Alzheimer’s diagnosis. So yeah, that’s a lot for any sixteen-year-old to handle without Cupid’s vengeful arrows getting involved.

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Not If You Break Up with Me First

G.F. Miller

Two friends who have unhappily found themselves accidentally dating try to drive the other one to call things off in this witty and heartfelt middle school romance.

Childhood friends Eve and Andrew are destined to be together—everyone says so, especially their friends and classmates who are all suddenly crush-obsessed. So when Eve and Andrew’s first eighth grade school dance rolls around and Eve, feeling the pressure, awkwardly asks Andrew to go with her, everyone assumes they are Officially Dating and Practically in Love. Overwhelmed, Eve and Andrew just…go with it.

And it’s weird. Neither of them wants this dating thing to mess up their friendship, and they don’t really see each other that way. But they also don’t want to be the one to call things off, the one to make things super awkward. So they both—separately—pledge to be the worst boyfriend or girlfriend ever, leaving it to the other person to break up with them. It would be genius…if the other person weren’t doing the exact same thing.

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As You Wish

Nashae Jones

A girl learns the hard way to be careful what she wishes for in this middle grade rom-com featuring a chaos-loving West African trickster god that’s a “delightful exploration of friendship, mental health, and first love with a touch of magic” (Kirkus Reviews).

Birdie has big plans for eighth grade. This is the year that she gets a boyfriend, and since she and her best friend, Deve, do everything together, it makes sense that Deve will get a girlfriend. This is the kind of math Birdie doesn’t find intimidating—it’s Eighth Grade 101. (Birdie + Boyfriend) + (Deve + Girlfriend) = Normal Eighth Grade Experience. And normal is something Birdie craves, especially with a mom as overprotective as hers.

She doesn’t expect Deve to be so against her plan, or for their fight to blow up in her face. So when the West African god Anansi appears to her, claiming to be able to make everything right again, Birdie pushes past her skepticism and makes a wish for the whole mess to go away. But with a trickster god, your wish is bound to come true in a way you never imagined.

Before long, Birdie regrets her rash words…especially when she realizes what’s really going on with her and Deve. With her reality upended, can Birdie figure out how to undo her wish?

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We Are Big Time

Hena Khan

SWISH! Cheer courtside for a Muslim teen in this graphic novel—inspired by a true story—as she joins an all-girls, hijab-wearing basketball team and learns that she’s much more than a score.

Aliya is new to Wisconsin, and everything feels different than Florida. The Islamic school is bigger, the city is colder, and her new basketball team is… well, they stink.

Aliya’s still excited to have teammates (although Noura's not really Aliya's biggest fan) and their new coach really understands basketball (even if she doesn't know much about being Muslim.) This season should be a blast...if they could just start to win.

Join Aliya and the Peace Academy on a headline-making season where they strengthen their skills and their Muslim identities--all while discovering that it takes more than talent to be great, and that teamwork and self-confidence can define true success. 

For fans of The Crossover and Roller Girl, this graphic novel goes big with humor and heart as it explores culture and perceptions, fitting in and standing out, and finding yourself, both on and off the court.

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Slugfest

Gordon Korman

From Gordon Korman, the New York Times bestselling author of Restart, comes a hilarious new story about a group of underdogs who come together when they are forced to attend summer school--for failing PE.

Yash is the best athlete at Robinette Middle School--so good, in fact, that he's already playing on the high school's JV sports teams. Imagine his shock when he learns that his JV practices have kept him from earning a state-mandated credit for eighth-grade PE. To graduate, he has to take Physical Education Equivalency--PEE, also known as "Slugfest"--in summer school.

Yash gets to know his fellow "slugs": Kaden, an academic superstar who's physically hopeless; twins Sarah and Stewart, who are too busy trying to kill each other to do any real PE; Jesse, a notorious prankster; Arabella, who protests everything; and Cleo, a natural athlete who has sworn off sports.

But when one of them tries to blow the lid off a scandal that could make all their time in summer school a waste, Yash is forced to take drastic action.

Teaming up with the most hapless crew in school can really surprise a person. And their teacher might be hiding the biggest surprise yet. . . .

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Kareem Between

Shifa Saltagi Safadi

This award-winning, heartfelt coming-of-age novel in verse tells the powerful story of a seventh-grade Syrian American boy and his struggles, big and small, as he navigates middle school.

"The exact type of book I would've loved, and needed, as a kid." —Jasmine Warga, New York Times bestselling author and Newbery Honor recipient for Other Words for Home

Seventh grade begins, and Kareem’s already fumbled it. 

His best friend moved away, he messed up his tryout for the football team, and because of his heritage, he was voluntold to show the new kid—a Syrian refugee with a thick and embarrassing accent—around school. Just when Kareem thinks his middle school life has imploded, the hotshot QB promises to get Kareem another tryout for the squad. There’s a catch: to secure that chance, Kareem must do something he knows is wrong.

Then, like a surprise blitz, Kareem’s mom returns to Syria to help her family but can’t make it back home. If Kareem could throw a penalty flag on the fouls of his school and home life, it would be for unnecessary roughness.

Kareem is stuck between. Between countries. Between friends, between football, between parents—and between right and wrong. It’s up to him to step up, find his confidence, and navigate the beauty and hope found somewhere in the middle.

** Winner of the 2024 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature** Global Read Aloud Selection ** School Library Journal Best Middle Grade Book ** Chicago Public Library Best Fiction for Older Readers ** PEOPLE Magazine Best Kids Book ** Junior Library Guild Selection** Texas Lone Star Reading List selection ** Common Sense Media Selection for Families** Cybils Novel in Verse Award Winner** Jane Addams Children Book Award Finalist** ILA Notable Book for a Global Society** Bank Street's Best Children's Books of the Year**

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Hoops

Matt Tavares

A work of fiction inspired by a true story, Matt Tavares’s debut graphic novel dramatizes the historic struggle for gender equality in high school sports.


It is 1975 in Indiana, and the Wilkins Regional High School girls’ basketball team is in their rookie season. Despite being undefeated, they practice at night in the elementary school and play to empty bleachers. Unlike the boys’ team, the Lady Bears have no buses to deliver them to away games and no uniforms, much less a laundry service. They make their own uniforms out of T-shirts and electrical tape. And with help from a committed female coach, they push through to improbable victory after improbable victory. Illustrated in full color, this story about the ongoing battle of women striving for equality in sports rings with honesty, bravery, and heart.

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