Intermediate (ages 9-14)

Material appropriate for intermediate age groups

The Boy Who Wanted To Cook

Ten-year-old Pierre dreams of being a chef at his parents’ restaurant, La Bonne Vache, in the south of France and is told he is too young, but when an important guest comes Pierre sees a chance to prove himself. Includes notes about dining in France and a glossary.

Ballywhinney Girl

Young Maeve feels a strong connection to the mysterious, mummified body of a young girl that her grandfather uncovers while cutting turf in an Irish bog. Includes facts about bogs and the mummies that have been found in them.

Isabella of Castile

In a twist on the classic fairy tale, a princess in 15th-century Spain refused to wait to be rescued by a prince and instead chose one for herself. Even then, she would not marry him until they’d reached an agreement that was revolutionary for her time—their marriage was an equal partnership captured in the motto “To stand as high, as high to stand, Isabella and Ferdinand.” This book tells Isabella of Castile’s story with sections on the clothes she wore, the foods she ate, and why she is remembered today. Without her, both Spain and the United States would not exist in their current forms.

Titanic: The Search for the Lost Fugitives

Readers become investigators in this interactive mystery about one of history’s most ill-fated voyages. While looking through documents connected with the Titanic’s maiden trip, a journalist discovers that he might be related to a pair of fugitives who disappeared from his hometown and perished in the disaster. Readers follow the trail of evidence in clues hidden in codes and symbols in order to discover the identities of the runaways and the reasons for their flight. Along the way, they will build critical problem-solving skills and encounter many different levels of clues and information in the atmospheric artwork and narrative text. Foldout panels help translate the symbols, and kids will love the specially created code wheel which will allow them to create and decode their own secret messages.

Jane Austen

Jane Austen’s popularity never seems to fade. She has hordes of devoted fans, and there have been numerous adaptations of her life and work. But who was Jane Austen? The writer herself has long remained a mystery. And despite the resonance her work continues to have for teens, there has never been a young adult trade biography on Austen. Catherine Reef changes that with this highly readable account. She takes an intimate peek at Austen’s life and innermost feelings, interweaving her narrative with well-crafted digests of each of Austen’s published novels. The end result is a book that is almost as much fun to read as Jane’s own work—and truly a life revealed. Includes bibliography and index.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

Mrs. Frisby, a widowed mouse with four small children, is faced with a terrible problem. She must move her family to their summer quarters immediately, or face almost certain death. But her youngest son, Timothy, lies ill with pneumonia and must not be moved. Fortunately, she encounters the rats of NIMH, an extraordinary breed of highly intelligent creatures, who come up with a brilliant solution to her dilemma. And Mrs. Frisby in turn renders them a great service.

Miracles on Maple Hill

After Marly’s father returns from the war moody and tired, her family decides to move from the city to Maple Hill Farm in the Pennsylvania countryside where they share many adventures which help restore their spirits and their bond with each other.