Who’s Buried In The Garden?

Seventh-grader Joshua knows his best friend Artie Mendoza is a liar. They have been friends since kindergarten, and Artie has told far-fetched stories for years. So when Artie tells Josh that there’s a body buried in Mrs. Foley’s garden, Josh doesn’t believe him at first. But when Josh walks by the Foleys’ house, he sees the mound of earth, about seven feet long and covered with flowers, and has to admit it does look like a grave. Artie insists that Mrs. Foley killed her husband and buried him in the back yard. The Foleys used to fight so loudly that kids walking in the alley behind their house could hear the arguments. Lately, there hasn’t been any sign of Mr. Foley. Still, Josh has his doubts. But Wolf Man, Artie’s other best friend, naively believes everything his friend tells him and encourages Artie’s plan to dig up the body. Josh doesn’t care much for Wolf Man, and if he’s honest with himself, he knows he’s jealous of the friendship between Wolf Man and Artie. Unlike Josh, they watch wrestling on TV, don’t care much about school, and on top of that, speak Spanish fluently, which makes Josh feel left out. While Josh struggles to avoid getting caught up in Artie’s scheme to get famous by digging up the supposed body in Mrs. Foley’s backyard he also tries to cultivate his budding friendship with Lorena, the prettiest girl in the seventh grade, who challenges Josh to see both Artie and Wolf Man in a different light. With other problems sprouting up all around him, Josh can’t help but wonder if there’s really a shovel-wielding criminal living in the neighborhood. Instead of digging up the garden, or grave, shouldn’t they call the police? Young adult author and educator Ray Villareal has written another fast-paced, exciting novel for middle-school students that explores the impact of making poor decisions and the importance of choosing the right friends.

Facts Of Life: Stories

What do Gaby Lopez, Michael Robles, and Cynthia Rodriguez have in common? These three kids join other teens and tweens in Gary Soto’s new short story collection, in which the hard-knock facts of growing up are captured with humor and poignance. 
         
Filled with annoying siblings, difficult parents, and first loves, these stories are a masterful reminder of why adolescence is one of the most frustrating and fascinating times of life.

The Skirt

When Miata leaves on the school bus the skirt that she is to wear in a dance performance, she needs all her wits to get it back without her parents’ finding out that she has lost something yet again.

Alphabet City Ballet

balletMarisol has always loved to dance–from the salsa at family parties to the boom boxes on Loisada Avenue. Then she wins a scholarship to ballet school and discovers an inspiring new world of beauty and discipline. When violence erupts in Alphabet City, Marisol’s dream starts to slip away. To keep dancing she must make heartbreaking choices–perhaps impossible ones.

Bandit’s Moon

Newly orphaned, young Annyrose escapes from the villainous O.O. Mary and falls under the protection of a proud and fearless Mexican bandit, regarded as the Robin Hood of the California Gold Rush. Annyrose wants only to search for her older brother who had run off to the gold diggings, but she finds herself galloping beside the celebrated outlaw in his own quest. He is hunting down the last of a band of “Yankee” riffraff who wronged him, an event that turned the innocent young Mexican into an avenging terror of the roads. With his characteristic story twists and turns and surprises, Newbery Award winner Sid Fleischman lights up a dark corner in this Gold Rush drama set against a firestorm of bigotry ignited by the lust for riches. As for this legendary bandit, dashing about on his silken black horse and breathing fire, he actually lived.02 Rebecca Caudill Young Reader’s Book Award Nominee Master List, 00-01 Charlie May Simon Book Award Reading List, 02 Nutmeg State Children’s Book Award Masterlist, 00-01 Children’s Choice Award Masterlist, 00-01 William Allen White Children’s Book Award Masterlist, 01-02 Land of Enchantment Book Award Masterlist (Gr. 6-9), and 00-01 Sequoyah Children’s Book Award Masterlist.

Fearless Fernie: Hanging Out With Fernie and Me

For Fernie and his best friend, the fun begins when they are babies who crawl across the lawn towards each other, away from their parents’ watchful eyes. And once they find each other, they are inseparable. Together, they grow to be the self-proclaimed artistic geniuses and master athletes of their school. But they do admit to being losers at spelling bees and camping out. And when it comes to romance, well, if waltzing with a broom in the kitchen or sporting glowing orange socks to a school dance counts, these guys are cool. Gary Soto’s original poems and Regan Dunnick’s clever illustrations will spark recognition in all middle-schoolers who’ve gone through the humiliation of sports try-outs and first dances; who’ve had to deal with body images and swinging moods. Each of the poems in this book shows a scene from their sometimes difficult, sometimes comical lives growing up together as best friends. Even though they don’t have everything in common, they both know that at least they’re in it together.

Henry Cisneros: A Man Of The People (Romero, Maritza. Great Hispanics Of Our Time.)

Focuses on the political life of a Mexican American who realized the importance of good leadership and served as a mayor and cabinet secretary.

Over Here It’s Different: Carolina’s Story

Relates, in text and photographs, the experiences of an eleven-year-old girl who emigrated from the Dominican Republic at age seven, and describes the two worlds she lives in as an American trying to preserve her heritage.

Scratch and the Pirates of Paradise Cove

On the first day of summer vacation, ten-year-old Rafi and his father are searching for their lucky, six-toed cat, Scratch, when an earthquake knocks them off a cliff and they find themselves on a pirate ship, heading toward adventure.