Intermediate (ages 9-14)

Material appropriate for intermediate age groups

Starclimber

Pilot-in-training Matt Cruse and Kate de Vries, expert on high-altitude life-forms, are invited aboard the Starclimber, a vessel that literally climbs its way into the cosmos. Before they even set foot aboard the ship, catastrophe strikes: Kate announces she is engaged—and not to Matt. Despite this bombshell, Matt and Kate embark on their journey into space, but soon the ship is surrounded by strange and unsettling life-forms, and the crew is forced to combat devastating mechanical failure. For Matt, Kate, and the entire crew of the Starclimber, what began as an exciting race to the stars has now turned into a battle to save their lives. Award-winning and bestselling author Kenneth Oppel brings us back to a rich world of flight and fantasy in this breathtaking new sequel to Airborn and Skybreaker.

The Discovery Of Dragons: New Research Revealed

A revised and expanded edition of the 1996 book in which a group of eccentric Victorian scientists describes and catalogs dragons from around the world, including everything from their natural habitats to their unusual eating habits.

Permanent Rose

Feisty Rose takes center stage as the highly original Casson family faces a long, hot summer. As usual, things are a bit chaotic. Eldest daughter Caddy is now engaged to darling Michael, and she’s not altogether sure she likes it. Saffy and Sarah are on a mission to find Saffy’s biological father (while cultivating hearts of stone). Indigo is cautiosly beginning a friendship with a reformed bully, who desparately wants to feel like part of the Casson family. Rose, while missing Tom (who none of them have heard from) dreadfully, enters into a life of petty crime, shoplifting small items until her misadventures nearly bring disaster. An accidental trip to London and a visit with Rose’s father lead to a startling revelation, but through it all Rose’s single-minded determination to find Tom remains as fierce as it is hopeless. Oris it?Hilary McKay has painted the fond mayhem of this delightul family with such humor, warmth, and authenticity that readers will fall in love with them all over again. Once you’ve visited the Casson household, you may never want to leave.

Play to the Angel

In February 1938, in Vienna, twelve-year-old Greta Radky is devastated to learn that her mother plans to sell the family piano. Greta’s brother, a concert pianist, died the previous April, and her mother thinks of the piano as his. But Greta is an equally committed musician, and when she meets a mysterious piano teacher who agrees to work with her, she proves it. With his help the piano is saved, and inspired by his tiny angel doll, Greta practices furiously for her first recital. Then, on the day of the performance, the Nazis invade Austria. Suddenly Greta discovers her teacher’s secret and knows that his life is in danger. Having stood up to her mother, Greta must now confront the Nazis.

Dangerous Games

This eagerly awaited addition to Joan Aiken’s award-winning Wolves series takes us on Dido’s most imaginative adventure yet! Dido Twite has been sailing the high seas, chasing after Lord Herodsfoot, who is scouring the globe for new and interesting games. Now he’s needed back in London, in the hope that his games will help King James, who is lying ill and wretched with a mysterious disease no doctor can cure. Dido’s search has taken her to Aratu, a mysterious spice island where foreigners seldom venture–maybe because of the deadly pearl snakes and sting monkeys there. When Dido lands at Aratu, she realizes that there is something even more dangerous than poisonous snakes on the island. She soon makes friends among the Forest People and learns of a plot to overthrow the island’s king, who lives–deaf and sick–at his palace on the Cliffs of Death. Will Dido and her friends be able to reach him in time?

Little (Grrl) Lost

When fourteen-year-old TJ and her family are forced to move from their farm to the suburbs, she has to give up her beloved horse, Red—but she makes a surprising new friend. Elizabeth is a “Little,” a six-inch-high punked-out teen with an attitude, who has run away from home to make her way in the world. TJ and Elizabeth—the Big and the Little—soon become friends, but each quickly finds herself in a truly life-threatening situation, and they are unable to help each other. Little (Grrl) Lost is a delightful combination of realism, magic, humor, and hope, and is sure to win Charles de Lint many new teen and adult fans.