This book provides comprehensive information on the geography, history, governmental structure, economy, cultural diversity, peoples, religion, and culture of Ecuador.
Ecuador
Intermediate (ages 9-14)
Material appropriate for intermediate age groups
Trick of the Tale: A Collection of Trickster Tales
An illustrated collection of tales featuring notable trickster characters such as Raven and Hare, from the folk traditions of many countries.
Afghanistan (Cultures Of The World)
“Provides comprehensive information on the geography, history, governmental structure, economy, cultural diversity, peoples, religion, and culture of Afghanistan”–Provided by publisher.
Hiroshima Dreams
Lin can’t explain the knowledge she has of the future, of what people will say or what will happen. It’s a gift she shares with Obaasan, her grandmother, who has recently come from Japan to live with Lin’s family. But seeing the future is more than knowing whether or not a boy will call. What is Lin to make of the visions she has of a day long ago, when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima? Acclaimed author Kelly Easton’s poignant coming-of-age novel about a girl with psychic abilities is rich in imagery and memorable characters.
The Tulip Touch
Natalie, who lives in the large hotel managed by her father, has a dangerous friendship with Tulip, the wildly uncontrollable girl on a neighboring farm.
The Black Canary
Twelve-year-old biracial James has grown up in a musical family. Not only are both of his parents musicians, but his four grandparents are as well. Everyone assumes that James will pursue music, yet he would rather become a newspaper reporter…or an astronomer…or a cook…anything that will let him leave music behind and be his own self. Everything changes when, on a family visit to London, James discovers a portal that leads to London in the year 1600, then finds himself unable to return to the point in time he had left behind. James is forced to join the Children of the Chapel Royal, a group that performs for the queen of England, and the musical talents he denied are now put to the test and pushed to their limits. In this alternate world James comes to realize that he cannot survive and get back to the twenty-first century without recognizing, understanding, and making the most of his musical gifts. Jane Louise Curry brings Elizabethan London to life in this remarkable story about music, family, and finding one’s place in the world.
Genocide
Some view the systematic killing, rape, and destruction of homes in Darfur as a grave humanitarian crisis. For others, it’s a clear example of the ultimate crime against humanity — genocide. This book helps young readers understand these and other difficult questions. Providing an overview of the history of genocide worldwide, the book explores the paradox that while a person who murders another person can be tried and even executed for the crime, a person who murders hundreds or thousands of people usually goes free. Using case studies of acts of genocide throughout history, the book points out the unique character of each while at the same time establishing important links between them.
Clockwork
An apprentice clockmaker facing failure…a writer with a story he can’t control….a girl whose courage will need to match her kindness…a prince whose mechanical heart is winding down…a clockwork knight with murderous tendencies…and a doctor who just may be the Devil. Their stories come together piece by piece in this chilling tale where nothing is as it seems, but like the gears of a strange and wonderful clock, everything fits together.
Little Fur: The Legend Begins
Little Fur is a half elf, half troll, as tall as a three-year-old human child, with slanted green eyes, wild red hair that brambles about her pointed ears, and bare, broad, four-toed feet. Little Fur loves and tends to the Old Ones, the seven ancient trees that protect her home, a small, magical wilderness nestled magically in a park in the midst of a large, bustling human city. When she learns that evil forces are out to destroy her beloved trees, the intrepid halfling must embark on an ambitious and dangerous journey into the human world and down into an ancient cut in the earth, in search of a way to save not only the Old Ones, but the Earth Spirit itself.
The Arrival
A man gives his wife and daughter a last kiss and boards a steamship to cross the ocean. He’s embarking on the most painful yet important journey of his life – he’s leaving home to build a better future for his family. Shaun Tan evokes universal aspects of an immigrant’s experience through a singular work of the imagination. He does so using brilliantly clear and mesmerizing images. Because the main character can’t communicate in words, the book forgoes them too. But while the reader experiences the main character’s isolation, he also shares his ultimate joy.
This book is a wordless picturebook.