A poignant story filled with heart-warming courage as a young girl takes on a harrowing journey to be reunited with her mother.
The Island At The End Of Everything
Intermediate (ages 9-14)
Material appropriate for intermediate age groups
Peasprout Chen
Peasprout Chen dreams of becoming a legend of wu liu, the deadly and beautiful art of martial arts figure skating. As the first students from the rural country of Shin to attend Pearl Famous Academy of Skate and Sword, Peasprout and her little brother Cricket have some pretty big skates to fill. They soon find themselves in a heated competition for top ranking. Tensions rise when the dazzling pearl buildings of the Academy are vandalized and outsider Peasprout is blamed for the attacks by her rivals and even some friends. Now, she must uncover the true vandal to ensure peace between Shin and Pearl – all while becoming a champion.
Small Things
In this wordless graphic picturebook, a young boy feels alone with his worries. He isn’t fitting in well at school. His grades are slipping. He’s even lashing out at those who love him.
Small Things has been discussed in My Take/Your Take for October 2020.
Confucius
His sayings are repeated throughout the world. His teachings set the course of Chinese society for 2,500 years. But Confucius remains merely a name to many readers, rather than the central figure of world history that he deserves to be. Now award-winning author-illustrator Demi illuminates his life and influence in this elegant biography that will appeal to readers of all ages. Confucius loved books and learning, but he grew up during a time of great suffering and warfare in China. Troubled by the chaos he saw all around him, he devoted his life to reforming his society and government, with ideas about education and leadership that still resonate today. He encouraged everyone — especially rulers — to live moral lives, emphasizing the value of tradition and compassion. And five hundred years before Jesus set forth his Golden Rule, Confucius declared his Golden Mean: Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself.
Lucky Broken Girl
In this unforgettable multicultural coming-of-age narrative—based on the author’s childhood in the 1960s—a young Cuban-Jewish immigrant girl is adjusting to her new life in New York City when her American dream is suddenly derailed. Ruthie’s plight will intrigue readers, and her powerful story of strength and resilience, full of color, light, and poignancy, will stay with them for a long time.
Hunger
The first-person narrative portrays Lorraine’s family and community with realistically drawn personalities and relationships as well as fine-tuned ethical dilemmas, while sketching in the backdrop of the wider catastrophe. A moving personal story.
The Book of Boy
A young outcast is swept up into a thrilling and perilous medieval treasure hunt in this literary page-turner by acclaimed bestselling author Catherine Gilbert Murdock.
The Serpent’s Secrets
On the morning of her twelfth birthday, Kiranmala is just a regular sixth grader living in Parsippany, New Jersey . . . until her parents mysteriously vanish and a drooling rakkhosh demon slams through her kitchen, determined to eat her alive. Turns out there might be some truth to her parents’ fantastical stories-like how Kiranmala is a real Indian princess and how she comes from a secret place not of this world.
The Shameless Shenanigans of Mister Malo
During the school day, Lance García looks like a typical fourth-grader at Oakland Elementary School. But after school, dressed in disguise black jacket, black baseball cap and dark, cool sunglasses with tiny, rectangular mirrors so he can see who’s behind him he checks the mailbox labeled Malo Mail. No one realizes that he is the infamous Mister Malo, righter of wrongs, punisher of bullies.
Charles Darwin And The Mystery Of Mysteries
AN INTREPID VOYAGE. A GROUNDBREAKING THEORY. The life and work of oneof the world’s most influential scientists.Young readers of this altogether fascinating biography follow Charles Darwin not only on his journey aboard the HMS Beagle but also through the thinking that led him to his world-changing theory and most famous work, The Origin of th e Species. Complete with historical photographs and documented passages straight from Darwin’s personal diary, this engaging book ensures that a new generation of young readers will get to know one of the scientists who shaped our understanding of the world.