Age

Catalog sorted by age group

A Templar’s Apprentice

Scotland. 1307. Thirteen-year-old Tormod MacLeod is different. He knows things before they happen. Even his own brother treats him differently, and all Tormod can do is bide his time until he’s old enough to leave the village and make something of himself. His chance comes sooner than expected when a Templar knight asks him to deliver a secret message. But Tormod’s efforts end up endangering both their lives. What follows is a desperate journey to escape the army of King Philippe le Bel of France. If he is to survive, Tormod must learn to harness the powers within. “Kat Black is a refreshing voice in young adult fiction–wonderfully original, compelling, and thought-provoking.” –Allen Say “A fascinating book . . . with a depth of history. The blend of religion and the supernatural make this a very intriguing novel. Engrossing, well-researched, and well-told.” –Ed Masessa, Scholastic Book Fairs and author of #1 NY Times bestseller The Wandmaker’s Guidebook “A Templar’s Apprentice hooked me from the first page and never let up. With her amazing gift of bringing ancient settings to life, Black creates a world so complete that when I closed the book I could still feel its pull on me. With one surprising turn after the next, she brings the reader along on an exhilarating adventure of Templar Knights, a stolen map, a mysterious carved statue, and a brave boy with second-sight. I can’t wait for the next in the series.” —Wendy Mass, author of A Mango-Shaped Space

The Uninvited

Mimi Shapiro had a disturbing freshman year at NYU, thanks to a foolish affair with a professor who still haunts her caller ID. So when her artist father, Marc, offers the use of his remote Canadian cottage, she’s glad to hop in her Mini Cooper and drive up north. The house is fairy-tale quaint, and the key is hidden right where her dad said it would be, so she’s shocked to find someone already living there — Jay, a young musician, who is equally startled to meet Mimi and immediately accuses her of leaving strange and threatening tokens inside: a dead bird, a snakeskin, a cricket sound track embedded in his latest composition. But Mimi has just arrived, so who is responsible? And more alarmingly, what does the intruder want? Part gripping thriller, part family drama, this fast-paced novel plays out in alternating viewpoints, in a pastoral setting that is evocative and eerie — a mysterious character in its own right.

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.

Wild Orchid

Shortlisted for Canadian Library Association Young Adult Book of the Year Award 2007 Manitoba Young Readers’ Choice Award nominee 2007 Saskatchewan Young Readers’ Choice Willow Awards nominee Canadian Children’s Book Centre Our Choice Starred Selection White Pine nominee, 2007 McNally Robinson announced that Wild Orchid was one of the top five best selling books in Saskatechewan in 2006. Taylor Jane Simon is 18 years old and spending the summer with her mother in Prince Albert National Park. The holiday has been planned so Taylor’s mother can spend time with her latest boyfriend, Danny, and work in the pizza restaurant near the park that Danny runs. Taylor would just as soon stay at home in Saskatoon, but because she suffers from an autistic condition called Asperger’s Syndrome, she can’t stay on her own. Taylor’s mother encourages her daughter to explore the park’s possibilities on her own. For Taylor, whose life experience has been seriously limited, this means facing the test of meeting new people who work in the park’s nature center – and facing it alone. Summer also holds out the possibility of finding her own boyfriend, though Taylor isn’t quite sure what that may involve. What she discovers will change her life forever. Written as an epistolary novel, Wild Orchid is frank but optimistic, literal yet innocent. A courageous wit attends Taylor’s gradual emergence as her own person, and the reader will find the exploration of Taylor’s mind a revealing and heartwarming encounter.

Kissing The Witch: Old Tales In New Skins

Cinderella forsakes the handsome prince and runs off with the fairy godmother; Beauty discovers the Beast behind the mask is not so very different from the face she sees in the mirror; Snow White is awakened from slumber by the bittersweet fruit of an unnamed desire. Acclaimed writer Emma Donoghue spins new tales out of old in a magical web of thirteen interconnected stories about power and transformation and choosing one’s own path in the world. In these fairy tales, women young and old tell their own stories of love and hate, honor and revenge, passion and deception. Using the intricate patterns and oral rhythms of traditional fairy tales, Emma Donoghue wraps age-old characters in a dazzling new skin.

Bettina Valentino and the Picasso Club

A controversial new teacher at Bayside Preparatory School introduces the exciting world of art to aspiring artist Bettina Valentino and her fifth-grade classmates, encouraging them to see everyday life in a different way.

Gemx

In a world where perfection rules, Maxo Strang is king. He is a GemX, a boy genetically manipulated to be flawless. Nobody is better looking, more intelligent, of better social class…or more lacking in human empathy. Until Maxo discovers a wrinkle in his face. This can’t happen to him! It happens only to the Dreggies – the wretched underclass of unenhanced ‘naturals’ who live outside the Polis. Terrified, Maxo begins a search for a cure. It is a search that takes him into the Dreggies’ world, a place unbelievably different from his own, where violence, poverty and ugliness are routine. There, Maxo meets Gala and Stretch, Dreggies who are searching for their father who ‘disappeared’ while volunteering for scientific research in the city. For some horrifying yet compelling reason, he finds himself attracted to Gala. Gala and Stretch will do anything to find their dad, and Maxo may be the key. His father was the last person to see theirs before he vanished. Now, they will use Maxo to get some answers – whether he consents or not. What none of them realises is that they are all pawns in a bigger game. The city’s Supreme Leader has plans – plans that will leave their lives hanging in the balance…

The Snog Log

Robbie and his friends have come up with a contest. It’s kind of likea read-a-thon . . . or a telathon . . . except, it’s a snogathon. In otherwords, a kissing contest. And it’s top secret. None of the girls in school know–which is especially tricky, since they’re all in it. What’s also tricky are the rules and points and charts involved. Robbie wants to win by snogging Mel, the class ice maiden, who is high up on the points scale. But Mel has other ideas. This is going to be a weirder and wilder challenge than anyone expected!