Provides the story of an Eskimo boy who, after being brought from his home in Greenland to New York City by explorer Robert Peary, was forced to deal with the death of his father, and the loss of everything familiar to him.
Young Adult (ages 14-18)
Material appropriate for young adults
Sphinx’s Princess
Friesner, author of Nobody’s Princess, offers readers another fresh new look at an iconic figure–the Egyptian queen Nefertiti–by blending historical fiction and mythology in a thrilling concoction.
Ashes
Thirteen-year-old Gabriella Schramm’s favorite pastime is reading. With Adolf Hitler slowly but unstoppably rising to power, Gaby turns to her books for comfort while the world around her changes dramatically: The streets become filled with soldiers, her sister’s boyfriend raises his arm in a heil Hitler salute, and the Schramm’s family friend Albert Einstein flees the country. When Gaby’s beloved books come under attack, she fears she may have to leave behind the fiction and the life she has always cherished.
The Red Umbrella
The Red Umbrellais the moving tale of a 14-year-old girl’s journey from Cuba to America as part of Operation Pedro Pan-an organized exodus of more than 14,000 unaccompanied children, whose parents sent them away to escape Fidel Castro’s revolution. In 1961, two years after the Communist revolution, Luciacute;a Aacute;lvarez still leads a carefree life, dreaming of parties and her first crush. But when the soldiers come to her sleepy Cuban town, everything begins to change. Freedoms are stripped away. Neighbors disappear. Her friends feel like strangers. And her family is being watched. As the revolution’s impact becomes more oppressive, Luciacute;a’s parents make the heart-wrenching decision to send her and her little brother to the United States-on their own. Suddenly plunked down in Nebraska with well-meaning strangers, Luciacute;a struggles to adapt to a new country, a new language, a new way of life. But what of her old life? Will sheeversee her home or her parents again? And if she does, will she still be the same girl? The Red Umbrellais a moving story of country, culture, family, and the true meaning of home.
Monsoon Summer
Secretly in love with her best friend and business partner Steve, fifteen-year-old Jazz must spend the summer away from him when her family goes to India during that country’s rainy season to help set up a clinic.
Saving the Baghdad Zoo
The Baghdad zoo was once home to more than six hundred magnificent animals. But after the war in Iraq began in 2003, the city faced widespread destruction. When U. S. Army Captain William Sumner was asked to check out the state of the zoo, he found that it, too, was devastated. Hundreds of animals were missing, and the few remaining were in desperate need of care. And so Captain Sumner accepted a new mission. Together with an international team of zoologists, veterinarians, conservationists, and dedicated animal lovers, Captain Sumner worked tirelessly to save the neglected—but tenacious—animals of Baghdad. Saving the Baghdad Zoo tells the poignant stories of these remarkable animals. Meet the abandoned lions who roamed an empty palace with no food or drink; the camel, Lumpy, who survived transport through sniper fire; the tigers, Riley and Hope, who traveled 7,000 miles from home; and many more. The Baghdad Zoo, open once again to the people of Iraq, has become an oasis of hope and safety in a city where both are precious gifts.
I.D.
Some things can change you forever.This is a book about identity. Everyone remembers the life events that shaped their identity. That first love. The first all-out fight with a parent or sibling. The feeling of being let down by someone you love. Losing something or someone that matters to you. Struggling to fit in. I.D. collects 12 first-person accounts about life’s pivotal moments and offers each as an incisive graphic narrative.Illuminated by Peter Mitchell’s bold, gritty illustrations, these true stories tackle the universal experiences from childhood and adolescence that stay with us forever. Each anecdote and accompanying reflection reveals how individual identity can be shaped by common themes.By turns thoughtful, painful, funny and fierce, I.D. powerfully demonstrates that what defines us in youth doesn’t have to confine us forever.
Ellen’s Book Of Life (Ellen Fremedon)
Ellen’s Book of Life is the fourth installment in the popular and multi-award-winning Ellen Fremendon series. Off enjoying an exciting summer in the big city, Ellen is far away from her sleepy hometown when she receives heartbreaking news: her mother has died. Shutting out her best friend and her family, Ellen tries unsuccessfully to cope with her sudden loss. Then she finds a letter that her mother has left her, which piques her natural curiosity and sets her on a new mission — Ellen knew that she was adopted, but now her mum has given her the tools she needs to find her birth mother. With her typical energy and open-heartedness Ellen starts the search and embraces not only her newfound family but a new faith, both of which help her, and her family, to move on with their lives.
A Very Fine Line
Rosalind Kemp is the youngest in a family of sisters. She lives a comfortable life in a small town in Ontario. Ros is active, loving, and artistic. And, she has second sight. It is a part of her nature with which she has trouble coming to terms: sometimes it is nothing more than a pleasant parlor trick, like knowing that King Edward will abdicate; sometimes it is a curse that makes her feel freakish; and sometimes it is just plain terrifying. Ros tries everything she can to suppress the gift, and subsequently herself, but nothing works. If she is going to live her life fully, she will have to come to terms with every part of her being, just as everyone must.This brilliant novel is Julie Johnston at her very best: it is funny, frightening, and painfully insightful.
Give Up The Ghost
Cass McKenna much prefers ghosts over “breathers.” Ghosts are uncomplicated and dependable, and they know the dirt on everybody…and Cass loves dirt. She’s on a mission to expose the dirty secrets of the poseurs in her school. But when the vice president of the student council discovers her secret, Cass’s whole scheme hangs in the balance. Tim wants her to help him contact his recently deceased mother, and Cass reluctantly agrees. As Cass becomes increasingly entwined in Tim’s life, she’s surprised to realize he’s not so bad—and he needs help more desperately than anyone else suspects. Maybe it’s time to give the living another chance….