Material appropriate for young adults
In ancient Egypt, Nakht records his experiences as his family moves from small town Esna to the big, exciting city of Memphis, where he studies to be a scribe like his father and helps discover who has been robbing graves.
Laika was the abandoned puppy destined to become Earth’s first space traveler. This is her journey. Along with Laika, there is Korolev, once a political prisoner, now a driven engineer at the top of the Soviet space program, and Yelena, the lab technician responsible for Laika’s health and life. Abadzis gives life to a pivotal moment in modern history, casting light on the hidden moments of deep humanity behind history. This graphic novel is a blend of fact and fiction dealing with the first animal to be sent into space. He was on the Russian Sputnik 2 in November 1957. Laika would die on that trip.
It was just supposed to be a routine exam. But when the doctors snake the fiber-optic tube down Robert Smith’s throat, what they discover doesn’t make medical sense. Plastic casings. Silver filaments. Moving metal parts. In his naked, anesthetized state on the operating table, Robert hears the surgeons’ shocked comments: “What the hell is that?” “It’s me,” Robert thinks, “and I’ve got to get out of here.” Armed with a stolen automatic and the videotape of his strange organs, he manages to escape, and to embark on an orphan’s violent odyssey to find out exactly who–exactly what–he is.
When young Tom Ormsby cons his way onto the great explorer Henry Morton Stanley’s “Relief of Emin Pasha Expedition” in 1887, he’s looking for adventure. But he has no idea what lies ahead of him. From the exotic bazaars of Zanzibar to the mouth of the Congo River and beyond, Tom soon learns he’s signed on for more than the rescue of the mysterious Pasha. He’s on a journey through the ravishing beauty and brutality of a jungle world peopled by slavers, warring tribes, cannibals, and colonial masters – all jockeying for survival in 19th-century Africa. As Karr follows Tom’s remarkable three-year trek, she raised some provocative questions about slavery, the right of one country to impose its cultural imperatives on another, and the arrogance that can prevent a man from achieving his ultimate goal. Startling, scary, and surprising, this true story takes the reader deep into the heart of the African past.
High school senior Miguel’s life is turned upside down when he meets new girl Lainey, whose family has just moved from Australia. With her tumbled red-gold hair, her instant understanding of who he is, and her unusual dog—a real Australian dingo—she’s unforgettable. And, as he quickly learns, she is on the run from an ancient bargain made by her ancestors. There’s no question that Miguel will do whatever he can to help her—but what price will each of them have to pay? Dingo is quintessential Charles de Lint, set close to his beloved, invented city of Newford—a mixture of darkness and hope, humor and mystery, and the friendship within love.
A paranormal thriller from Carnegie Medal–winner Tim Bowler! It starts with a phone call. “I’m dying,” a voice tells Dusty. Who is he and how has he gotten her cell number? Dusty wants no part of this strange boy . . . until he begins saying things that only someone who knows her intimately could say—things that lead her to think he knows the whereabouts of her brother, who disappeared over a year ago. Suddenly drawn in, Dusty very much wants to save this boy. Trouble is, she cannot find him. Part human, part spirit, he won’t let himself be found. He is too dangerous, he says. There are mobs of people who agree and who want to see this boy dead . . . and who will hurt anyone who stands in their way. A gripping, hair-raising mystery about a boy not of this world, and a girl determined to protect him.
Nannerl Mozart was a musical prodigy who seemed to have a brilliant future. But once her younger brother, Wolfgang, began composing symphonies at the age of five, her career and talents were utterly eclipsed. Here, at last, is Nannerl’s heart-wrenching tale. It’s the story of her undying passion for music; her relationship with her “miracle boy” brother; and her life as the “other Mozart,” the one forgotten by history. The acclaimed Carolyn Meyer has written a powerful historical novel about a little-known but gifted musician who never stopped dreaming. Includes an author’s note.
Moying Li is twelve-years-old when Cultural Revolution sweeps China. In 1966 Moying, a student at a prestigious language school in Beijing, seems destined for a promising future. Everything changes when student Red Guards begin to orchestrate brutal assaults, violent public humiliations, and forced confessions. After watching her teachers and headmasters beaten in public, Moying flees school for the safety of home, only to witness her beloved grandmother denounced, her home ransacked, her father’s precious books flung onto the back of a truck, and Baba himself taken away. From labor camp, Baba entrusts a friend to deliver a reading list of banned books to Moying so that she can continue to learn. Now, with so much of her life at risk, she finds sanctuary in the world of imagination and learning.This inspiring memoir follows Moying Li from age twelve to twenty-two, illuminating a complex, dark time in China’s history as it tells the compelling story of one girl’s difficult but determined coming-of-age during the Cultural Revolution.
A much-anticipated school trip to England’s West Country turns into a life-changing adventure for five high school misfits when they fall into another dimension while exploring the house in which they are staying.
As his odd parents fight the regional environmental health officer about their dung-covered house and his melodramatic younger brother demands attention, fourteen-year-old Australian Seth Parrot simply seeks the muscular woman of his dreams.