Europe

Materials from Europe

The Thing I’m Most Afraid Of

Most twelve-year-olds would be excited to fly to Austria to see their dad for the summer but then Becca is not most twelve-year-olds. Suffering from severe anxiety, she fears that the metal detectors at the airport will give her cancer and the long international flight will leave her with blood clots. Luckily, she’s packed her Doomsday Journal, the one thing that always seems to help. By writing down her fears and what to do if the worst happens, Becca can get by without (many) panic attacks.
Routines and plans help Becca cope but living in a new country is full of the unexpected–including Becca’s companions for the summer. Like Felix, the short and bookish son of Becca’s dad’s new girlfriend. Or Sara, the nineteen-year-old Bosnian refugee tasked with watching the two of them for the summer. As Becca explores Vienna and becomes close to her new friends, she soon learns she is not alone in her fears. What matters most is what you do when faced with them.

The Outlaws Scarlett And Browne

Scarlett McCain is a shoot-first ask-questions-later kind of outlaw. She scrapes by on bank heists, her wits—and never looking back.
She’s on the run from her latest crime when she comes across Albert Browne. He is the sole survivor of a horrific accident, and against her better judgement, Scarlett agrees to guide him to safety.
This is a mistake. Soon there are men with dogs and guns and explosives hot on their heels. Scarlett’s used to being chased by the law, but this is extreme. It was only a little bank she’d robbed . . .
As they flee together across the wilds, fighting off monstrous beasts, and dodging their pursuers, Scarlett comes to realize that Albert Browne is hiding a terrible secret. And that he may be the most dangerous threat of all.

When The World Was Ours

Three young friends—Leo, Elsa, and Max—spend a perfect day together, unaware that around them Europe is descending into a growing darkness and that they will soon be cruelly ripped apart from one another. With their lives taking them across Europe—to Germany, England, Prague, and Poland—will they ever find their way back to one another? Will they want to?
Inspired by a true story, When the World Was Ours is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking and that shows how the bonds of love, family, and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hopeless of times.

The Prince Of The Skies

A gripping narrative of friendship and exploration, and an homage to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, an unforgettable writer who touched the lives of millions of readers, and who was able to see the world through the eyes of a child. In the 1920s, long before he wrote The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry was an accomplished pilot. Along with Jean Mermoz and Henri Guillaumet, he was chosen to pioneer new mail routes across the globe. No distance was too far and no mountain too high—each letter had to reach its destination. The three friends soared through the air, while back on solid ground, they dealt with a world torn apart by wars and political factions.

Ace Of Spades

At Niveus Private Academy, Devon and Chiamaka are the only students chosen to be Senior Prefects who are also black, which makes them targets for a series of anonymous texts revealing their secrets to the entire student body. Both students were on track toward valedictorian and bright college futures, but this prank quickly turns into a very dangerous game and they are at more than one disadvantage as it looks like things could turn deadly.

Danny Chung Sums It Up

Eleven-year-old Danny’s life is turned upside down when his Chinese grandmother comes to live with his family in England. Things get worse when Danny finds out he’ll have to share his room with her, and she took the top bunk! At first, Danny is frustrated that he can’t communicate with her because she doesn’t speak English—and because he’s on the verge of failing math and Nai Nai was actually a math champion back in the day. It just feels like he and his grandmother have nothing in common. His parents insist that Danny help out, so when he’s left to look after Nai Nai, he leaves her at the bingo hall for the day to get her off his back. But he soon discovers that not everyone there is as welcoming as he expected . . . Through the universal languages of math and art, Danny realizes he has more in common with his Nai Nai than he first thought. Filled with heart and humor, Danny Chung Sums It Up shows that traversing two cultures is possible and worth the effort, even if it’s not always easy.

Beyond The Blue Border

Hanna and Andreas have always been friends. When they’re expelled from school for activism directly challenging the socialist state in East Germany, they end up doing factory work. But what kind of life do they have to look forward to without education or opportunity? Especially when they aren’t allowed a voice? The choice to risk imprisonment or death by escaping to the democratic West seems like a risk worth taking. They set out to swim twenty-five hours across the choppy waters of the Baltic Sea.

Home Of The Wild

In the quiet dawn of the spring forest a boy finds an orphan fawn, hungry and alone. He carefully carries her home, caring for her while she grows strong. The boy and the fawn become inseparable. Together they spend long summer days running through the valley, leaping over the heather, and lying in the dappled sunlight.
But the young deer is a wild thing and too soon she is ready to discover a home of her own. The boy misses his friend and worries for her when a big storm threatens. Can the boy and the fawn find each other again? Are some bonds stronger than goodbye?

Mr. Tiger

Inspired By The Art And Sport Of Lucha Libre, This Picture Book Follows A Masked Wrestler Who, Although Tough In The Ring, Is Actually Very Shy And Is Looking For A Friend Meet Mr. Tiger, The Bravest, The Strongest, And The Greatest Wrestler In The Ring. With His Trademark Move, The Leap Of The Tiger, He Has Defeated His Most Formidable Rivals: Black Claw, Boogeyman, Constrictor, And Blob. But Outside The Ring, Despite The Muscles And The Fierce Mask, Mr. Tiger Is Painfully Shy. Even Speaking To The Lady He Secretly Admires Seems Impossible–until A Loyal Friend Helps Him Out. Enter The Ring And Find Out What Happens When A Tough Body Houses A Sweet Heart!