When a storm brings down his father’s boat, Digory Beale is forced to leave home to discover his fate. For if Digory has been orphaned, he can never go home again. On his journey, Digory becomes the apprentice to a charming stranger whose life’s obsession is to save sailors’ lives. Digory must face his fears of the sea to help Henry bring candles to the lighthouse he’s built on a killer reef.
In 1940, the Germans have come to Paris and Bertrand, his mother and sister are fleeing. Meanwhile, the Germans have not come to the south of France, where Zina and her family live–but there’s no work for ethnic Russians like Zina’s papa. Both Bertrand and Zina must go to America in order to survive. Each shows fear in a different way, but finally, through friendship, finds hope again.
Maria Lili and her grandmother barter a dozen eggs at the market square to get the ingredients to cook their traditional Saturday chicken sancocho.
In a village in Chile, Pedro and Daniel are two typical nine-year-old boys. Up until Daniel’s father gets arrested, their biggest worry had been how to improve their soccer skills. Now, they are thrust into a situation where they must grapple with the incomprehensible: dictatorship and its inherent abuses. This sensitively realized story touches a nerve and brings home the uncomfortable fact that some children do encounter issues of this magnitude. Here, deft realism is brought to the page by Antonia Skarmeta’s story and the edgy drawings of Alfonso Ruano, portraying a child’s view of a repressive society. The Composition is a winner of the Americas Award for Children’s Literature and the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award.
This book has been included in WOW’s Kids Taking Action Booklist. For our current list, visit our Boolist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.
A ten-year-old boy in Madrid tells about the hilarious misadventures of his family and friends.
Craig Moodie’s adventure novel tells the story of twelve-year-old Finn, who stows away to search for his lost father and brothers. It’s a journey that brings storms, shipwreck, tense encounters with the inhabitants of an unexplored continent — and a coming of age for Finn, who will in the end, face his father as a young man and a Viking.
Snipp, Snapp, and Snurr were three little boys who lived in Sweden.They had blue eyes and yellow hair, and they looked very much alike. One time, while their mother was visiting a friend, Snipp, Snapp, and Snurr had a wonderful idea. They would buy a new chair for Mother! They found a man who would make a frame for the chair, and someone who would upholster it. And Nanny said if they bought the fabric, she would sew a cover. There was only one problem. How could they pay for all this? With a lot of hard work, the three little boys came up with the perfect solution.
Bee can’t understand what her father sees in Jazzi. Ever since Bee’s mom died, she, her dad, and her two guinea pigs, Fifi and Lulu, have been getting along just fine. Now Bee is supposed to welcome Jazzi, with her bangled skirts and her rock-hard scones and her new way of looking at everything. Imagine how Bee feels when her dad invites Jazzi to move in! Life certainly gets more complicated, especially after Bee discovers that there is something big that Jazzi has not told Dad. Yet knowing the secret makes Bee see another side of Jazzi, one that oddly enough makes Bee more comfortable.
There is always a story in moving house and this family has several to tell. From Uncle’s hat to Aunty’s violin, follow our family as they embark on an incredible adventure to find that elusive place called home.
One wintry morning, Mama tells Rosy a wondrous story about her own mama, Grandma Beatrice, who could bring spring to cold, cold Minsk by making magic in the kitchen. Together, mother and daughter mix batter and sing a song. Then the batter goes into the pan—pour, swirl, swizzle, FLIP! Soon Papa comes in from the cold and the family shares a special treat.
In this tale, Holly Berry’s stunning illustrations evoke charming folk traditions and the warm magic made in Mama’s kitchen.