Friendship

The Supernaturalist

In futuristic Satellite City, fourteen-year-old Cosmo Hill escapes from his abusive orphanage and teams up with three other people who share his unusual ability to see supernatural creatures, and together they determine the nature and purpose of the swarming blue Parasites that are invisible to most humans.

Finn Family Moomintroll

It is spring in the valley and the Moomins are ready for adventure! Moomintroll and his friends Snufkin and Sniff find the Hobgoblinrs”s top hat, all shiny and new and just waiting to be taken home. They soon realize that his is no ordinary hat; it can turn anything’or anyone’into something else!

Oliver

Oliver is different. He enjoys his solitude. He likes playing with his friends, who are puppets, stuffed animals, and other toys. With his rich imagination, Oliver’s day is never dull. There are bridges to cross, sharks to fight, and treasures to find! But maybe toys don’t always give a boy everything he needs. Maybe he needs another kind of companion. Will Oliver discover a way to be, well, different? When his tennis ball rolls across the lawn into the yard of the girl next door, he just might be surprised.

Shadow

Author of War Horse, and bestselling storyteller Michael Morpurgo touched our hearts with this beautiful story of a boy, his lost dog, and the lengths he would go to be reunited. This timely story of battle-scarred Afghanistan delivers a masterful portrait of war, love, and friendship. With the horrors of war bearing down on them, Aman and his mother are barely surviving in an Afghan cave, and staying there any longer will end horribly. The only comfort Aman has is Shadow, the loyal spaniel that shows up from places unknown, it seems, just when Aman needs him most. Aman, his mother, and Shadow finally leave the destroyed cave in hopes of escaping to England, but are held at a checkpoint, and Shadow runs away after being shot at by the police. Aman and his mother escape–without Shadow. Aman is heart-broken. Just as they are getting settled as free citizens in England, they are imprisoned in a camp with locked doors and a barbed wire fence. Their only hope is Aman’s classmate Matt, his grandpa, and the dream of finding his lost dog. After all, you never lose your shadow.

The Friendship Matchmaker

Lara Zany is her middle school’s official Friendship Matchmaker, but a new student, Emily Wong, has her own ideas on the subject and they vie to match two “hopeless cases” with their perfect best friend.

My Own Revolution

Fourteen-year-old Patrik rebels against the communist regime in small ways whenever he gets the chance: spray-painting slogans, listening to contraband Beatles records, even urinating on a statue of Lenin under cover of night. But anti-Party sentiment is risky, and when party interference cuts a little too close to home, Patrik and his family find themselves faced with a decision — and a grave secret — that will change everything. As the moments tick toward too late, Patrik takes his family’s fate in hand, risking everything for a chance at freedom. Examining the psychological toll of living under an authoritarian regime, Carolyn Marsden allows readers to experience both Patrik’s persistent worry and his hope for better things.

Ostrich and Lark

Ostrich and Lark spend their days on the grasslands of southern Africa surrounded by a chorus of birdsong. From his perch in a tree Lark joins the chorus, while below Ostrich is silent. Then comes the joyful day when Ostrich finds his voice. This picture book about an unlikely friendship is the result of collaboration between the award-winning poet Marilyn Nelson and the San artists of Botswana. The story, which captures the feel of a traditional African folktale, is brought to life with vibrant illustrations inspired by the ancient rock paintings of the San people’s ancestors.

Big Wolf and Little Wolf, Such a Beautiful Orange!

This is the third and last book in the Big Wolf series. Once again Olivier Tallec’s illustrations, which are bold in perspective and full of feeling, deepen the story. Departing from the previous two books, this story takes place in a city, albeit one with a park and a tree on a hill.Big Wolf and Little Wolf have gone on an adventure. Little Wolf sees an orange and goes after it, but he doesn’t return. Big Wolf plunges into the urban jungle in search of Little Wolf. He finds the orange, but not his friend. Fear and loneliness overtake him, but he perseveres. Finally, he comes into a clearing of light, where he finds Little Wolf near where he lost him. Big Wolf has gone full circle and, as these things go, everything has changed. Big Wolf has undertaken an interior journey, gone through the metaphorical forest, and come out fuller and richer and more himself. This is a deep story about true friendship and how it helps to make us who we are.Nadine Brun-Cosme is the author of over twenty juvenile novels and picture books. She lives in France. Her book Big Wolf and Little Wolf is a 2010 Batchelder Honor book.Olivier Tallec was born in Brittany, France, in 1970. After graduating from the Ecole Supérieure d’Art Graphic in Paris, he worked in advertising as a graphic designer, after which he devoted himself to illustration. Since then he has illustrated more than sixty books, seven of which have been published by Enchanted Lion Books.