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Kids' Books September 2020
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| Once Upon a Unicorn by Lou AndersWelcome to: the Whisperwoods of the Glistening Isles, where unlikely friends Curious (a unicorn scientist) and Midnight (a flaming night mare) get into hot water with the Wicked Fairies.
Read it for: a pumpkin-headed villain; a fast-moving plot; an army of monsters; and chapter titles that will make you laugh out loud. (For instance: "Is This the End? But There Are Still So Many Chapters Left.")
Who it's for: anyone who likes funny fantasy or unusual unicorn tales. |
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| Isaiah Dunn Is My Hero by Kelly J. BaptistWhat it's about: After his father dies and his family moves into a run-down motel, Isaiah Dunn doesn't feel very heroic. Still, he clings to his dad's notebook of amazing superhero stories -- all starring Isaiah -- and through them, he looks for a way forward.
Why you might like it: Isaiah is easy to root for, whether you relate to the tough times he's going through or whether you, too, dream of being a superhero. |
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| Your Place in the Universe by Jason ChinThe question: How big is the universe compared to a kid like you?
The answers: Well, the average 8-year-old kid is taller than a book... but while an ostrich is twice as tall as a kid, a redwood tree is way taller than an ostrich, and Mount Everest is taller still, that's nothing compared to Earth's distance from the edge of the known universe!
Art alert: The eye-popping illustrations zoom in and out, giving you lots of different points of view. |
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My Life as a Potato
by Arianne Costner
What it's about: Believing himself to be cursed by potatoes, Ben moves to a formidable potato-laden community in Idaho, where an accident leads him to become his school’s secret potato mascot.
Why you might like it: Hands to fans of Gordon Kormon and Jeff Kinney for some great laughs.
Read this next: The Terrible Two by Mac Barnett.
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| The Silver Arrow by Lev GrossmanWhat it's about: For Kate's 11th birthday, her eccentric uncle gives her a highly unusual steam train. It communicates with playful print-outs, is fully stocked with candy and books, and comes with an important mission: to conduct endangered talking animals to new habitats around the world.
Why you might like: The Silver Arrow combines whimsical adventure with a serious look at Earth's changing environment.
For fans of: classic offbeat fantasy authors such as Roald Dahl and Daniel Pinkwater. |
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| Out of the Wild Night by Blue BalliettWhat it's about: When greedy outsiders begin flipping the ramshackle old houses of Nantucket, the island's ghosts start fighting back with help from a gang of local kids.
Why you might like it: Similar to author Blue Balliett's other mysteries, this twisty tale takes you deep into the past and present of a fascinating real-life place. |
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Coraline
by P. Craig Russel
What it's about: Looking for excitement, Coraline ventures through a mysterious door in her new home and into a world that is similar, yet disturbingly different from her own, where she must challenge a gruesome entity in order to save herself, her parents, and the souls of three others.
Reviewers say: "The pacing never lags, and Coraline's transformation into a girl who understands that having everything you want is the least interesting thing of all is natural." (School Library Journal)
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Nightmares!
by Jason Segel
Starring: Charlie Laird, who struggles with nightmares and a conviction that his stepmother is a witch.
What it's about: What Charlie doesn't know is that his problems are about to get a whole lot more real. Nightmares can ruin a good night's sleep, but when they start slipping out of your dreams and into the waking world--that's a line that should never be crossed.
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Fuzzy Mud
by Louis Sachar
What it's about: Tamaya and Marshall are walking home through the woods when they're confronted by Chad, a bully looking to start a fight. Tamaya gives Chad a faceful of mud instead, but afterwards, she develops a rash where she touched the mud…and something even worse happens to Chad.
Reviewers say: "An exciting story of school life, friends, and bullies that becomes a quick meditation on the promise and dangers of modern science." (Kirkus)
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| Watch Hollow by Gregory FunaroWhat it’s about: With their father’s clock shop failing, Oliver and Lucy Tinker know that their family has no choice but to accept a very strange offer: move to Blackford House in Watch Hollow so that their dad can fix its gigantic -- and possibly supernatural -- cuckoo clock.
Read it for: page-turning tension, magical clockwork, lurking evil, and an eerie, enchanted forest.
For fans of: Jonathan Auxier’s The Night Gardener. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books for ages 8-11!
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