The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music
by Dave Grohl

"The legendary American musician, singer, songwriter and documentary filmmaker offers a collection of stories, written by his own hand, that focus on the memories of his life, from his childhood to today." [Novelist].

Jurassic Park
by Michael Crichton
 

Homicide and Halo-Halo 
by Mia P. Manansala

"Things are heating up for Lila Macapagal. Not in her love life, which she insists on keeping nonexistent despite the attention of two very eligible bachelors. Or her professional life, since she can't bring herself to open her new cafe after the unpleasantness that occurred a few months ago at her aunt's Filipino restaurant, Tita Rosie's Kitchen. No, things are heating up quite literally, since summer, her least favorite season, has just started. To add to her feelings of sticky unease, Lila's little town of Shady Palms has resurrected the Miss Teen Shady Palms Beauty Pageant, which she won many years ago - a fact that serves as a wedge between Lila and her cousin slash rival, Bernadette. But when the head judge of the pageant is murdered and Bernadette becomes the main suspect, the two must put aside their differences and solve the case - because it looks like one of them might be next," [Novelist].

"The celebrated Hollywood actress and model, in this original, intelligent and wise memoir, lays bare her addiction to alcohol, her devotion to her brilliant and complicated mother, the moments she had flirted with death and how she found surprising salvation in her multiple sclerosis diagnosis,"  [Novelist].

"After losing her parents, a young college graduate in New York City spends a year alienating the world under the influence of a crazy combination of drugs," [Novelist].

The Wide Starlight
by Nicole Lesperance

"Years after her mother is swept away by the Northern Lights above Svalbard, Eli orchestrates a magically fateful rescue plan when she discovers that the aurora will be visible for one wintry night above her new home on Cape Cod," [Novelist].

 

"It's the summer before middle school and eleven-year-old Bug's best friend Moira has decided the two of them need to use the next few months to prepare. For Moira, this means figuring out the right clothes to wear, learning how to put on makeup, and deciding which boys are cuter in their yearbook photos than in real life. But none of this is all that appealing to Bug, who doesn't particularly want to spend more time trying to understand how to be a girl. Besides, there's something more important to worry about: A ghost is haunting Bug's eerie old house in rural Vermont...and maybe haunting Bug in particular. As Bug begins to untangle the mystery of who this ghost is and what they're trying to say, an altogether different truth comes to light--Bug is transgender," [Novelist].

Genre: Ghost stories; LGBTQIA fiction
Themes: Coming out experiences
Character: Courageous; LGBTQIA diverse
Storyline: Character-driven; Issue-oriented; Own voices
Tone: Emotionally intense; Moving
Writing Style: Attention-grabbing; Thoughtful
Min/Max Grade level: 4 - 7
 Accelerated Reader: IL: MG, BL: 5.1, AR Pts: 7 

 

"With a repertoire of 50+ recipes inspired by the unique stories of 17 favorite American Girl characters, this beautiful cookbook invites young chefs to develop basic kitchen skills while preparing sweet and savory sharable treats," [Novelist].

Big Truck Little Island
by Chris Van Dusen

"When a big truck and its big load get stuck on a narrow road, traffic on the little island comes to a halt. Some cars need to go south and some have to travel north. How will Meg get to her swim meet? What about Barry’s ballet class? Luckily, the kids come up with an ingenious solution: why not just swap cars? Inspired by an incident that happened on Vinalhaven, Maine," [Novelist].

 

 

Children's Fiction. Available in regular print.