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| The Becket List: A Blackberry Farm Story by Adele Griffin; illustrated by LeUyen PhamIntroducing: Becket Branch, a loud, enthusiastic nine-year-old who doesn’t hesitate to yell “Beautiful Alert!” whenever she sees something awesome.
What happens: Becket is excited to try new things after her family moves from the city to the country, but doing farm chores, running a lemonade stand, and finding new friends aren’t as easy as she imagined.
Try this next: Kelly Jones’ Unusual Chicken series also stars a former city girl adjusting to country life. |
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| Sweeping Up the Heart by Kevin HenkesWhat it’s about: Fully expecting a boring spring break, lonely seventh-grader Amelia is surprised to find herself making friends with a visiting boy named Casey and investigating the identity of a woman who looks a lot like her long-dead mother.
Is it for you? If you love getting to know characters so well that they begin to feel like friends, you won’t want to miss this quiet but hopeful book from award-winning author Kevin Henkes.
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| Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos HernandezWhat it’s about: After middle school magician Sal Vidón tears a hole in time and space in order to plant a raw chicken in the school bully’s locker, he draws the attention of ambitious classmate Gabi Reál. Together, Sal and Gabi might be able to change things for the better...assuming they don’t destroy the universe in the process.
Series alert: Packed with unique characters and laugh-out-loud moments, this off-the-wall blend of science fiction and Cuban folklore is the 1st in a series. |
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| Bernice Buttman, Model Citizen by Niki LenzStarring: fifth-grader, wannabe stuntwoman, and hard-hearted bully Bernice Buttman, who doesn’t see why she should be nice to anyone when no one’s nice to her.
What happens: After her mom runs off and leaves her with her Aunt Josephine, a nun, Bernice decides to become a better person -- maybe then she’ll finally make a real friend.
Try this next: Maria T. Lennon’s Confessions of a So-Called Middle Child, another funny and genuine story about a reformed bully.
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| Because of the Rabbit by Cynthia LordWhat it’s about: Emma bonds instantly with Lapi, the rescued bunny her family is fostering, but she has a harder time making friends at her new school. She and classmate Jack both love animals, but the other kids treat Jack like an outsider, and Emma just wants to fit in. Why you might like it: Though it’s easy to read, Because of the Rabbit takes a hard look at how difficult it can be to make (and keep) friends of any species. |
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Focus on: Creative Problem-Solving
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| CatStronauts: Mission Moon by Drew BrockingtonFeaturing: Blanket, Pom Pom, Waffles, and Major Meowser, four brave cat astronauts who blast off on a mission to build a solar power plant on the moon.
Series alert: Equal parts silly and smart, this cartoon-illustrated graphic novel is the 1st in a series, followed by CatStronauts: Race to Mars.
You might also like: Ian Boothby’s Sparks! or James Kochalka’s Pinky & Stinky. |
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| The Science of Breakable Things by Tae KellerWhat it is: Natalie Napoli’s seventh-grade science class journal, where she writes about working on an egg drop competition with her friends and dreaming about a trip that might inspire her scientist mother to get out of bed again.
Read if for: scientific diagrams and experiments; a complicated kid with complicated parents; a heartfelt, honest story about living with someone who has depression.
For fans of: Ali Benjamin’s The Thing About Jellyfish. |
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| The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnultyStarring: twelve-year-old Lucy, who has genius-level math skills (a side effect of surviving a lightning strike) and obsessive-compulsive habits (a side effect of living with a "supercomputer brain").
What happens: Lucy's grandma won't let her apply to college unless she abandons her familiar homeschooling routine and completes one year of public middle school. Yikes.
Who it's for: proud math geeks, as well as anyone looking for a unique character facing typical problems. |
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| The Inventors at No. 8 by A.M. MorgenWhat it's about: Though he's convinced of his own bad luck, young orphan George joins his inventor neighbor, Ada, as well as new friend Oscar and baby orangutan Ruthie, on a daring treasure hunt across 1800s Europe.
Read it for: fantastic flying machines, close calls with criminals, and touches of humor.
Try this next: Jordan Stratford's Wollenstonecraft Detective Agency series offers further imagined adventures for real-life tech pioneer Ada Byron Lovelace. |
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| The Cardboard Kingdom by Chad SellWhat it is: a bright, exciting graphic novel about a group of kids who create imaginary alter-egos and build an epic fantasy world out of cardboard, while also dealing with family problems, fighting with friends, or feeling misunderstood.
Featuring: Sophie, the unruly Big Banshee; Jack, the dramatic Evil Sorceress; Seth, the protective Gargoyle; Vijay, the mighty Beast; Amanda, the mustached Mad Scientist; and lots more. |
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Trailblazer
by Austin Aslan
Determined to prove himself among the world's best racers, 12-year-old Mace Blazer is unexpectedly chosen by a retired, reclusive racer to join the next generation of TURBOnauts to develop his talents in a sophisticated morphing craft.
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The Polar Bear Explorers' Club
by Alex Bell
Knowing she is destined to be an adventurer in spite of edicts forbidding girls to become explorers, precocious Stella Starflake Pearl and three other junior explorers become separated from the rest of an expedition in the snowy Icelands and must survive in order to gain entry into an elite club.
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Maybe a mermaid
by Josephine Cameron
When her mother, who sells Beauty & the Bee cosmetics and drives a Beemobile, surprises soon-to-be a sixth-grader Anthoni with a trip to the Showboat Resort, Anthoni plans to finally make a "True Blue Friend."
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Endurance in Antarctica
by Katrina Charman
Longing for nothing more than to be part of Ernest Shackleton's historic voyage to Antarctica, sled dog Samson is partnered with reluctant fellow canine, Bummer, who prefers a warm and safe kennel to a dangerous, icy wasteland.
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How to scare a stegosaurus
by Will Dare
While the sheriff is away, crooked businessman Malachi Wilks and his stegosaurus workers try to build a railroad through Trihorn Valley, with only Josh and his friends standing in his way.
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WeirDo : even weirder!
by Anh Do
Weir Do must keep his cool with a school trip to the zoo and the birthday party of his crush, Bella Allen.
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Pizza party
by Karen English
Days before their class sets a record for excellent behavior and earns a classroom pizza party, third-grader Richard and his friends are dismayed when their teacher calls out sick and a strict, mean, suspicious substitute takes over.
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The remarkable journey of Coyote Sunrise
by Dan Gemeinhart
Twelve-year-old Coyote and her father rush to Poplin Springs, Washington, in their old school bus save a memory box buried in a park that will soon be demolished.
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Sarai in the spotlight
by Sarai Gonzalez
When a new girl named Christina moves to town, Sarai tries to make friends with her, but finds that they have very little in common
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The three rules of everyday magic
by Amanda Rawson Hill
Kate has trouble believing in magic, especially since the people she loves keep leaving her. But when Grammy tells her the three rules of everyday magic--believe, give, and trust--Kate can't resist believing, at least a little. Following Grammy's advice,she tries to bring her father, her best friend, and even Grammy herself back to her. Nothing turns out as Kate expects, yet the magic of giving--of trusting that if you love and give, good things will happen, even if you don't see them happen--will change Kate and her family forever.
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Wild wild quest
by Roy L. Hinuss
When Gilbert the Gallant goes missing, it's up to Carlos, the youngest in a line of Prince Charmings, to find him and complete Gilbert's quest.
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How I became a spy : a mystery of WWII London
by Deborah Hopkinson
In World War II London, a young spy named Bertie, his strong-willed American friend Eleanor, a Jewish refugee named David, and a dog called Little Roo try to prevent a double agent from giving secrets to the Nazis.
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Lost stars
by Erin Hunter
In the midst of the coldest leaf-bare any warrior can remember, the Clans have lost their connection with their warrior ancestors, and only one ShadowClan apprentice can still hear their voices--or their warning about the new shadow rising within the warrior Clans.
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Emily Windsnap and the pirate prince
by Liz Kessler
When the cruise ship taking her home is commandeered by pirates who take Aaron captive, Emily finds herself on a rescue mission that forces her to choose between her mermaid identity and a swashbuckling life alongside the pirate king's son. By the best-selling author of the Philippa Fisher series.
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Kayla the pottery fairy
by Daisy Meadows
An arts-and-crafts-themed addition to the best-selling series invites readers to join Rachel, Kirsty and a sequence of fairies who need help reclaiming creative magical objects from the mischievous Jack Frost. Original.
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Starswirl do-over
by Whitney Ralls
When Sunset Shimmer finds herself in a time loop, reliving the first day of the Starswirl Music Festival over and over again, she must learn to make the right decisions to get to the PostCrush concert with Pinkie Pie.
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Pickled watermelon
by Esty Schachter
In the summer of 1986, Molly visits her grandparents in mysterious Israel and worries about the language barrier.
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Lexie's little lie
by Emma Shevah
When a jealous lie tears apart her family and threatens her bond with her cousin best friend, Lexie endures calamitous escapades while learning about different kinds of truths and lies, including some truths that can be hurtful.
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Too many toppings!
by Coco Simon
Feeling happiest when she is busy, Sierra continues working in the ice-cream shop, participates in after-school sports and joins a band as its lead singer before realizing that she may have taken on more than she can handle.
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Take the stage
by JoJo Siwa
JoJo wants to perform her song at the neighborhood block party, but Kyra, resident mean girl and head of the party-planning committee, has other ideas.
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The light jar
by Lisa Thompson
Taking refuge in an abandoned cottage in the woods after fleeing an emotionally abusive situation, Nate struggles to rally the courage to survive on his own while finding unexpected comfort in the form of a treasure-seeking girl and a friend from the past. By the author of The Goldfish Boy.
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Contact your librarian for more great books for ages 8-11! |
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Jessamine County Public Library 600 South Main Street Nicholasville, Kentucky 40356 859-885-3523www.jesspublib.org |
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