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Anything but Typical
by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Fiction. Kids at school think that Jason Blake is weird. He's autistic, and his constant blinking and frequent hand-flapping definitely make his differences noticeable -- except online, where he posts his brilliant creative writing on the website Storyboard. Through Storyboard, Jason forms an online friendship (maybe more?) with fellow writer Rebecca. But when he learns that he and Rebecca are both attending the Storyboard conference, he's terrified of meeting her in person. This warm and funny novel will be a hit with aspiring writers as well as anyone who knows -- or wonders -- what it's like to be dramatically different.
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| One Jar of Magic by Corey Ann HayduWelcome to: Belling Bright, where 12-year-old Rose can finally join her family in the town's annual magic-capturing day, when they collect the magic they use all year.
What happens: Although Rose expects to be a natural, just like her famously skilled dad, she captures only one tiny jar of magic -- along with her dad's scorn.
Why you might like it: You'll feel for Rose as she reconsiders the importance of magic and realizes some tough truths about her family. |
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13th Street: Battle of the Bad-Breath Bats
by David Bowles; illustrated by Shane Clester
What it's about: While exploring Gulf City's Little Mexico, cousins Malia, Dante, and Ivan accidentally wind up on 13th Street, which isn't a typical street but a creepy otherworld filled with giant, wicked Snatch Bats. Can the cousins make it out safely?
Why you might like it: With spine-tingling scares, short chapters, cartoon art, and progress bars to show you how far you've read, this video game-style chapter book (the 1st in a series) will keep you turning pages.
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A Handful of Stars
by Cynthia Lord
While searching the Maine blueberry barrens for Lucky, her beloved blind dog, 12-year-old Lily finds an unexpected friend in Salma, who's picking blueberries with her migrant family. After Salma cleverly collars the runaway pooch, the girls bond quickly, and soon Salma is lending her creativity to a fundraiser for Lucky's eye surgery, and Lily is supporting Salma as she defies local prejudice and enters the Blueberry Queen pageant.
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| Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids by Cynthia Leitich Smith, editorWhat it's about: At the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow, Native kids from different nations across North America come together to connect, dance, laugh, and remember.
How it's told: Each chapter is a new story from a different Native author, with a shared setting and overlapping characters to link them all together.
What happens: cousins unite, frenemies clash, a kid meets his biological brother, another kid survives a wild road trip with his elders, and a rez dog observes the humans. |
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| Stepping Stones by Lucy KnisleyWhat it’s about: As if it wasn’t bad enough that Jen and her mom moved from the city to Peapod Farm (where Jen is stuck with a whole mess of new chores), Jen also has to put up with her mom’s insensitive boyfriend and his too-perfect daughter Andy. Don’t miss: the scribbly pages from Jen’s notebook, where she pours out her feelings as they change.
For fans of: the realistic graphic novels of Victoria Jamieson, Svetlana Chmakova, and Vera Brosgol. |
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| A Field Guide to Getting Lost by Joy McCulloughStarring: robotics programmer Sutton and fantasy writer Luis, two kids who don't have much in common until their single parents start dating each other.
What happens: Accidentally separated from their parents on a group hike, Sutton and Luis will have to figure out how to turn their differences into strengths if they want to make it back to safety.
Read it for: an authentic, upbeat look at family change, as well as characters you'll want to root for. |
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Fish in a Tree
by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
Ally has gone to seven different schools in seven years, and so far none of her teachers have figured out her secret. Her talents for math, art, and troublemaking help her hide the fact that whenever she tries to read, the letters look scrambled and impossible to understand. Ally is certain that she's just stupid, but her new substitute teacher, Mr. Daniels, isn't fooled. He suggests a different way of learning, but Ally isn't so sure. Could she really be as smart as he thinks she is?
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| The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca SteadWhat it's about: Twelve-year-old Bea looks back on the last few years of her life, describing her parents’ divorce, her dad’s marriage to his boyfriend Jesse, her hope of bonding with new stepsister Sonia, and some stuff she’s not proud of.
Why you might like it: Bea’s messy feelings -- excitement, anger, embarrassment, stress -- are so believable that you’ll feel like she’s a real person you know. |
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| Love Like Sky by Leslie C. YoungbloodWhat it's about: Ever since their parents got divorced, Georgie and her little sister Peaches have been close. And now that their mom is remarried, Georgie longs to be just as close with her teenage stepsister, Tangie...even though Tangie doesn't want anything to do with her.
Why you might like it: It's easy to relate to Georgie's excitement and confusion as she gets used to her newly "blended-up" family in this honest, heartwarming story. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books for ages 8-11!
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