Wednesday, June 30, 2010

New in July

The Gardener
By S. A. Bodeen

When high school sophomore Mason finds a beautiful but catatonic girl in the nursing home where his mother works, the discovery leads him to revelations about a series of disturbing human experiments that have a connection to his own life.

The Mitochondrial Curiosities of Marcels 1 to 19
By Jocelyn Brown

Dree can't wait to leave Edmonton for the Renegade Craft Fair in Toronto, but when her father has a fatal heart attack her attention turns to investigating clues about her parents' past, while attempting to pass science class and grieve for her father.

You Can Do a Graphic Novel
By Barbara Slate

Graphic novelist Barbara Slate guides those who want to create graphic novels through the process of developing their own styles, creating engaging stories, and understanding the graphic novel industry.






Payback
By Rosemary Hayes

Halima, a teenaged Muslim girl living in London, discovers her father owes a favor to a distant relative in Pakistan and must repay the debt by forcing Halima into marriage.


The Line
By Teri Hall
Rachel thinks that she and her mother are safe working for Ms. Moore at her estate close to The Line, an invisible border of the Unified States, but when Rachel has an opportunity to Cross into the forbidden zone, she is both frightened and intrigued.


Choppy Socky Blues
By Ed Briant

In the South of England, fourteen-year-old Jay resumes contact with his father, a movie stuntman and karate instructor, after two years of estrangement to impress a girl who turns out to be the girlfriend of Jay's former best friend.


She Thief
By Daniel Finn

When Demi--a master pickpocket working for the gang leader Fay--steals a ring, his partner in crime, Baz, soon finds herself alone and betrayed as police and the Barrio's crime boss close in on Fay and her den of child thieves.


Bro-Jitsu: The Martial Art of Sibling Smackdown
By Daniel H. Wilson

Presents a humorous look into sibling rivalry while examining classic moves such as, noogies, wedgies, and the wet-towel snap.


Thief Eyes
By Janni Lee Simner

Haley's mother disappeared while on a trip to Iceland, and a year later, when her father takes her there to find out what happened, Haley finds herself deeply involved in an ancient saga that began with her Nordic ancestors.


Friend Is Not a Verb
By Daniel Ehrenhaft

While sixteen-year-old Hen's family and friends try to make his supposed dreams of becoming a rock star come true, he deals with the reality of being in a band with an ex-girlfriend, a friendship that may become love, and his older sister's mysterious disappearance and reappearance.


The Plague
By Joanne Dahme

Nell acts as a bodydouble for Princess Joan, but after Joan dies of the plague, her brother, the Black Prince, wants Nell to assume the princess' identity and marry a prince, while Nell tries to escape in order to tell the king the truth about his daughter.

Monday, May 31, 2010

New Nonfiction Additions

World of the Weird
By Tracey Turner

Find out about weird real-life phenomena and mind-boggling scientific adventures and follow instructions for such activities as bringing a dead plant back to life, growing a bacteria colony, and making ectoplasm.







How to Be a Genius: Your Brain and How to Train It
By John Woodward

This bright and colorful guide to the brain describes how the brain works and how it makes people unique. It includes puzzles, games, quizzes, and optical illusions to sharpen the wit.




Illustrated Book of Myths: Tales and Legends of the World
Retold by Neil Philip

Every culture in history has had its own myths to help explain the world through the power of story. This engaging book offers a delightful, sweeping view of world mythology--not just the famous stories of the Greeks and Romans, but also the stories of Native Americans and legends from South America, Africa, Scandinavia, Asia, and Australia. Young readers will learn about Zeus and Pandora from Greece, King Arthur from England, Maui-of-a-Thousand-Tricks from Polynesia, the Rainbow Serpent from West Africa, and dozens of other colorful, larger-than-life characters from around the world. (Summary from Amazon.com)


Vampireology: The True History of the Fallen Ones
By Archibald Brooks

Explore the legends of vampires. This book, which purports to be written in 1900, shows letters between a researcher and a young woman who needs help. It sheds light on what happened to three historic vampire bloodlines, how the and that includes booklets, flaps, and letters between the young researcher who discovered it in the 1920s and an alluring woman who seeks his help.


Say What? The Weird and Mysterious Journey of the English Language
By Gena K. Gorrell

What makes English so weird? Why doesn’t it make sense? This book presents the history of the modern English language and how previous languages and civilizations influenced its development and shows how all those influences came together to make English its lovable, troublesome self.




Charles Darwin’s On The Origin of Species: A Graphic Adaptation
Story by Michael Keller

A stunning graphic adaptation of one of the most famous, contested, and important books of all time: "On the Origin of Species." Includes sections about Darwin's pioneering research, the book's initial public reception, his correspondence with other leading scientists, as well as the most recent breakthroughs in evolutionary theory.




My Anxious Mind
By Michael A. Tomkins and Katherine A. Martinez

Learn how to deal with anxiety. The author offers ways for teens with anxiety to improve their inter-personal skills, whether it be with friends, family, or teachers; manage stress; handle panic attacks; use diet and exercise appropriately; and decide whether medication is right for them.






Learn to Speak Music: A Guide to Creating, Performing, & Promoting Your Songs
By John Crossingham

This guide to help teens learn music by revealing every nook and cranny of how it's made. It explores every aspect of the pop music world, from songwriting and artwork to promotion and setting up a practice space. Special features include: insider's advice on choosing and buying an instrument, finding the right bandmates, setting up gigs, overcoming stage fright, emulating high-priced studio techniques at home, and much more. Also featured is a guide to shooting a music video from MTVA-nominated director Christopher Mills.



Time You Let Me In

Twenty-five poets under age twenty-five share poems about life, family, friends, and more. This collection of raw, passionate poetry puts a new spin on daily life.








Snapshot: The Visual Almanac for Our World Today

"Snapshot" explains the facts behind today's big issues, while also spotting trends hiding beneath the surface. "Snapshot" explains not just how the world works today, but also how things might work tomorrow.





More about Boy: Roald Dahl’s Tales from Childhood
By Roald Dahl

Go behind the scenes in Roald Dahl’s life. The creator of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, and other fabulous stories shares inspirations for his books, including tales of sweet shops and chocolate, mean old ladies and a Great Mouse Plot.

Saturday, May 01, 2010

New in May

Thirteen Days to Midnight
By Patrick Carman

In the aftermath of the accident that killed his foster father, high school student Jacob Fielding discovers that he has acquired the power of indestructibility, and the more he learns about it the more he realizes that it is a heavy burden, if not a curse.





My Life with the Lincolns
By Gayle Brandeis

In 1966 Illinois, twelve-year-old Wilhelmina, convinced that she, her parents, and sisters are Abraham Lincoln's family reincarnated, determines to keep them from suffering the same fates, which is complicated when she and her father become involved in the Civil Rights Movement.





Happyface
By Stephen Edmond

After going through traumatic times, a troubled, socially awkward teenager moves to a new school where he tries to reinvent himself.







My Invisible Boyfriend
By Susie Day

In a British alternative high school, fifteen-year-old Heidi stands out in many ways, but when she invents a boyfriend--complete with online profile--her friends turn to him for advice and she must decide how far she is willing to go to find acceptance.





Borderline
By Allan Stratton

Despite the strained relationship between them, teenaged Sami Sabiri risks his life to uncover the truth when his father is implicated in a terrorist plot.







The Unwritten Rule
By Elizabeth Scott

Petite and young-looking, seventeen-year-old Sarah has been best friends with the glamorous and seductive Brianna forever, but when she starts liking Brianna's boyfriend, their friendship becomes precarious.






Mac Slater Hunts the Cool
By Tristan Bancks

Mac, an Australian youth, has one week to prove that he can be a "coolhunter," identifying emerging trends and posting images on a website, but he is competing against a classmate on whom he has a crush and dealing with resistance from his best friend and his own confusion over what "cool" means.




Foiled
By Jane Yolen

Outcast Aliera Carstairs may not fit in at school, but she's always a star in her fencing class, so when Avery Castle walks into her first period biology class, she must find a way to be noticed by the possible Prince Charming.





Missing in Action
By Dean Hughes

While his father is missing in action in the Pacific during World War II, twelve-year-old Jay moves with his mother to small-town Utah, where he sees prejudice from both sides, as a part-Navajo himself and through an unlikely friendship with Japanese American Ken from the nearby internment camp.




Little Miss Red
By Robin Palmer

Sixteen-year-old Sophie's dream of meeting her soul mate during spring break in Florida seems to have come true, but she must determine if Jack is really the romantic hero he seems to be, or if ex-boyfriend Michael could be.

Thursday, April 01, 2010

New in April

Finnikin of the Rock
By Melina Marchetta

Now on the cusp of manhood, Finnikin, who was a child when the royal family of Lumatere was brutally murdered and replaced by an imposter, reluctantly joins forces with an enigmatic young novice and fellow-exile, who claims that her dark dreams will lead them to a surviving royal child and a way to regain the throne of Lumatere.




A Spy in the House
By Y. S. Lee

Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan and thief Mary Quinn is offered a place at Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls where she is trained to be part of an all-female investigative unit called The Agency and, at age seventeen, she infiltrates a rich merchant's home in hopes of tracing his missing cargo ships.




Possessed
By Kate Cann

Sixteen-year-old Rayne escapes London, her mother, and boyfriend for a job in the country at Morton's Keep, where she is drawn to a mysterious clique and its leader, St. John, but puzzles over whether the growing evil she senses is from the manor house or her new friends.





Vintage Veronica
By Erica S. Perl

Taking a dream job in a vintage clothing store where she hopes to immerse herself in great fashion finds, lonely plus-sized teen Veronica is unexpectedly befriended by two salesgirls and urged to spy on an awkward stock boy who unexpectedly captures her heart.





Heist Society
By Ally Carter

A group of teenagers uses their combined talents to re-steal several priceless paintings and save fifteen-year-old Kat Bishop's father, himself an international art thief, from a vengeful collector.






The Carbon Diaries 2017
By Saci Lloyd

In 2017, two years after England introduces carbon dioxide rationing to combat climatic change, eighteen-year-old Laura chronicles her first year at a London university as natural disasters and political upheaval disrupt her studies.





Poisoned Honey: A Story of Mary Magdalene
By Beatrice Gormley

Relates events from the life of a girl who would grow up to be a close follower of Jesus Christ, interspersed with stories of the Apostle Matthew. Includes author's note distinguishing what Scripture says of Mary Magdalene from later traditions.





All Unquiet Things
By Anna Jarzab

After the death of his ex-girlfriend Carly, northern California high school student Neily joins forces with Carly's cousin Audrey to try to solve her murder.






The Mark
By Jen Nadol

While in Kansas living with an aunt she never knew existed and taking a course in philosophy, sixteen-year-old Cass struggles to learn what, if anything, she should do with her ability to see people marked to die within a day's time.

Monday, March 01, 2010

New in March

8th Grade Superzero
By Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich

After half-heartedly joining his church youth group's project at a homeless shelter near his Brooklyn middle school, eighth-grade "loser" Reggie McKnight is inspired to run for school office on a platform of making a real difference in the community.



Struts and Frets
By Jon Skovron

Sammy wants to be a musician, as was his grandfather, but while the band he is in is self-destructing, Sammy is too distracted by his grandfather's decline and confused feelings about his best friend to fix it--and his mother stays too busy to help.

Darklight
By Lesley Livingston

After a dangerous encounter in Central Park, actress Kelley Winslow, who has only recently learned that she is a Faerie, journeys to the Otherworld and begins to untangle the strands of a magical conspiracy with far-reaching consequences.

Flightsend
By Linda Newbery

When Charlie's depressed mother decides to start over, they move to a ramshackle cottage in the country, where Charlie struggles to make friends and develop her artistic skills while her mother tries to launch a business.

The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin
By Josh Berk

Feeling like an outcast in his new high school because of his hearing impairment and large-framed body, Will Halpin befriends a fellow misfit who may have solved the mystery behind the suspicious death of a star quarterback.

Just Another Girl
By Melody Carlson

Sixteen-year-old Aster, caught between a self-absorbed older sister and a mentally-disabled younger one, yearns for a normal life and, with her first boyfriend's encouragement and trust in God, she begins to make things better.

After Ever After
By Jordan Sonnenblick

Although Jeff and Tad, encouraged by a new friend, Lindsey, make a deal to help one another overcome aftereffects of their cancer treatments in preparation for eighth-grade graduation, Jeff still craves advice from his older brother Stephen, who is studying drums in Africa.

Eli the Good
By Silas House

In the summer of 1976, ten-year-old Eli Book's excitement over Bicentennial celebrations is tempered by his father's flashbacks to the Vietnam War and other family problems, as well as concern about his tough but troubled best friend, Edie.

Broadway Lights
By Jen Calonita

Hollywood teen starlet Katilin Burke moves to New York for the summer to appear in a Broadway show, all the while worrying about her boyfriend back in Los Angeles, her handsome new co-star, and the offstage drama going on around her.

Monday, February 01, 2010

New in February

Ice
By Sarah Beth Durst

A modern-day retelling of "East o' the Sun, West o' the Moon" in which eighteen-year-old Cassie learns that her grandmother's fairy tale is true when a Polar Bear King comes to claim her for his bride and she must decide whether to go with him and save her long-lost mother, or continue helping her father with his research.

Banquet for Hungry Ghosts: A Collection of Deliciously Frightening Tales
By Ying Chang Compestine


Presents an eight-course banquet of ghost stories centering around Chinese cooking and culture. Each story is followed by a recipe and historical notes.


The Dark Divine
By Bree Despain


Grace Divine, almost seventeen, learns a dark secret when her childhood friend--practically a brother--returns, upsetting her pastor-father and the rest of her family, around the time strange things are happening in and near their small Minnesota town.



The Long Way Home
By Andrew Klavan

As eighteen-year-old Charlie West continues to elude the law and the group of terrorists looking for him, he tries to remember what happened a year ago and find out who has framed him so he can clear his name.



The Indigo Notebook
By Laura Resau

Fifteen-year-old Zeeta comes to terms with her flighty mother and their itinerant life when, soon after moving to Ecuador, she helps an American teenager find his birth father in a nearby village.



Blood Ninja
By Nick Lake


After his father is murdered and a ninja saves his life, Taro discovers the connection between ninjas and vampires and finds himself being dragged into a bitter conflict between the rival lords ruling Japan.


Hazel
By Julie Hearn


Thirteen-year-old Hazel leaves her comfortable, if somewhat unconventional, London home in 1913 after her father has a breakdown, and goes to live in the Caribbean on her grandparents' sugar plantation where she discovers some shocking family secrets.


The Magician of Hoad
By Margaret Mahy



Heriot Tarbas, a twelve-year-old farm boy who possesses mysterious powers, is chosen by the King of Hoad to be the court's royal magician.



Running on the Cracks
By Julia Donaldson


After her parents are killed in an accident, English teenager Leonora Watts-Chan runs away to Glasgow, Scotland, to find her Chinese grandparents.



A Brief History of Montmaray
By Michelle Cooper



On her sixteenth birthday in 1936, Sophia begins a diary of life in a fictional island country off the coast of Spain, where she is among the last descendants of an impoverished royal family trying to hold their nation together on the eve of the second World War.