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Bookworm's Top Picks
| 39 Clues #4: Beyond the Grave |
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A Clue found in Book 3 sends Amy and Dan jetting off to find out just what's behind the fierce rivalry between the Tomas and Ekaterina branches of the Cahill family. Was a Clue stolen from the Tomas branch? Where is it now? And most important, can Amy and Dan get their hands on it before their rivals do?
It's a wild race that will take Amy and Dan deep into the bowels of the earth . . . and right into the hands of the enemy. |
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| Fancy Nancy: Explorer Extraordinaire! |
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For the fanciest girl around, the outdoors are out of this world! Fancy Nancy and her best friend, Bree, set out to explore the fascinating world of wildflowers, trees, leaves, birds, and, of course, butterflies in their exclusively glamorous Explorers' Club. With recipes for pinecone bird feeders and extra-fancy lemonade, an official club bird, and an exclusive map of the territory, Fancy Nancy is one Explorer Extraordinaire!
Take a look at Nancy's very own enlightening discoveries and find out just how fancy the outdoors can be! |
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| Magic Tree House #42: A Good Night for Ghosts |
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Jack and Annie are on their second mission to find—and inspire—artists to bring happiness to millions. After traveling to New Orleans, Jack and Annie come head to head with some real ghosts, as well as discover the world of jazz when they meet a young Louis Armstrong!
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| Percy Jackson #5: The Last Olympian |
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All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds of victory are grim. Kronos's army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan's power only grows. While the Olympians struggle to contain the rampaging monster Typhon, Kronos begins his advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it's up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time.
In this momentous final book in the New York Times best-selling Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the long-awaited prophecy surrounding Percy's sixteenth birthday unfolds. And as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a terrifying suspicion that he may be fighting against his own fate.
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| Ranger's Apprentice #6: The Siege of Macindaw |
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| In this desolate northern fief, where can Will find the fighting men he needs to overcome the traitorous Sir Keren and his band of criminals? Across the border, the fierce Scotti tribesmen are waiting for the signal that Castle Macindaw is in friendly hands, and the way is clear to mount a full-scale attack. Time is running out. Will's courage and ingenuity - and the arrival of an old friend - may be the only things that stand in their way. Will is determined to rescue Alyss - even if it means laying siege to an enemy castle! |
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| The Sorceress |
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Nicholas Flamel's heart almost broke as he watched his beloved Paris crumble before him. The city was destroyed by Dee and Machiavelli, but Flamel played his own role in the destruction. Sophie and Josh Newman show every sign of being the twins of prophecy, and Flamel had to protect them and the pages from the Dark Elders.
But Nicholas grows weaker with each passing day. Perenelle is still trapped in Alcatraz, and now that Scatty has gone missing, the group is without protection. Except for Clarent—the twin sword to Excalibur. But Clarent’s power is unthinkable, its evil making it nearly impossible to use without its darkness seeping into the soul of whoever wields it.
If he hopes to defeat Dee, Nicholas must find an Elder who can teach Josh and Sophie the third elemental magic—Water Magic. The problem? The only one who can do that is Gilgamesh, and he is quite, quite insane.
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| Fairest |
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| Levine's enchanting, intelligent fairy tale, set in a kingdom devoted to singing, lends itself well to full-cast production; this one features 32 voices. Composer Todd Hobin has set Levine's lyrics to music; Naughton does a terrific job as maid Aza, the narrator, a demanding role that requires near-operatic talents. Homely Aza, abandoned at birth, not only sings like a lark, she can throw her voice and mimic others, a skill she calls illusing. In a chance meeting, the treacherous new queen, whose abrasive voice has a Valley Girlesque quality, discovers Aza's talent and blackmails the girl into secretly providing her voice for all of the queen's public singing. Additional background music augments the many perilous predicaments Aza finds herself in, as well as providing a backdrop to the fairy-tale romance that develops between her and Prince Ijori. This is a rare case: the book itself is superb, but the audio production surpasses it. Ages 10-up. |
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| Fake Out!: Animals That Play Tricks |
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Did you know that the mimic octopus can change its shape, skin color, and texture to match its surroundings, or that there is a type of goat that faints whenever it feels threatened? Find out about these and other creatures with bizarre behaviors in our fourth "farout" book in our Ginjer L. Clarke All Aboard Science Reader sub-series! | |
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| Gallop!: A Scanimation Picture Book |
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| A first book of motion for kids, it shows a horse in full gallop and a turtle swimming up the page. A dog runs, a cat springs, an eagle soars, and a butterfly flutters. Created by Rufus Butler Seder, an inventor, artist, and filmmaker fascinated by antique optical toys, Scanimation is a state-of-the-art six-phase animation process that combines the "persistence of vision" principle with a striped acetate overlay to give the illusion of movement. It harkens back to the old magical days of the kinetoscope, and the effect is astonishing, like a Muybridge photo series springing into action—or, in terms kids can relate to, like a video without a screen. Complementing the art is a delightful rhyming text full of simple questions and fun, nonsense replies. | |
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| Give Me Liberty-PB |
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| The American Revolution is about to ignite!
Life is tough for thirteen-year-old Nathaniel Dunn, an indentured servant in colonial Virginia. Yet in a twist of luck, he meets Basil, a kind schoolmaster, and an arrangement is struck lending Nathaniel's labor to a Williamsburg carriage maker. Basil introduces Nathaniel to music, books, and philosophies that open his mind to new attitudes about equality. The year is 1775, and as colonists voice their rage over England's taxation, Patrick Henry's words "give me liberty, or give me death" become the sounding call for action. Should Nathaniel and Basil join the fight? What is the meaning of "liberty" in a country reliant on indentured servants and slaves? Nathaniel must face the puzzling choices a dawning nation lays before him. |
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| Gossamer-pb |
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Life is tough for thirteen-year-old Nathaniel Dunn, an indentured servant in colonial Virginia. Yet in a twist of luck, he meets Basil, a kind schoolmaster, and an arrangement is struck lending Nathaniel's labor to a Williamsburg carriage maker. Basil introduces Nathaniel to music, books, and philosophies that open his mind to new attitudes about equality. The year is 1775, and as colonists voice their rage over England's taxation, Patrick Henry's words "give me liberty, or give me death" become the sounding call for action. Should Nathaniel and Basil join the fight? What is the meaning of "liberty" in a country reliant on indentured servants and slaves? Nathaniel must face the puzzling choices a dawning nation lays before him.
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| Marley: A Dog Like No Other |
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John Grogan wrote this adaptation of his #1 New York Times bestselling Marley & Me just for kids. In his own words, here is the heartwarming and unforgettable story of how this big, rambunctious dog becomes the heart of the Grogan family. Meet Marley, a yellow furball of a puppy who quickly grows into a large, rowdy Labrador retriever. With an appetite for nearly anything he can get his mouth around, including couches and fine jewelry, Marley is always getting into trouble. Some may say he's the world's worst dog. But those who know and love Marley accept him as a dog like no other. His heart is pure and his larger-than-life personality irresistible. With unconditional love and loyalty, he brings joy to his family, the Grogans, and teaches them what really matters in life. |
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| Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane |
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| Someone will come for you, but first you must open your heart.once a house on Egypt Street, there lived a china rabbit named Edward Tulane. The rabbit was very pleased with himself, and for good reason: he was owned by a girl named Abilene, who treated him with the utmost care and adored him completely.And then, one day, he was lost.Kate DiCamillo takes us on an extraordinary journey, from the depths of the ocean to the net of a fisherman, from the top of a garbage heap to the fireside of a hoboes' camp, from the bedside of an ailing child to the bustling streets of Memphis. And along the way, we are shown a true miracle—that even a heart of the most breakable kind can learn to love, to lose, and to love again. |
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| My Parents Think I'm Sleeping |
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| From reading under the covers to watching shadows dance on the wall, these fourteen vigorous verses show that a child's life begins at bedtime! |
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| Mysterious Benedict Society-pb |
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| Dozens of children respond to this peculiar ad in the newspaper and are then put through a series of mind-bending tests, which readers take along with them. Only four children-two boys and two girls-succeed. Their challenge: to go on a secret mission that only the most intelligent and inventive children could complete. To accomplish it they will have to go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, where the only rule is that there are no rules. But what they'll find in the hidden underground tunnels of the school is more than your average school supplies. So, if you're gifted, creative, or happen to know Morse Code, they could probably use your help. | |
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| Rickshaw Girl |
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| Naima excels at painting the traditional alpana patterns with which Bangladeshi women and girls decorate their homes for holiday celebrations. But she wishes she could help her father earn money like her best friend helps his family by driving his father's rickshaw. When Naima's rash efforts to help put the family in deeper debt, she draws on her resourceful nature to use her talents and follow the changing model of women's roles in Bangladesh. |
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| Secret History of Tom Trueheart |
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| Tom Trueheart yearns to be an adventurer like his seven older brothers, who travel to the Land of Stories to rescue princesses and defeat villains. He gets his chance on his twelfth birthday, when all of his brothers have gone missing from their adventures, leaving the Story Council deeply concerned. Tom's the only one who stands a chance at saving his brothers, capturing a rogue story–writer, and salvaging the newest tales. | |
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| Simon Bloom, the Gravity Keeper |
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| Ordinary sixth-grader Simon Bloom has just made the biggest discovery since gravity–and it literally fell into his lap. Or onto his head, anyway. You see, Simon has found the Teacher’s Edition of Physics, a magical reference book containing the very formulas that control the laws that govern the universe! By reciting the formulas out loud, he’s able to do the impossible–like reverse the force of gravity to float weightlessly, and reduce friction to zoom across any surface! But a book that powerful isn’t safe with Simon for long. Before he knows it, he is being pursued by evil forces bent on gaining control of the formulas. And they’ll do anything to retrieve them. Now, Simon and his friends must use their wits and the magic of science in a galactic battle for the book, and the future of the universe, in this funny, fast-paced science fiction adventure from first-time author Michael Reisman. | |
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| Talented Clementine |
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| Winner or washout? When it comes to tackling third grade, Clementine is at the top of her game—okay, so maybe not all the time. After her teacher announces that the third and fourth graders will be putting on a talent show, Clementine panics. She doesn't sing or dance or play an instrument. She can't even hop with finesse. And as if she didn't feel bad enough, her perfect best friend, Margaret, has so many talents, she has to alphabetize them to keep them straight. As the night of the big "Talent-palooza" draws closer, Clementine is desperate for an act, any act. But the unexpected talent she demonstrates at the show surprises everyone—most of all herself. This next Clementine book is sure to bring the house down! |
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| There Is a Bird on Your Head! |
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| Gerald is careful. Piggie is not Piggies cannot help smiling. Gerald can. Gerald worries so that Piggie does not have to.Gerald an Piggie are best friends. In There Is a Bird on Your Head! Gerald discovers that there is something worse than a bird on your head -- two birds on your head! Can Piggie help her best friend? |
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| Undercover |
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| Like a modern-day Cyrano de Bergerac, Elisa ghostwrites love notes for the boys in her school. But when Elisa falls for Theo Moses, things change fast. Theo asks for verses to court the lovely Lila—a girl known for her beauty, her popularity, and a cutting ability to remind Elisa that she has none of these. At home, Elisa's father, the one person she feels understands her, has left on an extended business trip. As the days grow shorter, Elisa worries that the increasingly urgent letters she sends her father won't bring him home. Like the undercover agent she feels she has become, Elisa retreats to a pond in the woods, where her talent for ice-skating gives her the confidence to come out from under cover and take center stage. But when Lila becomes jealous of Theo's friendship with Elisa, her revenge nearly destroys Elisa's ice-skating dreams and her plan to reunite her family. |
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| What the Moon Saw |
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| Clara Luna's name means "clear moon" in Spanish. But lately, her head |
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