New Picture Books

Pirates on the Farm - Denette Fretz
Many people are concerned, most of all Mother, when a band of pirates buys the farm next door, but Dad teaches them how to plant seeds, milk cows, ride horses, and much more while simply being a good neighbor.

Boris and Stella and the Perfect Gift - Dara Goldman
Boris and Stella are in love but do not have much money, so Stella sells something very important to her in order to buy Boris a Hanukkah gift, and Boris does likewise to buy Stella a Christmas present.

Once Upon a Northern Night - Jean E. Pendziwol
The beauty and wonder of a northern winter night unfold.

Picture Books & Poetry

Thumpy Feet - Betsy Lewin
Here comes Thumpy Feet! He eats, cleans, plays, hunts, and naps. And he'll win his way into your heart! The onomatopoeic text follows a fun-loving, food-loving, self-satisfied cat as he enjoys the simple pleasures of his daily routines.

Kenta and the Big Wave - Ruth Ohi
When a devastating tsunami strikes Kenta's village his beloved soccer ball is swept away and washes up on a beach on the other side of the world.


Picture a Tree - Barbara Reid
"Explores in words and pictures different ways of seeing and experiencing trees."-- Provided by publisher

Nobody Asked the Pea - John Warren Stewig
Expands upon the classic tale of the princess and the pea as seen through the eyes of the prince, the princess, the king and queen, various servants, a mouse, and even the rather vain pea, itself.


As Fast As Words Could Fly - Pamela M. Tuck
"A thirteen-year-old African American boy in 1960s Greenville, North Carolina, uses his typing skills to make a statement as part of the Civil Rights movement. Based on true events. Includes author's note."--Provided by publisher



Poetry

Poems to Learn by Heart - Caroline Kennedy
For this companion to her "New York Times"-bestselling collection "A Family of Poems," Kennedy has hand-selected more than 100 of her favorite poems that lend themselves to memorization.

Stardines Swim High Across the Sky and Other Poems - Jack Prelutsky
A collection of sixteen humorous poems about such strange creatures as the stardine, slobster, and magpipe.

Upper Elementary & Middle School Books

The Whatnot - Stefan Bachman
Bartholomew Kettle, unable to save his sister, Hettie when she was pushed into the faery Old Country, promised he would find her but sinister forces are still at work and he must rely on Pikey, who would do almost anything to escape his past, to help find her.

Jane, the Fox and Me - Fanny Britt
Hélène is an outcast in her grade. Her only consolation is reading Jane Eyre. Even seeing a lovely fox doesn't make her feel better, but maybe a new friendship will.


Ghost Hawk - Susan Cooper
At the end of a winter-long journey into manhood, Little Hawk returns to find his village decimated by a white man's plague and soon, despite a fresh start, Little Hawk dies violently but his spirit remains trapped, seeing how his world changes.

The Grimm Conclusion - Adam Gidwitz
"Sister and brother Jorinda and Joringel fight to keep their promise to stay together throughout a new series of gruesome, twisted, Grimm-inspired stories."-- Provided by publisher


Donner Dinner Party - Nathan Hale
The Reed family struggles to survive the wagon train journey from Illinois to California as members of the ill-fated Donner Party.

The Great Trouble: A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel
- Deborah Hopkinson
Eel, an orphan, and his best friend Florrie must help Dr. John Snow prove that cholera is spread through water, and not poisonous air, when an epidemic sweeps across their London neighborhood in 1854.


The Abominables - Eva Ibbotson
A century after a yeti captures Lady Agatha Farlingham and takes her to a hidden valley to raise his motherless children, tourism threatens their peaceful existence and young Con and Ellen take these educated and civilized yetis across Europe to Lady Agatha's home in England.

Treasure Hunters - James Patterson
"Following clues left by their missing father, twelve-year-old twins Bickford and Rebecca Kidd sail from the Caribbean to New York City with their siblings to finish the dangerous quest of their world-famous treasure-hunting parents."--Provided by publisher

Hey, Charleston!: The True Story of the Jenkins Orphanage Band - Anne Rockwell
In 1891, Rev. Daniel J. Jenkins stumbled across some homeless African American youths in Charleston, South Carolina, and decided to do something about their plight. As a former slave and orphan himself, Jenkins founded an orphanage for young African American children, the first of its kind in Charleston. But that was only the beginning. The orphanage took in donations of musical instruments and soon formed a jazz band—the only black instrumental group in South Carolina. Before long the young musicians were performing throughout the United States and even Europe. Their tours raised money to support the orphanage—and, against all odds, established Charleston as a flourishing center of African American music culture

New Picture Books

Things That Float and Things That Don't - David A. Adler
"An apple floats in a tub of water, but a ball of aluminum foil sinks to the bottom. But wait. If that same ball of foil is flattened out and shaped into a boat, it floats! How can that be? David A. Adler's clear, concise text and Anna Raff's delightful illustrations explain the basic principles of flotation and density in a way that will really sink in."--Front dust jacket flap


Mr. Tiger Goes Wild - Peter Brown
Bored with city life and the proper behavior it requires, Mr. Tiger has a wild idea that leads him to discover his true nature.


Animal Opposites: A Pop-up Book - Petr Horacek
"Turn the pages, lift the flaps, and see animals of all shapes and sizes bring the world of opposites to life. From slow snail to fast cheetah, heavy hippo to light butterfly, smooth frog to prickly porcupine, Petr Horáek's brightly colored pop-up animals and interactive flaps make early learning irresistible and fun."--Amazon.com

No Monkeys, No Chocolate - Melissa Stewart and Allen Young
When you think of chocolate, you might think of a candy bar, a birthday cake, or a glass of chocolate milk. But where does chocolate come from? This book tells about the cocoa bean, which grows in the tropical rain forests and how the animals and other living things play an important part, even the monkeys.

Christmas Books

Little Santa - Jon Agee
A resident of the North Pole with the ability to slide up and down chimneys meets a flying reindeer and some industrious elves, in this fictional biography of Santa Claus.

Is It Christmas Yet? - Jane Chapman
While waiting impatiently for the big day to arrive, Teddy tries to help Big Bear with Christmas preparations.


Cobweb Christmas - Shirley Climo
Long ago in Germany, an old woman cleans her house and decorates her Christmas tree, hoping that this year she will witness some special Christmas Eve magic.

The Christmas Wish - Lori Evert
Young Anja, whose greatest dream is to be one of Santa's elves, makes friends with the animals that guide her on the journey from her home in the far North to meet Santa.


Itsy Bitsy Christmas: You're Never Too Little for His Love! - Max Lucado
When a donkey tells Itsy and Bitsy, brother and sister mice, that a king is coming to Bethlehem they set out to find him, even though their friends tell them no king would ever come to so small and common a place as Bethlehem.

The Night Before Christmas - Clement C. Moore

Presents an interpretation of Clement C. Moore's timeless classic that renders the story in retro-style watercolors while introducing a wide-eyed child character who heightens the wonders of the magical evening.


Santa Clause and the Three Bears - Maria Madugno
When Papa, Mama and Baby Bear return from a walk on Christmas Eve, they're surprised to find their pudding eaten and their chairs sat in and broken. And who's that asleep in Baby Bear's bed?

New Nonfiction

Do You Dig Earth Science Series - Grades 3-6

Examining Erosion - Joelle Riley
Introduces the concept of erosion, including why it happens, the difference between gradual and drastic erosion, and why erosion is important to the Earth's rock cycle.

Figuring out Fossils - Sally M. Walker
This book describes the process through which fossils are created, and what we can learn from them.


Marveling at Minerals - Sally M. Walker
Readers learn about minerals, their properties, and their uses.

Researching Rocks - Sally M. Walker
By looking at rocks closely, we can tell where they were formed and what conditions they were created in. Learn about ways to research rocks and what they can teach us about our world.


Studying Soil - Sally M. Walker
Soil can be found almost everywhere on Earth. Sand is a soft soil that is found in deserts. Loam is soil that is great for growing plants. But how are these types of soils different? And how are they made? Explore the amazing world of soil in this book.


Uncovering Earth's Crust - Conrad J. Storad
This book describes how mountain ranges, ocean ridges, and the Earth's crust are made.




Grade 6 and Up

Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese American During World War II - Martin W. Sandler
Drawing from interviews and oral histories, chronicles the history of Japanese American survivors of internment camps

YA Fiction

Leap of Faith - Jamie Blair
Seventeen-year-old Faith shepherds her neglectful, drug-addicted mother through her pregnancy and then kidnaps the baby, taking on the responsibility of being her baby sister's parent while hiding from the authorities.

 

Michael Vey 3: Battle of the Ampere - Richard Paul Evans

To stop Hatch from using the Elgen fleet to gain world power, Michael and the rest of the Electroclan must destroy the lead ship, but divisions within the Electroclan threaten the success of their operation.

Linked - Imogen Howson
When Elissa's nightmarish visions and inexplicable bruises lead to the discovery of a battered twin sister on the run from government agents, Elissa enlists the help of an arrogant new graduate from the space academy.

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock - Matthew Quick

A day in the life of a suicidal teen boy saying good-bye to the four people who matter most to him.

Allegiant - Veronica Roth
The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered -- fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she's known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories. But Tris's new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature -- and of herself -- while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice and love

Steelheart - Brandon Sanderson
At age eight, David watched as his father was killed by an Epic, a human with superhuman powers, and now, ten years later, he joins the Reckoners--the only people who are trying to kill the Epics and end their tyranny.

Boxers & Saints - Gene Luen Yang

In two volumes, Boxers & Saints tells two parallel stories. The first, Boxers, is of Little Bao, a Chinese peasant boy whose village is abused and plundered by Westerners claiming the role of missionaries. Little Bao, inspired by visions of the Chinese gods, joins a violent uprising against the Western interlopers. Against all odds, their grass-roots rebellion is successful.

But in the second volume, Saints, Yang lays out the opposite side of the conflict. A girl whose village has no place for her is taken in by Christian missionaries and finds, for the first time, a home with them. As the Boxer Rebellion gains momentum, Vibiana must decide whether to abandon her Christian friends or to commit herself fully to Christianity.
 

Boxers & Saints offers a penetrating insight into not only one of the most controversial episodes of modern Chinese history, but into the very core of our human nature.

Seasonal Books - (Holidays & Winter)

Thanksgiving

One is a Feast for a Mouse - Judy Cox
On Thanksgiving Day while everyone naps, Mouse spots one pea, a perfect feast, but he cannot help adding all of the fixings--until Cat spots him.


Thanksgiving Day Thanks - Laura Malone Elliott
Sam has trouble deciding what he is grateful for during a Thanksgiving-themed classroom assignment. Includes facts about Thanksgiving Day.


Giving Thanks: Poems, Prayers, and Praise Songs of Thanksgiving - edited by Katherine Paterson
Meditations on what it means to be truly grateful are paired with meticulous and exquisite cut-paper illustrations to give you a collection of more than 50 graces, poems and praise songs harvested from a wide range of cultures, religions, and voices.

Hanukkah

Latkes, Latkes Good to Eat: A Chanukah Story - Naomi Howland
In an old Russian village, Sadie and her brothers are poor and hungry until an old woman gives Sadie a frying pan that will make potato pancakes until it hears the magic words that make it stop. This humorous Chanukah story of generosity and greed is accompanied by bright, cheerful illustrations depicting a traditional Russian village and a recipe for latkes.

Hanukkah Bear - Eric A. Kimmel
On the first night of Hanukkah, Old Bear wanders into Bubba Brayna's house and receives a delicious helping of potato latkes when she mistakes him for the rabbi. Includes a recipe for latkes.



Winter
The Very Fairy Princess Sparkles in the Snow - Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton
Gerry, a most enthusiastic singer, is certain her music teacher will choose her to perform the solo at the Winter Wonderland Festival, and when someone else is chosen it takes a snowfall to bring Gerry's sparkle back.

Snowflakes Fall - Patricia MacLachlan
In this illustrated poem in honor of the victims of the 2012 shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, falling snowflakes celebrate the uniqueness of life, its precious, simple moments, and the strength of memory.

Winter is for Snow - Robert Neubecker
"A brother and sister help each other learn to appreciate the joys of winter."-- Provided by publisher