All Books
The Afterlife Academy
Frank L. Cole
Synopsis: Fans of Adam Gidwitz and Neil Gaiman will love this middle-grade adventure about two boys, a mysterious, old book with some dark secrets, and a horde of angry demons. Nothing could go wrong, right?

When Walter Prairie is struck dead by a bolt of lightning, he’s fast-tracked through the Afterlife Academy and assigned as a Guardian Agent to protect a High-Level Target.
   Walter’s HLT, Charlie Dewdle, isn’t the most popular kid in school. He’s a bit paranormally obsessed. And he has just found an old book that could be used to open the Gateway for demons to wreak havoc on earth.
   Now, it’s up to Charlie and Walter to fight an eclectic horde of enemies and protect humankind at all costs. But saving the world isn’t so easy. Especially when your protector doesn’t know the first thing about the underworld, bullies like Mo Horvath are trying to hunt you down, pretty and popular Melissa Bittner is suddenly talking to you, and your parents think you’re going crazy.

A Whitney Award Nominee
 
“An appealing ghost story without being creepy, this title would be a great read for any reader looking for a mix of adventure and humor.”—School Library Journal
 
“A fun, suspenseful read. . . . Cole's fast-paced fantasy can be enjoyed by the entire family.”—Deseret News

"The adventure of a lifetime--or after-lifetime."--OBERT SKYE, author of the Leven Thumps series

"A fast-paced and fun adventure that puts a new twist on the afterlife!"--PLATTE F. CLARK, author of Bad Unicorn
 
“Tons of fun and adventure with every turn of the page. . . . This is the perfect middle-grade book, and I loved it!”—LDSWBR

A Whitney Award Nominee
 
“An appealing ghost story without being creepy, this title would be a great read for any reader looking for a mix of adventure and humor.”—School Library Journal
 
“A fun, suspenseful read. . . . Cole's fast-paced fantasy can be enjoyed by the entire family.”—Deseret News

"The adventure of a lifetime--or after-lifetime."--OBERT SKYE, author of the Leven Thumps series

"A fast-paced and fun adventure that puts a new twist on the afterlife!"--PLATTE F. CLARK, author of Bad Unicorn
 
“Tons of fun and adventure with every turn of the page. . . . This is the perfect middle-grade book, and I loved it!”—LDSWBR
Publication Date: 09/08/15
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Paranormal
Stand-Off
Sam Bosma, Andrew Smith
Synopsis: Ryan Dean West is back to his boarding school antics in this bitingly funny sequel to Winger, which Publishers Weekly called “alternately hilarious and painful, awkward and enlightening” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

It’s his last year at Pine Mountain, and Ryan Dean should be focused on his future, but instead, he’s haunted by his past. His rugby coach expects him to fill the roles once played by his lost friend, Joey, as the rugby team’s stand-off and new captain. And somehow he’s stuck rooming with twelve-year-old freshman Sam Abernathy, a cooking whiz with extreme claustrophobia and a serious crush on Annie Altman—aka Ryan Dean’s girlfriend, for now, anyway.

Equally distressing, Ryan Dean’s doodles and drawings don’t offer the relief they used to. He’s convinced N.A.T.E. (the Next Accidental Terrible Experience) is lurking around every corner—and then he runs into Joey’s younger brother Nico, who makes Ryan Dean feel paranoid that he’s avoiding him. Will Ryan Dean ever regain his sanity?

From the author of the National Book Award–nominated 100 Sideways Miles, which Kirkus Reviews called “a wickedly witty and offbeat novel,” Stand-Off is filled with hand-drawn infographics and illustrations and delivers the same spot-on teen voice and relatable narrative that legions of readers connected with in Winger.
Publication Date: 09/08/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Wielder Diaries: My Crystal
Synopsis: At five, her presence alone could transform lions into human-like beings. At nine, she could manipulate everything inanimate, in turn, creating her surroundings to her liking. She is their Saqui, a precious child with awesome power. Now, if she could only remember. A 12-year-old girl awakens after a long sleep and, mysteriously, has no recollection of her past. Upon the insistence of four, who claim to be her guardians and friends, Kayla begins to read from a bizarre diary, hoping to gain her memories before she loses her kingdom. A journey of self-discovery, wonder and adventure begins when she opens the covers made of crystal.
Publication Date: 09/05/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Dragons & Magic
Linda M. Crate
Synopsis: Syn Seifer has never been one for confrontation or problems despite the faerie's capacity to turn into a dragon, she would much rather fly away from her problems until they go away. Yet this time it isn't an option. Syn must learn to deal with her problems and face reality and its ugly truths or risk losing the friendship of her dear friends Morgan and Byrant. It doesn't help that she has a crush on Morgan d'Ernos whose heart belongs to the corrupt and vile princess Cinder. Yet Syn is the only one that truly knows the evils of this girl’s heart. In order to protect Morgan, however, she hasn't said a word. However, some secrets aren't meant to be kept. Syn Seifer must learn how to be brave or watch as her friends go down in the flames of destruction.
Publication Date: 09/02/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Remarkable Minds: 16 More Pioneering Women in Science and Medicine
Synopsis: Winner:
2015 Foreword Reviews INDIEFAB Book of the Year, Juvenile Nonfiction (Children's)

Full of the inspirational stories girls need for exploring a future in science  


For centuries, women have risen above their traditional roles to pursue a new understanding of the natural world. This book, which grows out of an exhibit at the Grolier Club in New York, introduces the lives, sayings, and dreams of 16 women over four centuries and chronicles their contributions to mathematics, physics, chemistry, astronomy, and medicine. Some of the notable women portrayed in the book include French mathematician Marie-Sophie Germain, known for her work in Elasticity theory, differential geometry, and number theory; Scottish chemist Elizabeth Fulhame, best known for her 1794 work An Essay on Combustion; and Rita Levi-Montalcini, who, with colleague Stanley Cohen, received the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery of nerve growth factor. A companion volume to Magnificent Minds by the same author, this book offers inspiration to all girls and young women considering a life in the sciences. 
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Nonfiction
Out of Darkness
Ashley Hope Pérez
Synopsis: A 2016 Michael L. Printz Honor Book

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year

A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

2016 Tomás Rivera Book Award Winner


"[This] layered tale of color lines, love and struggle in an East Texas oil town is a pit-in-the-stomach family drama that goes down like it should, with pain and fascination, like a mix of sugary medicine and artisanal moonshine." The New York Times Book Review


"This is East Texas, and there's lines. Lines you cross, lines you don't cross. That clear?"

New London, Texas. 1937. Naomi Vargas and Wash Fuller know about the lines in East Texas as well as anyone. They know the signs that mark them. They know the people who enforce them. But sometimes the attraction between two people is so powerful it breaks through even the most entrenched color lines. And the consequences can be explosive.

Ashley Hope Pérez takes the facts of the 1937 New London school explosion the worst school disaster in American history as a backdrop for a riveting novel about segregation, love, family, and the forces that destroy people.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Historical Fiction
Testing the Truth
Shannon Knudsen
Synopsis: "I may be in trouble…but there's more to my story.



When Kai Tamura sneaks into Ms. Opal's classroom for a look at an upcoming exam, he discovers that he's not the only one breaking rules. Ms. Opal is changing answers on her students' standardized tests and Kai snaps some photos to prove it.



Kai doesn't decide to bust Ms. Opal right away. He was trying to cheat too, after all. But a classroom conflict forces Kai to put Ms. Opal's actions out in the open. Soon Kai has a new problem: people don't believe him. Forget about a lousy exam score Kai's suspension from school will really hurt his record, unless he can prove his photos are legit.



[List of series titles]
"
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
A Cut Too Far
Herman Brown
Synopsis: School has never been fun for Chace. Because of his huge jaw and crooked teeth, he rarely gets through a day of classes without bullies like Ivan taunting him. Things worsen when Chace's mom starts dating an Iranian man and Ivan's harassment takes a racist turn. Chace has had enough and decides to retaliate. But when Chace's Internet threats backfire, the result is a suspension from school. Now Chace will have to explain to his mom how his attempt to defend her made him look like the bad guy. And he'll have to figure out how to deal with a struggle that he can't seem to win.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Series
Over the Tracks
Heather Duffy-Stone
Synopsis: For most of Lucy's life, it's just been her and her mom, and Lucy's been okay with that. But when a serious illness strikes Lucy's mother, Lucy has to grow up faster than she expected. As the illness gets worse and money gets tighter, even a school trip?which Lucy hoped would give her a break from home?seems out of reach. Out of frustration and desperation, Lucy starts selling her mom's medical marijuana. But she's not exactly an experienced dealer. And when Lucy gets busted, she has some serious explaining to do?to school authorities, to the police, and to her mom.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Series
Paper Hearts
Meg Wiviott
Synopsis: Amid the brutality of Auschwitz during the Holocaust, a forbidden gift helps two teenage girls find hope, friendship, and the will to live in this novel in verse that’s based on a true story.

An act of defiance.
A statement of hope.
A crime punishable by death.

Making a birthday card in Auschwitz was all of those things. But that is what Zlatka did, in 1944, for her best friend, Fania. She stole and bartered for paper and scissors, secretly creating an origami heart. Then she passed it to every girl at the work tables to sign with their hopes and wishes for happiness, for love, and most of all—for freedom.

Fania knew what that heart meant, for herself and all the other girls. And she kept it hidden, through the bitter days in the camp and through the death marches. She kept it always.

This novel is based on the true story of Fania and Zlatka, the story of the bond that helped them both to hope for the best in the face of the worst. Their heart is one of the few objects created in Auschwitz, and can be seen today in the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Poetry
Violent Ends
Neal Shusterman, Elisa Nader, E. M. Kokie, Mindi Scott, Margie Gelbwasser, Christine Johnson, Hannah Moskowitz, Trish Doller, Blythe Woolston, Tom Leveen, Steve Brezenoff, Delilah S. Dawson, Courtney Summers, Kendare Blake, Beth Revis, Cynthia Leitich Smith, Brendan Shusterman, Shaun David Hutchinson
Synopsis: In a one-of-a-kind collaboration, seventeen of the most recognizable YA writers—including Shaun David Hutchinson, Neal and Brendan Shusterman, and Beth Revis—come together to share the viewpoints of a group of students affected by a school shooting.

It took only twenty-two minutes for Kirby Matheson to exit his car, march onto the school grounds, enter the gymnasium, and open fire, killing six and injuring five others.

But this isn’t a story about the shooting itself. This isn’t about recounting that one unforgettable day.

This is about Kirby and how one boy—who had friends, enjoyed reading, playing saxophone in the band, and had never been in trouble before—became a monster capable of entering his school with a loaded gun and firing on his classmates.

Each chapter is told from a different victim’s viewpoint, giving insight into who Kirby was and who he’d become. Some are sweet, some are dark; some are seemingly unrelated, about fights or first kisses or late-night parties. This is a book of perspectives—with one character and one event drawing them all together—from the minds of some of YA’s most recognizable names.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Hilo - The Boy Who Crashed to Earth
Synopsis: "An action-packed page turner with heart!"—Dav Pilkey, author of DOG MAN
Dog Man meets Big Nate in HILO-the hilarious New York Times Bestselling GRAPHIC NOVEL SERIES kids love! "A Total BLAST," says the Miami Herald!

BOOM! CLANG! CRASH! D.J. and Gina are totally ordinary kids. But Hilo isn't!  Hilo just fell out of the sky and doesn’t know where he came from, or what he’s doing on Earth. (Or why going to school in only your underwear is a BAD idea!) . . . But UH-OH, what if Hilo wasn’t the only thing to fall to our planet? Can the trio unlock the secrets of Hilo's past? Can Hilo SURVIVE a day at school? Find out in HILO-a laugh-out-loud, epic story of friendship! Adventure! (And the occasionaly mutant space robot).
 
Here's what people (and robots!) are saying about Hilo!
* Children's Choice 5th-6th Grade Book of the Year!

* Nominated for multiple State Awards—including the Pennsylvania's Young Reader's Choice Award!

“More giant robotic ants and people going 'Aaaah!' than in the complete works of Jane Austen”—Neil Gaiman, bestselling author

“Every kid would love a pal like HILO, and every kid will love this book!” —Lincoln Peirce, bestselling author of the Big Nate series

“HILO is delightful, silly, tender, and most importantly: funny.” —Jeff Smith, bestselling author of the Bone series

"Fast paced, furiously funny, and will have kids waiting on the edge of their seats for more."—Jeffrey Brown, bestselling author of Jedi Academy

"A perfect book for any kid who ever needed a friend and then had one with superpowers fall from space.” —Seth Meyers, actor, comedian and writer

* "A wholeheartedly weird and wonderful tale of friendship, acceptance, and robots."—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

* "A must-have."—School Library Journal, Starred Review

"Good clean laser-beams-coming-outta-your-hands fun for the whole family."—http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/


"A story that can be enjoyed by the entire family."—The New York Times

"My students are obsessed with this series. OBSESSED!"—Colby Sharp, teacher, blogger, and co-founder of Nerdy Bookclub
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Manga/Graphic Novel
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Ingrid Law
Synopsis: Ingrid Law delivers another heartwarming story about the magic of friendship and the power of family in this companion to her Newbery Honor winning Savvy

Gypsy Beaumont has always been a whirly-twirly free spirit, so as her thirteenth birthday approaches, she hopes to get a magical ability that will let her fly, or dance up to the stars. Instead, she wakes up on her birthday with blurry vision . . . and starts seeing flashes of the future and past. But when Momma and Poppa announce that her very un-magical, downright mean Grandma Pat has Alzheimer’s and is going to move in with them, Gypsy’s savvy—along with her family’s—suddenly becomes its opposite. Now it’s savvy mayhem as Gypsy starts freezing time, and no one could have predicted what would happen on their trip to bring Grandma Pat home  . . . not even Gypsy.
 
With her trademark style and whimsical, beautiful language, Ingrid Law has written another wonderfully moving companion to her Newbery Honor winning Savvy.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Fantasy
Everything Everything
Nicola Yoon
Synopsis: The instant #1 New York Times bestseller--now a major motion picture starring Amandla Stenberg as Maddy and Nick Robinson as Olly. 

Risk everything . . . for love.

What if you couldn’t touch anything in the outside world? Never breathe in the fresh air, feel the sun warm your face . . . or kiss the boy next door? In Everything, Everything, Maddy is a girl who’s literally allergic to the outside world, and Olly is the boy who moves in next door . . . and becomes the greatest risk she’s ever taken. 

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.
 
But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He's tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.
 
Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

Everything, Everything will make you laugh, cry, and feel everything in between. It's an innovative,  inspiring, and heartbreakingly romantic debut novel that unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, illustrations, and more. 

The movie is available on digital now!

everythingeverythingfilm on Instagram
@everythingfilm on Twitter
@everythingeverythingmovie on Facebook
everythingeverythingmovie.com

And don’t miss Nicola Yoon's The Sun Is Also A Star, the #1 New York Times bestseller in which two teens are brought together just when it seems like the universe is sending them in opposite directions.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
A 52-Hertz Whale
Bill Sommer, Natalie Haney Tilghman
Synopsis: Fourteen-year-old James is worried that the young humpback whale he tracks online has separated from its pod, so he emails Darren, the twentysomething would-be filmmaker who once volunteered in James's special education program. Of course, Darren is useless on the subject of whales, but he's got nothing but time, given that the only girl he could ever love dumped him.

Predictably, this thread of emails leads to a lot of bizarre stuff, including a yeti suit, drug smuggling, a graveyard, damaged echolocation, choke holds, emergency dentistry...and maybe ends with something like understanding. See, the thing that binds people together most is their fear that nothing binds them together at all.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Environment
Last Night at the Circle Cinema
Synopsis: Olivia, Bertucci, and Codman were the trio no one else in high school could quite figure out, an impenetrable triangle of friendship. Now they're graduating and about to start new lives away at college and without one another. Beyond their friendship, there's one thing they have in common: the Circle Cinema, a once-thriving old movie theater now reduced to a boarded up concrete box, condemned and about to be forgotten forever which is, as far as Olivia and Codman can tell, a lot like what's going to happen to them.

So in one last desperate effort to hold on to the secrets they share, Bertucci hatches a plan an experiment, really. He convinces Olivia and Codman to join him in spending their last night before graduation locked inside the cinema's concrete walls. None of them can open the box before sunrise. Over the course of the night, the trio is then forced to face one another, the events of the past year, and whatever is to come when the new day dawns.

Emily Franklin's Last Night at the Circle Cinema is the story of a friendship's end and moving rebirth.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction

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