Family

At the start of this novel, set in the 1840s, Lyddie Worthen’s father abandons the family in search of work. Fourteen-year-old Lyddie cares for her family until her mother gives her away as a servant in order to settle a debt. The kindness of her Quaker neighbors, a friend’s loan of five silver dollars, and a generously repaid debt from a runaway slave, help Lyddie to cling to her dream of saving her family’s farm. After years of toiling in a sewing mill in Lowell, Massachusetts, Lyddie earns enough to save the farm, but uses the money to save her siblings from a fate similar to her own. Just as the mill’s machinery passes thread from one loom to the next, the characters in the story pass gifts — tangible and intangible — to one another. This empowering novel about hardship, determination, giving, and love shows readers that the most beautiful aspect of humans is the humanity that lies within us.

What could be sweeter than adorable baby animals snuggling with their mommies? This simple board book with warm illustrations feature a variety of animals and celebrate the affection between mothers and children. Cuddles and kisses will surely abound when reading this aloud!

Allie Finkle is just nine years old, but she’s convinced that the good part of her life is over. Her parents have moved her and her brothers from their moderately stylish home to a creaky old Victorian house in the weirdest part of town. Allie’s adjustment to this pre-adolescent apocalypse is the subject of this exciting novel by Meg Cabot, best known as the author of the Princess Diaries.

When November Nelson loses her boyfriend, Josh, to a pledge stunt gone horribly wrong, she thinks her life can’t possibly get any worse. But Josh left something behind that will change November’s life forever, and now she’s faced with the biggest decision she could ever imagine. How in the world will she tell her mom? And how will Josh’s parents take the news? She’s never needed a friend more.

Jericho Prescott lost his best friend when he lost his cousin, Josh, and the pain is almost more than he can bear. His world becomes divided into “before” and “after” Josh’s death. He finds the only way he can escape the emptiness he feels is to quit doing the things that made him happy when his cousin was alive, such as playing his beloved trumpet, and take up football, where he hopes the physical pain will suppress the emotional.
But will hiding behind shoulder pads really help? And will his gridiron obsession prevent him from being there for his cousin’s girlfriend when she needs him most?

This sequel to The Battle of Jericho is a no-holds-barred look at
what happens when life doesn’t go as planned, by the acclaimed author of the 2007 Coretta Scott King Award winner Copper Sun.

Sun & Spoon proves that Kevin Henkes is just as adept at writing for older readers as he is at creating award-winning picture books like Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse, Chrysanthemum, and the Caldecott Honor Book Owen. After his grandmother’s death, ten-year-old Spoon Gilmore longs for just the right memento to preserve her memory. His search–through keepsakes, family stories, and his journal about her–leads him into a new understanding of death, memory, and family, as well as a deeper relationship with his grandfather. One of the few novels about mourning written for middle-graders, this earnest novel will not only help students deal with loss but also give them new words and ways to express their feelings.

The bestselling book for every boy from eight to eighty, covering essential boyhood skills such as building tree houses, learning how to fish, finding true north, and even answering the age old question of what the big deal with girls is. In this digital age there is still a place for knots, skimming stones and stories of incredible courage. This book recaptures Sunday afternoons, stimulates curiosity, and makes for great father-son activities. The brothers Conn and Hal have put together a wonderful collection of all things that make being young or young at heart fun—building go-carts and electromagnets, identifying insects and spiders, and flying the world’s best paper airplanes.

Parents are always spouting these rules. Do they really care about nutrients and mattresses, or are they hiding something? Luckily, one fearless grown-up will risk his neck and his dignity to find out. Disguised as everything from a chocolate milk scuba diver to a giant nose, this counterspy uncovers the disturbing truth. And what he learns will shock you like nothing before. Startling suckface emergencies! Dangerous digit gangs! Powerful sumo cells! Those are just some of the secrets revealed in this book by Caldecott medalist David Wisniewski. But don’t let anyone catch you reading it-especially grown-ups. Who knows what could happen if they knew that you knew?

Two half brothers led parallel lives in a village. The mean brother lived in a large home full of fine things. The cheerful brother — a humble farmer — was a man of meager means. When the farmer finds a giant turnip growing among his crops, he gives it to the royal family. As a reward, the king makes him a royal gardener. Upon learning this, his greedy brother brings the king an enormous ruby. Instead of earning a royal position, he earns his just reward — a giant-sized slice of the turnip! In this tale, an ordinary turnip is an extraordinary gift because it is given without expecting one in return.