Fantasy

Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can’t seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse — Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy’s mom finds out, she knows it’s time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he’ll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends — one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena — Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods. But to succeed on his quest, Percy will have to unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

The Spiderwick Chronicles leave the old-fashioned charm of New England far behind and head south for some fiendish faerie fun in the hot Florida sun. Eleven-year-old Nicholas Vargas only thinks his life has been turned upside down after his developer father remarries and moves his new wife and daughter into the soon-to-be completed Mangrove Hollow. But an “expedition” to a nearby lake turns up a little nixie with a giant problem - the huge, lumbering, fire-breathing variety - and it’s up to Nick; his stepsister, Laurie; and his big brother, Julian (plus a familiar face from the original Spiderwick Chronicles) to figure out the best way to stop a host of rampaging giants before all of Florida goes up in smoke.

Percy Jackson’s seventh-grade year has been surprisingly quiet. Not a single monster has set foot on his New York prep-school campus. But when an innocent game of dodgeball among Percy and his classmates turns into a death match against an ugly gang of cannibal giants, things get . . . well, ugly. And the unexpected arrival of Percy’s friend Annabeth brings more bad news: the magical borders that protect Camp Half-Blood have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and unless a cure is found, the only safe haven for demigods will be destroyed. In this fresh, funny, and hugely anticipated follow up to The Lightning Thief, Percy and his friends must journey into the Sea of Monsters to save their beloved camp. But first, Percy will discover a stunning new secret about his family — one that makes him question whether being claimed as Poseidon’s son is an honor or simply a cruel joke.

A thrilling follow-up to DiTerlizzi and Black’s first Spiderwick Chronicles book, The Seeing Stone has Jared and Mallory rescuing Simon from a band of goblins. When the young boy is kidnapped, Thimbletack leads Jared to a stone that allows him to have “the sight,” or the ability to see magical creatures. Soon, the brother and sister are outfoxing a hungry troll, working with a helpful goblin named Hogsqueal to thwart the other goblins, and taking care of a wounded griffin. With more enchanted action than the first book and a suspenseful ending, this second installment will have kids chomping at the bit for more.

When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped.And now it’s up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess? They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared — a monster rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus forever.

A thrilling follow-up to DiTerlizzi and Black’s first Spiderwick Chronicles book, The Seeing Stone has Jared and Mallory rescuing Simon from a band of goblins. When the young boy is kidnapped, Thimbletack leads Jared to a stone that allows him to have “the sight,” or the ability to see magical creatures. Soon, the brother and sister are outfoxing a hungry troll, working with a helpful goblin named Hogsqueal to thwart the other goblins, and taking care of a wounded griffin. With more enchanted action than the first book and a suspenseful ending, this second installment will have kids chomping at the bit for more.