Children

A poetic odyssey through space with the groundbreaking Voyager 2 probe--past Earth, into deep space and beyond.

In 1977, a space probe was built to help human beings learn a little more about outer space. Soon, along with its twin, Voyager 2 slipped through the clouds and left Earth behind. The spacecraft traveled for years through the deep, infinite night. At last Voyager 2 reached its first goal: Jupiter. Then it met the spellbinding sight of Saturn. Then, going further than any previous mission, the probe visited the blue ice giants Uranus and Neptune. Past the boundaries of our solar system, Voyager 2 sails on, carrying a Golden Record for any new friends it makes in interstellar space...

This lyrical, atmospheric book introduces young readers to a pioneering NASA spacecraft that has spent over forty-five years observing and exploring our galaxy. With stirring poetry, luminous art, and fascinating back matter, The Sky Is Not the Limit will inspire future scientific innovators and foster a sense of wonder at our universe.

(Added by Jenna)

Middle grade star author Chris Rylander brings his signature sense of humor, a compelling and original baseball story, and tons of heart to the story of the Hurricanes of Weakerville.

All his life, Alex Weakerman has had one passion: baseball. Specifically, the Hurricanes of Weakerville, Iowa--the scrappy independent-league team owned by his Grandpa Ira.

Even as team and the town have fallen on tough times, there's no place Alex would rather be than at the ballpark--a hot dog in one hand, a pencil and scorebook in the other, keeping track of each and every statistic. Alex has never been all that great at playing baseball, but that doesn't matter. For someone as painfully awkward as Alex, being a fan--and a wiz with baseball stats--is all he needs.

When Grandpa Ira passes away, though, Alex is crushed. He's lost his best friend, and he doesn't see any way that the team will survive. But Ira, it seems, has one last trick up his sleeve: his will names Alex the new manager of the Hurricanes.

Alex is as excited as he is terrified at the chance to finally put some of his fantasy baseball genius to use. But as he sets to work trying to win over the players, he soon learns that leading them to victory is about more than just stats. Will he be able to save his team, his hometown, and his family legacy

From the author of The Fourth Stall, a SCBWI Sid Fleischman Humor Award winner and multiple state-award favorite, The Hurricanes of Weakerville is sure to appeal to middle grade readers looking for a funny book about real kids.

(added by Amy)

The fate of all life on Earth may depend on the bravery of two little seeds in this epic adventure from the #1 New York Times bestselling creator and Caldecott Medalist of The Invention of Hugo Cabret.

"The tale of the natural world is the greatest story we have to tell, and Brian delivers a brilliant chapter of that tale throughout the pages of Big Tree." -- STEVEN SPIELBERG

* "An enthralling and expansive meditation on what it means to be alive on this planet."--Booklist, starred review

* "A balanced and rich book. . . . Powerful."-- The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred and recommended review

* "In evocative prose and peppery dialogue . . . the cinematic story journeys across time and space, contemplating the power of life to heal."-- Publishers Weekly, starred review

* "A special, one-of-a-kind book for the whole family that readers won't soon forget." -- School Library Journal, starred review

"Inspirational, important, and beautiful. A fable for our times." -- Alan Gratz, bestselling author of Refugee and Ground Zero

"Hello, stars. I thought I heard you calling me."

A mysterious voice has been speaking to Louise in her dreams. She and her brother Merwin are Sycamore seeds, who hope to one day set down roots and become big trees. But when a fire forces them to leave their mama tree prematurely, they find themselves catapulted into the unknown, far from home. Alone and unprepared, they must use their wits and imagination to navigate a dangerous world--filled with dinosaurs, meteors, and volcanoes!--and the fear of never finding a safe place to grow up. As the mysterious voice gets louder, Louise comes to realize their mission in life may be much bigger than either of them ever could have imagined!

Brimming with humor, wonder, mystery, and a profound sense of hope, Big Tree is a trailblazing adventure, illustrated with nearly 300 pages of breathtaking pictures. It is Selznick's most imaginative and far-reaching work to date and a singular reading experience for the whole family.

The audiobook edition of BIG TREE is brought magnificently to life by Meryl Streep and features music composed by Ernest Troost.

(added by Amy)

A diagnosis of dyslexia could change everything for an aspiring fifth-grade gymnast struggling at school in this authentic, high-energy novel in verse.

The print edition of this title is set in a font developed to be easy to read.

The gym is where Claire shines and she’s on her way to qualifying for the state championships. But at school, she’s known as a troublemaker—which is fine with her since it helps her hide her reading problem. Claire has never been able to make sense of the wobbling jumble of letters on a page.

When a sympathetic principal wonders if she’s acting out because she may have dyslexia, she’s stunned. Claire has always assumed she’s dumb, so she’s eager to get evaluated. But her mother balks. Afraid Claire will be labeled “stupid,” she refuses testing. Can Claire take on both her reading challenges and her mother’s denial? Is it worth jeopardizing her dream of the state championships?

Told in clear and poignant verse and featuring black and white illustrations, Claire’s struggle with something that seems to come easily to everyone else will resonate with readers and have them cheering her on.

(added by Amy)

"Magical, exciting, and deeply moving. Lasky's perfectly constructed fantasy is told in beautifully descriptive, soaring language, with invented words and names feeling just right and an abundance of detailed information about each animal's habitat, attributes, and physiology." --Kirkus (starred review)

Newbery Honor winner Kathryn Lasky, author of the bestselling Guardians of Ga'Hoole series, delivers the second book in her new middle grade adventure series about a colony of beavers on a courageous quest to save the swan that protects their world.

Return to the brilliant, adventure-filled world of Glendunny. Dunwattle and Locksley are going on their greatest journey yet in their search for their beloved mother figure, Elsinore the swan, who has been kidnapped by dark forces. Little do they know, they have a much larger expedition in store when they discover other persecuted animals and baby otters being held against their will for nefarious purposes.

Will they be able to save Elsinore, the innocent animals, and themselves? Join Dunwattle and Locksley as they embark on this winding adventure, explore unknown lands beyond their pond, and endeavor to save their world and all the creatures in it.

(added by Amy)

Internationally bestselling superstar author Angie Thomas makes her middle grade debut with the launch of an inventive, hilarious, and suspenseful new contemporary fantasy trilogy inspired by African American history and folklore.

It's not easy being a Remarkable in the Unremarkable world. Some things are cool--like getting a pet hellhound for your twelfth birthday. Others, not so much--like not being trusted to learn magic because you might use it to take revenge on an annoying neighbor.

All Nic Blake wants is to be a powerful Manifestor like her dad. But before she has a chance to convince him to teach her the gift, a series of shocking revelations and terrifying events launch Nic and two friends on a hunt for a powerful magic tool she's never heard of...to save her father from imprisonment for a crime she refuses to believe he committed.

(added by Amy)

Discover the true story of an orphaned mallard duckling being raised by a pair of loons.

On a lake in northern Wisconsin in 2019, loon researchers were surprised to discover a mother and father loon caring for a mallard duckling. Normally loons and mallards live very different lives and do not get along. Follow along as the duckling grows and displays a mix of both loon behaviors and mallard behaviors. Intriguing verse and striking illustrations combine in this heartwarming tale of unexpected animal cooperation.

(Added by Jenna)

Combining scientific facts with the art of poetry, this is a humorous and educational picture book about animals that look alike.

How do you tell a llama from an alpaca, an alligator from a crocodile, or a dolphin from a porpoise? The animal kingdom is full of creatures that look so similar to others that they are often confused for each other. A Llama Is Not an Alpaca pairs rhyming animal riddles with factual responses to both teach and engage young readers as they compare and contrast features of commonly misidentified animals. How many will you get right?!

(Added by Jenna)

Kids don’t need a big backyard or outdoor space to learn about gardening and how plants grow. This introductory garden book, packed with photos of 3 to 6 year olds in action, features hands-on planting and growing activities that can be done in a small yard, classroom, or community garden. Written by the staff of City Sprouts, a leading educational organization in promoting urban gardening and equitable access to nature, each activity—from Sorting Seeds to Going on a Worm Hunt to Planting a Tasty Salad—encourages kids to roll up their sleeves and learn about seeds, planting, and gardening. Step-by-step photos and on-the-page discovery prompts, presented in a lively design, make it easy and inviting for kids everywhere to become plant lovers and nature explorers. 
 
(Added by Jenna)

A poetic picture book celebrating the life and scientific discoveries of the groundbreaking astronomer Cecilia Payne!

Astronomer and astrophysicist Cecilia Payne was the first person to discover what burns at the heart of stars. But she didn't start out as the groundbreaking scientist she would eventually become. She started out as a girl full of curiosity, hoping one day to unlock the mysteries of the universe.

With lyrical, evocative text by Kirsten W. Larson and extraordinary illustrations by award-winning illustrator Katherine Roy, this moving biography powerfully parallels the kindling of Cecilia Payne's own curiosity and her scientific career with the process of a star's birth, from mere possibility in an expanse of space to an eventual, breathtaking explosion of light.

(Added by Jenna)

A fun, fast-paced novel about friendship, family, fighting for what's right, and standing out from the crowd while standing up for yourself.



Twelve-year-old Brooklyn Ace is ready to take the Valentine World Scouts by storm and build her own cookie empire. She nearly won the top cookie selling spot last year and is determined to make her mom--who recently passed away--proud by coming in first this time around. With her fabulous best friends by her side, Brooklyn knows she'll become Santa Monica's District Cookie Queen. The crown is practically in the bag.



Then Piper Parker arrives.



Piper has a rich dad, a fancy hotel, and a drive to steal the cookie crown right off Brooklyn's head. Before long, most of the seventh grade is under Piper's spell. But Brooklyn is in it to win the biggest cookie war the school has ever seen. With the help of her cookie squad, her rockstar grandmother, her super cool therapist, and a lot of self-love and inner growth, maybe--just maybe--Brooklyn can end up a winner after all.

(added by Amy)

From two-time Newbery honor-winning author Christina Soontornvat comes a compelling and immersive new young middle grade fantasy series for readers who love stories about animals, magic, and kids like them embracing their power to change the world.

Young Plum is shocked to discover that she's been accepted to the Guardian Academy on Lotus Island, an elite school where kids learn how to transform into Guardians, magical animals who can communicate with the natural world. Once students discover their Guardian form, they study how to communicate with animals. They also learn to fight, both as humans and as animals, so they can protect the defenseless if needed.

To her dismay, Plum quickly finds herself struggling at school. Other classmates discover they can transform into amazing creatures. But Plum can't even seem to magic up a single feather! If she can't embrace her inner animal form soon, she'll have to leave school--and lose the first group of real friends she's ever known.

(added by Amy)

A gripping, richly imagined fantasy set in an alternate ancient African world in which a Black girl finds her power and saves her people from evil, by the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning author of Black Panther: The Young Prince.

In the land of Alkebulan, twelve-year-old Asha is an orphan, raised by Madame S, the proprietor of a traveling carnival. When Madame S is attacked by ghoulish creatures, she manages to tell Asha before she dies, "Seek the Underground Kingdom, where the black flowers bloom."

Asha doesn't understand the mysterious words, but they launch her onto a page-turning quest to protect her people and stop an ancient evil. Along the way, she uncovers shocking secrets about the family she never knew and begins to find her place in the world as she discovers her own untapped powers.

(added by Amy)

From Mark Oshiro, award-winning author of The Insiders, this time-bending adventure is perfect for fans of Sal and Gabi Break the Universe and When You Reach Me.

A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year * An ALA Rainbow Book List Top 10 Selection

Middle school is the worst, especially for David Bravo. He doesn't have a single class with his best (okay, only) friend, Antoine. He has to give a class presentation about his heritage, but he's not sure how--or even if--he wants to explain to his new classmates that he's adopted. After he injures Antoine in an accident at cross-country practice, he just wishes he could do it all over.

He doesn't expect his wish to summon a talking, shapeshifting, annoying dog, Fea, who claims that a choice in David's past actually did put him on the wrong timeline... and she can take him back to fix it.

But when their first try (and the second, and the third) is a total disaster, David and Fea are left scrambling through timeline after timeline--on a quest that may lead them to answers in the most unexpected places.

Coco meets Sliding Doors in this laugh-out-loud, heartwarming middle grade novel that explores how our choices make us who we are.

(added by Amy)

Meet Link and Hud—brothers causing chaos in the first of a new middle grade series from real-life brothers Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey.

Lincoln and Hudson Dupré are brothers with what grown-ups call “active imaginations.” Link and Hud hunt for yetis in the Himalayas and battle orcs on epic quests. Unfortunately, their imaginary adventures wreak havoc in their real world. Dr. and Mrs. Dupré have tried every babysitter in the neighborhood and are at their wits’ end.

Enter Ms. Joyce. Strict and old-fashioned, she proves to be a formidable adversary. The boys don’t like her or her rules and decide she’s got to go. Through a series of escalating events—told as high-action comic panel sequences—the brothers conspire to undermine Ms. Joyce and get her fired. When they go so big that even Ms. Joyce can’t fix it, suddenly she’s out. Finally, success! Or is it?

With warm and authentic humor, Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey have blended prose and graphic novel-style illustrations to craft a unique and subversive new series full of brotherly mischief and mayhem.

(added by Amy)