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That night Ingrid told Caitlin, I’ll go wherever you go. But by dawn Ingrid, and her promise, were gone. Ingrid’s suicide immobilizes Caitlin, leaving her unsure of her place in a new life she hardly recognizes. A life without the art, the laughter, the music, and the joy that she shared with her best friend…. But Ingrid left something behind. In words and drawings, Ingrid documented a painful farewell in her journal. Journeying through Ingrid’s final days, Caitlin fights back through unspeakable loss to find renewed hope.

This handsome addition to the series demonstrates the similarities between Christmas celebrations in different cultures and commonalities shared throughout the world. Lush photographs illuminate the straightforward text.

Crisp photographs are used to illustrate this truly American holiday while revealing its origins in harvest festivals. A table of contents, index, and more are included.

Even though she’s a little on the small side, Termite can take care of herself-and has been through twelve foster homes. Her newest “home” in Forest Glen, California, is home to many other foster kids. As logging operations there have been suspended due to the discovery of a rare owl, many logging families have taken in foster kids to help ends meet. After coming to appreciate the beauty of the forest and getting attached to a giant redwood, Termite finds herself between those whose lives depend on trees and those who live to protect the trees and the wildlife that depends on them.

Sunita, a volunteer at the Wild at Heart Animal Clinic, desperately wants a cat of her own, but her parents won’t hear of it. Eventually, Sunita gets her animal as readers learn about feral cats and the need for animal control.

Like many girls her age in India, thirteen-year-old Koly faces her arranged marriage with hope and courage. But Koly’s story takes a terrible turn when in the wake of the ceremony, she discovers she’s been horribly misled—her life has been sold for a dowry. Can she forge her own future, even in the face of time-worn tradition? 

Mother Paula’s newest (#469) All American Pancake House is about to be built in Coconut Grove, Florida, on a site where a colony of endangered burrowing owls live. Mullet Fingers, who has been quietly committing acts of sabotage at the construction site to save the owls, is befriended by Roy Eberhardt, the quiet, new kid in town. Together with Mullet’s stepsister Beatrice, the three make it their mission to expose the restaurant company’s wrongdoing.

Jack buys an old stuffed bear at a thrift shop, planning to draw it for his art project. But that bear gets him into a whole lot of trouble.

Horton Halfpott is the underappreciated but rule-abiding kitchen boy for the Luggertucks of Smugwick Manor. Everything changes — literally and figuratively — when Lady Luggertuck’s corset is loosened to unleash a series of farcical, laugh-out-loud adventures.

Ana Shen has what her social studies teacher calls a “marvelously biracial, multicultural family” but what Ana simply calls a Chinese-American father and an African-American mother. And on eighth-grade graduation day, that’s a recipe for disaster. Both sets of grandparents are in town to celebrate, and Ana’s best friend has convinced her to invite Jamie Tabata-the cutest boy in school—for a home-cooked meal.

When he was 10 years old, Victor wanted to be just like master magician Harry Houdini. For years Victor did not realize what magic he held in his hands with a box initialed “E.W.” What happened years later when Victor discovered that Houdini’s given name was Ehrick Weiss creates a plausible and captivating glimpse at a major historical figure.

“The hour has come to speak of troubled times. It is time we spoke of Skullyville.” Thus begins Rose Goode’s story of her growing up in Indian Territory in pre-statehood Oklahoma. It’s a world where backwoods spiritualism and Bible-thumping Christianity mix with bad guys; a one-legged woman shop-keeper, her oaf of a husband, herbal potions, and shape-shifting panthers rendering justice. Tim Tingle — a scholar of his nation’s language, culture, and spirituality — tells Rose’s story of good and evil with understanding and even laugh-out-loud Choctaw humor.

Life for 14-year old Tomi Nakaji and other Japanese-Americans living on the Hawaiian island of Oahu has changed radically since the bombing of Pearl Harbor the previous year. He confronts violence, despair but ultimately finds hope in this gripping sequel to Under the Blood-Red Sun (1994).

Told in the words of Isaac, a Choctaw boy who does not survive the Trail of Tears, renowned author Tim Tingle tells tale of innocence and resilience in the face of tragedy. From the book’s opening line, “Maybe you have never read a book written by a ghost before,” the reader is put on notice that this is no normal book. Isaac leads a remarkable foursome of Choctaw comrades: a tough-minded teenage girl, a shape-shifting panther boy, a lovable five-year-old ghost who only wants her mom and dad to be happy, and Isaac’s talking dog, Jumper. The first in a trilogy, this novel highlights an important and oft-overlooked piece of history. Winner of the 2014 American Indian Youth Literature Award.

The history of African Americans is also the history of the United States. How the history and culture of once enslaved people came to sit proudly on the National Mall in the nation’s capital is told in word and image for a riveting portrait of a particular place and a country’s history.

Anecdotes, examples of her work, and photographs combine to present a sketch of a popular and prolific author and insight into her work. Naylor’s memoir — like her writing — uses humor to great effect while presenting a memorable self-portrait.

Sandra sees her mother and sister gunned down when she is ten. Surviving that massacre, she becomes a refugee struggling with no home and no money. Sandra escapes, comes to the United States, and faces many challenges while building a new life.

Hugo Pepper was raised in the Frozen North by reindeer herders. His parents were eaten by polar bears when he was just a baby, but Hugo discovers that the sled they arrived in has an unusual compass—one that can be set to “Home.” And so Hugo arrives in Firefly Square—to discover a group of very special friends, and a dastardly enemy. With three-toed snowmen, a secret buried treasure, and a host of fabulous stories, this is a fantastic third tale in the Far-Flung Adventures!

Explore the discussion guide.

“Young Quebrado’s name means ‘the broken one,’ a child ‘of two shattered worlds.’ The son of a Taíno Indian mother and a Spanish father, he is taken in 1510 from his village on the island that is present-day Cuba and enslaved on a pirate’s ship, where a brutal conquistador, responsible for thousands of deaths throughout the Americas, is held captive for ransom. When a hurricane destroys the boat, Quebrado is pulled from the water by a fisherman, Naridó, whose village welcomes him, but escape from the past proves nearly impossible.” — Gillian Engberg, Booklist

Growing up is particularly difficult for Evie Green as she has no past. She lost it when her father testified against fellow police officers in a racially motivated murder. Each family member must learn to deal with their new lives and identities alone.

In southeastern Nigeria, twelve-year-old Mnamdi is determined to avenge his police chief father, who was murdered while trying to rid the town of criminals, but Nnamdi feels powerless until he receives a magical object which gives him superpowers.

An achingly poignant tale for learning about immigration and current global issues. This book is fiction, but it is based on a very real and terrible journey. There are young people who have lived this, and it is a story those young people want us to know about.

This fact- and fun-filled look at female contributions to the American Revolution provides a serious but lighthearted introduction to a range of known and unknown women. Affable illustrations include thought and speech bubbles.

Balancing epic and intensely personal stakes, this story is a gritty, fast-paced adventure about two brothers caught up in a magical war generations in the making. Growing up in New York, brothers Emil and Brighton always idolized the Spell Walkers — a vigilante group sworn to rid the world of specters. While the Spell Walkers and other celestials are born with powers, specters take them, violently stealing the essence of endangered magical creatures. Brighton wishes he had a power so he could join the fray. Emil just wants the fighting to stop. Brotherhood, love, and loyalty will be put to the test, and no one will escape the fight unscathed.