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Living in a family with two perfect sisters and parents who just don’t get her, Ant MacPherson finds it easier to lie. After all, the only one who appreciates her is her dog, Pistachio. But when a concerned teacher sees the truth behind Ant’s lies, it seems as though she might be in for a change 

From community theater, dinner theater, and commercials to auditions around the country and finally a place at a prestigious boarding school for the arts, Hope Shays makes sure nothing gets between her and the spotlight. Hope knows she’s good. She’s so convinced she’s good that she stages her own kidnapping — she’ll fool everybody and end up famous beyond her mother’s wildest dreams.

This anthology features 30 brief biographies of notable Latino women and men who have made their mark in entertainment, sports, education, politics, advocacy, music, science, and social justice. (Also available in Spanish as Nuestra América: 30 latinas/latinos inspiradores que han forjado la historia de Los Estados Unidos)

The narrator, 10-year-old Annemarie, and her family defy the Nazis as Danish Jews are gathered for transport to death camps. They help Annemarie’s best friend, Ellen Rosen, and her family escape to Sweden. The horror of World War II is mitigated by the limited view of the narrator, yet the courage of individuals shines through for a breathtaking look at this time in history.

Obie knew his transition would have ripple effects. He has to leave his swim coach, his pool, and his best friends. But it’s time for Obie to find where he truly belongs. As Obie dives into a new team, though, things are strange. Obie always felt at home in the water, but now he can’t get his old coach out of his head. Even worse are the bullies that wait in the locker room and on the pool deck. Luckily, Obie has family behind him. And maybe some new friends too, including Charlie, his first crush. Obie is ready to prove he can be one of the fastest boys in the water — to his coach, his critics, and his biggest competition: himself.

Once Upon an Eid is a collection of short stories that showcases leading Muslim voices writing today, all about the most joyful holiday of the year: Eid! Eid: The short, single-syllable word conjures up a variety of feelings and memories for Muslims. Maybe it’s waking up to the sound of frying samosas or the comfort of bean pie, maybe it’s the pleasure of putting on a new outfit for Eid prayers, or maybe it’s the gift giving and holiday parties to come that day. Whatever it may be, for those who cherish this day of celebration, the emotional responses may be summed up in another short and sweet word: joy. The anthology also includes a poem, graphic-novel chapter, and spot illustrations. Winner of Middle East Book Honor Award.

Rita Williams-Garcia tells the story of three sisters who travel to Oakland, California, in 1968 to meet the mother who abandoned them.

Back home, nine-year-old Anaïs was the best English student in her class, but here in Crazy America it feels like she doesn’t know English at all. Nothing makes sense (chicken fingers?), and the kids at school have some very strange ideas about Africa. Anaïs misses home and the family left behind. So she writes letters to her grandmother and tells her all about the weird things Crazy Americans do, and how she just might be turning into a Crazy American herself. Inspired by the author’s work with students learning English, this sweet, often funny middle-grade novel explores differences and common ground across cultures.

Obayda’s family is in need of some good fortune, and her aunt has an idea to bring the family luck — dress Obayda, the youngest of four sisters, as a boy, a bacha posh. Life in this in-between place is confusing, but once Obayda meets another bacha posh, everything changes. Their transformation won’t last forever, though — unless the two best friends can figure out a way to make it stick and make their newfound freedoms endure.

Poems of the Harlem Renaissance and new poems inspired by Harlem Renaissance poets and poetry combine to give voice to the experiences of Black life. 

Thirteen-year-old Scott has learned a lot from his Dad — an ace pilot and flying instructor. When Scott adeptly lands a damaged plane on his own, NASA thinks he might just be the ideal candidate for a practice mission to space. Will Scott become the first teenager in space?

When Ruby’s mother dies, she must move to California to live with her movie-star father, whom she doesn’t really know. Though, she’s determined to hate her rich famous father and she misses her old life in Boston, she comes to accept her new life.

Discovering her ability to see ghosts when a cruel act ends her father’s life and forces her to move in with relatives in 1920s Pittsburgh, young Ophelia forges a helpful bond with a spirit whose own life ended suddenly and unjustly.

Jude never thought she’d be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the ocean in Syria. But when things in her hometown start becoming volatile, Jude and her mother are sent to live in Cincinnati with relatives. At first, everything in America seems too fast and too loud. The American movies that Jude has always loved haven’t quite prepared her for starting school in the US — and her new label of “Middle Eastern,” an identity she’s never known before. But this life also brings unexpected surprises — there are new friends, a whole new family, and a school musical that Jude might just try out for. Maybe America, too, is a place where Jude can be seen as she really is.

What happens to a city kid who spends the summer in the country? Sheila Tubman (aka as Peter Hatcher’s nemesis) finds out as she confronts her fears ranging from dogs to swimming. Snappy dialog and recognizable characters come to life through Sheila’s narration.

The life and times of Eleanor Roosevelt are presented chronologically as though one is examining a scrapbook. Much like the approach the author uses for other historical figures, this look at Eleanor is almost intimate, certainly thorough, and compelling.

Twelve-year-old tomboy May Amelia Jackson, the youngest of seven children and the only girl in a Finnish immigrant family, lives in the wilderness along the Nasel River in Washington State in 1899. Through May Amelia’s travels, readers witness the diverse ways of life in the expanding West: peaceful relations with the Chinook Indians, the dangers posed by the neighboring logging camp, her aunt’s life in the nearby boomtown of Astoria, Oregon, as well as the rhythms of the seasons.

Mrs. Penrose has a secret, and Alexander H. Gory, Jr., thinks he knows just what it is.   To spread the word, Alexander passes around his notebook, in which he details his proof that their mild-mannered teacher has become a blood-sucking creature of the night.

Regardless of where in the world they live or what cause they take up, the young people introduced here share passion, energy, and vision that may well inspire others to start to initiate change, too. From local activities to much broader venues, readers will follow how these young people have shaped their world and touched lives. The book gives young readers the tools to bring about change. Many young people are seeking out ways to become constructively engaged in their world. This book couldn’t be more timely.

Out of gratitude for the poet’s art form, Newbery Award–winning author and poet Kwame Alexander, along with Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth, present original poems that pay homage to twenty famed poets who have made the authors’ hearts sing and their minds wonder. Stunning mixed-media images by Ekua Holmes, winner of a Caldecott Honor and a John Steptoe New Talent Illustrator Award, complete the celebration and invite the reader to listen, wonder, and perhaps even pick up a pen.

This young people’s version of the adult bestseller, Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman’s Quest to Make a Difference, is a complex and inspirational story about the Fugees, a youth soccer team in Clarkson, Georgia made up of diverse refugees from around the world, and their formidable female coach, Luma Mufleh. The author explores how the community changed with the influx of refugees and how the dedication of Luma Mufleh and the entire Fugees soccer team inspired an entire community.

An allegorical picture book about the hardships and struggles of immigration. 

A young rabbit named Pancho eagerly awaits his papa’s return. Papa Rabbit left two years ago to travel far away north to find work in the great carrot and lettuce fields to earn money for his family. When Papa does not return home on the designated day, Pancho sets out to find him. He packs Papa’s favorite meal — mole, rice and beans, a heap of still-warm tortillas, and a jug full of fresh aguamiel — and heads north. He soon meets a coyote, who offers to help Pancho in exchange for some of Papa’s favorite foods. They travel together until the food is gone and the coyote decides he is still hungry … for Pancho!
 
Award-winning author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh brings to light the hardship and struggles facing families who seek to make better lives for themselves and their children by illegally crossing the borders.

This novel is about the coming-of-age of the protagonist, Quentin “Q” Jacobsen and his search for Margo Roth Spiegelman, his neighbor and childhood sweetheart.

Ayer presents two alternating perspectives of the Holocaust — one from Helen Waterford, a Jewish woman and her struggle to survive and one from Alfons Heck, a Hitler Youth whose ambition is to climb in rank. After meeting in the Unites States long after the war, this Aryan and Jew befriend one another and, remarkably, join forces to educate the youth of America to prevent this atrocity from ever happening again.