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The Ruins
Scott E. Smith

The Ruins

Genre:
Mystery / Crime, Thriller / Horror
Age Level:
YA

Several recent college graduates go to an archaeological dig in rural Mexico. What follows is a suspense-filled, horrific nightmare in the jungle. Will any of them return? 

The Sacrifice
Kathleen Benner Duble

The Sacrifice

Genre:
Historical Fiction
Age Level:
Middle Grade

n the year 1692, life changes forever for ten-year-old Abigail Faulkner and her family. In Salem, Massachusetts, witches have been found, and widespread fear and panic reign mere miles from Abigail’s home of Andover. When two girls are brought from Salem to identify witches in Andover, suspicion sweeps the town as well-respected members of the community are accused of witchcraft. 

A young girl standing in a field looking up at the stars.
Katherine Paterson

The Same Stuff as Stars

Genre:
Fiction
Age Level:
Middle Grade

Eleven-year-old Angel and her seven-year-old brother are taken to live with their great-grandmother on her dilapidated Vermont farm. While the old woman is ill equipped to handle children, she’s better prepared to commit to them than either of their parents. A “star man” and the town librarian end up helping the children in this poignant exploration of family.

Neal Shusterman

The Schwa Was Here

Anthony “Antsy” Bonano may not always be appreciated, but at least he gets noticed. Not true for Calvin Schwa who is so overlooked, he’s practically invisible. Antsy sees money to be made from Calvin’s unique ability, which works well until both are caught and punished by the powerful and eccentric Mr. Crawley.
The Sea of Trolls
Nancy Farmer

The Sea of Trolls

Genre:
Fairy Tales, Folktales and Myths
Age Level:
Middle Grade

Jack, a young apprentice still learning how to control his magic powers, is kidnapped, along with his sister, by an evil king and half-troll queen. When Jack casts a spell on the queen and makes her hair fall out, his punishment is to sail across the dangerous Sea of Trolls; otherwise, his sister will be sacrificed. Along his route, Jack encounters many strange and imposing creatures. But will he be able to save his sister?

Sara Tuvel Bernstein

The Seamstress

Genre:
Autobiography and Memoir, Nonfiction
Age Level:
YA

This posthumously published memoir tells of young Sara’s resistance to anti-Semitism while growing up in Romania. For a while, she was able to escape the Nazis by her blonde hair and blue eyes but eventually was caught and sent to Ravensbruck, a German concentration camp for female prisoners.

The Sea-Ringed World
Maria Garcia Esperon

The Sea-Ringed World: Sacred Stories of the Americas

Genre:
Fairy Tales, Folktales and Myths, Nonfiction, Short Stories
Age Level:
Middle Grade, YA

A collection of stories from nations and cultures across our two continents — the Sea-Ringed World, as the Aztecs called it — from the Andes all the way up to Alaska. Fifteen thousand years before Europeans stepped foot in the Americas, people had already spread from tip to tip and coast to coast. Like all humans, these Native Americans sought to understand their place in the universe, the nature of their relationship with the divine, and the origin of the world into which their ancestors had emerged. The answers lay in their sacred stories. 

 

The Season of Styx Malone
Kekla Magoon

The Season of Styx Malone

Genre:
Fiction
Age Level:
Middle Grade

Caleb Franklin and his younger brother, Bobby Gene, spend an extraordinary summer with their new, older neighbor, Styx Malone, a foster boy from the city.

Judy Goldschmidt

The Secret Blog of Raisin Rodriguez

Genre:
Fiction
Age Level:
Middle Grade

When Raisin moves across the country, she keeps her friends back in California updated with a blog. Since no one in the East will ever see what she’s writing, she can be frank about how she feels. But it doesn’t take long for her to get discovered.