Hound Dog True by Linda Urban

Hound Dog True by Linda Urban
Harcourt
2011
152p.

Mattie, a shy fifth-grader, wants to hide out at her new school by acting as apprentice to her Uncle Potluck, the custodian, but her plan falls apart when she summons the courage to speak about what matters most and finds a true friend.

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach by Brenda Woods

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach by Brenda Woods
Penguin /Nancy Paulsen Books
2011
137p.

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach is enjoying life in New Orleans, playing clarinet for the tourists in his spare time, accompanied by Shadow, a local stray dog. When Hurricane Katrina approaches, Saint faces unexpected challenges in trying to rescue Shadow

Planet Middle School by Nikki Grimes

Planet Middle School by Nikki Grimes
Bloomsbury
2011
154p.

A series of poems describes all the baffling changes at home and at school in twelve-year-old Joylin's transition from tomboy basketball player to not-quite-girly girl.

Island's End by Padma Venkatraman

Island's End by Padma Venkatraman
G. P. Putnam Sons
2011
228p.

A young girl trains to be the new spiritual leader of her remote Andaman Island tribe, while facing increasing threats from the modern world.

You'll Like It Here (Everybody Does) by Ruth White

You'll Like It Here (Everybody Does) by Ruth White
Delacorte Press
2011
258p.

Forced to flee a small North Carolina town when the neighbors suspect they are aliens, sixth-grader Meggie Blue and her family leave Earth and arrive in Fashion City, where individuality is punished and the greatest crime is being "grossly unique."

Dragon Castle by Joseph Bruchac

Dragon Castle by Joseph Bruchac
Dial Books for Young Readers
2011
346p.

Young prince Rashko, aided by wise old Georgi, must channel the power of his ancestor, Pavol the great, and harness a magical dragon to face the evil Baron Temny after the foolish King and Queen go missing.

Small Acts of Amazing Courage by Gloria Whelan

Small Acts of Amazing Courage by Gloria Whelan
Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
2011
217p.

 In 1919, independent-minded fifteen-year-old Rosalind lives in India with her English parents, and when they fear she has fallen in with some rebellious types who believe in Indian self-government, she is sent "home" to London, where she has never been before and where her older brother died, to stay with her two aunts.

Luck of the Buttons by Anne Ylvisaker

Luck of the Buttons by Anne Ylvisaker
Candlewick Press
2011
224 p.


In Iowa circa 1929, spunky twelve-year-old Tugs vows to turn her family's luck around with the help of a Brownie camera and a small-town mystery that only she can solve.

The Floating Islands by Rachel Neumeier

The Floating Islands by Rachel Neumeier

Alfred A. Knopf

2011

                     388p.

The adventures of two teenaged cousins who live in a place called The Floating Islands, one of whom is studying to become a mage and the other one of the legendary island flyers.

Adult Mock Newbery 2012 List #1

Here's our first list of the year!

Make sure you read at least these 10 titles because we will for sure discuss these at our Adult Mock Newbery meeting in January.  Click on each link to add your voice to the discussion!

The Adult Mock Newbery Club meeting will be held on January 21, 2012 from 10:00am - 5:00pm in the Children's Services Storytime Room at the Main Library.  Register HERE, if you haven't already done so!

• Amelia Lost by Candice Fleming
• Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
• Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney
• Divergent by Veronica Roth
• Hidden by Helen Frost
• Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
• Junonia by Kevin Henkes
• Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt
• Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall
• Sidekicks by Jack Ferraiolo

Can't wait to hear from you!

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
Scholastic Press
2011
608p.

Having lost his mother and his hearing in a short time, twelve-year-old Ben leaves his Minnesota home in 1977 to seek the father he never knew in New York City, and meets there Rose, who is also longing for something missing from her life. Ben's story is told in words; Rose's in pictures.

Water Balloons by Audrey Vernick

Water Balloon by Audrey Vernick
Clarion Books
2011
320p.

With her best friends pulling away from her, her newly-separated parents deciding she should spend the summer at her father's new home, and a babysitting job she does not want, Marley's life is already as precarious as an overfull water balloon when a cute boy enters the picture.

Floors by Patrick Carman

Floors by Patrick Carman
Scholastic Press
2011
261p.

A handyman's son explores the mysteries of a very odd, very colorful hotel in the newest adventure from bestselling author Patrick Carman. The Whippet Hotel is a strange place full of strange and mysterious people. Each floor has its own quirks and secrets. Leo should know most of them - he is the maintenance man's son, after all. But a whole lot more mystery gets thrown his way when a series of cryptic boxes are left for him... boxes that lead him to hidden floors, strange puzzles, and unexpected alliances. Leo had better be quick on his feet, because the fate of the building he loves is at stake... and so is Leo's own future!

13 Gifts by Wendy Mass

13 Gifts by Wendy Mass
Scholastic Press
2011
341p.


Shortly before her thirteenth birthday, shy and withdrawn Tara is sent to stay with her aunt, uncle, and cousin in her parents' hometown of Willow Falls, where she makes friends and becomes involved with an elderly buyer and seller of collectibles, who seems to be trying to give Tara some kind of mysterious message.

Trapped by Marc Aronson

Trapped: How the World Rescued 33 miners from 2,000 ft below the Chilean Desert by Marc Aronson
Atheneum
2011
134p.


"The amazing story of the Chilean miners and their incredible rescue!"-- Provided by publisher. "A middle grade nonfiction title about thirty-three miners trapped in a copper-gold mine in San Jose, Chile and how experts from around the world, from drillers, to astronauts, to submarine specialists, came together to make their remarkable rescue possible"-- Provided by publisher.

Ghetto Cowboy by G. Neri

Ghetto Cowboy by G. Neri
Candlewick Press
2011
218p.


Twelve-year-old Cole's behavior causes his mother to drive him from Detroit to Philadelphia to live with a father he has never known, but who soon has Cole involved with a group of African-American "cowboys" who rescue horses and use them to steer youths away from drugs and gangs.

Mostly True Story of Jack by Kelly Barnhill

Mostly True Story of Jack by Kelly Barnhill
Little, Brown
2011
323p.



Jack is practically invisible at home, but when his parents send him to Hazelwood, Iowa, to spend a summer with his odd aunt and uncle, he suddenly makes friends, is beaten up by the town bully, and is plotted against by the richest man in town.

Wilwood by Colin Meloy

Wildwood by Colin Meloy
Balzer + Bray
2011
541p.


When her baby brother is kidnapped by crows, seventh-grader Prue McKeel ventures into the forbidden Impassable Wilderness--a dangerous and magical forest in the middle of Portland, Oregon--and soon finds herself involved in a war among the various inhabitants.

The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann

The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann
Aladdin
2011
390p.


In a society that purges thirteen-year-olds who are creative, identical twins Aaron and Alex are separated, one to attend University while the other, supposedly Eliminated, finds himself in a wondrous place where youths hone their abilities and learn magic.

Mo Wren, Lost and Found by Tricia Springstubb

Mo Wren, Lost and Found by Tricia Springstubb
Balzer + Bray
2011
248p.


When eleven-year-old Mo's mother dies in an accident and Mo's devastated father deals with the loss by moving the family to a new town and starting a new life as the owner of a sports bar, Mo must leave her much loved neighborhood on Fox Street to live in an apartment above the "cursed" Corky's Tavern.