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 A Long Walk to Water
written by Linda Sue Park
illustrations by Jim Averbeck
A Long Walk to Water is an original serial novel taken from today's headlines. Written for the Breakfast Serials audience by Linda Sue Park, author of many novels for young people (including the Newbery Award winner A Single Shard), A Long Walk to Water is based on the true story of Salva, one of some 3,800 Sudanese "Lost Boys" airlifted to the United States beginning in the mid 1990s. more . . .
Subject: water; "Lost Boys of Sudan"; family; war; unyielding courage in the endurance of adversity |
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The Fighting Ground
written by Avi
illustrations by Peter Catalanotto
The Fighting Ground is a gripping tale of the American Revolutionary War. Thirteen-year-old Jonathan, head full of dreams of glory, runs away from home and joins the local militia to fight the dreaded mercenary troops, the Hessians, near Trenton, NJ. Over a twenty-four hour period, through the fog of war, he experiences a soldier's reality with all its horrors, ambiguities, and unforeseen complexities. more . . .
Subject: American Revolution; being a soldier; militia; being a prisoner; courage; miscommunication; family |
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Magic Elizabeth
written by Norma Kassirer
illustrations by Joe Krush
When Sally's parents are suddenly called away, she is sent to stay with Aunt Sarah who is as scary as her mysterious old house. Sally's spirits pick up when she discovers an old portrait of a young girl who looks curiously like her. But this girl is holding the most exquisite doll she has ever seen. Sally's search for it takes her to another time. more . . .
Spanish translation available.
Subject: magic; family; childhood; imagination |
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Orphan Journey Home
written by Liza Ketchum
illustrations by C.B. Mordan
Based on a true story of 1828, Orphan Journey Home celebrates the courage, strength, and resourcefulness of four pioneer children determined, against all odds, to honor their father's wishes and make their way back to the safety of their Kentucky home. more . . .
Spanish translation available.
Subject: courage; orphaned; resourcefulness; danger; death; perserverence; family |
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Upriver
written by Alexandria LaFaye
illustrations by Peter Catalanotto
It's the Dakota Territory, 1866: eleven-year-old Iah Thomas witnesses the kidnapping of a girl, Vinca. When he finds her held captive on a riverboat it's just the beginning of a rousing adventure. Reminiscent of Mark Twain, this exciting adventure captures the rich tones, unique vocabulary, and excitement of America's post-Civil War West. more . . .
Spanish translation available.
Subject: post-civil War Western; personal freedom; morality, toughness, self-sufficiency; untamed frontier |
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Sudden Squall
written by Avi
illustrations by Lauren Castillo
The Neptune, a side paddle steam freighter, carries farm produce from New Port, New Jersey to New York City. Normally, the voyage is routine. But one spring day in 1884, what’s routine is thrown overboard. Sudden Squall is a maritime adventure with unlikely heroes. more . . .
Spanish translation available.
Subject: maritime adventure; adolescence; father-son relationship; old New York |
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Future Times Past: The Eagles’ Tale
written by Rafe Martin
illustrations by Anna Rich
It’s the distant future. The People recall when nations vanished because of war and nature’s devastation. They also recall and celebrate the Eagles—mysterious aliens who visit and help rebuild civilization. Now the Eagles return but their arrival is ominous. Fourteen-year-old Rainera sets out to confront them. What will she discover: the past, the future, or a terrible fate? more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: future times; stewardship; rebirth; myth; patience; history |
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Bella Bella
written by Jonathan London
illustrations by Jon Van Zyle
Bella Bella is an evocative sea-kayaking adventure set in the beautiful—but potentially dangerous—wilderness off the central coast of British Columbia. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: nature's beauty; sea-kayaking; teenage sensibility; coastal British Columbia; morality |
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Long Road Home
written by Katherine Paterson
illustrations by Emily Arnold McCully
Meli and her once happy and secure Albanian family flee war torn Kosovo. Their journey is dangerous and tension filled. At last they reach the safety of America, only to confront post-9/11 distrust of Muslims. But Meli, in word and deed, has a message for everyone. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: family unity; Kosovo; love; genocide; tolerance; emigration; inspiration |
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Reading the Sky
written by Avi
illustrations by Joan Sandin
Dyslexic Jamie can't read printed words, only clouds. What he sees is wondrous to him, unbelievable to others, dangerous to all: a man in a business suit who parachutes from an airplane with a million dollars. The thief kidnaps Gillian who leaves a key message. Jamie reports the thief but isn't believed. Then he finds the message—which he can't read. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: dyslexia; perception; the perfect crime; mystery; fortitude; wonderment |
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The Winner's Circle
written by Jennifer Armstrong
illustrations by C.B. Mordan
Running eighteen chapters and full of the sights, sounds, and smells of horse country, The Winner’s Circle is rich in moral dilemmas and chapter-by-chapter high adventure. It’s a winner! more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: winning and losing; family; sense of competence; stigma; love |
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Keep Your Eye on Amanda (re-release)
written by Avi
illustrations by Tim Bush
Originally introduced in 1996 and written by Avi--chairman and founder of Breakfast Serials, and the 2003 recipient of ALA’s prestigious Newbery Award—Keep Your Eye on Amanda! is coming back in 14 newly illustrated chapters. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: mischief; raccoons, stealing; responsibility; fun |
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Janko and the Giant: A Tale of Old Slovakia
written by Joseph Bruchac
illustrations by Anna Vojtech
Janko and the Giant: A Tale of Old Slovakia by Joseph Bruchac is a folktale, a tall tale, a nonsense story, an adventure. Set in old world Slovakia, Bruchac draws on the impossible, fanciful adventures of young Janko and his dealings with giants, talking horses, bandits and just plain fun. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: adventure; magic; Slovakian myth; wit; proverbs |
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Up in the Air: The Story of the Wright Brothers
written by Brian Floca
illustrations by Brian Floca
Up in the Air: The Story of the Wright Brothers is historical fiction based on the story of Wilbur and Orville Wright’s invention of the airplane. The story brings immediacy and life to the actual events, methods, and ideas of the Wright brothers’ story. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: The Wright Brothers, invention; flight; genius; passion; perseverence |
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The Valley of No Return
written by John Tomerlin
illustrations by Michael Lacapa
This is a story of two young people from diverse backgrounds—one, the son of a mining engineer; the other a daughter of the tribal chief whose people are threatened with exile from their ancestral land—and of the lessons learned as they struggle for survival. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: survival; diversity; Native culture; tolerance; Natural Science, Havasu Canyon (AZ) |
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Desolation Canyon
written by Jonathan London
illustrations by Maile Pickett
Desolation Canyon is a story about kids and their dads learning about the world, themselves, and the meaning of father and sons, fathers and daughters.
Then too, it is an old-fashioned adventure yarn, full of suspense and sought after danger. But it is not a tale of man against nature, rather, a joining of the two, that enriches characters in the story and the people who will read it. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: fathers and children; white-water rafting; friendship; endurance; Green River, Utah |
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Minnie and Moo in The Seven Wonders of the World
written by Denys Cazet
illustrations by Denys Cazet
Denys Cazet's Minnie and Moo In the Seven Wonders of the World is a very funny story. While that is simple to say and experience, writing something funny is very hard. To describe the plot of this story--a couple of zany cows seeking to save their farmer's farm--is to mention the smallest part of what's here. Comedy is very much about character, and perhaps even more so, about language. Not only does Denys Cazet write funny, he draws funny too. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: gullibility; "herd mentality"; friendship; wordplay; loyalty |
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The Best in the World
written by Marc Talbert
illustrations by Betsy James
Ever since Nick got hold of The Guinness Book of Records, he's been obsessed with notions of being the best at something. That's why he and his bet friend Clay, concoct a scheme to establish a world record of their own. more...
Subject: ethics; pretense; lying; good deeds; whooper-telling |
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The Monkey King
written by Ji-li Jiang
illustrations by Hui Hui Su-Kennedy
Ji-li's The Monkey King is a partial retelling of one of China's favorite classics, Journey to the West—a novel of the Ming Dynasty by We Ch'eng-en.
Monkey is the most famous comic creation in Chinese fiction. It has been said, Monkey is mankind—full of faults, ambitious and vain. But he is also generous, valiant and intrepid. He is mischievous but also delightful. He can not resist challenge; he loathes self-pity and above all, he despises despair. The Monkey King is all this in seventeen chapters. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: intrepid hero; mischief; ambition; infallible nature of man |
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The Secret School
written by Avi
illustrations by Brian Floca
1920’s rural Colorado. When the regular teacher of the valley’s one-room schoolhouse must leave, bringing an early school closing, the children decide to take over, secretly. But there are many problems to surmount: trouble-making Herbert Bixler, a suspicious School Board, plus the fact that the new teacher, Ida Bidson, is not only one of the students but only fourteen years old! more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: ambition; risk-taking; perseverance; one-room schoolhouse; dreams, education |
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The Black Squirrel
written by Joseph Bruchac
illustrations by David Fadden
Joseph Bruchac's The Black Squirrel is a story about great stories—traditional native tales about monster animals, Chenoo cannibal giants, Little People, and brave deeds done to protect us all. It's every bit adventure and myth, as Harry Potter is part adventure, part fantasy. more...
Subject: ecology; empowerment; good and evil; Abenaki Indian Mythology; modernity |
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The Secret of Smith's Hill
written by Nancy Garden
illustrations by Marilynne K. Roach
Mystery? History Lesson? Ghost? Ten-year-old twins Kelly and James must contend with all three, as they seek to discover what's causing nighttime disturbances in their old Rhode Island house. more...
Subject: unexplained happenings; doubt; Revolutionary history; perserverence; family |
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The Army of Two
written by Betty Miles
illustrations by Joan Sandin
A true story! Alone at the Scituate (Massachusetts) lighthouse, two girls save their town from British attack during the War of 1812. more...
Spanish translation available.
Subject: War of 1812; courage; ingenuity; family; Scituate (MA) |
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