Special Collections
Young Reader's Choice Award Winners
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Artemis Fowl
by Eoin ColferTwelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is a millionaire, a genius-and, above all, a criminal mastermind. But even Artemis doesn't know what he's taken on when he kidnaps a fairy, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit. These aren't the fairies of bedtime stories; these fairies are armed and dangerous.
Artemis thinks he has them right where he wants them but then they stop playing by the rules.
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Intermediate Award
Because of Winn-Dixie
by Kate DiCamilloRecalling the fiction of Harper Lee and Carson McCullers, here is a funny, poignant, and utterly genuine first novel from a major new talent.
The summer Opal and her father, the preacher, move to Naomi, Florida, Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket--and comes out with a dog. A big, ugly, suffering dog with a sterling sense of humor. A dog she dubs Winn-Dixie. Because of Winn-Dixie, the preacher tells Opal ten things about her absent mother, one for each year Opal has been alive. Winn-Dixie is better at making friends than anyone Opal has ever known, and together they meet the local librarian, Miss Franny Block, who once fought off a bear with a copy of WAR AND PEACE. They meet Gloria Dump, who is nearly blind but sees with her heart, and Otis, an ex-con who sets the animals in his pet shop loose after hours, then lulls them with his guitar.Opal spends all that sweet summer collecting stories about her new friends and thinking about her mother. But because of Winn-Dixie or perhaps because she has grown, Opal learns to let go, just a little, and that friendship--and forgiveness--can sneak up on you like a sudden summer storm.
Newbery Medal Honor book
Hope Was Here
by Joan BauerWhen Hope and her aunt move to small-town Wisconsin to take over the local diner, Hope's not sure what to expect. But what they find is that the owner, G.T., isn't quite ready to give up yet--in fact, he's decided to run for mayor against a corrupt candidate. And as Hope starts to make her place at the diner, she also finds herself caught up in G.T.'s campaign--particularly his visions for the future. After all, as G.T. points out, everyone can use a little hope to help get through the tough times... even Hope herself.
Newbery Medal Honor book
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Senior Award
No More Dead Dogs
by Gordon KormanFootball hero Wallace Wallace is sentenced to detention attending rehearsals of the school play where, in spite of himself, he becomes wrapped up in the production and begins to suggest changes that improve not only the play but his life as well.
Bud, Not Buddy
by Christopher Paul CurtisIt's 1936, in Flint, Michigan. Times may be hard, and ten-year-old Bud may be a motherless boy on the run, but Bud's got a few things going for him: he's got a suitcase filled with his own important, secret things; he's the author of Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Marking a Better Liar Out of Yourself and, although his momma never told him who his father was, she left a clue: flyers of Herman E. Calloway and his famous band, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression! Bud's got an idea those flyers will lead him to his father, and nothing's gonna stop him.
Newbery Medal Winner and Winner of the Coretta Scott King Medal
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award
Bud, Not Buddy
by Christopher Paul Curtis"It's funny how ideas are, in a lot of ways they're just like seeds. Both of them start real, real small and then... woop, zoop, sloop... before you can say Jack Robinson, they've gone and grown a lot bigger than you ever thought they could."
So figures scrappy 10-year-old philosopher Bud--"not Buddy"--Caldwell, an orphan on the run from abusive foster homes and Hoovervilles in 1930s Michigan. And the idea that's planted itself in his head is that Herman E. Calloway, standup-bass player for the Dusky Devastators of the Depression, is his father. Guided only by a flier for one of Calloway's shows--a small, blue poster that had mysteriously upset his mother shortly before she died--Bud sets off to track down his supposed dad, a man he's never laid eyes on. And, being 10, Bud-not-Buddy gets into all sorts of trouble along the way, barely escaping a monster-infested woodshed, stealing a vampire's car, and even getting tricked into "busting slob with a real live girl."
Christopher Paul Curtis, author of The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963, once again exhibits his skill for capturing the language and feel of an era and creates an authentic, touching, often hilarious voice in little Bud.
Newbery Medal Winner and Winner of the Coretta Scott King Medal
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award
Rewind
by William SleatorNot long after learning that he was adopted, eleven-year-old Peter is hit by a car and then given several chances to alter events that could lead to his death.
Mary, Bloody Mary
by Carolyn MeyerMary Tudor, who would reign briefly as queen of England during the mid sixteenth century, tells the story of her troubled childhood as daughter of King Henry VIII.
Holes
by Louis SacharStanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnats.
Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys' detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the warden makes the boys "build character" by spending all day, every day, digging holes: five feet wide and five feet deep. It doesn't take long for Stanley to realize there's more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake. The boys are digging holes because the warden is looking for something. Stanley tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment--and redemption
Newbery Medal Winner
National Book Award
The Boxes
by William SleatorWhen Annie's Uncle Marco goes on one of his frequent trips, he leaves two sealed boxes in Annie's care. His instructions are clear: under no circumstances should she open the boxes. But, left alone with her uncaring aunt, there is little to distract Annie from the mystery of the boxes, and soon she is consumed by an overwhelming desire to open them. When finally her willpower gives out, she unleashes a creature which reproduces at an alarming rate, and, even more incredibly, a force which can slow down time. Then the Crutchley Development Company discovers her secret, and sets out to harness the power of the boxes for their own despicable purposes. But they bargain without Annie and her friend Henry's determination to stop them - and their courage in taking on the nature of time itself.
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Award
A Mouse Called Wolf
by Dick King-SmithWolfgang Amadeus Mouse ("Wolf," for short) has a big name for such a little mouse. But the name fits. His favorite pastime is listening to Mrs. Honeybee, the lady of the house, play the piano. If only he could sing along to the music!
One day, Wolf decides to try -- and to his surprise, out of his mouth comes a perfect melody.It's not long before Wolf is singing everything from "Three Blind Mice" to Chopin to the Beatles, all to Mrs. Honeybee's accompaniment. Then an accident leaves Mrs. Honeybee in danger, and it's up to Wolf to save her... the only way he knows how.
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Award
The Taking of Room 114
by Mel GlennA series of poems reflect the thoughts of school officials, parents, police, and especially a class of seniors who have been taken hostage by their high school history teacher.
Frindle
by Andrew ClementsIs Nick Allen a troublemaker? He really just likes to liven things up at school -- and he's always had plenty of great ideas. When Nick learns some interesting information about how words are created, suddenly he's got the inspiration for his best plan ever...the frindle. Who says a pen has to be called a pen? Why not call it a frindle? Things begin innocently enough as Nick gets his friends to use the new word. Then other people in town start saying frindle. Soon the school is in an uproar, and Nick has become a local hero. His teacher wants Nick to put an end to all this nonsense, but the funny thing is frindle doesn't belong to Nick anymore. The new word is spreading across the country, and there's nothing Nick can do to stop it.
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award
SOS Titanic
by Eve BuntingBarry O’Neill is journeying to New York on the Titanic’s fateful maiden voyage. He’s homesick and worried about the Flynn boys traveling in steerage who have threatened to throw him overboard. Little does Barry know that a struggle with the Flynns is the least of the dangers that await him. This suspenseful young adult adventure story is based on the true and terrible events that occured as the Titanic sank.
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger
by Louis SacharAll the kids from Wayside School had to spend 243 days in horrible schools while Wayside was closed to get rid of the cows {Don't ask!). Now the kids are back and the fun begins again on every floor. Miss Mush has prepared a special lunch of baked liver in purple sauce, and it's Pet Day on the 30th floorwith dogs and cats and frogs and skunks and pigs, and an orange named Fido causing a terrible commotion. In Mrs. Drazil's class, they're throwing a coffeepot, a sack of potatoes, a pencil sharpener, and a light bulb out the window to see which hits the ground first. But the big surprise is Mrs. Jewls is expecting a babybut one named Cootie Face or Bucket Head"and a substitute teacher is comingand everyone knows what that means...
The Midwife's Apprentice
by Karen CushmanFrom the author of "Catherine, Called Birdy" comes another spellbinding novel set in medieval England.
The girl known only as Brat has no family, no home, and no future until she meets Jane the Midwife and becomes her apprentice. As she helps the sharp-tempered Jane deliver babies, Brat-who renames herself Alyce-gains knowledge, confidence, and the courage to want something from life: "A full belly, a contented heart, and a place in this world."
Medieval village life makes a lively backdrop for the funny, poignant story of how Alyce gets what she wants. A concluding note discusses midwifery past and present.
A Newbery Medal Winner.
Nasty Stinky Sneakers
by Eve BuntingWill ten-year-old Colin find his missing stinky sneakers in time to enter The Stinkiest Sneakers in the World contest?
Driver's Ed
by Caroline B. CooneyThe universal experience for most high school students is learning to drive and getting their driver's license. Add breathlessly plotted romance and an accident and you have a poignant and realistic novel. Remy Martin prays to the God of Driver's Education that she will get to drive today. She doesn't know where she's going, but she knows one thing . . . she is going to get there fast. Morgan Campbell had been standing on the threshold of 16 and getting his driver's license ever since he could remember. But deep into the first crush of his life, thinking of nothing but girls, Morgan forgot what driving was all about. This poignant novel about responsibility and consequences is as convincing as it is irresistible.
The Boys Start the War
by Phyllis Reynolds NaylorIt's the summer holidays--time for camping, fishing or just lazing, until girls move in next door. That means war, but the girls know how to fight back. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor is the winner of the Newbery Medal.
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award
The Giver
by Lois LowryThis haunting story centers on twelve-year-old Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community.
Lois Lowry has written three companion novels to The Giver, including Gathering Blue, Messenger, and Son.
Newbery Medal Winner
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Senior Award
Terror at the Zoo
by Peg KehretRun for your life!
Ellen and Corey Streater couldn't have asked for a better birthday present -- an overnight camp-out at the zoo. But their dream gift becomes a nightmare when darkness falls. No one comes and they're locked in with the most dangerous animal of all -- an escaped criminal. He's stalking their every move, determined to kidnap them for ransom -- or worse! There's no time to waste. They're desperate to escape. They'll try anything -- even Ellen's crazy science project on animal communication. Can they talk to the animals and summon help before it's too late?
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award
Who Killed My Daughter?
by Lois DuncanOn July 16, 1989, Kaitlyn Arquette was shot to death in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The police gave up, but her mother would not . . . In this tragic memoir and investigation, Lois Duncan searches for clues to the murder of her youngest child, eighteen-year-old Kaitlyn Arquette. Duncan begins to suspect that the official police investigation of Kaitlyn&’s murder is inadequate when detectives ignore her daughter&’s accidental connection to organized crime in Albuquerque. When Duncan loses faith in the system, she reaches out to anyone that can help, including private investigators, journalists, and even a psychic. Written to inspire other families who have lost loved ones to unsolved crimes, Who Killed My Daughter? is a powerful testament to the tenacity of a mother&’s love. A heartbreaking personal account by an Edgar Award–winning author known for such books as I Know What You Did Last Summer, this is a true story with &“all of the elements of a suspenseful mystery&” (School Library Journal). This ebook features an illustrated biography of Lois Duncan including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author&’s personal collection.
Shiloh
by Phyllis Reynolds NaylorMarty will do anything to save his new friend Shiloh in this Newbery Medal–winning novel from Phillis Reynolds Naylor.When Marty Preston comes across a young beagle in the hills behind his home, it's love at first sight—and also big trouble. It turns out the dog, which Marty names Shiloh, belongs to Judd Travers, who drinks too much and has a gun—and abuses his dogs. So when Shiloh runs away from Judd to Marty, Marty just has to hide him and protect him from Judd. But Marty's secret becomes too big for him to keep to himself, and it exposes his entire family to Judd's anger. How far will Marty have to go to make Shiloh his?
Wolf by the Ears
by Ann RinaldiHarriet Hemings is a slave of a man who wrote the Declaration of Independence and might be more than Thomas Jefferson's slave - she might be his daughter. Now she has to make a choice - to run to freedom or to stay. Historical fiction.
Maniac Magee
by Jerry SpinelliJeffrey Lionel "Maniac" Magee might have lived a normal life if a freak accident hadn't made him an orphan. After living with his unhappy and uptight aunt and uncle for eight years, he decides to run--and not just run away, but run. This is where the myth of Maniac Magee begins, as he changes the lives of a racially divided small town with his amazing and legendary feats.
Newbery Medal Winner
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award