Staff Picks Youth Fiction
March 2021
One-Osaurus, Two-Osaurus
by Kim Norman
A counting game turns into hide and seek when something sounding very big comes along and the dinosaurs must hide…or maybe play a different game together.
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian I
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Someone Builds the Dream
by Lisa Wheeler
A lyrical reminder of the people behind the scenes with skills and crafts that bring alive the dreams of others whether it is a bridge or a book.
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian I
Posted in: Youth Fiction
When You Trap a Tiger
by Tae Keller
Lily is going through a range of emotions as her family moves in with her grandmother whom she calls Halmoni. Lily loves the stories her grandmother tells her but feels like the line between fantasy and reality is blurred. As she continues to struggle with her sister, her mother and making new friends, her world is turned upside down.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Other Words for Home
by Jasmine Warga
Jude, our female main character, leaves her hometown in Syria with her mother to escape violence and moves to America. Navigating her new normal, she tries not to be ‘weird’ according to her cousin and worries about her brother and father who stayed behind. This book title is available in the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an ebook and e audiobook.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Brother’s Keeper
by Julie Lee
This historical fiction book tells the story of Sora Pak and her family in North Korea in 1950. When war breaks out between North and South Korea, Sora’s family flees North Korea for South Korea. This harrowing story, based in part on the author’s mother’s life, takes place over approximately two years. This book is available in the library and on OverDrive as an ebook.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction
February 2021
Forever Home
by Jenna Ayoub
A graphic novel about Willow, a young girl who has never had a place she can call home as both her parents are in the military and have been moved from place to place. That changes when they move to the historic Hadleigh House but then the ghosts appear. They do not want to share the house. So begins the clash between Willow, who does not want to move again and the ghosts, who do not want others there… but does it have to be one or the other?
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian I
Posted in: Youth Fiction
The Secret Life of Sam
by Kim Ventrella
Sam has been raised by a single father all his life. When his father dies, Sam is very unhappy to be placed with his father’s sister who has been absent from his life for the last four years. While planning on leaving this new home Sam discovers an eerie connection to his father through the spirit world. This title is available as an audiobook Playaway.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Echo Mountain
by Lauren Wolk
It’s 1934 and Ellie and her family have lost their house in town and now live on the side of a mountain. Life is a struggle and becomes even more so when Ellie’s father falls into a coma after getting hit in the head by a tree he was chopping down. Add in a mysterious dog, hidden wood carvings and an old hag and the intrigue begins in earnest. This book is available in the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an ebook and e audiobook.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Nikki Tesla and the Ferret-Proof Death Ray: Elements of Genius #1
by Jess Keating
After Nikki’s pet ferret accidently shoots off her death ray, she is sent to a school for brainy kids, the Genius Academy. Her fellow students are Charlotte Darwin and Leo da Vinci, smart kids too, but Nikki still doesn’t feel like she belongs or can be friends with them. However, when her death ray is stolen, they band together to get it back and the adventures begin. A hilarious and exciting new series, middle graders will be looking forward to reading the rest of the books in the series.
Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian I
Posted in: Youth Fiction
Snapdragon
by Kat Leyh
Snapdragon, Snap for short, is struggling to make friends and feeling different from the other kids in her class. Once she confronts the ‘witch’ of the neighborhood and discovers she’s pretty nice her world slowly begins to change.
Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager
Posted in: Youth Fiction