Kidsmomo

The Best Worst Thing by Kathleen Lane
Front door locked,
kitchen door locked,
living room windows closed.
Nobody in the closet,
nobody under the beds.

Still, Maggie is worried. Ever since she started middle school, she sees injustice and danger everywhere — on the news, in her textbooks, in her own neighborhood. Even her best friend seems to be changing.

Maggie believes it is up to her, and only her, to make everything all right. Can she come up with a plan to keep everyone safe?

The Seventh Wish by Kate Messner
Charlie feels like she’s always coming in last. From her Mom’s new job to her sister’s life away at college, everything else always seems to be more important than Charlie’s upcoming dance competition or science project. Unsure of how to get her family’s attention, Charlie comes across the surprise of her life one day while ice-fishing… in the form of a floppy, scaly fish offering to grant her a wish in exchange for its freedom. Charlie can’t believe her luck until she realizes that this fish has a funny way of granting wishes, despite her best intentions. But when her family faces a challenge bigger than any they’ve ever experienced, Charlie wonders if some things might be too important to risk on a wish.

Ms. Bixby’s Last Day by John David Anderson
Everyone knows there are different kinds of teachers. The boring ones, the mean ones, the ones who try too hard, the ones who stopped trying long ago. The ones you’ll never remember, and the ones you want to forget. Ms. Bixby is none of these. She’s the sort of teacher who makes you feel like school is somehow worthwhile. Who recognizes something in you that sometimes you don’t even see in yourself. Who you never want to disappoint. What Ms. Bixby is, is one of a kind.

Topher, Brand, and Steve know this better than anyone. And so when Ms. Bixby unexpectedly announces that she won’t be able to finish the school year, they come up with a risky plan — more of a quest, really — to give Ms. Bixby the last day she deserves. Through the three very different stories they tell, we begin to understand what Ms. Bixby means to each of them — and what the three of them mean to each other.

The Distance to Home by Jenn Bishop
Last summer, Quinnen was the star pitcher of her baseball team, the Panthers. They were headed for the championship, and her loudest supporter at every game was her best friend and older sister, Haley.

This summer, everything is different. Haley’s death, at the end of last summer, has left Quinnen and her parents reeling. Without Haley in the stands, Quinnen doesn’t want to play baseball. It seems like nothing can fill the Haley-sized hole in her world. The one glimmer of happiness comes from the Bandits, the local minor-league baseball team. For the first time, Quinnen and her family are hosting one of the players for the season. Without Haley, Quinnen’s not sure it will be any fun, but soon she befriends a few players. With their help, can she make peace with the past and return to the pitcher’s mound?

Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Ask anyone: September 11, 2001, was serene and lovely, a perfect day — until a plane struck the World Trade Center.

But right now it is a few days earlier, and four kids in different parts of the country are going about their lives. Sergio, who lives in Brooklyn, is struggling to come to terms with the absentee father he hates and the grandmother he loves. Will’s father is gone, too, killed in a car accident that has left the family reeling. Naheed has never before felt uncomfortable about being Muslim, but at her new school she’s getting funny looks because of the head scarf she wears. Aimee is starting a new school in a new city and missing her mom, who has to fly to New York on business.

These four don’t know one another, but their lives are about to intersect in ways they never could have imagined. Award-winning author Nora Raleigh Baskin weaves together their stories into an unforgettable novel about that seemingly perfect September day — the day our world changed forever.

The Wolf’s Boy by Susan Williams Beckhorn
Kai burns to become a hunter and to earn a rightful place among his people. But that can never be. He was born with a clubfoot. It is forbidden for him to use or even touch a hunter’s sacred weapons.

Shunned by the other boys, Kai turns to his true friends, the yellow wolves, for companionship. They have not forgotten the young human they nurtured as an abandoned infant. When Kai discovers a motherless cub in the pack, he risks everything to save her, bringing her back to live with him.

But as winter draws near, Kai’s wolf grows ever more threatening in the eyes of the People. When the worst happens, Kai knows that they must leave for good. Together, they embark on a journey into the north-a place of unimaginable danger-that tests the power of friendship and the will to survive.

The Shadow Cadets of Pennyroyal Academy by M.A. Larson
A triumphant victory over the witches has proven that Princess Cadet Evie really does belong at Pennyroyal Academy. News of her heroism has traveled far and wide — inspiring a kingdom of grateful citizens and, when the new term starts, a wave of fresh Academy recruits.

While it’s good to be returning to the Academy as a second-class Cadet, things are not as they should be. Evie witnesses the vicious attack of an innocent woman — by a trio of princesses. Pennyroyal’s Headmistress General, Princess Beatrice, is dubious about what Evie saw — princesses are enforcers of truth and justice, not thugs. But Evie isn’t so sure. Then, amidst piles of fan mail, she finds a letter with an ominous threat. A secret society has come out of the shadows with a wicked plan, putting the Academy in peril. It’s up to Evie and her friends to unravel the devious plot and save Pennyroyal Academy.

This sequel to the beloved, critically acclaimed Pennyroyal Academy promises middle-grade readers a tale full of adventure and suspense.

Rise of the Robot Army by Robert Venditti
Master the golden cape.
Been there.
Save the world from an alien invasion.
Done that.
Dominate the eighth grade.
Maybe later.
Battle an army of super-deadly robots designed to destroy you.
Sure didn’t see that one coming.

After a summer of fighting crime, Miles Taylor is bummed that nothing has changed for him at Chapman Middle School. Sure, he may be in the eighth grade now and have a secret identity as Gilded, the world’s only superhero, but that doesn’t protect him from the Jammer’s bullying or make him any more deserving of Josie’s affection. Miles starts spending more and more time as Gilded, neglecting his schoolwork and his friends. It’s not long before his bad attitude lands him and his best friend, Henry, in a military compound, at the mercy of the power-crazed General Breckenridge. When the General steals the golden cape, Miles finds himself back at square one with no superpowers… and no hope of escape. On the verge of losing everything — and everyone — he cares about, Miles must discover the hero within himself before the General puts his evil plans into action.

Darkstalker by Tui T. Sutherland
Before the battle of the SandWing queens; before the prophecy and the dragonets sent to save Pyrrhia from endless war; a long, long time ago… evil was born.

In alternating chapters, this Wings of Fire special edition takes readers back to the very beginning, when powerful, mythical dragons Clearsight, Fathom, and Darkstalker — the most dangerous dragon of all — were just dragonets. When the future was bright and uncertain, when no one had been betrayed or had their heart broken.

This is the origin story that changes everything.