Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award

When Friendship Followed Me Home

Griffin, Paul. When Friendship Followed Me Home.

A boy’s chance encounter with a scruffy dog leads to an unforgettable friendship in this deeply moving story about life, loss and the meaning of family.

4 Comments »

Mayday

Harrington, Karen, Mayday.

After a plane crash, Wayne Kovok literally loses his voice. With the help of his strict military grandfather and a new friend who only sings, Wayne’s quest for a lost flag helps him to find a stronger voice than he ever dreamed possible. Be prepared to learn many many many useless yet fascinating facts that you never knew you wanted to know.

9 Comments »

A Bandit’s Tale: The Muddled Misadventures of a Pickpocket

Hopkinson, Deborah, A Bandit’s Tale: The Muddled Misadventures of a Pickpocket.

Gutsy eleven year old Italian immigrant Rocco  arrives in NYC in the spring of 1887 without a penny to his name. Forced  to work for an unscrupulous padron, Rocco decides to strike out on his own than succumb to daily abuse.  In his struggle for a better life he faces many misadventures and makes a new friend or two along the way.

2 Comments »

The Land of Forgotten Girls

Kelly, Erin Entrada. The Land of Forgotten Girls.

Two Filipino sisters navigate life in Louisiana with their evil stepmother using the lively imaginations they inherited from their deceased mother.

1 Comment »

Beautiful Blue World

LaFleur, Suzanne, Beautiful Blue World.

This touching and suspenseful novel is a brilliant re-imagining of war, where even kindness can be a weapon, and children have the power to see what adults cannot.

5 Comments »

The Poet’s Dog

MacLachlan, Patricia, The Poet’s Dog.

Only 2 kinds of people can hear Teddy the Irish Wolfhound speak- poets and children. Luckily, this sweet little story has both of those groups of people as it tells you a powerful story of loss and love.

7 Comments »

The Seventh Wish

Messner, Kate, The Seventh Wish.

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 seems more important than Charlie’s upcoming Irish dance competition, her science project, or how much she misses her sister. One day, while ice-fishing, Charlie catches a fish which offers to grant her a wish in exchange for its freedom. The most serious plot point involves the discovery of her older sister’s heroin addiction, and her subsequent treatment.

8 Comments »

Wish

O’Connor, Barbara, Wish.

Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish every day since the fourth grade. But when she is separated from her older sister and sent to live with family she barely knows, it seems unlikely that her wish will ever come true. With the help of a stray dog, a plucky neighbor and a big-hearted family, Charlie discovers that what she thought she wants may not at all be what she needs.

5 Comments »

Lost in the Pacific, 1942: Not a Drop to Drink

Olson, Tod. Lost in the Pacific, 1942: Not a Drop to Drink.

On October 21, 1942, a B-17 bomber carrying eight men crashed into the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Lost at sea and without a drop to drink, this thrilling account of history tells the true story of their struggle to survive.

8 Comments »

Ghost

Reynolds, Jason. Ghost.

“Ghost” Cranshaw has been running for three years, ever since the night his father shot a gun at him and his mother. One day, while watching a track practice, he decides to crash a race. Impressed, the coach offers him a spot on the team, with one condition: if Ghost can stop getting into fights at middle school, he can run for the Defenders.

11 Comments »

The Evil Wizard Smallbone

Sherman, Delia. The Evil Wizard Smallbone.

Twelve-year-old Nick, escaping his awful uncle and cousin, runs away from home one snowy Maine night and ends up at Evil Wizard Books, presided over by Evil Wizard Zachariah Smallbone. While kept captive as the wizard’s boy-of-all-work, Nick explores the bookshop, teaching himself magic with the aid of a very snarky textbook – and eventually becomes embroiled in the wizard’s feud with the French werewolf Fidelou and his motorcycle-riding followers, who wish to conquer the strange little town of Smallbone Cove that the wizard has ruled for centuries. An out-of-the-ordinary fantasy.

2 Comments »

Falling Over Sideways

Sonnenblick, Jordan.  Falling Over Sideways.

Harassed at her middle school, not taken seriously at home, and with a “perfect” older brother, Matthew, to live up to, thirteen-year-old Claire has always felt like her life was cursed. Then one morning, when she and her father are talking at breakfast, he suddenly keels over with a stroke, and suddenly everything changes. Sonnenblick is a master with realistic teen drama – expect both laughter and tears.

3 Comments »

The Bitter Side of Sweet

Sullivan, Tara, The Bitter Side of Sweet.

Two brothers and their unlikely companion risk everything to escape their enforced slavery on an Ivory Coast cocoa plantation.

3 Comments »

Some Writer!: The Story of E.B. White

Sweet, Melissa. Some Writer!: The Story of E.B. White.

This illustrated biography of E.B. White uses personal letters, photos, watercolor, and collage to document his extraordinary life as a journalist, New Yorker contributor, and beloved children’s book author.

3 Comments »

Save Me a Seat

Weeks, Sarah, and Gita Varadarajan.​ Save Me a Seat.

A new boy from India and a New Jersey kid find they have much more in common then they first imagined as they navigate their first week of fifth grade.  This humorous and touching story told through the alternating perspectives of Ravi and Joe tell the story of how misperceptions, school bullies and doting Moms are the perfect recipe for the most unexpected friendships.

10 Comments »

The Littlest Bigfoot

Weiner, Jennifer. The Littlest Bigfoot.

Brimming with equal parts humor and heartbreak, The Littlest Bigfoot is an irresistible adventure about friendship, furry creatures, and finding the place where you belong.

 

2 Comments »

Wolf Hollow

Wolk, Lauren. Wolf Hollow.

In this complex coming-of-age book, blond city girl Betty Glengarry is sadistic, cruel, and frankly terrifying – and when she moves to Annabelle’s small rural Pennsylvania town in 1943, Annabelle has to cope with threats and problems she had never before imagined. Not least of these is her determination to protect Toby, a reclusive, shell-shocked World War I veteran, from Betty’s manipulations.

8 Comments »

Projekt 1065: A Novel of World War II

Gratz, Alan. Projekt 1065: A Novel of World War II

In a thrilling and fascinating insider’s glimpse into the Hitler Youth, the son of an Irish ambassador to Germany poses as a member in order to support the Allies during World War II.

11 Comments »

The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog

Gidwitz, Adam, The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog.

In 1242, a fascinating cast of characters come together by chance at an Inn in France to recount the story of three magical children. Mr. Gidwitz has proven that he has truly mastered the art of storytelling in this riveting tale told in many voices.

1 Comment »

Some Kind of Courage

Gemeinhart, Dan, Some Kind of Courage.

Joseph Johnson has lost just about everyone he’s ever loved. When his beloved horse Sarah is stolen and sold, there is nothing that Joseph won’t do to get her back. Joseph embarks on an unforgettable heart pounding adventure through the 1870’s wilderness of Washington State in hopes of being reunited with the only family he has left.

4 Comments »

It Ain’t So Awful, Falafel

Dumas, Firoozeh. It Ain’t So Awful, Falafel

Recently moved to Newport Beach, California, Zomorod Yousefzadeh’s plan for fitting in at her new middle school starts with having an American name, Cindy— like on The Brady Bunch. She dreams of joining the Girl Scouts, making American friends, having a beanbag chair, and fitting in for once. It’s the late 1970s, and fitting in becomes more difficult as Iran makes headlines with protests, a revolution, and finally the taking of American hostages.

1 Comment »

Nothing but Trouble

Davies, Jacqueline, Nothing but Trouble.

Budding engineer Maggie Gallagher and her artsy new friend Lena Polachev plan and execute elaborate pranks at their school, bringing much needed change to their depressed community.

12 Comments »

The Drawing Lesson: A Graphic Novel That Teaches You How to Draw

Crilley, Mark. The Drawing Lesson: A Graphic Novel That Teaches You How to Draw.

This heartwarming graphic novel story also serves as an instructional drawing handbook. When David meets Becky, an artist in the park, they begin a series of drawing lessons. As Becky teaches David the fundamentals of drawing, the reader learns alongside him.

11 Comments »

The Inn Between

Cohen, Marina, The Inn Between.

Quinn’s little sister Emma has vanished, leaving nothing behind but a backpack. Now on a cross-country trip with her best friend Kara and family, who are moving to California, Quinn ends up at the Inn Between, an elegant and eerie Victorian hotel in the desert, where people mysteriously disappear and she catches glimpses of Emma through distant windows. A spooky mystery for grades 5 and up.

14 Comments »

Unbound

Burg, Ann E., Unbound: A Novel in Verse.

Grace’s mamma makes her promise to “keep her eyes down and her mouth closed” when she leaves their slave cabin to work at the big house. Grace cannot remain silent as she witnesses the cruel treatment of slaves at the hands of a heartless missus and master.  Her spoken thoughts trigger a series of events which force Grace to lead her family through the Great Dismal Swamp in search of freedom.

4 Comments »

The Wild Robot

Brown, Peter, The Wild Robot.

Roz the Robot’s future takes an unexpected turn when she washes up on a remote island. After a misstep on a craggy ledge Roz assumes the role of mother to a baby gosling and through this relationship and her interactions with other woodland animals she learns about love, life and death, and community.

11 Comments »

Lucky Strikes

Bayard, Louis, Lucky Strikes.

When fourteen-year-old Melia’s mother dies, resourceful Melia – a clever mechanic – is determined to run the family auto repair shop and gas station, care for younger siblings Earle and Janey, survive the tough days of the Depression in rural Virginia, and stave off Standard Oil shill Harley Blevins, who has an eye on Melia’s business. To do so, they need an adult parent – so Melia co-opts Hiram Watts, a drunken hobo, to impersonate their father. A wonderful and heartwarming story.

2 Comments »

Soar

Bauer, Joan, Soar.

Baseball is life for Jeremiah Lopper even though a serious health issue keeps him off the field.  So when his robot-building dad has the opportunity to work to a town with a championship baseball team, he is overjoyed. Jeremiah’s joy soon turns to concern when a scandal rocks the High School team, with devastating consequences. Can Jeremiah’s can-do spirit bring baseball back to this heartbroken community?

10 Comments »

The Girl Who Drank the Moon

Barnhill, Kelly. The Girl Who Drank the Moon.

Every year the people of the Protectorate must sacrifice the youngest baby to the witch in the woods. What does this witch want with these infants? When Xan the kind witch meets the newest offering, Luna, and feeds her moonlight, characters from the past and the present become dangerously intertwined.

12 Comments »

Ms. Bixby’s Last Day

Anderson, John David. Ms. Bixby’s Last Day.

When their one-of-a-kind, beloved teacher falls ill and leaves school for the rest of the school year, Topher, Steve, and Brand are crushed. Determined to give Ms. Bixby the perfect last day, they set off on a risky, chaotic, and exciting adventure.

 

15 Comments »

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