Kiki Strike Inside the Shadow City by Kristen Miller

Ananka Fishbein’s life was pretty boring, until she meets Kiki Strike; a strange, tiny, white-haired girl, who seems to magically appear and disappear. Kiki and Ananka stumble upon a huge sinkhole that appears to lead into a forgotten underground world hidden beneath the streets of New York. Kiki and Anaka join together with some other girls  recruited for the unique skills from the Girl Scouts to explore the underground city and it’s supposed hidden treasures. Along they way they end up fighting millions of hungry rats, going to battle with an evil princess and basically saving the entire city.

Second Fiddle; or how to tell a blackbird from a sausage by Siobhan Parkinson

This is Mags Clarke’s story, although a lot of it is really about Gillian, but since Mags is telling the story she has decided that she finds herself way more interesting. Mags and her mom have moved to a new town after her father’s death. Mags spends her days roaming around the woods behind her house. Nothing interesting happens for Mags, until she comes across a girl playing the violin seemingly floating in a tree (she wasn’t actually floating, but standing on the porch of a tree hut). Gillian and Mags do not become best friends, Mags isn’t even sure she likes Gillian at all, but she can’t help but find her interesting. Gillian has been invited to audition for a famous music school in London, but her mother won’t let her go. Mags decides it is up to her to track down Gillian’s missing father and get him to take her to the audition. This proves tricker than Mags imagined, but she is not the kind of person to give up easily even if she’s only helping her “sort-of” friend.

The New Policeman by Kate Thompson

It seems like time is flying by in Kinvara, Ireland. Hours suddenly pass by like minutes and no one seems to know why. When J.J. Liddy’s mother asks for “more time” for her birthday, J.J. decides that is exactly the gift that he will get her; he just is not sure how. J.J.’s search for time ends up taking him into Tìr na n’Og, the hidden land of fairies, where time seems to be leaking. As J.J. tries to figure out how to stop the leak, he learns the truth about his family history and the music that he loves.

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree by Lauren Tarshis

Emma-Jean Lazarus is not your “typical” seventh grader, but that is more than ok with her. When you look up “strange” in the dictionary, the definition is “extraordinary, remarkable, singular.” Emma-Jean finds that definition perfectly suited to her. She finds her classmates confusing and illogical. Emma-Jean on the other hand is a very logical person, she observes situations, assesses them, and predicts their outcome like she would a math or science problem. Normally Emma-Jean stays away from the drama of her classmates, but she can’t help but get involved when she sees Colleen, one of the nicest girls in her class, crying in the bathroom. Emma-Jean decides that she will assess Colleen’s problem and come up with a solution for her. However, Emma-Jean soon finds out that life is not as simple as a math problem, but it can also be a lot more interesting.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

In this seventh and final book, Harry, Ron and Hermione find themselves in their most dangerous situations yet. They alone are the ones who can defeat Lord Voldemort, but will they be able to? Harry’s scar is burning more then ever before as he struggles to figure out what to do with out the help of Dumbledore. Will Ron and Hermione’s friendship with Harry cost them their lives? Will Harry have to sacrifice himself to save those he loves?

The Fairy-Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley

Sabrina and Daphne Grimm thought their lives were complicated enough with their parents missing and them being placed in foster care. Until, a long lost grandmother shows up and they go to live with her in Ferryport Landing, New York. Ferryport Landing is a town unlike any other they have seen. Prince Charming is the mayor, Snow White is a school teacher, and the Three Little Pigs are the police. Sabrina and Daphne begin to learn their family history and how important they are to the safety of this town. The girls soon face stinging pixies, flying carpets, and talking mirrors as they set off on their first fairy-tale detectives mission to save their new grandmother from the clutches of a giant.

Camp Babymouse by Jennifer & Matthew Holm

The sixth adventure in the Babymouse graphic novel series has Babymouse heading off to summer camp at “Camp Wild Whiskers.” Babymouse has read all about camping and the wilderness and is sure that she’ll be the best camper this camp has ever seen. However; things don’t go exactly as planned. The books never said anything about drinking “Bug Juice” or what to do if you set the woods on fire.

Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson

“On Career Day Lily visited her dad’s work with him and discovered he worked for a mad scientist who wanted to rule the earth through destruction and desolation” (p.1).

With the help of her famous adventure seeking friends, Jasper Dash and Katie Mulligan, Lily sets out to save the world from an army of stilt-walking, laser-beam-eyed whales.

Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters by Lesley M. M. Blume

Cornelia S. Englehart lives in New York City and is the daughter of a world-famous pianist. Her life should be great, but instead she just finds it lonely. Her mother is never home since she is traveling the world playing concerts in fabulous places that Cornelia is never invited to go to. Her babysitter, Madame Desjardins, is constantly interrupting her reading and asking Cornelia annoying questions. Cornelia’s only way to keep people from bothering her is to scare them off with her extensive and continuously growing vocabulary of words. People tend not to have anything to say back when they don’t understand the words you are using. However, Cornelia quiet life changes as soon as she meets her new neighbor, Virginia Somerset, a glamorous writer who has had adventures all over the world. Through Virginia’s stories, Cornelia soon finds herself in a Souk in Morocco, a Crypt in Paris, painting with Picasso, dining with a Maja in India, and competing in a dog show against the Queen of England.

Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath

“I liked Everything on a Waffle because it was exciting!” -RD

“Everything on a Waffle is an adventurous and tasty book” -JS

“Everything on a Waffle is an interesting book. I liked how the author gave Primrose a lot of hope. I also liked how the author made Primrose a very positive character. I think kids would enjoy this book” -AP

“Everything on a Waffle is scrumptious and delicious”-CM

“It was a really good book, and it was so surprising!” -CC

“I liked the ending” -BB