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Making its US debut in May 2011, German YA best-seller Ruby Red  is a perfect mix of mystery, supernatural fanasy and romantic adventure.  Gwen is a typical 16 year old girl living with her mom, siblings and her extended family in a posh London neighborhood.  She’s a spunky, skeptical teen who’s managed to live a fairly normal life despite the time-travelling gene that runs in the women of her family (although Gwen isn’t without some supernatural abilities of her own – she can see and converse with ghosts).  This generation’s carrier is her haughty cousin Charlotte, whose been through years of secret training to prepare herRead More →

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Enter the Acer Book Report Contest for a chance to win a 21st Century Library Makeover from Acer! Program Details: Technology can help bring excitement and creativity to the traditional book report while still displaying students understanding of reading. This contest aims to marry traditional reading curriculum strategies with 21st Century skills in an attempt to make book reports and reading more interactive, fun and engaging for young learners. The Acer Video Book Report contest also provides an opportunity to educators to re-think the standard book report by producing videos that creatively illustrate the students’ comprehension of the book, along with teaching collaborative and criticalRead More →

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Master Storyteller Joseph Bruchac’s latest novel, Dragon Castle, draws on the rich and magical legends of his Slovakian heritage as it explores themes of the hero’s journey, the journey to find oneself, and the courage to face one’s destiny.  15 year old Prince Rashko has lived his whole life in a peace secured by a distant ancestor, Pavol the Brave.  It’s a good thing that peaces abounds, too, because his parents and older brother Paulek seem to be more interested in daydreaming, sword fighting and living a life of ease than in doing much of anything to secure the safety and long-term security of the realm.  But RashkoRead More →

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It’s the summer before 6th grade and Zelly wants a dog. More than anything, actually.  But her parents have said no, repeatedly, to Zelly’s pleading, bargaining, and begging.  Then her boisterous, eccentric grandfather, Ace, comes up with a crazy scheme Zelly can use to convince her parents she’s ready for the responsibility of a dog: a “pretend dog” that just happens to be a used plastic orange juice jug.  But honestly, Zelly isn’t sure she wants to spend the rest of the summer hauling a plastic jug around on a leash for “drags” (since it can’t go on a walk without actual legs), scooping upRead More →

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Alexis Warren is back.  Now, she and her parents have moved from their haunted Victorian-era house to a non-descript suburb and are trying to rebuild their lives after Kasey, Alexis’ younger sister, was possessed by a murderous ghost and tried to kill them all in Katie Alender’s debut novel Bad Girls Don’t Die.  Alexis has a boyfriend now, is settled into a comfortable group at school, and is ready for life to get back to a controlled, predictable normal.  But then Kasey is released from the psychiatric hospital and comes home, and of course, soon all Hell breaks loose. This time, Kasey and her friendsRead More →

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Publisher’s Weekly (6/23/11) reports: On Friday Macy’s will launch a five-week campaign, called Be Book Smart, to raise money for Reading Is Fundamental. Between June 24 and July 31 Macy’s customers who give $3 to help provide a book for a child through Macy’s will get $10 off a purchase of $50 or more. Macy’s will donate the entire $3 to RIF. “Be Book Smart comes at a time when RIF truly needs the support of every Macy’s customers,” says RIF president and CEO Carol Rasco.   As a further incentive, RIF will host a Be Book Smart sweepstakeson Facebook. Each week one winner willRead More →

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Sam Smith and Emily Bell come from two different worlds:  17 year old Sam has spent his life drifting from state to state with his paranoid schizophrenic father, Clarence, and his autistic, asthmatic younger brother, Riddle.  They live outside the system, squatting in abandoned homes, preying on the gullible, and clearing out quick whenever the voices Clarence’s head tell him to run, or worse, the law comes looking.  Pretty, shy Emily lives in a comfortable suburban home with her caring and well-meaning parents, her somewhat annoying little brother, and the family dog.  But both Sam and Emily long for a deep connection to another personRead More →

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Sometimes when I am picking out the next book I want to read, I go solely on the cover art. I don’t read the jacket flap or the blurb on the back or even the little summary on the back of the title page. I let the cover draw me in and then allow myself to be totally surprised (or not) by the story that unfolds with the book. Debut author Dawn Metcalf’s Luminous  was one of these books for me – I was completely seduced by the cover (I was feeling really girly that day, OK?) and it lead me to expect either aRead More →

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A new film, based on a true story, opened in May 2011. For every view of this preview on YouTube, Capella University will donate $0.50 to the following organizations: Reading is Fundamental, South Sudan Institute, and Kakenya Center for Excellence. Watch as many times as you can, and share with family and friends – let’s get to 100,ooo views together!  (Contribution maximum is $50,000)Read More →