My Booklist

New and Fun Books

  • So B. It

    So B. It

    by Sarah Weeks Year Published: Average
    This book is a touching story that keeps you wondering until the end. Sarah Weeks has done an exquisite job of detailing a heartwarming book like no other.
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Suggested Novels for SSR

  • A Long from Chicago

    by Richard Peck Year Published:
    A boy recounts his annual summer trips to rural Illinois with his sister during the Great Depression to visit his larger-than-life grandmother.
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  • Al Capone Does My Shirts

    by Gennifer Choldenko Year Published:
    A twelve-year-old boy named Moose moves to Alcatraz Island in 1935 when guards’ families were housed there, and has to contend with his extraordinary new environment in addition to life with his autistic sister.
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  • Amos Fortune, Free Man

    by No Author Text Year Published:
    This is an very accurate historical fiction piece that takes place in colonial America. It takes us on one man's journey through the Middle Passage into slavery. It is uplifting and inspirational. It offers many different life lessons and characters to serve as examples for all of us.
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  • And Then There Were None

    by Agatha Christie Year Published:
    Ten people are invited to a lonely mansion on Indian Island by a host who, surprisingly, fails to appear - ten people who have something to hide and something to fear.
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  • Bud, Not Buddy

    by Christopher Curtis Year Published:
    Ten-year-old Bud, a motherless boy living in Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression, escapes a bad foster home and sets out in search of the man he believes to be his father – the renowned bandleader, H.E. Calloway of Grand Rapids.
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  • Caddie Woodlawn

    by Carol Ryrie Brink Year Published: Average
    The adventures of an eleven-year-old tomboy growing up on the Wisconsin frontier in the mid-nineteenth centuty.
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  • Crash

    by Jerry Spinelli Year Published:
    Seventh-grader John “Crash” Coogan has always been comfortable with his tough, aggressive behavior, until his relationship with an unusual Quaker boy and his grandfather’s stroke make him consider the meaning of friendship and the importance of family.
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  • Dogsong

    by Gary Paulsen Year Published:
    A young boy follows a century up tradition, with training and guidance from the village shaman. He takes a team of dogs on a long and adventorous journey.
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  • Eragon

    by Christopher Paolini Year Published:
    In Aagaesia, a fifteen-year-old boy of unknown lineage called Eragon finds a mysterious stone that weaves his life into an intricate tapestry of destiny, magic, and power coupled with dragons, elves, and monsters.
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  • Girl in a Cage

    by Jane Yolen Year Published:
    As English armies invade Scotland in 1306, eleven-year-old Princess Marjorie, daughter of the newly crowned Scottish king, Robert the Bruce, is captured by England’s King Edward Longshanks and held in a cage on public display
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  • I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This

    by Jacqueline Woodson Year Published:
    Despite differences in race and economics, Lena and Marie become friends when they discover that neither of them has a mother at home. Lena's mother is dead and Marie's has left for the lure of greater individual freedom. As their friendship grows, Lena trusts Marie with a secret that both shames and enrages her.
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  • It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life

    by Lance Armstrong Year Published:
    Armstrong, a four-time Tour de France champion and cancer survivor, covers his early life, his rise through the sport world and his medical difficulties in this riveting memoir.
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  • Pictures of Hollis Woods

    by Patricia Reilly Giff Year Published:
    A troublesome twelve-year-old orphan, staying with an elderly artist who needs her, remembers the only other time she was happy in a foster home, with a family that truly seemed to care about her.
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  • Stargirl

    by Jerry Spinelli Year Published:
    Stargirl, a teen who animates quiet Mica High with her colorful personality, suddenly finds herself shunned for her refusal to conform.
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  • Tangerine

    by Edward Bloor Year Published: Challenging
    Twelve-year old Paul, who lives in the shadow of his football hero brother, Erick, fights for the right to play soccer despite his near blindness and begins to remember the incident that damaged his eyesight.
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  • The Cybil War

    by Betsy Byars Year Published:
    Two boys fight for their long time crush in "The Cybil War." Best friends let a girl come between them and it turns into an all out war for a girl.
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  • The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

    by Douglas Adams Year Published:
    Seconds before Earth is demolished to make room for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is saved by Ford Prefect. Together, they journey through the galaxy.
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  • The Moves Make the Man

    by Bruce Brooks Year Published:
    A talented athlete and tough guy meets a mysterious athlete who has never played basketball. "Jayfox" decides all he needs to do is teach him the right moves.
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Tween Grand Canyon Reader Award Nominees 2009

  • Eyes of the Emperor

    by Graham Salisbury Year Published: Challenging
    Following orders from the United States Army, several young Japanese American men train K-9 units to hunt Asians during World War II.
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  • Surviving Antarctica: Reality TV 2083

    by Andrea White Year Published: Challenging
    In the year 2083, five fourteen-year-olds who were deprived by chance of the opportunity to continue their educations re-enact Scott's 1910-1913 expedition to the South Pole as contestants on a reality television show, secretly aided by a Department of Entertainment employee.
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Suggested Books for Parents

  • A Parent And Teacher's Guide to the Special Needs Child

    by Darrell M. Parke Year Published:
    This parenting book provides provides suggestions and anecdotes on parenting children with chronic illnesses or medical conditions, based on Foster Cline's Love and Logic parenting theory. The goal of Parenting Children with Health Issues is to avoid being overprotective as a parent, stifling your child's eventual competence or independence. Examples are given in this book for many types of health condition and special needs. Parents of children with cystic fibrosis with find many of the tips and real life experiences to be of special interest, as Lisa Greene parenting two children with cystic fibrosis.
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  • Battle Cries: Justice for Kids with Special Needs

    by Miriam Edelson Year Published:
    comprehensive and thoughtful analysis of the serious, lifelong difficulties facing families of children with severe disabilities, with emphasis on interaction and support within their communities. These struggles (and joys) are given human face through detailed interviews with eight Canadian families who have children with severe disabilities, including Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, Trisomy 18, deafness, CMV, and brain damage related to oxygen deprivation. In sum, Battle Cries is an excellent resource for policy makers, professionals working with special needs children, and parents of children with special needs.
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  • Brothers and Sisters

    by Laura Dwight Year Published:
    Heartwarming children's picture book about children with special needs and disabilities, written from the point of view of their siblings. I highly recommend this special needs children's book for libraries, schools, doctors, therapists, or home.
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  • Chicken Soup for the Soul: Children with Special Needs: Stories of Love and Understanding for Those

    by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Heather McNamara, and Karen Simmons Year Published:
    This collection of personal stories from the sublime to the heartwarming makes a wonderful gift for anyone who has been touched by a child with special needs. Real life vignettes are clustered under topics from community, milestones, breaking barriers, gratitude and fostering independence. These sweet stories exemplify the struggles, fears, battles, and celebrations of life with a child with special needs, including mental retardation, autism, sensory integration, cystic fibrosis, and many other disabilities.
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  • Late, Lost, and Unprepared

    by Joyce Cooper-Kahn, Ph.D. & Laurie Dietzel, Ph.D. Year Published:
    Help toddlers through teens who struggle with executive function weaknesses manage daily demands and build independent skills for long-term self-management.
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  • Living in My Skin, An Insider's View of Life with a Special Needs Child

    by Lori Hickman Year Published:
    Parents of children with a variety of disabilities speak about their lives with searing honesty... I recommend this book to anyone seeking to understand special needs families.
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  • Love You to Pieces: Creative Writers on Raising a Child with Special Needs

    by Suzanne Kamata Year Published:
    A thought-provoking and emotional literary journey through the voices of their parents into the lives of families of children with serious disabilities. This professional edited collection of short stories and poems provides a glimpse into the struggles of living with long term disabilities that are rarely visible to the "normal" world. The breadth and intensity of this collection will take your breath away while captivating your interest.
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  • Parents' Complete Special Education Guide

    by Roger Pierangelo, Robert Jacoby Year Published:
    An overview of the complex procedures and criteria for special education in the United States.
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  • Teenagers with ADD and ADHD

    by Chris A. Zeigler Dendy, M.S. Year Published:
    This new edition of the bestselling guide to parenting teens is chockful of the latest data and proven strategies that can help manage the symptoms of ADD and ADHD at home and school.
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  • The Child with Special Needs; Encouraging Intellectual and Emotional Growth

    by Stanley I. Greenspan, M.D and Serena Weider, PhD Year Published:
    Offers lots of good info and advice. The cover says, 'The comprehensive approach to developmental challenges including autism, PDD, language and speech problems, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, ADD and related disorders." I like their attitude, approach and perspective. Chapter 2, called "Biological Challenges" starts with: 'Frequently, children who are born prematurely, with low birth weight, who don't get enough oxygen at birth, or who have injuries to their nervous systems may have biological differences that compromise development.' The categorise the differences in three different ways: 1) sensory reactivity 2) sensory processing and 3) muscle tone, motor planning and sequencing.
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  • The Girls' Guide to AD/HD

    by Beth Walker Year Published:
    This refreshingly candid and funny book for teen girls with AD/HD offers facts, advice, and encouragement for living life to the fullest with AD/HD.
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  • Uncommon Fathers

    by Donald J. Meyer Year Published:
    Nineteen fathers talk about the life-altering experience of having a child with special needs.
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  • When Your Child Has a Disability

    by Mark L. Batshaw, M.D. Year Published:
    If you are the parent of a child who has multiple special needs or are looking for a scholarly and readable introduction to children's disabilities, then When Your Child Has a Disability is a "must read" resource. Relevant and reliable, it is the most comprehensive overview for parents of special needs of children that has been published to date.
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  • You Will Dream New Dreams: Inspiring Personal Stories by Parents of Children With Disabilities

    by Kim Schive and Stanley D. Klein Year Published:
    touching collection of stories and writings from parents of children who have special needs. The disabilities confronted include cerebral palsy, autism, Down Syndrome, mental retardation, illnesses, and more.
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Non-fiction Grand Canyon Reader Award Nominees 2009

  • Eat, Shoots, and Leaves: Why Commas Really Do Make a Difference

    by Lynne Truss Year Published:
    Humorous comparative illustrations show that the meaning of a sentence can depend upon the placement of a comma.
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  • Great Estimations

    by Bruce Goldstone Year Published:
    Photographs and easy-to-follow text teach children about estimations and offer tips to help them create accurate estimates.
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  • Theodore

    by Frank Keating Year Published:
    A biography of Theodore Roosevelt that imagines the president looking back on his life, describing his childhood, his youthful journeys throughout the world, his experiences as a leader, and the value he placed on knowledge, adventure, originality, and integrity.
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Intermediate Grand Canyon Reader Award Nominees 2009

  • The Invention of Hugo Cabret: a Novel in Words and Pictures

    by Brian Selznick Year Published: Average
    When twelve-year-old Hugo, an orphan living and repairing clocks within the walls of a Paris train station in 1931, meets a mysterious toyseller and his goddaughter, his undercover life and his biggest secret are jeopardized.
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