THE GIFT OF THE PIRATE QUEEN

by Patricia Reilly Giff (4th+)

Grace O’Malley has been taking care of her father and her sister Amy ever since her mother died. Now she finds out that her cousin Fiona will be coming to stay with them and help her out in taking care of the family. She doesn’t need Fiona’s help and she certainly does not want her around. Even with her sisters diabetes and her own problems at the school, she still does not feel that she needs help with the family. But, Fiona shows up anyway, and from her Grace learns of the brave pirate queen named Grace O’Malley. Can Grace actually be brave like the great pirate queen in order to help her family and herself through the tough times. To learn about the O’Malley family and the brave pirate queen, read The Gift of the Pirate Queen by Patricia Reilly Giff.

MONTANA GHOST STORIES

by Debra D. Munn (5th+)

Here are the ghosts of Montana from miners and cowboys, to murderers and even Native Americans. These stories span a long range of places including Bannack, the University of Montana in Missoula, the Big Horn Battlefield, the Big Sky Ski Resort, the Grand Theatre in Helena, mining mansions in Butte, a house in Great Falls, Montana State University theatre in Bozeman, Chico Hot Springs, the town of Garnet, and Virginia City. The stories have to do with silent apparitions, strange noises, footsteps that are heard when no one is there, doors that are locked and unlocked, the feeling of a presence or being touched by a bedside visitor when no one is there, and items moving on their own. For scary and spine-tingling tales of Montana’s ghosts, read Montana Ghost Stories by Debra D. Munn.

HOSTAGE

by Willo Davis Roberts (4th+)

Have you ever wanted more adventure in your life? Well, that’s how Kaci feels. Everyone in her family is really good at something but her. But, as her grandma always says, “be careful what you wish for.” Kaci and her family are moving into a new house and one day she finds herself at home alone while the house is being robbed. She tries to hide but the robbers find her and decide the best way to deal with her is to use her as a hostage and get rid of her later. She tries to leave clues so her family can find her but will they be in time? Can she survive and outsmart the robbers until her family and the police can find her? For a fast-paced action story, read Hostage by Willo Davis Roberts.

GHOST STORIES OF MONTANA

by Dan Asfar (5th+)

There are many spine-tingling and strange stories that come from Montana locations. These stories and tales have been put together as a collection in this book. There are stories of haunted houses, the Little Big HornBattlefield and surrounding area, the Old West and mining towns, the Montana wilderness, and even of Montana colleges. Spine-tingling events include apparitions, mischievous ghosts, strange deaths, phantom hitchhikers, and scary mining ghosts missing limbs. If you are interested in scary stories and enjoy reading of places that perhaps you may have visited, then you will want to read these tales. Places that strange tales and stories have come out of range from large cities like Great Falls, Butte, Helena, and Billings, to less known areas perhaps such as Conrad, Valier, Virginia City, Nevada City, and even Montana highways. For a spine-tingling good read and interesting stories of Montana tales from the Old West to today, read Ghost Stories of Montana by Dan Asfar.

THE LIBRARY CARD

by Jerry Spinelli (4th+)

What is so great about a library? Well, we are about to find out. Come along on a journey with Mongoose, Brenda, Sonseray, and April Mendez, four pre-teens who discover changes in their lives after a mysterious blue library card shows up among their possessions. It begins with Mongoose who finds his library card in his pocket among the stuff he has just stolen from a store. He makes the decision to check out the library and finds his life changing for the better. Brenda is a TV addict, she just can’t get enough of it. But when the school has a Great TV Turn-Off week she thinks she may go crazy. That is until she finds the mysterious blue library card. Curious about the library she visits and also finds her life has changed and she has missed so much of it already. Sonseray lives out of a car with his uncle and he is always so angry with anything and anyone no matter what is done. He finds his library card and one day discovers himself in the library looking for air conditioning. He leaves with much more than he bargained for however, and his life is set on a track for the better. Lastly, April Mendez loved to read and spent every waking hour possible in the New York City library, that is until her family moved to a mushroom farm. Now what is she going to do. She has no friends and she has no library anymore to keep her happy. She has this useless library card that she soon finds will help her in many ways and make her life seem complete. To find out more about how this special library card helped these pre-teens in their sometimes scary and uneventful lives, read The Library Card by Jerry Spinelli and take an adventure of your own through reading.

YELLOWSTONE GHOST STORIES

by Shellie Larios (5th+)

Do you enjoy ghost stories? Do you like reading about places you know about or have visited? Then this may be the book for you. Yellowstone National Park was the worlds first national park and these 20 or so spooky tales come from there. The tales in this collection include ghosts haunting inns with noises and appearances, mysterious disappearances and circumstances, as well as tragic stories of death, murder, and loss. Many of the ghost stories and tales in this collection happened in hotels and areas that are still around in Yellowstone National Park today. So, if you would like to hear of the headless bride who haunts the Old Faithful Inn or of the little ghost boy who wanders lost through the same hallways or perhaps learn of the whispers ofthose who have drowned in Yellowstone Lake and of the mysterious woman who hitchhikes in the rain trying to get to work at a hotel that no longer exists, then read Yellowstone Ghost Stories by Shellie Larios.

BOLD NEW HORIZONS

Pirates of the Caribbean, Jack Sparrow Series #12
by Rob Kidd (2nd+)

Captain Torrents is now in possession of Poseidon’s trident. With it he has captured Captain Jack Sparrow and his former crew, who are now crew to Captain Laura Smith, Arabella’s mother. Torrents has them all trapped in the caves of the Merfolk where he has punctured holes in the cave walls in which sea water has begun pouring in and will soon fill the cavern. They must escape in order to get the trident back from Torrents and help the Merfolk gain the freedom they so desperately want. But Jack eventually finds himself fighting alone against Torrent and the Trident when the rest of his crew has become incapacitated in battle. Can he defeat Torrents and if he does can he handle the task of becoming the new leader of the free Merfolk? Read Bold New Horizons, the last book in the Pirates of the Caribbean, Jack Sparrow series by Rob Kidd.

DAY OF THE IGUANA

by Henry Winkler (3rd+)

Book 3 in the Hank Zipzer series

Hank and his friends, or the Magik 3, have gotten the job of putting on a magic show for Hank’s twin three-year-old cousins at their birthday party. But Frankie has a dilemma. The birthday party happens to be at the same time as the one monster movie he has wanted to see all of his life. He really does not want to miss it, even if they are getting paid to do the magic show. So, Hank comes up with a plan that they can tape the movie using his uncles recorder and after the birthday party they can watch it. But something goes wrong and Frankie ends up really mad with Hank? Can they work it out and become friends again? Hank really hopes so, and soon, because he has just gotten himself into another mess, which requires the help of Frankie in order to fix. To find out what it means to have a real friendship and someone who is there for you no matter what, read Day of the Iguana, book 3 in the Hank Zipzer series by Henry Winkler.

I GOT A "D" IN SALAMI

by Henry Winkler (3rd+)

Book 2 of the Hank Zipzer series

Hank Zipzer has done it again. He’s is bound to be grounded for the rest of his life for this latest stunt that he has pulled. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Here’s what happened. Hank got to school feeling really good about his spelling test that day. As it turns out though he doesn’t do so well and then he gets even worse news, it’s report card day. When he gets his, he knows he is in deep trouble. Hank makes his problem even worse when he tries to hide his report card from his parents and some how it ends up in a batch of salami his mother is making as a taste test for a very important man that might buy a lot of her salami, that is if the taste test goes well. Now Hank has to come up with a way to get the “report card contaminated” salami back without his mother losing her order and hopefully without his parents finding out what he has done. Can he do it? Read about this hilariously fun adventure in I Got a “D” in Salami by Henry Winkler.

DaWILD, DaCRAZY, DaVINCI

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 14 in the Time Warp Trio

Sam has come up with an idea that because everything in The Book has to do with inventions that perhaps an inventor created The Book. Many of the inventions in The Book are from the famous artist and inventor, Leonardo da Vinci. The boys go on an adventure, this time on purpose, to find Leonardo da Vinci and ask him questions about how The Book works exactly. But after they find him they have to deal with the army soldiers and generals for whom Leonardo is working for creating military inventions. Is da Vinci the inventor of the book and if so can he help them learn how to use it? To find out, read DaWild, DaCrazy, DaVinci by Jon Scieszka.

ME OH MAYA

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 13 in the Time Warp Trio

Mayans, oh my! Here’s a fact you may not know, Mayans are big into making sacrifices to their gods. Well, the boys find themselves among the Mayans on their newest adventure trying to not become one of these sacrifices to the gods. To do this, the boys must beat the high priest— Kakapupahed—at a game very similar to basketball. The boys think no problem until they see the players on the high priests’ team and learn that the losers of the game lose more than just the game but also their heads. Yikes! What can they do but win. Find out what happens when you read Jon Scieszka’s Time Warp Trio book #13, Me Oh Maya.

VIKING IT AND LIKING IT

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 12 in the Time Warp Trio

Knowing about Vikings and meeting them are definitely two separate things. Fred, Sam, and Joe know about Vikings but are very surprised when they end up on a beach where they meet them for real. This is all thanks to one special and magic book. They travel along with the Viking called Leif Erikson, who discovered North America, and help him in a battle against his nasty cousin. Then it is time for them to find the book and return home just in time to battle Fred’s brother for his NFL smash game. Read Viking It and Liking It to enjoy a tale of Vikings and their fierce fighting.

HEY KID, WANT TO BUY A BRIDGE

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 11 in the Time Warp Trio

The boys still have not figured out how to work the book. Lately, it has been time-warping them when they say anything around it. They also have not yet figured out how to hang onto it, though they have tried many ideas. But when The Book takes them back to the time the of the Thomas Alva Edison and the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, they find they have a lot to fix or they will have messed up the future for everyone. They are not alone this time though. Somehow they seem to have brought their great-granddaughters back from their time in the future also. Working together can they fix the future so that all of the inventions they so enjoy in their time are still invented in the time they find themselves now. Read Hey Kid, Want to Buy a Bridge, book 11 in the Time Warp Trio series.

SAM SAMURAI

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 10 in the Time Warp Trio

Once again the boys have accidently opened the book or said something that has brought forth the green spiraling mist from The Book and transported them into trouble. In the 1600’s the greatest fighters in Japan were called Samurai and these warriors carried to weapons called the Katana or long knife and the Wakizashi or short sword. Each samurai was very skilled with both of these swords and could easily defeat and kill their enemy. Well, the boys are about to find out just how skilled samurai are when they land in 1600 Japan surrounded by samurai and battles. Can they get out of this sticky situation and will they heed the advice of some new found friends as well as ones they’ve met on another adventure. Read Sam Samurai to find out.

SEE YOU LATER, GLADIATOR

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 9 in the Time Warp Trio

The trio is once again swept into the past. They must fight as gladiators in Rome against other gladiators as well as some strange creatures. The only weapons they have are the wooden swords that came along for the ride. They must survive in order to locate the book and get home. In order to survive they must get a thumbs up from the crowd and the emperor for their fighting skills. If they get a thumbs down they will be killed. Can they display great fighting skills and be set free or will they be killed instead. To find out, you must read See You Later, Gladiator by Jon Scieszka, book 9 in the Time Warp Trio series.

IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 8 in the Time Warp Trio

This time the boys are off on an adventure into the world of gods and goddesses. A play that the boys were putting together and staring in for school ends up becoming real when The Book gets brought into it. The whole thing soon becomes a battle between the gods/goddesses and the monsters of Greek mythology such as Medusa, Cyclops, and the Minotaur. Will they find the book in time to change the history of the gods back and save their own lives in time for opening night? Find out by reading It’s All Greek to Me.

SUMMER READING IS KILLING ME

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
book 7 in the Time Warp Trio

Have you ever read a book and one of the characters scared you? Well, imagine if you ended up in a story with every scary and mean character from every book on your summer reading list. This is what happens to the Time Warp Trio. They find that in order to get back they have to defeat all of the evil characters who are taking the nice characters prisoner and in order to do that they again have to find the book. Can they free the good characters and get back home, making everything right again. Find out when you read Summer Reading is Killing Me.

TUT, TUT

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
Book 6 in the Time Warp Trio

On this new adventure the boys are off to the land of the Pharoahs. Joe’s sister, Anna, has stumbled across The Book and in trying to make a point that there were woman Pharaohs, she opens the book and ends up sending all three boys, herself, and her cat Cleo to Egypt on a green mist. But once there they are accused of being grave robbers by the Pharoah’s priest, Hatsnat. The boys know something about Hatsnat that he doesn’t want the Pharoah to find out about and so will do anything to keep them quiet. What do they know and will he succeed in keeping them from talking with the Pharoah. To find out, read Tut, Tut, book 6 of the Time Warp Trio series.

2095

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
Book 5 in the Time Warp Trio

What do you think you would find in the future? Well, this is the question Joe, Sam, and Fred are asking themselves. Joe has found a page in The Book in which you can type in a year you wish to visit instead of wishing for a certain place. So, the boys decide to travel to the future this time, 100 years into the future, to 2095. It is quite different but what thing that is the same is that the boys again find themselves in trouble. They are running from “killer” robots, secret police, and the woman in charge of the museum of the future. What they didn’t count on were some allies in the future who are going to help them find the book and get back to their time. Who are these special allies and why do they want to help the boys get back? Find out when you read 2095, book 5 in the Time Warp series by Jon Scieszka.

YOUR MOTHER WAS A NEANDERTHAL

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
Book 4 in the Time Warp Trio

Joe, Fred, and Sam are still trying to figure out how the book works. This time they have determined that when they go back in time they are going to take tools and weapons with them. Each boy gets loaded down with what things they believe they will need and they are on their way to the time of cavemen. But they are in for more than they bargained for. First of all, they thought that if they just held on tight to the book they would land in the Neanderthal with it this time. It doesn’t work out that way and they are forced to again find the book in that time in order to return to their time. What they didn’t count on were the crazy Neanderthal women, the strange cavemen, and the giant saber- tooth cat or wooly mammoth who try and get them. Will they make it home this time or will this be there last trip? Read Your Mother was a Neanderthal by Jon Scieszka.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE GOOFY

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)

Book 3 in the Time Warp Trio

This time, Sam accidentally takes himself and his buddies on a trip into the old West. They still have not figured out how The Book works. Sam was making fun of the magic in the book and made up a rhyme that ended up taking them back to the time of cowboys and Indians. At this time, it is the battle of Custer and the Seventh Cavalry. But when the Indian chief and the warriors that they meet turn out to be more than the cowboys have portrayed can they stop Custer and the seventh cavalry from doing harm to them. To find out read Time Warp Trio book 3, The Good, the Bad, and the Goofy.

THE NOT-SO-JOLLY ROGER

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
Book 2 in the Time Warp Trio

When Fred, Sam, and Joe get together one day to take another look at the book they find that they are not quite sure how it works. Their idea is that you open it and make a wish on one of the pictures. As it turns out, they are wrong. While trying to figure out The Book, they end up on their next adventure. Fred wants to go looking for buried treasure and Sam wants to go back in time to meet a historical figure. Well, as it turns out, when the green mist appears they both get their wish. The boys find themselves on a deserted island stuck in some coconut trees. That is the island was deserted until the pirates showed up to bury their treasure. Now Fred, Sam, and Joe are in big trouble because their magic tricks aren’t working the same way they did last time in getting them out of trouble. In fact, their magic has gotten them in more trouble this time. Read The Not-So-Jolly Roger to find out if the boys escape the pirates and make it home without any bullet holes or cutlass wounds.

KNIGHTS OF THE KITCHEN TABLE

by Jon Scieszka (3rd+)
Book 1 of the Time Warp Trio

Three boys find themselves in a strange land being attacked by what looks like, but can’t possibly be, a large tin can. It all began at Joe’s birthday party when he opened a present from his magician uncle. It turned out to be a book and when Joe’s friend Fred opens the book they find the tale of King Arthur’s court with knights and dragons. Fred makes a wish that he could be in a place like that with adventure and suddenly the boys find themselves surrounded by green smoke. When the smoke finally clears, they find themselves fighting the tin can, which turns out to be a knight. After defeating the knight, King Arthur believes them to be great sorcerers and has asked for their help in defeating a dragon and a giant that are terrorizing his kingdom. All Joe, Fred, and Sam want to do is get home. Can they find a way home and get there before they are scorched by the dragon or stomped on by the giant. Find out when you read Knights of the Kitchen Table, the first book in the Time Warp Trio series by Jon Scieszka.

ELEPHANT RUN

by Roland Smith (5th+)

During the time of World War II a young boy named Nick lives with his mother in England. But when there apartment is destroye in a bombing raid, Nick’s mother decides that he may be safer living with his father in Burma, Southeast Asia. When Nick arrives he meets some very interesting and wonderful people and is determined to learn how to run his fathers teak plantation and how to be a mahout training the timber elephants in the area. But when the war follows him to Burma and the Japanese attack there Nick finds himself alone but for his one friend Mya. Both have been taken prisoner on the teak plantation, forced to do anything the Japanese wish. Nick’s father and Mya’s brother are taken to a different camp where they are also forced to work. Nick and Mya are determined to get free, to escape, and find their families. Many obstacles stand in their way. Besides the angry guards and the treasonous mahout who are out to get them they also have dangers of the jungle to worry about such as poisonous snakes and the angry timber elephants. Can the two of them escape the Japanese unharmed and make it through the jungle of Burma to find their families? To find out read this exciting and exhilarating tale, Elephant Run by Roland Smith.

NIAGRA FALLS, OR DOES IT?

by Henry Winkler (3rd+)
Book 1 of the Hank Zipzer series

Henry Zipzer, also known as Hank, just started the fourth grade and already he is feeling stupid. His teacher, Ms. Adolf, just assigned them a five paragraph essay on what they did over the summer vacation. How can this be happening? He is a terrible writer, a terrible speller, in fact, there is not much he feels good at, except perhaps creativity. Everyone seems to think he has a lot of that. Can he use that to his advantage? Hank has an idea that will top all of the creative ideas he has had so far this year—a living essay of Niagra Falls. He just can’t write a paper essay for many reasons including he is allergic to lined paper, if he sits too long his butt falls asleep, and his handwriting looks like a chicken stepped in tar and ran across the page. But when things go hilariously wrong with his Niagra Falls “living essay” he gets sent to detention as well as grounded. Detention turns out to be one of the best things for him though. He meets Mr. Rock, who helps him to find that he is not stupid he just learns differently than others. Can Hank find the best way of learning for him and can he do it without any more “living essay” incidents. Read Niagra Falls, or Does It by Henry Winkler and look for the rest of the Hank Zipzer series to find out what other creative things Hank can come up with to cause mischief.