One of thousands of children who fled strife in southern Sudan, John Bul Dau survived hunger, exhaustion, and violence. His wife, Martha, endured similar hardships. In this memorable book, the two convey the best of African values while relating searing accounts of famine and war. There’s warmth as well, in their humorous tales of adapting to American life. For its importance as a primary source, for its inclusion of the rarely told female perspective of Sudan’s lost children, for its celebration of human resilience, this is the perfect story to inform and inspire young readers.
A new psychological thriller with links to his acclaimed bestsellers KOKO and THE THROAT -- from the co-author of the massive international No 1 bestseller BLACK HOUSE. From the prolific and ferocious imagination of Peter Straub, the acclaimed master of literary horror, springs a groundbreaking story of the persistence of evil told with tantalizing ambiguity and formal audacity. A woman kills herself for no apparent reason. A week later, her teenage son disappears. The vanished boy's uncle, Timothy Underhill -- familiar to Straub's readers from Koko and The Throat -- is compelled to return to his hometown of Millhaven to discover what he can. A madman known as the Sherman Park Killer has been haunting the neighbourhood, but Underhill believes that Mark's obsession with a local abandoned house is at the root of his disappearance. He fears that in peeling back the house's hideous secrets, Mark came across its last and greatest secret -- a lost girl, one who has coaxed Mark deeper and deeper into her mysterious domain where he must encounter a fearsome adversary.
From the national bestselling author of Alice comes a familiar story with a dark hook—a tale about Peter Pan and the friend who became his nemesis, a nemesis who may not be the blackhearted villain Peter says he is… There is one version of my story that everyone knows. And then there is the truth. This is how it happened. How I went from being Peter Pan’s first—and favorite—lost boy to his greatest enemy. Peter brought me to his island because there were no rules and no grownups to make us mind. He brought boys from the Other Place to join in the fun, but Peter's idea of fun is sharper than a pirate’s sword. Because it’s never been all fun and games on the island. Our neighbors are pirates and monsters. Our toys are knife and stick and rock—the kinds of playthings that bite. Peter promised we would all be young and happy forever. Peter lies.
In war-torn Sudan, a girl must make heart-rending choices as she fights for survival and a chance at a future. “This short, quickly paced narrative will stay with readers for the rest of their lives.” School Library Journali, STARRED REVIEW “Moving and necessary.” Kirkus, STARRED REVIEW For Poni, life in her small village in southern Sudan is simple and complicated at the same time. Stay in school. Beat up any boy who tries to show attention. Watch out for the dangers in the river. But then the war comes. And when soldiers arrive in her village and bombs begin to rain from the sky, there is only one thing for Poni to do. Run. Poni runs for her life, and alongside thousands of refugees, she must then make a long, dusty trek across the east African countryside. Driven by the sheer will to survive, Poni finds her way to the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, where she hopes to be reunited with her family. And if she is lucky, she will one day be able to convince the authorities that she is worthy to go to the land of opportunity. But the misery in Kakuma is almost overwhelming, and sooner than Poni could have imagined, she is on the run again. With single-minded determination, Poni survives hell and back, but she cannot escape the war’s devastating psychological effects or her survivor’s guilt. In a heartbreaking final twist, Poni finds her mother just as she is about to leave for America—forcing her to make the hardest decision of all. Key Text Features map historical note timeline glossary references Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.3 Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.6 Explain how an author develops the point of view of the narrator or speaker in a text.
She was a modern-day Shirley Temple, but at the age of nine Drew Barrymore was drinking alcohol. At ten she took up marijuana, and by twelve she began snorting cocaine. Here is her gripping, heart-wrenching story--a story of a childhood gone awry and a young woman battling to restore order to her chaotic life.
Return to the world of Amy Wilson's A Girl Called Owl in this sparkling seasonal novel Owl and the Lost Boy, from 'the rising star of children's fantasy'. Being stuck in an eternal summer is not fun. Especially when you're Jack Frost's daughter. Owl's friend Alberic – who also happens to be the Earl of Autumn's son – is missing. Determined to find him and end the perpetual summer, Owl and her best friend Mallory embark on an adventure that will take them deep into the magical world of time itself. But Alberic's disappearance is shrouded in secret, and there's more going on than meets the eye. As an epic battle of the elements approaches, will Owl and Alberic be able to control their magic and restore the natural world? Lose yourself in this glittering story of friendship, nature and the elements told with Amy Wilson's trademark magic and heart. 'A story of wild winds and bitter frosts with the warmth of friendship at its heart' Abi Elphinstone, author of Sky Song on A Girl Called Owl 'It was such a treat to be back in Owl’s world - Amy Wilson spins her magic like a glittering winter cloak' Jasbinder Bilan, author of Asha & the Spirit Bird
Long after returning from Neverland, Wendy decides that she must find Peter in order to reclaim her kiss and move on with her life. Along the way, she meets other girls who went to Neverland and learns she is not alone. A coming-of-age exploration of first love and lasting loss, Lost Girl continues the story of J.M. Barrie’s beloved character – the girl who had to grow up.
Kimberly Willis Holt explores themes of divorce, acceptance, intergenerational friendship, and the power that comes with noticing in The Lost Boy's Gift, an insightful middle-grade novel. There are places where you want to go and places where you want to leave. There are also places where you want to stay. Nine-year-old Daniel must move across the county with his mom after his parents’ divorce. He’s leaving behind his whole life—everything—and he’s taking a suitcase of anger with him. But Daniel is in for a surprise when he settles into While-a-Way Lane and meets his new neighbors—the Lemonade Girl, the hopscotching mailman, the tiny creatures, and especially Tilda Butter. Tilda knows how to look and listen closely, and it's that gift that helps Daniel find his way in that curious placed called While-a-Way Lane. This title has Common Core connections. Christy Ottaviano Books
Peter Pan is an arrogant little wanker Sorry, not sorry, you'd say it too if you'd ever been to Neverland. I know the big story is that Wendy Darling is the first girl to end up on Neverland because girls are too smart to fall out of their prams. I'm living proof that's a lie. Wendy was just the first time Peter actually asked permission before he took a girl to Neverland to be his mother. I guess he learned his lesson from me. He kidnapped me from my bed while I was sleeping and just expected me to be his mother. I'd rather be a Lost Boy than his mother. Peter eventually gave up on me. He lost a mother and two Lost Boys that day that left with me. I've been living away from Peter Pan. Me and my Lost Boys are now the Wildlings. We even have a fairy with us named Coale, who is a blacksmith fairy, but prefers making explosives. Coale and Blaize get along marvelously as Blaize loves to play with fire. But we've committed the one crime on Neverland Peter won't forgive. An instant death sentence for anyone on Neverland no matter how close to Peter you are. We already have one strike against us leaving him. We've now committed the ultimate Neverland sin. We woke up one morning and we've all grown up. There is a legend on Neverland, someone Peter hates. Someone no one knows where to find. Someone everyone on Neverland only knows as the hook nosed hag. If she's an old woman on Neverland, then she either predates Peter or she survived his culling. We have to stay out of Peter's way and find this mysterious hag. We find some old villains who end up not being villains. Captain Hook is not dead and may have information on the hag. We only have three days before Peter's Spring Cleaning is over and he returns Wendy's descendant back home. After that, he will be on the hunt for our blood. We don't even know if the hag survived Peter's culling. If not, everyone who has grown up on Neverland has died by Peter's blade.
Many stories have been told about the famous Lost Boys, but now for the first time, a Lost Girl shares her hauntingly beautiful and inspiring story. One of the first unaccompanied refugee children to enter the United States in 2000, after South Sudan's second civil war took the lives of most of her family, Rebecca's story begins in the late 1980s when, at the age of four, her village was attacked and she had to escape. WHAT THEY MEANT FOR EVIL is the account of that unimaginable journey. With the candor and purity of a child, Rebecca recalls how she endured fleeing from gunfire, suffering through hunger and strength-sapping illnesses, dodging life-threatening predators-lions, snakes, crocodiles, and soldiers alike-that dogged her footsteps, and grappling with a war that stole her childhood. Her story is a lyrical, captivating portrait of a child hurled into wartime, and how through divine intervention, she came to America and found a new life full of joy, hope, and redemption.
