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Maine Student Book Awards

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New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice

A funny, heartwarming, and heartbreaking contemporary story about three boys, one teacher, and a day none of them will ever forget.


From the minds of Tom Angleberger, the New York Times bestselling author of the wildly popular Origami Yoda series, and Paul Dellinger, an adult science-fiction writer, comes a funny middle school story with a memorable robot title character.


Newbery Honor winner Joan Bauer hits a home run with her newest protagonist, who always sees the positive side of any situation.


Newbery Honor Book
Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book
Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book


Using original slave auction and plantation estate documents, Ashley Bryan offers a moving and powerful picture book that contrasts the monetary value of a person with the priceless value of life experiences and dreams that a slave owner could never take away.

Imag


From the award-winning author of All the Broken Pieces and Serafina's Promise comes a breathtaking new novel that is her most transcendent and widely accessible work to date.

The day Grace is called from the slave cabins to work in the Big House, Mama makes her promise to keep her eyes down.


Junior Library Guild Selection * Kids’ Indie Next List Pick


PURA BELPRÉ HONOR BOOK
ALA NOTABLE BOOK

“Powerful and timely.” —Booklist (starred review)
“An important, must-have addition to the growing body of literature with immigrant themes.” —School Library Journal (starred review)

Twelve-year-old Jaime makes the treacherous and life-changing journey from his home in Guatemal


Abandoned in the jungle of the Nepalese Borderlands, two-year-old Nandu is found living under the protective watch of a pack of wild dogs. From his mysterious beginnings, fate delivers him to the King's elephant stable, where he is raised by unlikely parents-the wise head of the stable, Subba-sahib, and Devi Kali, a fierce and affectionate female elephant.


Zomorod (Cindy) Yousefzadeh is the new kid on the block . . . for the fourth time. California’s Newport Beach is her family’s latest perch, and she’s determined to shuck her brainy loner persona and start afresh with a new Brady Bunch name—Cindy. It’s the late 1970s, and fitting in becomes more difficult as Iran makes U.S.


"Among the wealth of good Holocaust literature available, Freedman's volume stands out for its focus and concision, effectively placing the White Rose in its historical context, telling the story of Nazi Germany without losing the focus on the White Rose, and doing so in just over 100 pages." (Kirkus starred review)


This emotionally resonant novel in verse by award-winning author Nikki Grimes celebrates choosing to be true to yourself.


The New York Times bestselling novel by the Goodreads Choice Awards Best Debut Author of 2016, published in 15 countries!


In the tradition of Counting By 7s and The Thing About Jellyfish, a heartwarming coming-of-age story about grief, family, friendship, and the importance of finding your voice


Jack might be the only kid in the world who's dreading summer. But he's got a good reason: summer is when his single mom takes a second job and leaves him at home to watch his autistic kid sister, Maddy. It's a lot of responsibility, and it's boring, too, because Maddy doesn't talk. Ever.


A beautifully heartfelt story about one boy’s journey toward acceptance. A book that Jill Soloway, the award-winning creator of Transparent, called “a terrific read for all ages” and Ami Polonsky, author of Gracefully Grayson, called “an emotionally complex and achingly real read.”


A girl on the run after being accused of killing Robin Hood learns what it really means to be a hero in this exciting adventure story.

“That’s the girl who killed Robin Hood!” Those words send Ellie Dray racing for the forest and the chance to clear her name.

Twelve-year-old novice nun Elinor Dray has always idolized Robin Hood.


EDGAR AWARD WINNER FOR BEST MYSTERY
BANK STREET BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
SILVER BIRCH AWARD WINNER


“Complex and satisfying.


From the bestselling author of Swindle and Ungifted comes the funny, fantastic story of an underachiever who ends up achieving much more than any overachiever could ever imagine.

Cameron Boxer is very happy to spend his life avoiding homework, hanging out with his friends, and gaming for hours in his basement. It's not too hard for him to get away with it . . .


A modern-day adventure and classic in the making, in the vein of The Call of the Wild, Hatchet, and The Cay, by award-winning author Iain Lawrence.
 
A Junior Library Guild Selection


The glorious start to a middle grade trilogy about a brilliant boy, his loyal friends, and some amazingly intelligent beetles that's perfect for Roald Dahl fans!

Darkus Cuttle's dad mysteriously goes missing from his job as Director of Science at the Natural History Museum. Vanished without a trace! From a locked room!


Leave the lights on for this first book in a new thriller series! The author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Pendragon invites you to enter The Library, where the stories you can’t finish just might finish you.


Ryan Quinn and the Rebel’s Escape is the first fast-paced, sensational novel in a trilogy about a New York City teenager who could give James Bond and Jason Bourne a run for their money. Fans of Alex Rider and the Spy School series will be completely enthralled.


Slip behind the Iron Curtain into a world of smoke, secrets, and lies in this stunning novel where someone is always listening and nothing is as it seems.


Newbery Medalist Richard Peck tells a story of small-town life, gay marriage, and everyday heroes in this novel for fans of Gary Schmidt and Jack Gantos.


What would you do if every spark of electricity suddenly vanished, as if somebody had flipped a switch on the entire planet? Cars won't start, the heat shuts off, there's no water in your faucet, and your radio, TV, and flashlight go dark. Everyone in Charlie's small town is baffled.


Get to know the only kid on the FBI Director’s speed dial and several international criminals’ most wanted lists all because of his Theory of All Small Things in this hilarious start to a brand-new middle grade mystery series.

So you’re only halfway through your homework and the Director of the FBI keeps texting you for help…What do you do? Save your grade?


Who says words need to be concrete? This collection shapes poems in surprising and delightful ways.


A National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature.
Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read.


From award-winning author Jewell Parker Rhodes comes a powerful novel set fifteen years after the 9/11 attacks in a classroom of students who cannot remember the event but live through the aftermath of its cultural shift.


In the war-ravaged England of 1940, Charlotte Bromley is sure of only one thing: Kitty McLaughlin is her best friend in the whole world. But when Charlotte's scientist father makes an astonishing discovery that the Germans will covet for themselves, Charlotte is faced with an impossible choice between danger and safety. Should she remain with her friend or journey to another time and place?


6 Starred Reviews! New York Times Bestseller! A People Magazine Best Children’s Book! A Washington Post Best Book! A Publishers Weekly Best Book!


When middle school puzzle master Sam and history wiz Martina win a contest for a summer trip across the US, they discover they've been drafted into something vastly more extraordinary. Joining another kid on the trip, Theo, a descendant of George Washington himself, they must follow clues to find seven keys left behind by the Founding Fathers.


This New York Times bestseller from David Walliams, the UK’s #1 bestselling children’s author and “the heir to Roald Dahl” (The Spectator), launched his books stateside in a big way!


A new friend could be sitting right next to you.

Joe and Ravi might be from very different places, but they're both stuck in the same place: SCHOOL.Joe's lived in the same town all his life, and was doing just fine until his best friends moved away and left him on his own.


A Newbery Honor Book
New York Times Bestseller

Wolf Hollow has stayed with me long after I closed the book. It has the feel of an instant classic." —Linda Sue Park, Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author of A Long Walk to Water