Are your kids looking for some good new novels to read? Try one of these:
“Marcelo in the Real World,” Francisco X. Stork, ages 12 up, $17.99: In this book for teens, Stork details what happens when 17-year-old Marcelo, whose life has been defined by his Asperger-like condition, gets a taste of “the real world” when he accedes to his father’s demands to work in his law firm for the summer.
Both Marcelo and his father get way more than they expected, as Marcelo learns unsavory truths about his father’s work that could jeopardize his father’s future — and his own.
Readers will find Marcelo a compelling character.
“A Finder’s Magic,” Philippa Pearce, ages 6 to 10, $15.99: Philipa Pearce, who died in 2006, may have been one of the greatest children’s authors of the 20th Century, but her work, including her masterpiece, “Tom’s Midnight Garden,” remains too little known in the United States.
“A Finder’s Magic,” written for her two grandsons and illustrated by Helen Craig, their other grandmother, may rectify that.
This wonderful, fablelike story begins with a young boy named Till, whose beloved dog Bess has mysteriously disappeared.
“The Postcard,” Tony Abbott, ages 8 to 12, $5.99: Thirteen-year-old Jason is less than thrilled when he’s forced to travel to St. Petersburg, Fla., to join his dad, who is getting ready to sell his mother’s house.
Abbott tells what happens when Jason unexpectedly uncovers a mystery-within-a-mystery that takes him all over St. Petersburg in a search for a missing piece of his family’s history.
“The Genie Scheme,” Kimberly Jones, ages 8 to 12, ($15.99): A bag lady who’s actually a genie helps Janna learn about life’s real treasures in this engaging novel. Readers may also enjoy Jones’ much-praised first book, “Sand Dollar Summer,” just out in paperback ($5.99).
“Horrid Henry” books, Francesca Simon, ages 6 to 10, $4.99 each: Kids who love funny books will love this series first published more than a decade ago in Great Britain.
Each of the books has four short chapters, which makes them perfect for readers who are just ready for chapter books.
Simon’s hilariously deadpan text is wonderfully complemented by Tony Ross’ illustrations, which comically capture the consequences of Henry’s horridness.
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