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Notices 1
Friday, January 23
The elevator at Civic Centre Resource Library is out of service. We apologize for any inconvenience.
The elevator at Civic Centre Resource Library is out of service. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Jelly is as surprised as anyone when he decides that he's going to win the annual sixth grade speech contest.
Just like that, Joe Alton Miles, better known as Jelly (because his initials are J.A.M. and his best friend's are P.B.), is faced with overcoming not only his terror of being in the spotlight, but also the wrath of smart, popular Victoria, who believes that the prize (like all prizes) is rightfully hers. At first, Jelly only cares about winning the awesome prize (a new tablet), but as Victoria escalates her campaign against him, Jelly begins to realize that it's not only the prize that's at stake, but also his reputation, his self-respect and the friendship he values most. Jelly must dig deep inside himself to find out if he's strong enough to stand up to Victoria and show everyone what he's really capable of.
Hilariously funny and just as poignant, Speechless is about finding out who your friends are, giving back, standing up to bullying and finding your own unique voice.
(15 copies)
Reserve
Twelve-year-old Ben Ripley leaves his public middle school to attend the CIA's highly secretive Espionage Academy, which everyone is told is an elite science school.
(14 copies)
Reserve
Aisulu is a Kazakh nomad girl living in Mongolia. She has always been a bit different - she likes girl things well enough and milks the yaks and fetches water as a daughter should, but she also likes math and a fast ride on her horse, Moon Spot, that she tamed herself. But when her brother Selik breaks his leg trying to catch an eagle, and is discovered to have osteosarcoma, everything changes for Aisulu. Her parents rush off to the city with Selik, leaving Aisulu to tend the herds alone. She rescues the dead eagle's chick, moves in with her aunt and her uncle, a former Burkitshi (eagle hunger), and begins to tame the eaglet, which she names Toktar. Soon it becomes clear that Aisulu and Toktar have a special bond, and her uncles begins training her to become an eagle hunter herself, even though she is a girl, and girls do not become eagle hunters. Aisulu is not sure she can do it - but when she finds out that there will be a Festival, and foreigners (from ESPN, a crew filming "the weird sports") have provided a substantial prize, Aisulu changes her mind. The prize can buy her brother an expensive prosthetic leg and allow him to run and ride again. Her uncle begins training her, Toktar and Moon Spot and her aunt enlists the women to create a suitable and special outfit for the competition, something fit for a Burkitshi. The odds are stacked against her, but Aisulu is determined to prove herself and help her family.
(15 copies)
Reserve
Moon is everything Christine isn't. She's confident, impulsive, artistic . . . and though they both grew up in the same Chinese-American suburb, Moon is somehow unlike anyone Christine has ever known.
But after Moon moves in next door, these unlikely friends are soon best friends, sharing their favorite music videos and painting their toenails when Christine's strict parents aren't around. Moon even tells Christine her deepest secret: that she has visions, sometimes, of celestial beings who speak to her from the stars. Who reassure her that earth isn't where she really belongs.
Moon's visions have an all-too-earthly root, however, and soon Christine's best friend is in the hospital, fighting for her life. Can Christine be the friend Moon needs, now, when the sky is falling?
(14 copies)
Reserve
After the tragic death of their father, Emily and Navin move with their mother to the home of her deceased great-grandfather, but the strange house proves to be dangerous. Before long, a sinister creature lures the kids' mom through a door in the basement. Em and Navin, desperate not to lose her, follow her into an underground world inhabited by demons, robots, and talking animals.
(15 copies)
Reserve
When is a summer vacation not really a summer vacation? Sunny Lewin has been packed off to Florida to live with her grandfather for the summer. At first she thought Florida might be fun -- it is the home of Disney World, after all. But the place where Gramps lives is no amusement park. It's full of . . . old people. Really old people.Luckily, Sunny isn't the only kid around. She meets Buzz, a boy who is completely obsessed with comic books, and soon they're having adventures of their own: facing off against golfball-eating alligators, runaway cats, and mysteriously disappearing neighbors. But the question remains -- why is Sunny down in Florida in the first place? The answer lies in a family secret that won't be secret to Sunny much longer. . .
(15 copies)
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GRAPHIC NOVELS - AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENTS Bree can't wait for her first day at her new middle school, Enith Brigitha, home to the Mighty Manatees--until she's stuck with the only elective that fits her schedule, the dreaded Swim 101. The thought of swimming makes Bree more than a little queasy, yet she's forced to dive headfirst into one of her greatest fears. Lucky for her, Etta, an elderly occupant of her apartment building and former swim team captain, is willing to help
(10 copies)
Reserve
The adventures of a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess he loves, the servant girl who longs to be a princess, and a devious rat determined to bring them all to ruin. 2004 Newbery Medal winner.
(15 copies)
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Fourteen-year-old Nikki Maxwell writes in her diary of her struggle to be popular at her exclusive new private school, then of finding her place after she gives up on being part of the elite group.
(13 copies)
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REALISTIC FICTION - CHINESE AMERICANS Mia Tang is at the top of her game! She's spending winter break with Mom, Lupe, Jason, and Hank in San Francisco's Chinatown! Rich with history and hilarious aunties and uncles, it's the place to find a great story--one she hopes to publish while attending journalism camp at the Tribune. But this trip has as many bumps as the hills of San Francisco... 1. Mia's camp is full of older kids, with famous relatives, fancy laptops, and major connections! Can she compete with just her pen and passion? 2. Lupe's thinking about skipping ahead to college! Will Mia ever get a chance to just chill with her best friend? 3. Jason's crushing hard on a new girl. For the first time ever, Mia is speechless...and jealous. Can she find the courage to tell Jason--gulp--that she has a crush on him? Even for the best writers, it's not always easy to find the right words. But if anyone can tell a top story, it's Mia Tang!
(15 copies)
Reserve