Twice Upon a Time . . . . Fairy Tale Retellings for Teens

 This week, I'm sharing fairy tale retellings for teens.  Here are a few of my favorites . . . .

Enchanted by Alethea Kontis

When Sunday Woodcutter, the youngest sibling to sisters named for the other six days of the week, kisses an enchanted frog, he transforms back into Rumbold, the crown prince of Arilland--a man Sunday's family despises.

Snow in Summer by Jane Yolen

Recasts the tale of Snow White, setting it in West Virginia in the 1940s with a stepmother who is a snake-handler.

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George

A retelling of the tale of twelve princesses who wear out their shoes dancing every night, and of Galen, a former soldier now working in the king's gardens, who follows them in hopes of breaking the curse.

The Rumpelstiltskin Problem by Vivian Vande Velde

The author presents six alternative versions of the familiar story of a boastful miller and the daughter he claims can spin straw into gold.

More Fairy Tale Retellings --

Beast by Donna Jo Napoli

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

A Curse So Dark and Lovely by Brigid Kemmerer

Dark and Deepest Red by Anna-Marie McLemore

Dead Upon a Time by Elizabeth Poulson

East by Edith Pattou

Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell

Once Upon a Dream by Lisa Braswell

The Princess and the Fangirl: A Geekerella Novel by Ashley Poston

Princess of Thorns by Stacy Jay

Rose & Thorn by Sarah Prineas

Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley

Sea Witch by Sarah Henning

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim

Spindle by E.K. Johnston

Stitching Snow by R.C. Lewis

Towering by Alex Flinn

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through October 9, 2020.

Witchtown by Cory Putman Oakes

Macie and her mother travel from town to town stealing money from them before leaving.  They're never caught as Macie's mother casts a spell that erases them from everyone's memories.  But now they've arrived at Witchtown -- the last town they'll ever steal from as Macie's mother promises.  But can Macie really trust her mother?

The characters in the book are interesting due to their many secrets that are revealed slowly throughout the story.  Teens will enjoy this book of power, friendship, and family.

The Dog Days of Summer

 This week, I am sharing chapter book stories about dogs.  Here are a few of my favorites . . . .

Waggit's Tale by Peter Howe
When Waggit is abandoned by his owner as a puppy, he meets a pack of wild dogs who become his friends and teach him to survive in the city park, but when he has a chance to go home with a kind woman who wants to adopt him, he takes it.

Guinea Dog by Patrick Jennings
When his mother brings home a guinea pig instead of the dog he has always wanted, fifth-grader Rufus is not happy--until the rodent starts acting exactly like a dog.

Smart Dog by Vivian Vande Velde
Fifth grader Amy finds her life growing complicated when she meets and tries to hide an intelligent, talking dog who has escaped from a university lab.

More Dog Stories --
Awesome Dog 5000 by Justin Dean
Dog Diaries: Secret Writings of the Woof Society by Betsy Byars
Dog Driven by Terry Lynn Johnson
A Dog Like Daisy by Kristin O'Donnell Tubb
Dog Trouble by Galia Oz
A Dog's Life by Ann M. Martin
A Dog's Way Home by Bonnie Pyron
Good Dog by Dan Gemeinhart
Just a Dog by Michael Gerard Bauer
Mounatain Dog by Margarita Engle
One Dog and His Boy by Eva Ibbotson
Strongheart: Wonder Dog of the Silver Screen by Candace Fleming
Voyage of the Dogs by Greg Van Eekhout

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through October 3, 2020.

Reading = Learning: Informational Picture Books

There are a lot of great informational picture books that children can learn a lot from.  So this week, I'm sharing some of my favorite informational picture books . . . .

Rah, Rah, Radishes! A Vegetable Chant by April Pulley Sayre
Photographs of vegetables and rhyming text celebrate vegetables in all their colorful and tasty variety.

A Nest Is Noisy by Dianna Aston
Introduces the world of nests, revealing the variety created by the world's birds, animals, and insects.

John, Paul, George & Ben by Lane Smith
A humorous look at five of our country's founding fathers.

We March by Shane Evans
Illustrations and brief text portray the events of the 1963 march in Washington, D.C., where the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a historic speech.

More Books --
A Beetle Is Shy by Dianna Aston
Big and Small, Room for All by Jo Ellen Bogart
The Cloud Book by Tomie de Paola
Cold, Crunchy, Colorful: Using Our Senses by Jane Brocket
Hippos Can't Swim and Other Fun Facts by Laura Lyn DiSiena
How Tall, How Short, How Far Away by David Adler
I Don't Like Snakes by Nicola Davies
If You Decide to Go to the Moon by Faith McNulty
Magnets Push, Magnets Pull by David Adler
Masterpiece Mix by Roxie Munro
Older Than the Stars by Karen C. Fox
One Giant Leap by Robert Burleigh
Pluto Gets the Call by Adam Rex
A Second Is a Hiccup: A Child's Book of Time by Hazel Hutchins
Soar High, Dragonfly! by Sheri Mabry Bestor
Telling Time by Jules Older
What Is Science? by Rebecca Kai Dotlich
The Whole Story of the Doughnut by Pat Miller

Check these and more informational picture books out on display at the Arnold Branch through September 25, 2020.

Wayside School Beneath the Cloud of Doom by Louis Sachar

Wayside School is back!  

The students of the class on the 30th floor along with their teacher Mrs. Jewl and Louis the gym yard teacher are back along with some new staff including psychiatrist Mr. Pickell and school libarian Mrs. Surlaw.

They are preparing for the Ultimate Test -- the test over everything they've ever learned.  If they fail they will have to return to kindergarten.  

There's only one problem . . . the cloud of doom that is parked over the school.

After 40 years, Louis Sachar has written the final book in the Wayside School series.  If you haven't read the previous books, you need to now!  They are filled with hilarious stories of the class on the 30th floor.  This is a great series for all kids.

Can You Solve the Mystery? Teen Mysteries

This week I'm sharing mysteries for teens.  Here are a few of my favorites . . . .

The Golden Day by Ursula Dubosarsky

Eleven schoolgirls embrace their own chilling history when their teacher abruptly goes missing on a field trip. Who was the mysterious poet they met in the garden? What actually happened that day? and most importantly, Who can they tell about it?

Paper Towns by John Green

One month before graduating from his Central Florida high school, Quentin "Q" Jacobsen basks in the predictable boredom of his life until the beautiful and exciting Margo Roth Spiegelman, Q's neighbor and classmate, takes him on a midnight adventure and then mysteriously disappears.

Period 8 by Chris Crutcher

Period 8 has always been a safe haven and high school senior Paulie "The Bomb" Baum a constant attendee, but as Paulie, Hannah, their friends, and a sympathetic teacher try to unravel the mystery of a missing classmate, the ultimate bully takes aim at the school.

Blink by Sasha Dawn

Sixteen-year-old Josh falls in love with newcomer Chatham Claiborne, who has come to town to find her missing sister, but when Chatham suddenly disappears Josh unearths a web of lies and secrecy surrounding her life, and in doing so unwittingly discovers vital clues to the town's longest unsolved mystery.

More Teen Mysteries --

The Breathless by Tara Goedjen

The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas

Daughter of Deep Silence by Carrie Ryan

The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington

The Diviners by Libba Bray

Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham

Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

I Am Princess X by Cherie Priest

Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig

The Lost Causes by Jessica Koosed Etting

A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis

The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos

The Opposite of Here by Tara Altebrando

Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

People Like Us by Dana Mele

Pretty Girl-13 by Liz Coly

Sadie by Courtney Summers

Spin by L.R. Giles

A Spy in the House by Y.S. Lee

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke

With Malice by Eileen Cook

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through September 11, 2020.