Adventures lead the way in books for this age! The characters express curiosity alongside a desire to explore the unknown. Teamwork and quirky humor lead the way through the mazes often tackled in the following selections.

You Have to Stop This  by Pseudonymous Bosch  347p.
When a mummy disappears from the local history museum while Cass and her friends Max-Ernest and Yo-Yoji are there, they try to solve the case in order to clear their names and, they hope, discover the Secret they have been seeking. 

NERDS 3: The Cheerleaders of Doom  by Michael Buckley  245p.  Grades 4-6
When a former member of NERDS turns into a villainous cheerleader, Matilda "Wheezer" Choi and the rest of the NERDS must infiltrate the cheerleader squad and save the world from a machine that wreaks havoc by entering other dimensions.

Because of Mr. Terupt   by Rob Buyea 269p.
Seven fifth-graders at Snow Hill School in Connecticut relate how their lives are changed for the better by "rookie teacher" Mr. Terupt.    

Blood on the River  by Elisa Carbone
Traveling to the New World in 1606 as the page to Captain John Smith, twelve-year-old orphan Samuel Collier settles in the new colony of James Town, where he must quickly learn to distinguish between friend and foe. 237p.

The Secret Zoo: Traps and Specters   by Bryan Chick 307p.  Grades 4-7
"On Halloween night, the scouts, along with their Descender allies, must battle terrifying sasquatches at their own elementary school. Little do they know, the sasquatches are merely the bait to a trap. DeGraff captures three of the Descenders and drags them into a frightening, off-limits sector of The Secret Zoo. Meanwhile, Noah and his friends must protect two of their animals’ allies from police officers who are convinced that they are dangerous animals on the rampage. Will the scouts be able to save their friends in time, both animal and human?" 

No Passengers Beyond This Point by Gennifer Choldenko
With their house in foreclosure, sisters India and Mouse and brother Finn are sent to stay with an uncle in Colorado until their mother can join them, but when the plane lands, the children are welcomed by cheering crowds to a strange place where each of them has a perfect house and a clock that is ticking down the time. 244 p.

Alchemy and Meggy Swann  by Karen Cushman
In 1573, the crippled, scorned, and destitute Meggy Swann goes to London, where she meets her father, an impoverished alchemist, and eventually discovers that although her legs are bent and weak, she has many other strengths. 166p. 

You Only Die Twice   by Dan Gutman  289p.  Grades 5-8
Genius twins Coke and Pepsi McDonald embark on a trip to Graceland and are horrified by the reappearance of their supposedly deceased arch nemesis Dr. Herman Warsaw, who marries their aunt Judy.  (Book 3 of the Genius Files series)

Torn  by Margaret Peterson Haddix  345p.  Grades 5-9
Time travelers Jonah and Katherine arrive in 1611 to rescue missing child John Hudson, son of the explorer Henry Hudson, but just as the mutiny on the Discovery is supposed to start, Jonah and Katherine's knowledge of history is tested once again, and they fear that more is at stake than just one boy's life. Author's note includes facts about Henry Hudson's explorations.

Ghost of Crutchfield Hall   by Mary Downing Hahn 153p.  Grades 4-6
In the nineteenth century, ten-year-old Florence Crutchfield leaves a London orphanage to live with her great-uncle, great-aunt, and sickly cousin James, but she soon realizes the home has another resident, who means to do her and James harm.  

Part of Me   by Kimberly Holt
Ten stories  trace the connections between four generations of one Louisiana family from 1939 when a young girl leaves school to help support her family to 2006 when an eighty-year-old woman embarks on a book tour. 208p.  

White Sands, Red Menace   by Ellen Klages
It is 1946, and Dewey Kerrigan is now living near the Whitte Sands Missile Range in New Mexico with the Gordon family. Dewey and her "sister," Suze, share secrets, art, and science as they adjust to high school in an isolated desert town. Then, Dewey's long-lost mother, Rita Gallucci, reappears in their lives. 337 p.

Play Makers  by Mike Lupica  201p.
Still living large off their incredible football championship win just weeks before, Ben McBain and his crew must now prepare for basketball season. Ben is known as the best point guard throughout the league. And now that Shawn O'Brien has joined their team, they are a shoo-in to win it all. But there is a new kid in town, Chase Braggs, a point guard like Ben who seems to be better, stronger, and faster. Refusing to let his team down, Ben hits the courts hard to practice. Ben's rivalry with Chase seems to take the fun out of playing ball with his best friends. Will Ben be able to pull it together for his team and for himself? 

Athlete vs. Mathlete  by W.C. Mack
When their two worlds collide in seventh grade, fraternal twins and opposites Owen and Russell find themselves in direct competition at school, on the court, and at home.  196p.

Beauty and the Beast: The Only One Who Didn’t Run Away   by Wendy Mass  282p.
Struggling with looks that she thinks do not reflect her name, Beauty meets a gangly youth who lives in the shadow of his older brother and who a witch enchants to assume the form of a beast until a girl willingly dances with him.

Dawn and Dusk    by Alice Mead
As 13-year-old Azad tries desperately to cling to the life he has known, the political situation in Iran during the war with Iraq finally forces his family to flee their home and seek safety elsewhere. 151p. 

Hide and Seek  by Kate Messner  240p. Grades 4-6
For five hundred years the Jaguar Cup, sacred to the Silver Jaguar Society, was hidden in a cave on the coast of Costa Rica--so when a fake copy shows up on display in America, it is up to José, Anna, and Henry, junior members of the society, to travel to Costa Rica and rescue the real cup from thieves.

Lucky For Good: The Final Story  by Susan Patron 208p.
The residents of Hard Pan, California, come together to help Brigitte and Lucky when the County Health Department threatens to close down the café, and meantime Miles's life is complicated by his mother's return.

Road Trip   by Gary Paulsen & Jim Paulsen  128p.  Grades 5-8
Dad and Ben haven't been getting along recently and Dad hopes a road trip to rescue a border collie will help them reconnect. But Ben is on to Dad's plan and invites Ben's thuggish buddy, Theo. The family dog, Atticus, comes along too and the story is told by Ben and Atticus. When their truck breaks down, they commandeer an old school bus, along with its mechanic, Gus. Next, they pick up Mia, a waitress escaping a tense situation. Only sharp-eyed Atticus realizes that Theo is on the run—and someone is following them.

VOTE  by Gary Paulsen 144p. 
Kevin Spencer, the hero of Liar, Liar, Flat Broke, and Crush, has a knack for tackling big ideas and goofing up, so what's next? Politics, of course! He's running for office, and his campaign is truly unique.

A Season of Gifts   by Richard Peck
Relates the surprising gifts bestowed on 12-year-old Bob Barnhart and his family. who have recently moved to a small Illinois town is 1958, by their larger-than-life neighbor, Mrs. Dowdel. 164p. 

Ninth Ward  by Jewell Parker Rhodes
In New Orleans' Ninth Ward, twelve-year-old Lanesha, who can see spirits, and her adopted grandmother have no choice but to stay and weather the storm as Hurricane Katrina bears down upon them. 217p. 

The Serpent’s Shadow  (Kane Chronicles #3) by Rick Riordan 406p. 
Despite their best efforts, Carter and Sade Kane can't seem to keep Apophis, the chaos snake, down. Their only hope: find an ancient spell that might turn the serpent's own shadow into a weapon.

The Elephant’s Tale   by Lauren St. John  221p.   Grades 5-8
A fourth prophecy, this time involving elephants, comes true for eleven-year-old Martine, an orphaned South African girl with mystical healing powers over animals, when she and her grandmother are faced with losing the Sawubona Game Reserve forever. 

Eruption (Storm Runners #3)   by Roland Smith 156p.  Grades 5-8
Twelve-year-old Chase and his friend Nicole Rossi attempt to rescue the Rossi Brothers' Circus--lions, tigers, elephants, and all--in Mexico, where a massive earthquake has struck, leading to the imminent eruption of a volcano.  

The Cup and the Crown  by Diane Stanley  344p.  Grades 5-8
"At King Alaric's urging, Molly sets off on a quest for a magical loving cup (a goblet that binds people together), and her journey leads her to the hidden city of her ancestors, which proves to be as dangerous as it is mysterious.”  Sequel to: The Silver Bowl - this story stands alone.

I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912   by Lauren Tarshis  112p.  Grades 4-5
The most terrifying events in history are brought vividly to life in this new fictional series! In book 1, ten-year-old George is trapped on the Titanic -- how will he survive? Ten-year-old George Calder can't believe his luck -- he and his little sister, Phoebe, are on the famous Titanic, crossing the ocean with their Aunt Daisy. The ship is full of exciting places to explore, but when George ventures into the first class storage cabin, a terrible boom shakes the entire boat. Suddenly, water is everywhere, and George's life changes forever. Lauren Tarshis brings history's most exciting and terrifying events to life in this new fictional series. Readers will be transported by stories of amazing kids and how they survived.

Applewhites at Wit’s End   by Stephanie Tolan  253p.   Grades 5-8
Great changes are in store for the highly creative and somewhat eccentric Applewhite family when money problems force them to open a summer camp for gifted children, who almost immediately begin to rebel, while a mysterious interloper watches from the woods.

The Center of Everything  by Linda Urban   197p.   Grades 4-6
For Ruby Pepperdine, the center of everything is on the rooftop of Pepperdine Motors, stargazing from the circle of her grandmother Gigi's hug. That's how everything is supposed to be--until it goes spinning out of control. Now Ruby's best friend, Lucy, is mad at her. Her new friendship with Nero is pretty bumpy too. Worst of all, Ruby regrets what happened with Gigi. How Ruby didn't listen. And now it's too late to make things right. But Ruby has one last hope. It all depends on what happens on Bunning Day, when the entire town will hear her read her winning essay. And it all depends on her twelfth birthday wish-- unless she messes that up too.

Stolen    by Vivian Vande Velde
A girl finds herself running through the forest at the edge of a village with no memory of anything, even her own name, and later learns that she might be twelve-year-old Isabelle, believed to be stolen by a witch six years before. 158p.

Cookie  by Jacqueline Wilson
Beauty Cookson and her mother run away from her father, whose temper was out of control, and find a new lease on life at a seaside resort where they learn to cook and start to become more self-confident. 320p. 

Stuck in the Middle of Middle School  by Karen R. Young
Doreen (aka Doodlebug) is still dealing with challenges in this sequel to Doodlebug: A Novel in Doodles. This time around, her parents are trying to figure out their new jobs, Doodlebug has a teacher who believes she is capable of more, and her first school dance is fast approaching. Will she be able to keep her ADHD in check and solve all of her problems, or are they beyond her control? This story is easy to relate to, with school and home struggles at the forefront, and readers will understand Doodlebug's feelings of guilt regarding the fact that her parents are fighting and her concern that her dad will leave her mom.112p.

NONFICTION

DK Eyewitness Mummy   by James Putnam
Documents the history and significance of mummies, both natural and man-made, and describes the principles and ceremonies associated with them.  72p.

DK Eyewitness Flight   by Andrew Nahum
Be an eyewitness to how humans first realized the dream of taking flight, and see the remarkable and stunningly different machines that have whisked us up, up, and away.   72p. 

Mission Control, This is Apollo   by Andrew Chaikin
Mission Control, This Is Apollo, recounts space history from the Mercury missions through Apollo 17 and beyond. It is illustrated with stunning full-color paintings by astronaut Alan Bean, who walked on the moonwith Pete Conrad on Apollo 12 and has devoted his post-NASA life to creating art.   114p. 

Spyology  by Spencer Blake
As British spy, Agent K, traverses the globe on an undercover mission to expose a deadly criminal organization, he records his secret techniques in a manual for new recruits, in a title which includes a magnifying jewel on the front cover and a codex.

Army: Civilian to Soldier  by Meish Goldish
What does it take to become one of the finest soldiers in the world? Find out in this exciting look inside the U.S. Army’s basic combat training.

Warships  by Rob Colson
Readers are taken through the history of warships from the time of sails to modern day battleships.

LEGO Super Heroes: Batman Visual Dictionary  by Daniel Lipkowitz
“Celebrate the action-packed world of LEGO Batman and LEGO DC Super Heroes with all of the vehicles, weapons, locations, gadgets, and minifigures”—P.(4) of cover.

Just Joking: 300 Hilarious Jokes, Tricky Tongue Twisters and Ridiculous Riddles   by Nancy Feresten
Packed with the silly jokes that kids love, including knock-knocks, tongue twisters, riddles, traditional question and answer jokes, and more, "Just Joking" is presented in National Geographic Kids' colorful, photo-driven style.