Born To Rock by
"Leo Caraway — high school senior, president of the Young Republicans club, 4.0 GPA, future Harvard student — had his entire future perfectly planned out. That was, until the X factor. As in Marion X. McMurphy, aka King Maggot, the lead singer of Purge, the most popular, most destructive band punk rock has ever seen. He's also Leo's biological father.
When Leo discovers that his real father is a punk rock legend, he is disgusted. Not only is Leo not a punk rock fan, but he believes the X factor (the Maggot blood that is running through his veins) is a dangerous time bomb just waiting to explode.
And sure enough, it does — Leo stubbornly defends the unlikeliest of people, thereby getting himself falsely accused of cheating on a test. Because of the blemish on his record, the once star pupil finds his scholarship to Harvard taken away. So he hatches the crazy plan of going on tour with King Maggot for Purge's summer revival tour, all the while secretly hoping to convince Maggot to pay for his tuition.
But life on the road is even crazier than Leo ever bargained for, and before the summer is out, he will finally discover the surprising truth about his dad, his friends, and most important, himself." -Publisher's website
The Girls They Left Behind by
Like any teenager, Natalie wants to have fun. But it's 1944, and almost all the boys she knows have signed up and are being shipped overseas to fight the war in Europe. Too often she takes the trip to Union Station to wave goodbye to another friend, wondering if he'll ever come home again. And like her other girlfriends, Natalie is getting tired of waiting for the war to be over. There are still dances at the Armories to meet handsome boys in uniform, but is that all a girl can do for the war effort? Natalie has a plan. Her first move was to change her name from Beryl, which didn't sound sophisticated at all. Now she quits school and takes a job at a department store. Buying War Saving Stamps with her meager earnings is not enough for Natalie, however, and soon she finds work at De Havilland Aircraft, making bombers. But it is during this time, when she is taking the most pride in her war work, that Natalie and her family get the news they've been dreading: her cousin, a gunner in the Dambusters Squadron, is listed as missing, presumed dead. And as news of other boys reaches home - some of it good but so much of it bad - Natalie begins to wonder what kind of world will be there for them all when the war finally ends. At times funny and at other times deeply moving, Bernice Thurman Hunter's last novel is drawn from her own memories of being a teenager in Toronto during World War II. In Natalie, Hunter has created a spunky, outspoken and utterly charming character, which readers young and old will revel in. And in her unforgettable portrait of the home front, Hunter has brought to life the daily trials and tribulations of a generation of women who had to stand by while their men went to war.
The Isabel Factor by
When the fearless Zoe breaks her arm in a fall, Anna must brave summer camp -- and her debut as a Counselor In Training -- without her best friend. Going it alone is not something Anna is ready for. Cruising along in Zoe's shadow had been comfortable, but now Anna is out in the full glare of the sun. There's no hiding from harsh truths and plenty of people to point them out. Take Karim, the swim instructor, who has suddenly turned gorgeous but obviously hates Anna. And Anna's new friend and cabinmate Isabel -- rainbow hair, sharp tongue and no boundaries. Sooner or later Anna will have to face another hard truth: things have changed between her and Zoe and there's no going back into the shadows. But where can Anna hide when just being herself isn't nearly enough?
Johnny Kellock Died Today by
"It's a long, hot Halifax summer in 1959 and twelve-year-old Rosalie Norman has a guilty secret. Her no-nonsense, authoritarian mother has broken her ankle - and it's all Rosalie's fault. But news that Johnny, her teenaged cousin, has vanished pushes the accident from everyone's minds. As Rosalie and David - her strange new neighbour - search the city for Johnny, Rosalie discovers something about the love and the secrets that bind her family." -Publisher's website
Megiddo's Shadow by
Fueled by anger at the death of his two brothers in World War I, 16-year-old Edward abandons his ailing father on their farm and leaves Canada to enlist. After proving that he can tame any wild horse, he's is sent to Jordan to fight with the Cavalry. Luckily, his horse is the extraordinary Buke; in battle, a trooper's horse is the key to life and death, and his true companion. In the harsh desert, Edward is grateful for the camaraderie of his tent mates, Cheevers and Blackburn,and letters from Emily, a nurse he met at base camp. As they close in on the enemy Edward finds that the glory and noble vengeance he seeks is replaced by the horror of war and the realization that he must fight not only to survive, but also, to kill.
The Plague by
In the second installment of Feather and Bone: The Crow Chronicles, a mysterious plague hits the Kinaar family. Crows lie dead all around the Gathering Tree and the terrified survivors scatter. Sick and alone, Kyp knows only that he must find Kym, who has been captured by humans and taken far to the east. A crow without a flock flies on only one wing, and Kyp has no one to keep watch or provide warning when danger threatens. But gradually other crows join him in his relentless journey -- deep into the heart of a vast and frightful human colony.
The Raintree Rebellion by
"Blake Raintree is now eighteen. She has found a family, but is still haunted by the technocaust of her early childhood, which tore her from her parents and set her adrift in the world as a homeless child. Blake's adoptive mother, Erica, is chosen to go to Toronto to serve on a Justice Council charged with trying to put the ghost of the technocaust to rest. Blake accompanies Erica as her aide. Everyone assumes that Blake shares Erica's willingness to forgive, but Blake secretly wishes she could punish those who ruined her life.
While in Toronto, Blake submits the ID code from the microchip in her arm to the government, to see if she can find out more about her past. What she discovers will cause her to question everything she thought she knew about herself." -Author's website
Red Goodwin by
John Wilson has created a compelling story based on the folk hero, Albert 'Ginger' Goodwin, also known as 'Red' Goodwin from the colour of his hair and his radical social ideas. Goodwin was originally a miner from the north of England, who came to Canada and took up the cause of the working man during the Trail smelter strike and at the coal mines on Vancouver Island. His ideas were eventually considered so dangerous that a special constable was hired to hunt him down in the forest near Cumberland. Wilson tells the story of a young boy, Will Ryan, sent out from England after his father was killed in WW I, to live with his uncle, a mine manager, at Cumberland. Through a chance meeting in the forest with Red Goodwin, young Will has all his ideas turned upside down, especially when he sees first-hand how the miners are treated in the community and at the pit face. He becomes friends with a Chinese boy who introduces him to the racism in Canada, where 'Chinks' are seen as expendable. Will is also deeply smitten by a beautiful Scottish girl, the daughter of a miner, who is working to help Goodwin and others hiding out in the forests. Soon Will finds himself caught between the demands of his uncle, his loyalty to the memory of his father, and the new vision of Goodwin who argues that the European war between Britain and Germany has parallels with the war between the mine owners and the mine workers. In an exciting story, filled with sudden turns and tragic events, young Will discovers that he must make a choice, a choice that will change his life forever.
We All Fall Down by
Today is September 10, 2001, and Will, a grade nine student, is spending the day at his father's workplace tomorrow. As part of a school assignment, all the students in his class will be going to their parents tomorrow, but Will isn't excited about it. He'd rather sleep in and do nothing with his friends. His father doesn't even have an exciting job like his best friend James's father who is a fireman. Will's dad works for an international trading company and has to wake up early every morning to commute to his office on the eighty-fifth floor in the south building of the World Trade Center in Manhattan. Will doesn't see his father very often because of the hours he puts in at the office. He doubts that his dad will bother making time for him tomorrow even when they are supposed to be spending the day together. In this fast-paced and dramatic new novel by bestselling author Eric Walters, Will discovers a new side of his father during an event that continues to affect the world. As Will's new teacher says, tomorrow might be an experience that changes your entire life.
We All Fall Down by
Today is September 10, 2001, and Will, a grade nine student, is spending the day at his father's workplace tomorrow. As part of a school assignment, all the students in his class will be going to their parents tomorrow, but Will isn't excited about it. He'd rather sleep in and do nothing with his friends. His father doesn't even have an exciting job like his best friend James's father who is a fireman. Will's dad works for an international trading company and has to wake up early every morning to commute to his office on the eighty-fifth floor in the south building of the World Trade Center in Manhattan. Will doesn't see his father very often because of the hours he puts in at the office. He doubts that his dad will bother making time for him tomorrow even when they are supposed to be spending the day together. In this fast-paced and dramatic new novel by bestselling author Eric Walters, Will discovers a new side of his father during an event that continues to affect the world. As Will's new teacher says, tomorrow might be an experience that changes your entire life.