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KIN
Gifts from the Sea (age 9-12)
by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
historical ... family ... illness/loss
Publisher comments: Quila MacFarlane is devastated by the death of her mother, especially now that it’s just her and her father on Devils Rock where her father is the lighthouse keeper. They can’t leave and almost no one ever comes to visit them. But the morning after a storm, something floats ashore that changes their lives forever: Two small mattresses strapped together, and inside, a baby! They name her Cecelia, which means "a gift from the sea," and call her Celia. She makes them a family again, and helps heal the hurt left by Quila's mother's passing. Two years later, though, another stranger arrives, one who changes everything all over again: A woman named Margaret, come looking for the final resting place of her sister, whose ship had gone down in a storm two years before. Her sister's baby had never been found, either, she explains, and now she has no family of her own. Could this be Celia's aunt? Will Quila have to give up Celia so Margaret can have her own family back?
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MAR
Belle Teal (age 9-12)
by Ann M. Martin
school ... family ... illness/loss ... historical
Publisher comments: Belle Teal's life isn't easy, but she gets by. She lives with her mother and grandmother far out in the country. They don't have much money, but Belle Teal feels rich with their love. As school begins, Belle Teal faces unexpected challenges. Her best friends are up against some big problems. And there are two new students in Belle Teal's class: a shy boy caught in the town's furor over desegregation, and a snob who has problems of her own. As her world falls apart, Belle Teal discovers the importance of sticking together.
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RYA
Paint the Wind (age 9-12)
by Pam Munoz Ryan
family ... animals ... illness/loss ... growing up
Maya is a captive. In Grandmother's house in California, every word and action is strictly monitored, and even Maya's memories of her mother have been erased, except within the imaginary world she has created. A world away, in the rugged Wyoming wilderness, a tobiano Paint horse called Artemisia runs free, belonging only to the stars. She embodies the spirit of the wild, and she holds the key to Maya's memories. How Maya's and Artemisia's lives intertwine, like a braided rein, is at the heart of this richly drawn adventure about captivity and freedom, about holding on and letting go.
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DEF
The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker (age 9-12)
by Cynthia C. DeFelice
historical ... illness/loss ... enterprise
It's 1849, and twelve-year-old, Lucas Whitaker is all alone after his whole family dies of a disease called consumption which has swept through the community. Lucas is grief-stricken and filled with guilt. He might have saved his mother, who was the last to die, if only he had listened to news of a strange cure for this deadly disease. Unable to manage the family farm by himself, Lucas finds work as an apprentice to Doc Beecher, doctor, dentist, barber and undertaker. Doc amputates a leg as easily as he pulls a tooth, yet when it comes to consumption, he remains powerless, unwilling to try the cure he calls nonsense. Lucas can't accept Doc's disbelief, and he joins others in the dark ritual they believe is their only hope. The startling results teach Lucas a great deal about fear, desperation, and the scientific reasoning that offers hope for a true cure.
F
LOW
Laurie Tells (age 9-12)
by Linda Lowery
illness/loss ... family
When her mother doesn't believe her, eleven-year-old Laurie tells a supportive aunt that she is being sexually abused by her father.
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PAT
The Hard Pan Trilogy (age 9-12)
by Susan Patron
humor ... growing up ... survival ... illness/loss ... friendship ... family
Publisher comments: Lucky, age ten, can't wait another day. The meanness gland in her heart and the crevices full of questions in her brain make running away from Hard Pan, California (population 43), the rock-bottom only choice she has. It's all Brigitte's fault ... for wanting to go back to France. Guardians are supposed to stay put and look after girls in their care! Instead Lucky is sure that she'll be abandoned to some orphanage in Los Angeles. She'll have to lose her friends Miles and Lincoln. Just as bad, she'll have to give up eavesdropping on twelve-step anonymous programs where the interesting talk is all about Higher Powers. Lucky needs her own ... and quick. But she hadn't planned on a dust storm. Or needing to lug the world's heaviest survival-kit backpack into the desert.
title: The Higher Power of Lucky
title: Lucky Breaks
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FLE
Fig Pudding (age 9-12)
by Ralph Fletcher
family ... illness/loss
Cliff describes the excitement, conflict, and sudden tragedy experienced by his large and boisterous family during his eleventh year.
F
MAC
Baby (age 9-12)
by Patricia MacLachlan
family ... illness/loss
Taking care of a baby left with them at the end of the tourist season helps a family come to terms with the death of their own infant son.
F
COH
Thank You, Jackie Robinson (age 9-12)
by Barbara Cohen
illness/loss ... sports ... friendship
Publisher comments: After Sam's father died, he became so wrapped up in the Brooklyn Dodgers that he could describe every game they'd played in the past four years. Nobody was very interested, until Sam met Davy. They came from different races, religions, and generations. But it didn't take long before they had a friendship that went well beyond baseball.
F
THE
Nothing Grows Here (age 9-12)
by Jean Thesman
family ... illness/loss
When her father's death results in the loss of her house and garden and a move into a shabby apartment house, twelve-year-old Maryanne adjusts with the help of new friends and a new garden.
F
RAW
Where the Red Fern Grows (age 9-12)
by Wilson Rawls
adventure ... animals ... illness/loss
A young boy living in the Ozarks achieves his heart's desire when he becomes the owner of two redbone hounds and teaches them to be champion hunters.
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POL
Life's a Funny Proposition, Horatio (age 9-12)
by Barbara Garland Polikoff
family ... illness/loss
As Horatio tries to adjust to the death of his father from lung cancer, O.P., Horatio's grandfather, mourns the loss of his dog Mollie.
F
HAD
Running Out of Time (age 9-12)
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
science fiction ... adventure ... illness/loss
Believing herself to be a frontier child in 1840, Jessie is shocked when her mother reveals a secret--it's really 1996. After a diphtheria outbreak strikes the village children, Jessie must venture out into the modern world where she faces a wealth of confusing 20th century innovations and the sinister man who will stop at nothing to make sure the village residents remain locked in their 19th century world.
F
GRI
The Way of Our People (age 9-12)
by Arnold A. Griese
illness/loss ... historical ... growing up
In 1838 in the village of Anvik a young Indian boy, unable to overcome his fear of hunting alone, tries to find other ways of helping his tribe.
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CRE
The Wanderer (age 9-12)
by Sharon Creech
identity ... adventure ... family ... illness/loss ... voyages/journeys
"The sea, the sea, the sea. It rolled and rolled and called to me. Come in, it said, come in." Thirteen-year-old Sophie hears the sea calling, promising adventure and a chance for discovery as she sets sail for England with her three uncles and two cousins. Sophie's cousin Cody isn't sure he has the strength to prove himself to the crew and to his father. Through Sophie's and Cody's travel logs, we hear stories of the past and the daily challenges of surviving at sea as The Wanderer sails toward its destination, and its passengers search for their places in the world.
F
BLU
It's Not the End of the World (age 9-12)
by Judy Blume
illness/loss ... family
Karen has decided she'll never get married. Just look at her parents. All they do is fight. And now Karen's dad has moved out of the house and they're talking about divorce. But despite their fighting, Karen is sure they can work it out if they really try. Can Karen hold the family together-or is that really the best solution?
F
BAU
On My Honor (age 9-12)
by Marion Dane Bauer
illness/loss ... growing up ... friendship
On your honor?" Joel's father said. "You won't go anywhere except the park?" "On my honor," Joel repeated. During a bicycle trip to the state park, Joel dares his best fried Tony to a swimming race in the dangerous Vermillion River. The boys have been warned never to go near the river, but Tony can't let Joel think he's scared. Both boys jump in. When Joel reaches the sandbar, he turns and looks for Tony and finds that he has vanished. Joel is stunned. How can he face their parents and the terrible truth?
F
HAN
Ida B: and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World (age 9-12)
by Katherine Hannigan
illness/loss ... humor ... school ... growing up
Who is Ida B. Applewood? She is a fourth grader like no other, living a life like no other, with a voice like no other, and her story will resonate long after you have put this book down. How does Ida B cope when outside forces (life, really) attempt to derail her and her family and her future? She enters her Black Period, and it is not pretty. But then, with the help of a patient teacher, a loyal cat and dog, her beloved apple trees, and parents who believe in the same things she does (even if they sometimes act as though they don't), the resilience that is the very essence of Ida B triumph...and Ida B. Applewood takes the hand that is extended and starts to grow up.
F
DEA
The Door in the Wall (age 9-12)
by Margeurite DeAngeli
illness/loss ... knights/castles/dragons ... historical
Robin, son of a nobleman, has always expected to learn the ways of knighthood, but this destiny is not to be. He falls ill and uses the use of his legs. Abandoned, forlorn, Robin discovers to his surprise that there is more than one way to serve his king.
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WHI
Belle Prater's Boy (age 9-12)
by Ruth White
illness/loss ... growing up ... friendship ... family
When Woodrow's mother suddenly disappears, he moves to his grandparents' home in a small Virginia town where he befriends his cousin and together they find the strength to face the terrible losses and fears in their lives.
F
TUN
Highpockets (age 9-12)
by John Roberts Tunis
illness/loss ... friendship ... sports
Cecil McDade ``Highpockets'' was a good baseball player, but he was all for himself, not a team player. Then, he accidentally ran over a young boy with a car and everything changed.
F
SMI
Return to Bitter Creek (age 9-12)
by Doris Buchanan Smith
illness/loss ... family
When 12-year-old Lacey and her mother return to Southern Appalachia to live, her grandmother does not approve of the independent lifestyle of Lacey's mother. A tragedy makes clear the meaning of love and family as everyone learns to grieve and to accept.
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PAR
The Graduation of Jake Moon (age 9-12)
by Barbara Park
family ... illness/loss
Life hasn't been the same for Jake Moon since his grandfather, Skelly, got Alzheimer's disease. At first Jake thought, no big deal, it was just a disease that made old people forget where they put their car keys. But he was wrong. It is a big deal. A very big deal. He used to love spending time with his grandfather...but now he is mostly stuck fastening the Velcro on Skelly's sneakers, or wiping rice off his chin. It's like all of a sudden he's the grown-up, and Skelly's the kid. How can the one person Jake could always count on be fading as fast as, well, as the moon.
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PAR
Mick Harte Was Here (age 9-12)
by Barbara Park
family ... illness/loss
How could someone like Mick die? He was the kid who freaked out his mom by putting a ceramic eye in a defrosted chicken, the kid who did a wild dance in front of the whole school--and the kid who, if only he had worn his bicycle helmet, would still be alive today. But now Phoebe Harte's twelve-year-old brother is gone, and Phoebe's world has turned upside down. With her trademark candor and compassion, beloved middle-grade writer Barbara Park tells how Phoebe copes with her painful loss in this story filled with sadness, humor--and hope.

Barron Park Elementary School, Sat Aug 25 11:55:26 2012
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