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URB |
A Crooked Kind of Perfect
(age 9-12) by Linda Urban enterprise ... humor ... the arts ... family Ten-year-old Zoe Elias has perfect piano dreams. She can practically feel the keys under her flying fingers; she can hear the audience's applause. All she needs is a baby grand so she can start her lessons, and then she'll be well on her way to Carnegie Hall. But when Dad ventures to the music store and ends up with a wheezy organ instead of a piano, Zoe's dreams hit a sour note. Learning the organ versions of old TV theme songs just isn't the same as mastering Beethoven on the piano. And the organ isn't the only part of Zoe's life that's off-kilter, what with Mom constantly at work, Dad afraid to leave the house, and that odd boy, Wheeler Diggs, following her home from school every day. Yet when Zoe enters the annual Perform-O-Rama organ competition, she finds that life is full of surprises, and that perfection may be even better when it's just a little off center. |
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KAR |
The Great Turkey Walk
(age 9-12) by Kathleen Karr enterprise ... humor ... historical Big, brawny Simon Green, who's just completed third grade (for the fourth time), may not be book smart, but he's nobody's fool. When it's time to be done with school and make his way in the world, Simon hatches a plan that could earn him a bundle. He intends to herd a huge flock of bronze turkeys all the way from his home in eastern Missouri to the boomtown of Denver, where they'll fetch a mighty price. In the year 1860, the hazards of such a trek are many - how does one shepherd the birds across a river, for instance? - but Simon is undaunted. Accompanied by a faithful drover, and eventually to be joined by two boon companions, he undertakes the biggest journey of his young life, in this high-spirited Wild Wild West adventure. |
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GUT |
The Homework Machine
(age 9-12) by Dan Gutman brilliant protagonist ... enterprise ... humor ... friendship ... school Meet the D Squad, a foursome of fifth graders at the Grand Canyon School made up of a geek, a class clown, a teacher's pet, and a slacker. They are bound together by one very big secret: the homework machine. Because the machine, code-named Belch, is doing their homework for them, they start spending a lot of time together, attracting a lot of attention. And attention is exactly what you don't want when you are keeping a secret. Before long, things start to get out of control, and Belch becomes much more powerful than they ever imagined. Now the kids are in a race against their own creation, and the loser could end up in jail...or worse! |
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IBB |
Dial-a-Ghost
(age 9-12) by Eva Ibbotson humor ... enterprise ... spooky The Dial-a-Ghost Agency finds good homes for ghosts. And Fulton and Frieda Snodde-Brittle are looking for a few frightening ghosts to accidentally scare their young cousin and heir, Oliver, to death. The ladies at the Dial-a-Ghost Agency have the perfect match: the Shriekers, two bloodstained and bickering horrors. But thanks to a mix-up at the agency, the Wilkinsons, a kind family of ghosts, arrive instead. Can they put a stop to the Snodde-Brittles' schemes before it's too late? |
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CLE |
Emily's Runaway Imagination
(age 9-12) by Beverly Cleary historical ... family ... humor ... enterprise Catalog: Emily's imagination helps bring a library to her town of Pitchfork, Oregon. |
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BUT |
The Enormous Egg
(age 9-12) by Oliver Butterworth humor ... enterprise Catalog: Twelve-year-old Nate Twitchell never had much excitement in his life, until one of his hens laid an egg the size of a melon, and the creature that hatched made world news. |
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CUR |
The Great Smith House Hustle
(age 9-12) by Jane Louise Curry enterprise ... family ... mystery Just after moving into their grandmother's house in Pittsburgh, the five Smith children must uncover a long-standing scam to steal the houses of old people before Grandma Smith loses her home. |
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NIX |
Young Americans Series (age 9-12) by Joan Lowery Nixon enterprise ... historical Each volume tells a personal story about life and work in Colonial Williamsburg. title: Ann's Story, 1747 title: Nancy's Story, 1765 |
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SLO |
The Trading Game
(age 9-12) by Alfred Slote family ... enterprise ... sports Andy loves to collect baseball cards, but most of all, he loves his grandfather, an ex-Major League baseball player who thinks that baseball card collecting is a useless hobby. When Andy must choose to either play by his grandfather's rules or do whatever it takes to trade for his grandfather's baseball card, he learns a valuable lesson on hero worship. |
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SMI |
Bobby Baseball
(age 9-12) by Robert Kimmel Smith identity ... enterprise ... sports Ten-year-old Bobby Ellis loves everything about baseball, from the hits to the hot dogs. That's why he calls himself Bobby Baseball! Every day he dreams of becoming a major league pitcher and joining the stars in the Baseball Hall of Fame. And what better place to start his career than right here on his own Kids Club team, the Hawks? But the Hawks' coach happens to be Bobby's father, who has other ideas. |
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ROB |
Henry Reed Adventures (age 9-12) by Keith Robertson realistic ... adventure ... humor ... enterprise Henry Reed has a talent for making things happen, and with his neighbor Midge in on the action, there's nothing they can't do. title: Henry Reed's Think Tank |
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FLE |
By the Great Horn Spoon!
(age 9-12) by Sid Fleischman historical ... adventure ... enterprise A gentleman's gentleman from Boston flees to the wilds of California during the Gold Rush and becomes a hero. |