ORG |
The Devil in Vienna
(age 10+) by Doris Orgel friendship ... bigotry ... war ... survival ... historical Publisher comments: Inge Dorenwald and Lieselotte Vessely have been best friends for most of their thirteen years. They share secrets, fears, hopes and even the same birthday. It never mattered that Inge was Jewish and that Lieselotte was the daughter of a Nazi SS officer--until now. Hitler and Nazism are infiltrating Vienna, Austria, in 1938 and suddenly it is forbidden for the girls to continue seeing each other. Despite the danger, Inge and Liselotte struggle to keep their friendship alive. But will they be able to do it? |
ISA |
Torn Thread
(age 10+) by Anne Isaacs bigotry ... war ... survival ... historical Publisher comments: Twelve-year-old Eva and her sister have been forced to leave their home in Poland and are imprisoned in a Nazi labor camp. There they must spin thread on treacherous machinery to make clothing and blankets for the German Army. As Eva struggles amid ever worsening dangers to save her life and that of her sick sister, readers witness how two teenagers strive to create home and family amidst inhumanity and chaos. Written in exquisite prose, this story of heartbreak and hope that is rich in detail and symbolism will deeply move readers of all ages. |
GEO |
The Talking Earth
(age 10+) by Jean Craighead George adventure ... survival ... folklore ... nature Billie Wind ventures out alone into the Florida Everglades to test the legends of her Indian ancestors and learns the importance of listening to the earth's vital messages. |
SMI |
Peak
(age 10+) by Roland Smith family ... adventure ... action ... growing up ... survival After Peak Marcello is arrested for scaling a New York City skyscraper, he's left with two choices: wither away in Juvenile Detention or go live with his long-lost father, who runs a climbing company in Thailand. But Peak quickly learns that his father's renewed interest in him has strings attached. Big strings. He wants Peak to be the youngest person to reach the Everest summit--and his motives are selfish at best. Even so, for a climbing addict like Peak, tackling Everest is the challenge of a lifetime. But it's also one that could cost him his life. Roland Smith has created an action-packed adventure about friendship, sacrifice, family, and the drive to take on Everest, despite the incredible risk. |
SKU |
Mysteries in Our National Parks Series (age 10+) by Gloria Skurzynski math/science/technology ... survival ... action ... nature ... mystery In the first of these fast-paced adventures, the Landons trail a wounded wolf in Yellowstone National Park. The park is abuzz with rumors of a wolf attack. Meanwhile, a killer stalks the woods. Unaware of the danger, Jack and Ashley are more concerned about rebellious teenage foster child, Troy Haverson. From the opening moments at Old Faithful through 48 action-packed hours, the tension builds: What is lodged in the wolf's radio collar? And what is the meaning of the Native American story of Sin-a-Wavi? A heady mix of suspense, adventure, and moments of tenderness lure readers into this story of kids discovering the natural world. title: Cliff-Hanger title: Escape From Fear |
ROY |
Yellow Star
(age 10+) by Jennifer Rozines Roy bigotry ... survival ... war ... family ... historical From 1939, when Syvia is four and a half years old, to 1945 when she has just turned ten, a Jewish girl and her family struggle to survive in Poland's Lodz ghetto during the Nazi occupation. |
PAT |
Bread and Roses, Too
(age 10+) by Katherine Paterson survival ... family ... historical Rosas mother is singing again, for the first time since Papa died in an accident in the mills. But instead of filling their cramped tenement apartment with Italian lullabies, Mamma is out on the streets singing union songs, and Rosa is terrified that her mother and older sister, Anna, are endangering their lives by marching against the corrupt mill owners. After all, didnt Miss Finch tell the class that the strikers are nothing but rabble-rousers, an uneducated, violent mob? Suppose Mamma and Anna are jailed or, worse, killed? What will happen to Rosa and little Ricci? When Rosa is sent to Vermont with other children to live with strangers until the strike is over, she fears she will never see her family again. Then, on the train, a boy begs her to pretend that he is her brother. Alone and far from home, she agrees to protect him...even though she suspects that he is hiding some terrible secret. |
COO |
Seaward
(age 10+) by Susan Cooper folklore ... fantasy ... voyages/journeys ... survival His name is West. Her name is Cally. They speak different languages and come from different countries thousands of miles apart, but they do not know that. What they do know are the tragedies that took their parents, then wrenched the two of them out of reality, into a strange and perilous world through which they must travel together, knowing only that they must reach the sea. Together West and Cally embark upon a strange and sometimes terrifying quest, learning to survive and to love and, at last, the real secret of their journey. |
UCH |
Journey to Topaz: a Story of the Japanese-American Evacuation
(age 10+) by Yoshiko Uchida identity ... survival ... bigotry ... historical After the Pearl Harbor attack, an eleven-year-old Japanese-American girl and her family are forced to go to an aliens camp in Utah. |
ADA |
Watership Down
(age 10+) by Richard Adams voyages/journeys ... survival ... adventure This stirring tale of adventure follows the journey of a group of brave creatures from their once-idyllic home to a place they hope will offer them a safer life. |
PAU |
Hatchet
(age 10+) by Gary Paulsen growing up ... survival ... adventure Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson is on his way to visit his father when the single engine plane in which he is flying crashes. Suddenly, Brian finds himself alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but his clothing, a tattered windbreaker, and the hatchet his mother has given him as a present ¿ and the dreadful secret that has been tearing him apart ever since his parents' divorce. But now Brian has no time for anger, self-pity, or despair ¿ it will take all his know-how and determination, and more courage than he knew he possessed, to survive. sequel: The River |
PAU |
Tucket Adventures Series (age 10+) by Gary Paulsen historical ... adventure ... survival In the first book, Mr. Tucket, Fourteen-year-old Francis Tucket is heading west on the Oregon Trail with his family by wagon train. When he receives a rifle for his birthday, he is thrilled that he is being treated like an adult. But Francis lags behind to practice shooting and is captured by Pawnees. It will take wild horses, hostile tribes, and a mysterious one-armed mountain man named Mr. Grimes to help Francis become the man who will be called Mr. Tucket. title: Mr. Tucket title: Call Me Francis Tucket title: Tucket's Gold |
LEV |
Journey to America
(age 10+) by Sonia Levitin survival ... historical ... family A Jewish family fleeing Nazi Germany in 1938 endures innumerable separations before they are once again united. |
TUR |
Maroo of the Winter Caves
(age 10+) by Ann Turnbull family ... historical ... survival ... nature Maroo, a girl of the late Ice Age, must take charge after her father is killed, and lead her little brother, mother, and aged grandmother to the safety of the winter camp before the first blizzards strike. |
LOW |
Number the Stars
(age 10+) by Lois Lowry survival ... bigotry ... friendship ... historical In 1943, during the German occupation of Denmark, ten-year-old Annemarie learns how to be brave and courageous when she helps shelter her Jewish friend from the Nazis. |
GIF |
Nory Ryan's Song
(age 10+) by Patricia Reilly Giff survival ... historical ... adventure As the potato blight that leads to the Irish Famine takes its toll on her family, 12-year-old Nory Ryan must summon the courage and ingenuity to find food, to find hope, and to find a way to help her family survive. sequel: Maggie's Door |
GEO |
Julie of the Wolves
(age 10+) by Jean Craighead George identity ... survival ... nature ... adventure To her small Eskimo village, she is known as Miyax; to her friend in San Francisco, she is Julie. When her life in the village becomes dangerous, Miyax runs away, only to find herself lost in the Alaskan wilderness. |
DUP |
The Book of Ember Series (age 10+) by Jeanne Duprau survival ... action ... adventure ... fantasy ... science fiction Publisher comments: Built as an underground refuge for the human race, the city of Ember begins to deteriorate as its lights start to flicker. When Lina finds part of an ancient message, she's sure it holds a secret that will save the city. She and her friend Doon must decipher the message before the lights go out on Ember forever. title: The City of Ember title: The People of Sparks title: The Prophet of Yonwood |