F
DAS
Maze Runner Series (age 10+)
by James Dashner
survival ... adventure ... action ... fantasy ... science fiction
Publisher comments: When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift's doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls. Just like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they've closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift. Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.
title: The Maze Runner
title: The Scorch Trials
title: The Death Cure
F
BED
Looking Glass Wars Trilogy (age 10+)
by Frank Beddor
humor ... fantasy ... adventure ... action
Publisher comments: The Myth: Alice was an ordinary girl who stepped through the looking glass and entered a fairy-tale world invented by Lewis Carroll in his famous storybook. The Truth: Wonderland is real. Alyss Heart is the heir to the throne, until her murderous aunt Redd steals the crown and kills Alyss? parents. To escape Redd, Alyss and her bodyguard, Hatter Madigan, must flee to our world through the Pool of Tears. But in the pool Alyss and Hatter are separated. Lost and alone in Victorian London, Alyss is befriended by an aspiring author to whom she tells the violent, heartbreaking story of her young life. Yet he gets the story all wrong. Hatter Madigan knows the truth only too well, and he is searching every corner of our world to find the lost princess and return her to Wonderland so she may battle Redd for her rightful place as the Queen of Hearts.
title: The Looking Glass Wars
title: Seeing Redd
title: ArchEnemy
F
SNY
Eyes in the Fishbowl (age 10+)
by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
fantasy ... spooky
Catalog: Locked in one evening with the vast wealth of the Alcott-Simpson department store, a fourteen-year-old boy meets an unusual girl who hints about the mysterious "they" and tells him of strange goings-on in the building.
F
HUN
Warriors Super Edition (age 10+)
by Erin Hunter
war ... adventure ... fantasy
Publisher comments: There is peace at last between the warrior Clans, and all four are thriving. Then Firestar, legendary leader of ThunderClan, discovers a shocking secret: StarClan, the warrior ancestors who guide his paw steps, have lied to him. Firestar must embark on a perilous quest to discover a long-forgotten truth. Whatever he finds at the end of his journey, he’s sure of one thing: Nothing will ever be the same again.
title: Firestar's Quest
title: Bluestar's Prophecy
F
PEA
The Kingdom Keepers Series (age 10+)
by Ridley Pearson
science fiction ... fantasy ... adventure ... action
Publisher comments: Using a cutting-edge technology called DHI — which stands for both Disney Host Interactive and Daylight Hologram Imaging — Finn Whitman, an Orlando teen, and four other kids are transformed into hologram projections that guide guests through the park. The new technology turns out, however, to have unexpected effects that are both thrilling and scary. Soon Finn finds himself transported in his DHI form into the Magic Kingdom at night. Is it real? Is he dreaming? Finn's confusion only increases when he encounters Wayne, an elderly Imagineer who tells him that the park is in grave danger. Led by the scheming witch Maleficent, a mysterious group of characters called the Overtakers is plotting to destroy Disney's beloved realm, and maybe more.
title: Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark
title: Kingdom Keepers II: Disney at Dawn
title: Kingdom Keepers III: Disney in Shadow
title: Kingdom Keepers IV: Power Play
F
BAR
The Lost Years of Merlin Series (age 10+)
by T. A. Barron
magic ... identity ... folklore ... adventure ... fantasy
A young boy who has no identity nor memory of his past washes ashore on the coast of Wales. Only after a series of fantastic adventures does he find his true name.
title: The Lost Years of Merlin
title: The Seven Songs of Merlin
title: The Fires of Merlin
title: The Mirror of Merlin
title: The Wings of Merlin
title: The Merlin Effect
F
BEL
The Goblin Wood (age 10+)
by Hilari Bell
adventure ... fantasy ... knights/castles/dragons ... magic
A young Hedgewitch, an idealistic knight, and an army of clever goblins fight against the ruling hierarchy that is trying to rid the land of all magical creatures.
F
BEL
The Rescue of Ranor (age 10+)
by Wilanne Schneider Belden
magic ... adventure ... fantasy
Having no magic powers of his own, Sven Pentalion enlists the help of a white witch and her familiar, a goblin demon, to help rescue his brother from a powerful Black Enchanter.
F
AIK
Black Hearts in Battersea (age 10+)
by Joan Aiken
humor ... fantasy ... adventure
Simon, the foundling from The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, arrives in London to meet an old friend and pursue the study of painting. Instead he finds himself unwittingly in the middle of a wicked crew's fiendish caper to the good King James and the Duke and Duchess of Battersea. With the help of his friend Sophie and the resourceful waif Dido, Simon narrowly escapes a series madcap close calls and dangerous run-ins. In a time and place where villains do nothing halfway, Simon is faced with wild wolves, poisoned pies, kidnapping, and a wrecked ship. This is a cleverly contrived tale of intrigue and misadventure.
F
AIK
Nightbirds on Nantucket (age 10+)
by Joan Aiken
animals ... humor ... fantasy ... adventure
Having had enough of life on board the ship that saved her from a watery grave, Dido Twite wants nothing more than to sail home to England. Instead, Captain Casket's ship lands in Nantucket, where Dido and the captain's daughter, Dutiful Penitence, are left in the care of Dutiful's sinister Aunt Tribulation. In Tribulation's farmhouse, life is unbearable. When mysterious men lurk about in the evening fog, the resourceful Dido rallies against their shenanigans with help from Dutiful, a cabinboy named Nate, and a pink whale.
F
AIK
The Cuckoo Tree (age 10+)
by Joan Aiken
humor ... fantasy ... adventure
Publisher comments: When Dido Twite sets foot back on English soil, more mischief awaits. As her friend Captain Hughes recovers from a carriage accident, Dido stays at the Dogkennel Cottages and meets the odd inhabitants of Tegleaze Manor: strange old Lady Tegleaze, her nephew, Tobit, and his wizened, witchy nurse, Sannie. Soon suspicious things happen. A priceless miniature is stolen. Tobit is framed and then kidnapped. A twin sister is found. And when Dido catches a glimpse of her rascally father in Petworth, she is sure shes in the midst of another Hanoverian plot. Can she get to London to warn the king and save St. Paul's Cathedral from sliding into the Thames?
F
AIK
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (age 10+)
by Joan Aiken
humor ... fantasy ... adventure
Bonnie and her cousin Sylvia don't know the trouble in store for them when Bonnie's parents leave them in the care of the terrible Miss Slighcarp.
F
PIE
Song of the Lioness Series (age 10+)
by Tamora Pierce
knights/castles/dragons ... action ... adventure ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Becoming a legend is not easy, as young Alanna of Trebond discovers when she disguises herself as a boy and begins training to be a knight. Alanna's skills and stubborness help her befriend Prince Jonathan and alienate his evil uncle, Duke Roger. Filled with swords and sorcery, adventure and intrigue, good and evil, this book is a rousing introduction to the intensely satisfying story of Alanna.
title: Alanna: The First Adventure
title: In the Hand of the Goddess
title: The Woman Who Rides Like a Man
title: Lioness Rampant
F
PIE
Trickster's Choice (age 10+)
by Tamora Pierce
action ... adventure ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Alianne is the teenage daughter of the famed Alanna, the first lady knight in Tortall. Young Aly follows in the quieter footsteps of her father, however, delighting in the art of spying. When she is captured and sold as a slave to an exiled royal family in the faraway Copper Islands, it is this skill that makes a difference in a world filled with political intrigue, murderous conspiracy, and warring gods.
sequel: Trickster's Queen
F
PIE
Circle of Magic Series (age 10+)
by Tamora Pierce
adventure ... friendship ... magic ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Here begins the tale of Daja, Briar, Tris, and Sandry--four children brought to Winding Cirle Temple for training in crafts and magic. They are outcasts in their homeland. But in this magical place, they are valued and respected for their special powers.
title: Sandry's Book
title: Tris's Book
title: Daja's Book
title: Briar's Book
F
HAN
The Healer's Keep (age 10+)
by Victoria Hanley
historical ... school ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Something is threatening the legendary Healer’s Keep, where students gifted in the healing arts are trained. Will they learn enough in time to keep the darkness at bay? Or will the Shadow King turn their gifts against them and once again walk the world?
F
HAL
The Goose Girl (age 10+)
by Shannon Hale
folklore ... magic ... princesses ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, Crown Princess of Kildenree, spends the first years of her life under her aunt's guidance learning to communicate with animals. As she grows up Ani develops the skills of animal speech, but is never comfortable speaking with people, so when her silver-tongued lady-in-waiting leads a mutiny during Ani's journey to be married in a foreign land, Ani is helpless and cannot persuade anyone to assist her. Becoming a goose girl for the king, Ani eventually uses her own special, nearly magical powers to find her way to her true destiny. Shannon Hale has woven an incredible, original and magical tale of a girl who must find her own unusual talents before she can become queen of the people she has made her own.
F
BAR
Great Tree of Avalon Series (age 10+)
by T. A. Barron
magic ... adventure ... folklore ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Long ago, the great wizard Merlin planted the seed that would become the peaceful world of Avalon. Now, though, Avalon is suffering from mysterious droughts. Then the very stars begin to lose their light, and it seems that the Lady of the Lake's dire predictions are about to come true. The fate of Avalon now rests with Tamwyn, a wandering wilderness guide; Elli, an apprentice priestess; and Scree, a young eagleman. One of them is the true heir of Merlin, the only person who can save Avalon, and one of them is the dreaded child of the Dark Prophecy, fated to destroy it.
title: Child of the Dark Prophecy
title: Shadows on the Stars
title: The Eternal Flame
F
HOF
Stravaganza Series (age 10+)
by Mary Hoffman
adventure ... action ... historical ... fantasy
Publisher comments: During the day, Lucien battles cancer in his modern, normal life. But at night, he becomes a Stravagante, a time-traveler of sorts who finds himself in Belleza, a city parallel to old Venice. Befriended by a local girl and protected by an older Stravagante, Lucien uncovers a plot to murder the city's beloved ruler, the Duchessa. But to save the Duchessa and the city Lucien risks losing his only chance to return home to his family and his real life.
title: Stravaganza: City of Masks
title: Stravaganza: City of Stars
F
GAI
The Graveyard Book (age 10+)
by Neil Gaiman
fantasy ... spooky
Publisher comments: Bod is an unusual boy who inhabits an unusual place; he's the only living resident of a graveyard. Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians' time, as well as their timely ghostly teachings, like the ability to Fade. Can a boy raised by ghosts face the wonders and terrors of the worlds of both the living and the dead? And then there are things like ghouls that aren't really one thing or the other.
F
IBB
The Dragonfly Pool (age 10+)
by Eva Ibbotson
adventure ... friendship ... fantasy
Publisher comments: At first Tally doesn't want to go to the boarding school called Delderton. But she soon discovers that it is a wonderful place where freedom and self-expression are valued. Tally organizes a ragtag dance troupe so the school can participate in an international folk dancing festival in Bergania in the summer of 1939. There she befriends Karil, the crown prince, who would love nothing more than to have ordinary friends and attend a school like Delderton. When Karilas father is assassinated, it is up to Tally and her friends to help Karil escape the Nazis and the bleak future he has inherited.
F
MCN
The Navigator Series (age 10+)
by Eoin McNamee
fantasy ... action ... adventure
Publisher comments: One day the world around Owen shifts oddly: Time flows backwards, and the world and family he knew disappear. Time can only be set right when the Resisters vanquish their ancient enemies, the Harsh. Unless they are stopped, everything Owen knows will vanish as if it has never been....And Owen discovers he has a terrifying role to play in this battle: he is the Navigator.
title: The Navigator
title: City of Time
F
NIX
Keys to the Kingdom Series (age 10+)
by Garth Nix
adventure ... action ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Seven days. Seven keys. Seven virtues. Seven sins. One mysterious house is the doorway to a very mysterious world, where one boy is about to venture and unlock a number of fantastical secrets. This is another thrilling, triumphantly imaginative series from Garth Nix.
title: Mister Monday
title: Grim Tuesday
F
PIE
Melting Stones (age 10+)
by Tamora Pierce
magic ... adventure ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Four years have passed since Evvy left the streets of Chammur to begin her training as a stone mage. At fourteen, she's unhappy to be on a new journey with her mentor, prickly green mage Rosethorn, who has been called to the Battle Islands to determine why the plants and animals there are dying. Evvy's job is to listen and learn, but she can't keep quiet and do nothing. With the help of Luvo, the living stone heart of a mountain, Evvy uncovers an important clue. Now, with the island on the brink of disaster, it's up to Evvy to avert the destruction that looms ahead.
F
SCO
Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel (age 10+)
by Michael Scott
adventure ... action ... fantasy
Publisher comments: He holds the secret that can end the world. The truth: Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on September 28, 1330. Nearly 700 years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. The records show that he died in 1418. But his tomb is empty. The legend: Nicholas Flamel lives. But only because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects: the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. That's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it. Sometimes legends are true. And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time.
title: The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
title: The Magician
title: The Sorceress
title: The Necromancer
F
BAK
Wings: A Fairy Tale (age 10+)
by E. D. Baker
identity ... fantasy
Publisher comments: When Tamisin discovers real wings growing from her back she wants to know what is making her supposedly normal life so weird. But before she can piece together the facts, she is kidnapped by goblins and brought to the land of fairies, goblins and many other magical creatures, including her real mother, Titania, the fairy queen. As she falls in love with Jak, who’s half goblin, and realizes the depth of her human parents’ love for her, she finds that having a set of beautiful wings suddenly sprout from your shoulder blades isn’t all bad, and there are many good reasons to fly.
F
GEO
Dragon Slippers (age 10+)
by Jessica Day George
adventure ... action ... knights/castles/dragons ... fantasy
Publisher comments: When an orphan girl named Creel befriends a dragon, she unknowingly inherits a pair of slippers that could be used to save her kingdom, or destroy it. The light tone and charming characterizations bring this heartwarming fantasy to life. Older middle grade readers and young teens alike will appreciate the adventure, fun, and dragon-drenched action!
sequel: Dragon Flight
sequel: Dragon Spear
F
HUL
The Seems Series (age 10+)
by John Hulme
humor ... fantasy ... science fiction
Publisher comments: Twelve-year-old Becker Drane has definitely got the coolest job of any seventh grader in Highland Park, New Jersey. He works as a Fixer for The Seems. From the Department of Weather to the Department of Sleep, The Seems is a secret organization that makes sure our world keeps running--and more importantly, sticks to The Plan that's been made for it. But The Plan, and The Seems for that matter, would be nothing without the people in it, and that's where Becker Drane comes in. When a Glitch is reported in the Department of Sleep, Becker is dispatched to Fix it, but he's not so sure this is a routine mission. Could the Bed Bugs, who are behind our Worst Nightmares, be responsible for the problems? Or maybe it's The Tide, an underground organization bent on destroying The Seems? No matter what, Becker's in for quite an adventure, and it'll take all his training, a little luck, and the coolest Tools(TM) known in (or out of) the Seems to Fix the problem.
title: The Glitch in Sleep
title: The Split Second
F
HUN
The Seekers Series (age 10+)
by Erin Hunter
adventure ... fantasy
Publisher comments: From the author of the Warriors books comes a brand-new animal fantasy series. Three young bears from different species (black, polar, and grizzly) are separated from their families when they are just young cubs. They find themselves brought together on a perilous journey. Fate is about to change all these bears lives forever, setting their paws on a path toward a future they cannot yet imagine . . .
title: The Quest Begins
title: Great Bear Lake
title: Smoke Mountain
title: The Last Wilderness
title: Fire in the Sky
title: Spirits in the Stars
F
LAW
Scumble (age 10+)
by Ingrid Law
growing up ... fantasy ... family
Publisher comments: It's nine years after Savvy, and Mibs' cousin Ledge is on the verge of turning thirteen. More than anything, he wants the power to run like the wind. But when his birthday comes, he discovers that his savvy is actually making things fall apart. It starts out with small things, but then it gets worse. To top it all off, someone outside the family has witnessed his destruction. Now, in addition to trying to figure out how to control - or scumble - his savvy, he's got to worry about how to protect the family secrets. Over the course of one amazing summer, Ledge learns a lot about himself and his family, makes a new - and very unlikely - friend, and learns to appreciate his newfound skills.
F
LAW
Savvy (age 10+)
by Ingrid Law
growing up ... fantasy ... family
Publisher comments: For generations, the Beaumont family has harbored a magical secret. They each possess a "savvy", a special supernatural power that strikes when they turn thirteen. Grandpa Bomba moves mountains, her older brothers create hurricanes and spark electricity...and now it's the eve of Mibs's big day. As if waiting weren't hard enough, the family gets scary news two days before Mibs's birthday: Poppa has been in a terrible accident. Mibs develops the singular mission to get to the hospital and prove that her new power can save her dad. So she sneaks onto a salesman's bus...only to find the bus heading in the opposite direction. Suddenly Mibs finds herself on an unforgettable odyssey that will force her to make sense of growing up and of other people, who might also have a few secrets hidden just beneath the skin.
F
HOR
Gatekeeper's Series (age 10+)
by Anthony Horowitz
fantasy ... adventure ... action
As punishment for a crime he didn't really commit, Matt was given a choice: go to jail or go live with an old woman named Mrs. Deverill in a remote town called Lesser Malling. He should have chosen jail. A strange and sinister plan is coming together made in Lesser Malling, with Matt at the center of it all. People who try to help him disappear . . . or die. It all ties to an evil place named Raven's Gate - a place whose destiny is horrifyingly intertwined with Matt's own.
title: Ravens Gate
title: Evil Star
title: Nightrise
title: Necropolis
F
URS
The Chronus Chronicles (age 10+)
by Anne Ursu
folklore ... adventure ... action ... fantasy
See that girl, the one with the bright red hair, overstuffed backpack, and aura of grumpiness? That's Charlotte Mielswetzski. And something extra-ordinary is about to happen to her. Oh, it's not the very cute kitten that appears out of nowhere and demands to go home with her. It's not the sudden arrival of her cousin Zee, who believes he's the cause of a mysterious sickness that has struck his friends back in England. It's not her creepy English teacher Mr. Metos, who takes his mythology lessons just a little too seriously. And it's not the white-faced, yellow-eyed men in tuxedoes, who follow Charlotte everywhere. What's so extraordinary is not any one of these things... It's all of them. And when Charlotte's friends start to get sick one by one, Charlotte and Zee set out to find a cure. Their quest leads them to a not-so-mythical Underworld, where they face rhyme-loving Harpies, gods with personnel problems, and ghosts with a thirst for blood. Charlotte and Zee learn that in a world overrun by Nightmares, Pain, and Death, the really dangerous character is a guy named Phil. And then they discover that the fate of every person, living and dead, is in their young hands.
title: The Shadow Thieves
title: The Siren Song
F
STR
The Bartimaeus Trilogy (age 10+)
by Jonathan Stroud
humor ... adventure ... action ... fantasy ... magic
Nathaniel is a young magician's apprentice, taking his first lessons in the arts of magic. But when a devious hotshot wizard named Simon Lovelace ruthlessly humiliates Nathaniel in front of everyone he knows, Nathaniel decides to kick up his education a few notches and show Lovelace who's boss. With revenge in his mind, he masters one of the toughest spells of all: summoning the all-powerful djinni, Bartimaeus. But summoning Bartimaeus and controlling him are two different things entirely, and when Nathaniel sends the djinni out to steal the powerful Amulet of Samarkand, Nathaniel finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of magical espionage, murder, blackmail, and revolt.
title: The Amulet of Samarkand
title: The Golems Eye
title: Ptolemy's Gate
F
STE
First Light (age 10+)
by Rebecca Stead
math/science/technology ... fantasy ... adventure ... mystery
Peter is thrilled to join his parents on an expedition to Greenland, where his father studies global warming. Peter will get to skip school, drive a dogsled, and-finally-share in his dad's adventures. But on the ice cap, Peter struggles to understand a series of visions that both frighten and entice him. Thea has never seen the sun. Her extraordinary people, suspected of witchcraft and nearly driven to extinction, have retreated to a secret world they've built deep inside the arctic ice. As Thea dreams of a path to Earth's surface, Peter's search for answers brings him ever closer to her hidden home. Rebecca Stead's fascinating novel is a dazzling tale of mystery, science and adventure at the top of the world.
F
PAV
The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness (age 10+)
by Michelle Paver
fantasy ... action ... adventure
Six thousand years ago. Evil stalks the land. Only twelve-year-old Torak and his wolf-cub companion can defeat it. Their journey together takes them through deep forests, across giant glaciers, and into dangers they never imagined. In this page-turning, original, and spectacularly told adventure story, Torak and Wolf are joined by an incredible cast of characters as they battle to save their world, in this first book in the "Chronicles of Ancient Darkness."
title: Wolf Brother
title: Spirit Walker
title: Soul Eater
title: Outcast
title: Oath Breaker
title: Ghost Hunter
F
MAC
Pendragon Series (age 10+)
by D. J. MacHale
letters/journal ... action ... science fiction ... adventure ... fantasy
Bobby Pendragon is a seemingly normal fourteen-year-old boy. He has a family, a home, and even Marley, his beloved dog. But there is something very special about Bobby. He is going to save the world. And not just Earth as we know it. Bobby is slowly starting to realize that life in the cosmos isn't quite what he thought it was. And before he can object, he is swept off to an alternate dimension known as Denduron, a territory inhabited by strange beings, ruled by a magical tyrant, and plagued by dangerous revolution. If Bobby wants to see his family again, he's going to have to accept his role as savior, and accept it wholeheartedly. Because, as he is about to discover, Denduron is only the beginning....
title: The Merchant of Death
title: The Lost City of Faar
title: The Never War
title: The Reality Bug
title: Black Water
title: The Rivers of Zadaa
title: The Quillan Games
title: The Pilgrims of Rayne
title: Raven Rise
title: The Soldiers of Halla
F
LOW
Gathering Blue (age 10+)
by Lois Lowry
fantasy ... identity ... science fiction
Kira, an orphan with a twisted leg, lives in a world where the weak are cast aside. She fears for her future until she is spared by the all-powerful Council of Guardians. Kira is a gifted weaver and is given a task that no other community member can do. While her talent keeps her alive and brings certain privileges, Kira soon realizes she is surrounded by many mysteries and secrets. No one must know of her plans to uncover the truth about her world and see what places exist beyond. Companion to The Giver.
F
LOW
Messenger (age 10+)
by Lois Lowry
fantasy ... identity ... science fiction
Strange changes are taking place in Village. Once a utopian community that prided itself on its welcome to new strangers, Village will soon be closed to all outsiders. As one of the few people able to travel through the dangerous Forest, Matty must deliver the message of Village's closing and try to convince Seer's daughter to return with him before it's too late. But Forest has become hostile to Matty as well, and he must risk everything to fight his way through it, armed only with an emerging power he cannot yet explain or understand. The characters from Lowry's The Giver and Gathering Blue meet in this shocking novel of utopia gone wrong.
F
JON
Power of Three (age 10+)
by Diana Wynne Jones
adventure ... fantasy
Ayna could predict the future. Cari could find what was lost. Gair thought he was ordinary. The three children of Gest, the chief of Garholt, know the perils of the Moor on which they live. The Dorig, their people's enemies, are cold-blooded, fierce underwater creatures who terrify anyone unlucky enough to happen upon them. The Giants are dangerous and violent. But it's not until their home is invaded that Gair learns of a dying curse that endangers all three peoples of the Moor. A curse that ordinary Gair, with the help of his extraordinary brother and sister, may be able to break, but only at the most dreadful risk to all three, and to the Moor itself.
F
JON
The Chronicles of Chrestomanci (age 10+)
by Diana Wynne Jones
magic ... fantasy
In the multiple parallel universes of the Twelve Related Worlds, only an enchanter with nine lives is powerful enough to control the rampant misuse of magic, and to hold the title Chrestomanci. . . . Cat and Christopher Chant make the most unusual friends. Christopher befriends a boy with terrible karma in a mansion where everything keeps changing. Cat meets a girl whose family of rogue witches is hiding shocking secrets. Will the Chrestomanci be able to sort out the tangle of mysteries and magic?
title: Charmed Life
F
GAL
The Legend of the Wandering King (age 10+)
by Laura GallegoGarcia
fantasy ... identity ... adventure
Walid was a model prince: handsome, intelligent, skilled in the arts of warfare and poetry. But the kingdom boasted one greater poet than he, and out of jealousy Walid cursed the man to create an impossible work of art: a carpet showing the history of the entire human race. The poet died weaving it. Men went mad seeing it. And when it is stolen, Walid discovers his life's quest: to recover the carpet and earn forgiveness for his mistakes. Inspired by the story of a real king of pre-Muslim Arabia, Legend is a magical fantasy, a meditation on destiny, and an utterly thrilling adventure.
F
CHE
Tales of Gom in the Legends of Ulm Series (age 10+)
by Grace Chetwin
magic ... adventure ... fantasy
Gom, the son of a poor woodcutter and his wife, grows up with his father after his mother leaves home and his siblings go to stay with townsfolk and discovers he has unusual abilities which bring him trouble, yet lead him to envision a different sort of life for himself.
title: Gom on Windy Mountain
title: The Riddle and the Rune
title: The Crystal Stair
title: The Starstone
F
CON
The Chanters of Tremaris Trilogy (age 10+)
by Kate Constable
magic ... fantasy
Introducing a world in which music makes magic. Calwyn has lived all her life behind the high ice-wall that guards the sisters of Antaris from the world of Tremaris. The sisters practice ice chantment ... one of the Nine Powers of chantment, a form of magic worked through music. But when Calwyn finds an Outlander man fallen, wounded, through the wall, she is drawn to him...and drawn into a wondrous, dangerous adventure that takes her outside the wall and to the limits of her own powers, as she, the Outlander Darrow, and others unite to defeat the sorcerer Samis, who seeks to claim all Nine Powers and become the Singer of All Songs.
title: The Singer of All Songs
title: The Waterless Sea
title: The Tenth Power
F
AND
The May Bird Series (age 10+)
by Jodi Lynn Anderson
princesses ... spooky ... action ... adventure ... fantasy
Most people aren't very comfortable in the woods, but the woods of Briery Swamp fit May Bird like a fuzzy mitten. There, she is safe from school and the taunts and teases of kids who don't understand her. Hidden in the trees, May is a warrior princess, and her cat, Somber Kitty, is her brave guardian. Then May falls into the lake. When she crawls out, May finds herself in a world that most certainly does not feel like a fuzzy mitten. in fact, it is a place few living people have ever seen. Here towns glow blue beneath zipping stars and the people (people?) walk through walls. Here the Book of the Dead holds the answers to everything in the universe. And here, if May is discovered, the horrifying evil Bo Cleevil will turn her into nothing. May Bird must get out. Fast.
title: May Bird and the Ever After
title: May Bird Among the Stars
F
SWI
Gulliver's Travels (age 10+)
by Jonathan Swift
fantasy ... humor
The unusual voyages of Englishman Lemuel Gulliver carry him to such strange locales as Lilliput, where the inhabitants are six inches tall; Brobdingnag, a land of giants; an island of sorcerers; and a nation ruled by horses.
F
YOL
Sword of the Rightful King: a Novel of King Arthur (age 10+)
by Jane Yolen
fantasy ... adventure ... historical ... knights/castles/dragons ... magic
The newly crowned King Arthur is unsure of himself; worse, the people are unsure of him. Too many people want the throne, and treachery is everywhere. Merlin must do something before the king is betrayed, or murdered, or--worst of all--gets married. So Merlin magically places a sword into a slab of rock, lets it be known that whosoever removes the blade will rule all of England, and invites any man who would dare, to try to pull out the sword. After a bit of showmanship, Arthur will draw the blade (with a little magical help, of course), and the people will rally around the young king. Except someone else pulls the sword out first. . . .
F
TOL
The Lord of the Rings Series (age 10+)
by J. R. R. Tolkien
voyages/journeys ... fantasy ... adventure
Sauron, the Dark Lord, has gathered to him all the Rings of Power except one ... the One Ring that rules them all ... which has fallen into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins. Young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task when Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.
title: The Fellowship of the Ring, Being the First Part of the Lord of the Rings
title: The Two Towers, Being the Second Part of the Lord of the Rings
title: The Return of the King, Being the Third Part of the Lord of the Rings
F
LEV
The Two Princesses of Bamarre (age 10+)
by Gail Carson Levine
princesses ... adventure ... fantasy ... magic ... illness/loss
When a plague strikes Bamarre, Princess Addie must save her sister. Brave and adventureous, Princess Meryl dreams of fighting dragons and protecting the kingdom of Bamarre. Shy and fearful, Princess Addie is content to stay within the safety of the castle walls. The one thing that the sisters share is their unwavering love for each other. The tables are turned, however, when the Gray Death leaves Meryl fatally ill. To save her sister, meek Princess Addie must find the courage to set out on a dangerous quest filled with dragons, unknown magic, and death itself. Time is running out, and the sisters' lives ... and the future of the kingdom of Bamarre ... hang in the balance.
F
MCC
Harper Hall Trilogy (age 10+)
by Anne McCaffrey
folklore ... the arts ... fantasy ... adventure
Forbidden by her father to indulge in music in any way, a girl on the planet Pern runs away, taking shelter with the planet's fire lizards who, along with her music, open a new life for her.
title: Dragonsong
title: Dragonsinger
title: Dragondrums
F
GLI
Pure Dead Series (age 10+)
by Debi Gliori
fantasy ... humor ... spooky ... magic
Things are not right at the Strega-Borgia castle. Signor Luciano Strega-Borgia has been kidnapped. Signora Baci Strega-Borgia is struggling with her spells at the Advanced Witchcraft Institute. Titus and Pandora don't like their suspiciously cheerful and fearless new nanny. Baby Damp has been accidentally shrunk, e-mailed, and lost on the World Wide Web. And to top it off, there's a gangster in a bunny suit lurking about. . . . This seriously over-the-top, gothic romp is sure to have readers clamoring for the next Strega-Borgia adventure.
title: Pure Dead Magic
F
CRO
The Seeing Stone (age 10+)
by Kevin Crossley-Holland
identity ... fantasy ... folklore
Thirteen-year-old Arthur de Caldicot lives on a manor, desperately waiting for the moment he can become a knight. One day his father's friend Merlin gives him a shining black stone - a seeing stone - that shows him visions of his namesake, King Arthur. The legendary dragons, battles, and swordplay that young Arthur witnesses seem a world away from his own life. And yet there is something definitely joining the Arthurs together. It will be Arthur de Caldicot's destiny to discover how his path is intertwined with a king's . . . for the past is not the only thing the seeing stone can see.
F
PAO
The Inheritance Series (age 10+)
by Christopher Paolini
adventure ... action ... magic ... fantasy
Fifteen-year-old Eragon believes that he is merely a poor farm boy ... until his destiny as a Dragon Rider is revealed. Gifted with only an ancient sword, a loyal dragon, and sage advice from an old storyteller, Eragon is soon swept into a dangerous tapestry of magic, glory, and power. Now his choices could save ... or destroy ... the Empire.
title: Eragon
title: Eldest
title: Brisingr, or, the Seven Promises of Eragon Shadeslayer and Saphira Bjartskular
title: Inheritance, or the Vault of Souls
F
CHA
Summerland (age 10+)
by Michael Chabon
fantasy ... magic ... sports
For over a century, the people of Clam Island, Washington, have enjoyed barbecues and baseball games and Summerland, on the Western tip of the island, where it never rains. The small beings...known as ferishers...who ensure this perfect weather, however, are threatened by an ancient enemy, and need a hero...a baseball star, in fact...to vanquish their foe.
F
YEP
Dragon of the Lost Sea (age 10+)
by Laurence Yep
princesses ... knights/castles/dragons ... adventure ... fantasy ... folklore
The exiled dragon princess Shimmer and a frail human boy, Thorn, search for the powerful witch Civet, who stole the Dragon Clan's sea and captured it in a pebble.
sequel: Dragon Steel
F
SEL
The Genie of Sutton Place (age 10+)
by George Selden
magic ... fantasy
A young boy recounts the events of the summer when he had the services of an Arabian genie at his disposal.
F
PUL
His Dark Materials (age 10+)
by Philip Pullman
growing up ... spooky ... action ... adventure ... fantasy
Lyra Belaqua is content to run wild among the scholars of Jordan College, with her daemon familiar Pantalaimon always by her side. But the arrival of her fearsome uncle, Lord Asriel, draws her to the heart of a terrible struggle ... a struggle born of Gobblers and stolen children, witch clans and armored bears. And as she hurtles toward danger in the cold, far North, young Lyra never suspects the shocking truth: She alone is destined to win, or to lose, this more-than-mortal battle.
title: The Golden Compass
title: The Subtle Knife
F
PIE
Protector of the Small Series (age 10+)
by Tamora Pierce
enterprise ... fantasy ... knights/castles/dragons
In the first book, First Test, Ten-year-old Keladry of Mindalen, daughter of nobles, serves as a page but must prove herself to the males around her if she is ever to fulfill her dream of becoming a knight.
title: First Test
title: Page
title: Squire
title: Lady Knight
F
HAN
The Seer and the Sword (age 10+)
by Victoria Hanley
princesses ... fantasy ... historical
Princess Torina, who has the ability to see the future, and her friend Landen, who seeks a sword that belongs to his conquered kingdom, are separated when a treacherous murderer gains power, but from exile each works to restore peace and the rightful rulers.
F
HAL
Princess Academy (age 10+)
by Shannon Hale
princesses ... fantasy ... friendship ... school
Miri lives on a mountain where, for generations, her ancestors have quarried stone and lived a simple life. Then word comes that the king's priests have divined her small village the home of the future princess. In a year's time, the prince himself will come and choose his bride from among the girls of the village. The king's ministers set up an academy on the mountain, and every teenage girl must attend and learn how to become a princess. Miri soon finds herself confronted with a harsh academy mistress, bitter competition among the girls, and her own conflicting desires to be chosen and win the heart of her childhood best friend. But when bandits seek out the academy to kidnap the future princess, Miri must rally the girls together and use a power unique to the mountain dwellers to save herself and her classmates.
F
FLE
Dragon Chronicles (age 10+)
by Susan Fletcher
knights/castles/dragons ... fantasy ... adventure
In Dragon's Milk, the first of the series, Kaeldra, an outsider adopted by an Elythian family as a baby, possesses the power to understand dragons and uses this power to try to save her younger sister, who needs dragon's milk to recover from an illness.
title: Dragon's Milk
title: Sign of the Dove
F
RIO
Percy Jackson and the Olympians (age 10+)
by Rick Riordan
action ... folklore ... fantasy ... adventure
Percy, expelled from six schools for being unable to control his temper, learns the truth from his mother that his father is the Greek god Poseidon, and is sent to Camp Half Blood where he is befriended by a satyr and the demigod daughter of Athena who join him in a journey to the Underworld to retrieve Zeus's lightning bolt and prevent a catastrophic war.
title: The Lightning Thief
title: The Sea of Monsters
title: The Titan's Curse
title: the Battle of the Labyrinth
title: The Last Olympian
title: The Demigod Files
F
HUN
Warriors: Omen of the Stars (age 10+)
by Erin Hunter
war ... adventure ... fantasy
Publisher comments: Four warrior Clans have shared the land around the lake as equals for many moons. But a prophecy foretells that three ThunderClan cats will hold the power of the stars in their paws. Jayfeather and Lionblaze know that they are two of the cats in the prophecy. Now the brothers must wait for a sign from StarClan to discover the identity of the third cat. Meanwhile, Dovekit and Ivykit¿kin of the great leader Firestar¿are poised to become ThunderClan apprentices. Soon one sister will have an ominous dream¿and will begin to realize that she possesses mystical skills unmatched by any other cat. In the midst of a cruel season that threatens the lives of all four warrior Clans, bonds will be forged, promises made, and three young cats will start to unravel the secrets that bind them together.
title: The Fourth Apprentice
title: Fading Echoes
title: Night Whispers
title: Sign of the Moon
F
HUN
Warriors, Power of Three Series (age 10+)
by Erin Hunter
war ... adventure ... fantasy
In a troubled time for the Clans, three young cats, grandchildren of the legendary Firestar, begin their training as warriors and, in the course of many adventures, discover their true destiny.
title: The Sight
title: Dark River
title: Outcast
title: Eclipse
title: Long Shadows
title: Sunrise
F
HUN
The Warriors Series (age 10+)
by Erin Hunter
war ... adventure ... fantasy
In the first book, Into the Wild, Rusty starts out as an ordinary house kitten, but his travels deep into the forest involve him in the epic battles of the cat warrior clans who roam (and rule) the wild. With a new name, Firepaw, and a position as a ThunderClan apprentice, our feline hero faces his destiny, struggles with issues of friendship, honour, courage, and betrayal, and learns what it truly means to be a warrior.
title: Into the Wild
title: A Dangerous Path
title: The Darkest Hour
title: Dawn
title: Fire and Ice
title: Forest of Secrets
title: Sunset
title: Twilight
title: Midnight
title: Moonrise
title: Rising Storm
title: Starlight
title: Warriors Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans
title: The Lost Warrior
F
BEL
The Mansion in the Mist (age 10+)
by John Bellairs
science fiction ... fantasy ... mystery ... spooky
While spending the summer in an old house on a desolate Canadian island, Anthony Monday and Miss Eells discover a chest that can transport them to another world and a maniacal group who are plotting the destruction of people on Earth.
F
ALE
The Westmark Trilogy (age 10+)
by Lloyd Alexander
adventure ... fantasy
A boy fleeing from criminal charges falls in with a charlatan, his dwarf attendant, and an urchin girl, travels with them about the kingdom of Westmark, and ultimately arrives at the palace where the king is grieving over the loss of his daughter.
title: Westmark
title: The Kestrel
F
ALE
The Vesper Holly Series (age 10+)
by Lloyd Alexander
fantasy ... adventure
Publisher comments: About The Illyrian Adventure, first in the series: It's 1872, and adventurous Vesper Holly and her guardian set out for the tiny country of Illyria on a quest for its legendary treasure. But once Vesper and Brinnie arrive, they are plunged into a fierce struggle between rebel forces--and someone is out to kill the two of them. About The Jedera Adventure: Returning a library book is simple-unless the library is in North Africa and the book is Vesper Holly's! She organizes a library-bound caravan, deals with feuding desert tribes, rough terrain, and slave traders-but then is faced with the evil Dr. Helvitius.
title: The Illyrian Adventure
title: The El Dorado Adventure
F
FAR
The Sea of Trolls (age 10+)
by Nancy Farmer
action ... folklore ... fantasy ... adventure ... historical
Jack was eleven when the berserkers loomed out of the fog and nabbed him. ``It seems that things are stirring across the water,'' the Bard had warned. ``Ships are being built, swords are being forged.'' ``Is that bad?'' Jack had asked, for his Saxon village had never before seen berserkers. ``Of course. People don't make ships and swords unless they intend to use them.'' The year is A.D. 793. In the next months, Jack and his little sister, Lucy, are enslaved by Olaf One-Brow and his fierce young shipmate, Thorgil. Nancy Farmer has never told a richer, funnier tale, nor offered more timeless encouragement to young seekers than ``Just say no to pillaging.''
sequel: The Land of the Silver Apples
F
OPP
Darkwing (age 10+)
by Kenneth Oppel
fantasy ... action ... adventure
As the sun sets on the time of the dinosaurs, a new world is left in its wake. . . . Dusk. He alone can fly and see in the dark, in a colony where being different means being shunned¿or worse. As the leader¿s son, he is protected, but does his future lie among his kin? Carnassial. He has the true instincts of a predator, and he is determined that his kind will not only survive, but will dominate the world of beasts.
F
WRE
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles (age 10+)
by Patricia C. Wrede
princesses ... knights/castles/dragons ... fantasy ... humor
This series begins with Dealing With Dragons. Bored with traditional palace life, a princess goes off to live with a group of dragons and soon becomes involved with fighting against some disreputable wizards who want to steal away the dragons' kingdom.
title: Dealing With Dragons
title: Searching For Dragons
title: Calling on Dragons
title: Talking to Dragons
F
STE
The Edge Chronicles (age 10+)
by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
action ... identity ... adventure ... fantasy
Young Twig lives in the Deepwoods, among the Woodtrolls, but he isn't one of them. In a brave attempt to find out where he belongs, Twig wanders into the mysterious, dangerous world beyond the Deepwoods.
title: Beyond the Deepwoods
title: Stormchaser
title: Midnight Over Sanctaphrax
title: Freeglader
title: The Last of the Sky Pirates
title: The Curse of the Gloamglozer
title: Vox
title: The Winter Knights
title: Clash of the Sky Galleons
F
MCK
The Hero and the Crown (age 10+)
by Robin McKinley
fantasy ... adventure
Aerin is the only child of the king of Damar, and should be his rightful heir. But she is also the daughter of a witchwoman of the North, who died when she was born, and the Damarians cannot trust her. But Aerin's destiny is greater than her father's people know, for it leads her to battle with Maur, the Black Dragon, and into the wilder Damarian Hills, where she meets the wizard Luthe.
sequel: The Blue Sword
F
LOW
The Giver (age 10+)
by Lois Lowry
science fiction ... fantasy ... identity
Jonas' world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear of pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the community. When Jonas turns 12 he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.
F
L'E
A Wrinkle in Time / The Time Quintet (age 10+)
by Madeleine L'Engle
adventure ... fantasy ... science fiction
Meg Murry and her friends become involved with unearthly strangers and a search for Meg's father, who has disappeared while engaged in secret study of the fifth dimension of time travel.
title: A Wrinkle in Time / The Time Quintet
title: A Wind in the Door
F
JAC
The Redwall Series (age 10+)
by Brian Jacques
fantasy ... humor ... adventure
Each dazzling story in the Redwall series is packed with wit, wisdom, humor, and blood-curdling adventure.
title: Redwall
title: Mossflower
title: Mattimeo
title: Mariel of Redwall
title: Salamandastron
title: Martin the Warrior
title: The Bellmaker
title: Outcast of Redwall
title: Pearls of Lutra
title: The Long Patrol: a Tale from Redwall
title: Marlfox: a Tale of Redwall
title: The Legend of Luke
title: Lord Brocktree
title: Triss: a Tale From Redwall
title: Taggerung: a Tale From Redwall
title: Loamhedge: a Tale From Redwall
title: Rakkety Tam
title: High Rhulain
title: Eulalia!
F
HUG
Jack Black and the Ship of Thieves (age 10+)
by Carol Hughes
voyages/journeys ... fantasy ... adventure
Jack Black is thrilled when his father, the captain of the largest airship in the world, invites him on the ship's maiden voyage. Once aloft, Jack overhears a plot to sabotage the ship. But before he can tell his father, Jack falls, plummeting through the air to be caught in the sails of a pirate ship. Now Jack must try to convince a crew of thieves to rescue his father.
F
FUN
Inkheart Series (age 10+)
by Cornelia Funke
authorship ... magic ... fantasy ... adventure ... action
Publisher comments: One cruel night, Meggie's father reads aloud from a book called Inkheart, and an evil ruler escapes the boundaries of fiction and lands in their living room. Suddenly, Meggie is smack in the middle of the kind of adventure she has only read about in books. Meggie must learn to harness the magic that has conjured this nightmare. For only she can change the course of the story that has changed her life forever.
title: Inkheart
title: Inkspell
title: Inkdeath
F
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
title: The Diamond of Darkhold
F
COO
The Dark Is Rising Series (age 10+)
by Susan Cooper
folklore ... action ... adventure ... fantasy
On holiday in Cornwall, the three Drew children discover an ancient map in the attic of the house that they are staying in. They know immediately that it is special. It is even more than that...the key to finding a grail, a source of power to fight the forces of evil known as the Dark. And in searching for it themselves, the Drews put their very lives in peril. Begin with "Over Sea, Under Stone."
title: Over Sea, Under Stone
title: The Dark is Rising
title: Greenwitch
title: The Grey King
title: Silver on the Tree
F
AVI
Midnight Magic (age 10+)
by Avi
spooky ... knights/castles/dragons ... fantasy ... magic
On a stormy night in the Kingdom of Pergamontio, an insistent knocking brings Fabrizio, the servant boy, to the door. Outside stands a soldier summoning Fabrizio's master, Mangus the Magician, to the king's castle. Because Mangus has been under house arrest for confessing to be a magician, he cannot imagine why the king is calling for him. But magic is exactly what the king needs. He wants Mangus to free his daughter from the torment of a terrifying ghost. Mangus' life will depend on his success.
F
ALE
The Prydain Chronicles (age 10+)
by Lloyd Alexander
folklore ... humor ... fantasy ... adventure
In the first book of the Prydain Chronicles, Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper to a famous oracular sow, sets out on a hazardous mission to save Prydain from the forces of evil.
title: The Book of Three
title: The Black Cauldron
title: The Castle of Llyr
title: Taran Wanderer
title: The High King
F
NIM
Griffin's Castle (age 10+)
by Jenny Nimmo
family ... fantasy
After years of having moved around, eleven-year-old Dinah determines to make a huge, dilapidated old mansion into a home for her mother and herself, but the wild beasts she summons from a stone wall to protect her may also imprison her.

Walter Hays Elementary School, Sat Aug 25 11:55:30 2012
Other themes and genres