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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 |
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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. |
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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 |
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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 |
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Twice Upon a Time Series (age 10+) by Wendy Mass folklore ... humor Retellings of familiar fairy tales, relating events from the young protagonists' very teenage, and very funny, point of view. title: Sleeping Beauty: The One Who Took the Really Long Nap title: Rapunzel: The One With All the Hair |
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The Runaway Princess
(age 10+) by Kate Coombs princesses ... humor ... adventure ... folklore ... knights/castles/dragons ... magic "A dragon darkens our dells. A witch haunts our woods. Bandits roam our moors" . . . King Stromgard swept on. "In the tradition of so many monarchs, I offer my daughter's hand in marriage and half my kingdom to the prince who can rid us of these evils, restoring peace and prosperity to our realm." And so the contest in the Kingdom of Greeve begins. But Princess Margaret is not your traditional princess. Meg firmly objects to her parents' giving her away, and she certainly has no intention of remaining in the tower where she is sequestered. Instead, she sets out to win the contest herself by enlisting the help of her good friend, her loyal maid, an eager guardsman, a young wizard, and a tenacious witch. Does Meg find her distinct place in the kingdom, or is she doomed to fulfill her royal duties? |
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The Dark Pond
(age 10+) by Joseph Bruchac school ... spooky ... mystery ... folklore After he feels a mysterious pull drawing him toward a dark, shadowy pond in the woods, Armie looks to old Native American tales for guidance about the dangerous monster lurking in the water. |
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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 |
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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. |
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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 |
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The Bronze Bow
(age 10+) by Elizabeth George Speare adventure ... folklore A young boy seeks revenge against the Romans for killing his parents, but is turned away from vengeance by Jesus. |
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Shadow Spinner
(age 10+) by Susan Fletcher folklore ... adventure ... voyages/journeys ... authorship Every night, Shahrazad begins a story. And every morning, the Sultan lets her live another day, providing the story is interesting enough to capture his attention. After almost one thousand nights, Shahrazad is running out of tales. And that is how Marjan's story begins.... It falls to Marjan to help Shahrazad find new stories, ones the Sultan has never heard before. To do that, the girl is forced to undertake a dangerous and forbidden mission: sneak from the harem and travel the city, pulling tales from strangers and bringing them back to Shahrazad. But as she searches the city, a wonderful thing happens. From a quiet spinner of tales, Marjan suddenly becomes the center of a more surprising story than she ever could have imagined. |
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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 |
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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 |
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Maniac Magee : a Novel
(age 10+) by Jerry Spinelli folklore ... humor ... bigotry ... realistic ... friendship ... sports After his parents die, Jeffrey Lionel Magee's life becomes legendary, as he accomplishes athletic and other feats which awe his contemporaries. |
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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 |
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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 |