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Best Children’s Books of
2007 |
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Applegate, Katherine (Grades 7 and up) 10-year-old Kek moves from Sudan to Minnesota after violence tears his family apart. Free-verse poems relate Kek’s view of America, hope, and kindness.
Babbitt, Natalie (Grades 2-6) Avast, me hearties! Plundering just isn’t what it used to be, so former pirate Jack Plank sets out to find a new career on Saltwash Island.
Carey, Janet Lee (Grades 6-10) Princess Rosalind, who is destined for greatness but was born with a dragon talon on her left hand, wears golden gloves to conceal her dooming deformity.
Clements, Andrew (Grades 3-6) Chatterbox Dave challenges his classmates to a “no talking” contest that pits the boys against the girls.
Curtis, Christopher Paul (Grades 4-8) Elijah, the first freeborn child in a Canadian town of ex-slaves, takes his freedom for granted until he sets off after a thief and finds much more. Winner of the Coretta Scott King Award. A 2008 Newbery Honor Book.
Frazier, Sundee T. Brendan Buckley’s Universe and Everything in It (Grades 5-7) Brendan, 10, is ecstatic to finally meet the grandfather that his mom has always refused to see. Grandpa DeBose shares Brendan’s passion for rock collecting, but his skin is pink—not brown like Brendan’s! Winner of the 2008 John Steptoe New Talent Award.
Goscinny, Rene (Grades 4-6) Like a French Dennis the Menace, Nicholas never fails to stir up trouble and fun. A 2008 Batchelder Honor Book.
Hale, Shannon (Grades 7-10) After Lady Saren refuses to marry a man she despises, she and her maid are shut in a tower. When the outside world appears to vanish, the young women face the task of saving the eight realms—and their own lives.
Kinney, Jeff (Grades 3-8) Greg, a 7th-grade misfit, records his adventures in middle school in a comically illustrated diary.
Kostick, Connor (Grades 7-10) In a world where violence has been outlawed, arguments are settled in a virtual-reality game. Erik sends his avatar on a dangerous mission to overthrow the powers behind the game.
O’Connor, Barbara (Grades 3-7) How far would you go to get your family out of a bind? For Georgina, the plucky heroine of this novel, "The day I decided to steal a dog was the same day my best friend, Luanne Godfrey, found out I lived in a car.”
Rex, Adam (Grades 3-8) The quest to save life as we know it finds twelve-year-old Tip traveling across the country with her outlaw alien companion.
Richter, Jutta The Cat: or, How I Lost Eternity (Grades 1 and up) Christine, 8, meets a talking cat on the way to school. The cat claims that life is all about looking out for oneself, but Christine thinks there’s more to it than that. A 2008 Batchelder Honor Book.
Rorby, Ginny (Grades 7-12) With the help of a signing chimpanzee, a lonely deaf girl grows into a mature animal rights activist. Winner of the 2008 Schneider Family Book Award for Teens.
Schlitz, Laura Amy (Youth Nonfiction, 812.6/SCH) Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval Village (Grades 5 and up) A collection of 19 dramatic vignettes channels the lives of children in 13th century England. Winner of the 2008 Newbery Award.
Schmidt, Gary D. (Grades 7 and up) As the lone Presbyterian in his class, Holling spends Wednesday afternoons with a teacher (who hates him) while his classmates are in religion class. A 2008 Newbery Honor Book.
Selznick, Brian (Grades 3-8) In this generously illustrated tale, a boy living within the walls of the Paris train station finds mysteries and intrigues everywhere he turns. A 2007 National Book Award Finalist. Winner of the 2008 Caldecott Medal.
Sís, Peter (Youth Nonfiction, 943.7/SIS) The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain (Grades 5 and up) An autobiographical graphic novel recalls the author’s experiences in Czechoslovakia under Soviet rule. Winner of the 2008 Sibert Medal. A 2008 Caldecott Honor Book.
Smith, Roland (Grades 5-9) A fourteen-year-old boy attempts to be the youngest person to reach the top of Mount Everest.
Stewart, Trenton Lee The Mysterious Benedict Society (Grades 5-9) Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities? 4 precocious kids respond to this intriguing ad and enter the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened where their gifts are put to the test in a race to save the world.
Tarshis, Lauren Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree (Grades 3-7) Emma-Jean, an ultra-rational but socially-challenged seventh grader, uses her analytical abilities to navigate mean girls, friendships, and other middle school drama.
Thompson, Kate (Grades 7-10) In the Irish village of Kinvara, music is life—but the townsfolk are too busy to make much of it. When his mother requests “more time” for her birthday, 15-year-old J.J. Liddy journeys into the heart of fairyland on a quest to find out where the missing minutes have gone.
Wells, Rosemary (Grades 7 and up) A 12-year-old girl rides out the Civil War years while holding onto her dream of attending college.
Woodson, Jacqueline (Grades 4-8) Frannie learns a lesson about hope and change when a white boy joins her all-black 6th grade class in 1971. A 2008 Newbery Honor Book.
Zimmer, Tracie Vaughn (Grades 6 and up) Free-verse poems narrate Josie’s unforgettable seventh grade year, during which she befriends an unusual new boy and comes to terms with her cerebral palsy. Winner of the 2008 Schneider Family Book Award for Middle Grades.
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