The Maze Runner“If you ain’t scared, you ain’t human.”
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers–boys whose memories are also gone.
Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out–and no one’s ever made it through alive.
Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.
Kat feels a spark, wondering if this might be the moment when past tragedies recede and a new world opens up to her. But when she reaches out to the man in the profile, her reawakened hope quickly darkens into suspicion and then terror as an unspeakable conspiracy comes to light, in which monsters prey upon the most vulnerable.
As the body count mounts and Kat’s hope for a second chance with Jeff grows more and more elusive, she is consumed by an investigation that challenges her feelings about everyone she ever loved—her former fiancé, her mother, and even her father, whose cruel murder so long ago has never been fully explained. With lives on the line, including her own, Kat must venture deeper into the darkness than she ever has before, and discover if she has the strength to survive what she finds there.
In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue–Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is–she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are–and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her
We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.
Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.
The Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own.
Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family.
Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, The Graveyard Book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.
*** Thank you Lee for this recommendation!
Thanks to a follower’s suggestion we’ve put together a list of recommended reading for 8-12 year-olds. (Thank you Sabina).
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
By Roald Dahl
Against all the odds, poor Charlie Bucket finds a golden ticket to a trip of a lifetime to visit Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. The tour round the factory is every child’s dream, but too much of a temptation for Charlie’s fellow golden ticket winners. A classic, magical, rags-to-riches moral fairy tale. Ages 8+
How to Train Your Dragon
By Cressida Cowell
A laugh-out loud romp of a Viking adventure set on the windy Isle of Berk, this is the first in a hugely successful 10-book series and is now being made into a film. Having just passed his dragon initiation program, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, a young Viking searching for a way of becoming a hero, sets about the challenge. First, he must catch a dragon; then he will have to train it. Hiccup’s attempts are hilarious and charming, and the cold, soggy world of the Vikings provides an endless source of mirth. Ages 8+
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Book 1
By Jeff Kinney
Now a bestselling phenomenon, Greg Heffley’s diary captures the minutiae of his days as he starts middle school. In words and witty illustrations, Greg plots how to improve his life, avoid previous pitfalls – and how to increase his popularity with girls. Easy to read, touching and very entertaining. Ages 8+
Charlotte’s Web
By EB White
How do words of praise such as “terrific” keep appearing mysteriously in the spider’s web above the pig pen in Farmer Zuckerman’s barn? These are the life-saving words that Charlotte the spider spins to save her friend Wilbur the piglet, the runt of a litter that is being reared for one purpose only. Watched over by Fern, a little girl who has adopted the pig as a pet, the interactions of Wilbur, Charlotte, Templeton the rat and the other barn animals as they campaign to save the pig’s life is an exceptional story of tenderness and triumph. Ages 8+
One Dog and his Boy
Eva Ibbotson
All Hal has ever wanted is a dog. His parents refuse to contemplate the idea; a dog would mess up their beautiful house and disturb their busy routine. When they discover Easy Pets, they hire Hal a dog for a weekend thinking that will do the trick. But Hal discovers Fleck has to be returned, so he runs away, and all the dogs from Easy Pets escape with him. Soon, there’s a price on his head. How Hal makes his escape and the story of his adventures as a fugitive is both thrilling and moving. Ages 9+
Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief
Rick Riordan (Puffin)
Percy Jackson was once an ordinary schoolboy, but his life changes for ever when he discovers he is the son of the Greek god Poseidon. Skateboarding and basketball are soon swapped for sword fights and monster hunts and the daily struggle to stay alive. And when Zeus accuses Percy of stealing his lightning bolt, life gets very dangerous indeed. Terrific adventure that seamlessly joins two worlds. Ages 10+
Millions * Words on a Limb Pick *
Frank Cottrell Boyce
Boyce’s bittersweet novel is a delicious funny story with some serious things to say about what brings happiness. Damian and his brother Anthony find a bag full of money, but have only a few days before the currency becomes worthless. Initially excited at being able to have anything they want, the brothers quickly discover that they no longer know the value of anything. And anyway, money cannot bring back the one thing they want most – their mother. An entertaining, provocative and life-affirming adventure. Ages 10+
Happy St. Paddy’s Day everyone 🙂
It’s Saint Patrick’s Day, and time celebrate! Children can lift the flaps for interactive fun as they see the children in this book make holiday crafts, taste traditional Irish food, perform a play about Saint Patrick, and even march in a Saint Patrick’s Day parade. As an added bonus, they can search for the hidden leprechaun on each spread. A great way for young readers to learn about being a wee bit Irish!
Words On A Limb 