Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

For young Jack Gantos, Summer is just getting started. It is 1962 and change is in the air. Even the ever-shrinking town of Norvelt, PA is hearing strange rumblings from the outside world, but Jack is looking forward to the most boring summer ever. After a mishap with an old Japanese rifle, and a misunderstanding about a bomb shelter, Jack finds himself grounded. Not allowed to play with his friends, his only relief is helping write obituaries for the town paper.
As the original residents of the town start dying off, and the town itself begins to shrink, Jack buries himself in history books, and finds that the past and the present have a funny way of blending. Strange omens, and wild suspicions spread. Will the Gantos family be the next to leave town? Will Jack every be ungrounded? And, most pressing of all, are all of the original residents dying of natural causes? Mystery and history collide to provide more questions than answers.

This book won the Newberry Award in 2011, and has been met with widespread praise and critical acclaim. There is also a sequel, From Norvelt to Nowhere which is available here at the library. See what you think, and let us know!

Gully's Travels by Tor Seidler

Gulliver is one pampered Lhasa Apso.  He lives with his professor on the 17th floor of a Manhattan high-rise, and spends his summer in Paris.  He is quite to used to the finer things in life, and spends the better part of his walks trying to one-up his similarly pampered friend, Rodney the Schnauzer.

But when Gulliver's professor proposes to a woman who is allergic to long-haired dogs, Gulliver's world is turned upside down.  Unceremoniously handed off to the doorman, Gulliver (or "Gully" as his new leash-holder calls him) suddenly finds himself living in chaos way out in Queens.  He now shares his quarters with three mutts who don't even eat real dog-food --- they eat kibble!

Certain that his professor must be in dire trouble, Gully escapes and miraculously finds his way back to his Manhattan high-rise.  When the professor rebukes him, Gully is devastated.

While spending the day at the beach with his new family, an unfortunate incident sends Gully on yet another adventure - this time all the way across the Atlantic Ocean.  Realizing that he is in Paris, he seeks out his lady-Maltese friend, Chloe.  When he is also rejected by Chloe - and with nowhere to go - Gully is at his wit's end.  When he is finally gets back to Queens, he learns a valuable lesson about the meaning of 'home.'  This is a very, very sweet book,with delightful illustrations by Brock Cole.

J/SEI
Grades 4-6

Ivy + Bean by Annie Barrows

Have you met Ivy and Bean?  Before Bean met Ivy, she didn’t like her.  When Bean’s mother encouraged her to play with her new neighbor, Ivy, Bean thought her polite “no thank you” was a good answer.

“All aboard!  Next train for Boring is leaving now!” yelled Bean.

WRONG!  Ivy is NOT boring at all.  See how the seemingly opposites become best friends.  If you like Ramona the Pest, Junie B. Jones or Clementine, try Ivy and Bean.  This is a series, and great for readers who are just getting into chapter books.


J/Bar

Beautiful Oops! by Barney Saltzberg

Beautiful Oops! is an interactive board book suitable for all ages, even adults. The paper-engineering is fun, fresh and diverse. There are pop-ups, bends, tears, lift-the flaps (upon flaps upon flaps), holes, overlays, splashes and splotches.

Author Barney Saltzberg's message is strong: “It’s OK to make a mistake.” Beautiful Oops! illustrates how many wonderful creations often start with an accident. A torn piece of paper becomes the mouth of an alligator. A bent page turns into a penguin’s beak. Drops of paint transform into a pig and the wheels of a car. Mistakes are not an end, but a beginning. The possibilities are endless if you use your imagination.

Like mistakes, Beautiful Oops! is worth exploring so have fun playing with this book and discovering all it has to offer. You’ll find it with the board books.