Cool New Books for January
January's roundup of cool new books is highlighted by SMALL STEPS, one of the most anticipated releases of the year. In Louis Sachar's follow-up to his 1998 bestseller HOLES, Armpit (aka Theodore Johnson) is now home in Austin, Texas, and trying to turn his life around after his release from Camp Green Lake. Also available this month is Terry Pratchett's second installment in the Johnny Maxwell Trilogy --- featuring the brave 12-year-old from ONLY YOU CAN SAVE MANKIND --- and THE DOOR TO TIME, the first in an action-packed series from Scholastic full of mysteries, puzzles and codes. (Fans of CHASING VERMEER and The Spiderwick Chronicles are likely to devour this one!)
Chapter Books/Middle Grade Novels
 SMALL STEPS
Louis Sachar
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385733143
Ages 10-up
272 pages
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In Louis Sachar's highly anticipated follow-up to HOLES, we find Theodore "Armpit" Johnson at home in Austin, Texas. He is trying to turn his life around, two years after being released from Camp Green Lake. The only person who believes in him is Ginny, his 10-year-old disabled neighbor; together, they are learning to take small steps. And he seems to be on the right path, until X-Ray, an acquaintance from Camp Green Lake, comes up with a get-rich-quick scheme. This leads to a chance encounter with teen pop sensation Kaira DeLeon, and suddenly his life spins out of control. Only one thing is for certain --- Armpit will never be the same again.
 ANDREW LOST #13: IN THE GARBAGE
J. C. Greenburg
Random House
ISBN: 0375835628
Ages 7-10
96 pages
• ANDREW LOST Series
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Andrew, Judy and Thudd have time-traveled out of an ice age only to find themselves shrunk down and tossed out with the garbage! As they get up close and personal with half-eaten hog dogs, soggy pasta and old fruit rinds, they'll learn about the stinky --- but oh-so-necessary --- process of decomposition.
 FLASHCARDS OF MY LIFE
Charise Mericle Harper
Little, Brown and Company
ISBN: 0316756210
Ages 8-12
224 pages
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Emily is pretty sure her life couldn't be any more complicated. Her different friends can't get along with one another, her mom keeps baking desserts with nuts, and her best friend Sandra is worryingly secretive. When Emily receives an unexpected birthday gift, a pack of note cards labeled "Flashcards of My Life," she uses them for journaling inspiration to try to untangle her increasingly knotted life.
 FRAMED: Nancy Drew (All New) Girl Detective #15
Carolyn Keene
Aladdin Paperbacks
ISBN: 068987863X
Ages 8-12
160 pages
• Nancy Drew Series
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A prince from a relatively minor royal family has come to River Heights to deliver a painting to Mrs. Mahoney, a friend of the royal family. Everyone is excited about the royal visit --- that is, until the prince is arrested by federal authorities and thrown in jail. His family thinks he stole the painting! Nancy and her dad have reason to believe that the prince is innocent. But can they prove that to everyone else?
 THE FRUIT BOWL PROJECT
Sarah Durkee
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385732899
Ages 10-13
160 pages
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The kids in 8th Grade Writer's Workshop are amazed when their teacher announces that she has invited rock superstar Nick Thompson to their class to talk about writing. Known for his music as well as his lyrics, Nick tells the students his secret: A song is just a bowl of fruit --- one must figure out how to paint it. Words are to a writer what paint is to a painter. How many ways can one arrange the fruit? An infinite number. There's style, voice, genre, and much more to consider. Nick gives the kids two weeks to complete an assignment --- each student must tell an interesting story, reflecting his or her style --- using seven seemingly ordinary elements.
 JOHNNY AND THE DEAD: The Johnny Maxwell Trilogy, Book 2
Terry Pratchett
HarperCollins
ISBN: 006054189X
Ages 8-up
224 pages
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Twelve-year-old Johnny Maxwell returns with a new mission: to save the local cemetery from developers who want to pave the graves and put up an office building. He didn't mean to take on United Amalgamated Consolidated Holdings and the City Council, but the cemetery's residents insisted. Johnny is the only one who can hear the ghosts --- and if he doesn't speak up for them, who will?
 UGLY
Donna Jo Napoli
Hyperion Children's Books
ISBN: 0786837535
Ages 7-10
192 pages
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Ugly just isn't like the other ducklings --- his neck is too long, he stays underwater for "too many" seconds, and he keeps climbing onto Mother's back whenever he's afraid. So when all the ducks of Dove Lake turn against him, Ugly's mother has no choice but to protect her family and leave her son behind.
Armed only with his natural curiosity and a few good pieces of advice, the ugly duckling must find his way alone. Luckily, the friendship of a few wonderful characters makes his journey a lot easier. But what is it that Ugly is searching for?
 ULYSSES MOORE #1: THE DOOR TO TIME
Beth Dunfey
Scholastic
ISBN: 0439774381
Ages 9-12
240 pages
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Eleven-year-old twins Jason and Julia have just moved from London to an old mansion on the English coast. Their new home is filled with twisting tunnels and strange artifacts from around the world, and they can't wait to discover all its secrets. Before long, Jason, Julia, and their friend Rick stumble upon a mysterious-looking door hidden behind an old wardrobe. But none of the keys in the house will open it. What lies behind the door? And why has someone tried to conceal it?
Picture Books
 FANCY NANCY
Jane O'Connor
illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060542098
Ages 4-7
32 pages
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Meet Nancy, who believes that more is ALWAYS better when it comes to being fancy. From the top of her tiara down to her sparkly studded shoes, Nancy is determined to teach her family a thing or two about being fancy. How she transforms her parents and little sister for one enchanted evening makes for a story that is funny and warm -- with or without the frills.
 POMPEII: LOST & FOUND
Mary Pope Osborne
Knopf
ISBN: 0375828893-
Ages 6-10
40 pages
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POMPEII: LOST & FOUND presents the dramatic story of Mount Vesuvuis's catastrophic eruption in the year 79 A.D. In addition to the destruction of Pompeii and the rediscovery of the ruins nearly 1,700 years later, the book shows what daily life was like in this prosperous Roman town at the time of the explosion.
 THE SIX FOOLS
collected by Zora Neale Hurston, adapted by Joyce Carol Thomas
illustrated by Ann Tanksley
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060006463
Ages 6-10
40 pages
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Who's the biggest fool? Is it the girl who floods her basement with cider, the man who jumps into his pants, the farmer who feeds his cow on the roof, or the woman who tries to fill her wheelbarrow with sunshine? Based on a story collected by Zora Neale Hurston during her travels in the Gulf States in the 1930s, this outrageously funny tale is about a dashing young man who finds plenty of foolish folks and true love.
--- Compiled and written by Tom Donadio
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