HFL Children's Room

HFL Children's Room
Holderness Free Library Children's Room

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

New Audio Books!


Below are some new and notable audiobooks that have been added to the Children and YA collection. Great for car rides and reluctant readers! 




Rife with marvelously rich vocabulary reminiscent of the early superhero era (e.g., “Holy unanticipated occurrences!”) and amusing glimpses at the world from the point of view of Ulysses the super squirrel, this book will appeal to a broad audience of sophisticated readers. There are plenty of action sequences, but the novel primarily dwells in the realm of sensitive, hopeful, and quietly philosophical literature.
—School Library Journal






From the New York Times bestselling author of The Night Gardener, Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes is the utterly beguiling tale of a ten-year-old blind orphan who has been schooled in a life of thievery. One fateful afternoon, he steals a box from a mysterious traveling haberdasher—a box that contains three pairs of magical eyes. When he tries the first pair, he is instantly transported to a hidden island where he is presented with a special quest: to travel to the dangerous Vanished Kingdom and rescue a people in need. Along with his loyal sidekick—a knight who has been turned into an unfortunate combination of horse and cat—and the magic eyes, he embarks on an unforgettable, swashbuckling adventure to discover his true destiny. -Amazon 



This is the story of the residual effects of war, the harmfulness of bullying, and several different types of prejudices. Annabelle makes an admirable character, as she’s smart, honest and caring, but also flawed and therefore humanized. The plot, in which I had initial trepidations due to the subject matter, turned out to be a much different tale than I’d realized and the protagonist and her family a lovely set of personalities. This book will appeal to readers young and old looking for a mid-20th century setting.—Historical Novels Review





So many things I love about this book: Cursed jewels, a dangerous prophecy, a crash course in the history of thievery, acrobatics and grift . . . This is LOOT you can take to the bank. It's the perfect summer read for kids. -Rick Riordan






In the valley of Fruitless mountain, a young girl named Minli lives in a ramshackle hut with her parents. In the evenings, her father regales her with old folktales of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man on the Moon, who knows the answers to all of life's questions. Inspired by these stories, Minli sets off on an extraordinary journey to find the Old Man on the Moon to ask him how she can change her family's fortune. She encounters an assorted cast of characters and magical creatures along the way, including a dragon who accompanies her on her quest for the ultimate answer. -Amazon 




Since their mother's death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane. One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives. Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them--Set?has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe -- a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family, and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs. -Amazon



Feisty Marcus O'Mara isn't afraid to do what's right. He takes a stand against his bullying teacher and earns himself several days of detention. While in detention, Marcus spies a ghostly man clad in pajamas and, more disturbingly, a raging bull trashing the school's trophy cases. Unfortunately, his principal cannot see the bull, nor is there any evidence of the damage that Marcus witnessed. Instead, he earns himself more detentions and the wrath of his adoptive mother, who really seems to hate him lately. After a second sighting of the pajama-clad ghost and being told to "surrender the key," Marcus intends to solve this mystery. He is a self-described outsider with just two good friends, Lu, who is into roller derby, and Theo, who is "straight-A smart." Once Marcus gets his hands on the key, he discovers it leads to a mysterious library curated by an odd, old librarian, filled with unfinished stories of the dead. The boy is tasked with finishing the story of a man in pajamas who happens to have a connection to his birth parents. Middle grade readers eager for horror will find many scary thrills in this cinematic page-turner with a diverse cast of characters. MacHale knows how to ratchet up the suspense as the likable narrator and his best friends pool their talents in an effort to fight an ancient enemy. VERDICT This spine-tingling series starter is sure to attract a quick following of fans eager for the next installment.—Brenda Kahn, School Library Journal 



Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now. Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read. -Amazon 
  


Mason Buttle is the biggest, sweatiest kid in his grade, and everyone knows he can barely read or write. Mason’s learning disabilities are compounded by grief. Fifteen months ago, Mason’s best friend, Benny Kilmartin, turned up dead in the Buttle family’s orchard. An investigation drags on, and Mason, honest as the day is long, can’t understand why Lieutenant Baird won’t believe the story Mason has told about that day. Both Mason and his new friend, tiny Calvin Chumsky, are relentlessly bullied by the other boys in their neighborhood, so they create an underground haven for themselves. When Calvin goes missing, Mason finds himself in trouble again. He’s desperate to figure out what happened to Calvin and, eventually, Benny. But will anyone believe him? -Amazon


Fantasy lovers are in for a treat with this smartly paced, enthralling adventure. The heart and courage Byx and her companions must find as they stand up against unimaginable odds will inspire and delight. A sweeping fantasy epic that will have readers clamoring for a follow-up. -School Library Journal




 Eli Frieden lives in the most perfect town in the world: Serenity, New Mexico. In this idyllic place, every lawn is perfectly manicured, and everyone has a pool and a tree house. Honesty and integrity are valued above all else. The 30 kids who live there never lie--they know it's a short leap from that to the awful problems of other, less fortunate places. Eli has never left Serenity. Why would he ever want to? Then one day he bikes to the edge of the city limits, and something so crazy and unexpected happens, it changes everything. Eli convinces his friends to help him investigate further, and soon it becomes clear that nothing is as it seems in Serenity. The clues mount to reveal a shocking discovery, connecting their ideal, crime-free community to some of the greatest criminal masterminds ever known. The kids realize they can trust no one--least of all their own parents.... -Amazon



Vietnam-born author Thanhha Lai bursts onto the literary scene with Inside Out & Back Again-her National Book Award-winning debut. Written in rich, free-verse poems, this moving tale follows a young Vietnamese girl as she leaves her war-torn homeland for America in 1975. With Saigon about to fall to the communists, 10-year-old Hà, her mother, and brothers are forced to flee their beloved city and head to the United States. But living in a new country isn't easy for Hà, and she finds adapting to its strange customs ever challenging. - Amazon 

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