Scholastic Book Fairs Podcast

As the youngest marcher in the 1965 voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, Lynda Blackmon Lowery proved that young adults can be heroes. Jailed eleven times before her fifteenth birthday, Lowery fought alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. for the rights of African-Americans. In this memoir, she shows today's young readers what it means to fight nonviolently (even when the police are using violence, as in the Bloody Sunday protest) and how it felt to be part of changing American history.

Serafina finds herself caught between two worlds: she's too wild for Biltmore Estate's beautifully dressed ladies and formal customs but too human to fully join her forest kin. Late one night, she encounters a strange and terrifying figure, and then she's attacked by the vicious wolfhounds under his control. Even worse, she's convinced that the stranger is not alone, that he has sent his accomplice into Biltmore in disguise. A mysterious series of attacks test Serafina's role as Biltmore's protector, culminating in a tragedy that tears Serafina's best friend, Braeden Vanderbilt, from her side. Heartbroken, she flees deep in the forest, where she comes face-to-face with the evil infecting Biltmore and discovers its reach is far greater than she'd ever imagined. All the humans and animals of the Blue Ridge Mountains are in terrible danger. For Serafina to defeat this new evil before it engulfs her beloved home, she must search deep inside herself and embrace the destiny that has always awaited her.

Keena Ford is so excited to go on a field trip to the United States Capitol with her second-grade class! At school, she is running for a spot on the student council, and on the field trip she's going to meet a real live U.S. representative. The only trouble is, mean Tiffany Harris keeps teasing Keena and taking the best place in line. Keena doesn't mean to get into trouble, but trouble seems to find her anyway!

In his Scholastic debut, picture book and creativity guru Peter Reynolds brings us a universally poignant celebration of the colorful spectrum of what it means to dream and the many ways to find happy! While the world tells us to sit still, to follow the rules, and to color inside the lines, HAPPY DREAMER celebrates all those moments in between when the mind and spirit soar and we are free to become our own true dreamer maximus! In Peter's signature voice and style, this empowering picture book reminds children of how much their dreams matter and that while life will have ups and downs, readers should stay true to who they are, tap into their most creative inner selves, and never ever forget to dream big!

Step inside the wild and colorful jungle with this striking and richly illustrated book that introduces the food chain concept through simple, poetic language. Learn how the circle of life allows the jungle ecosystem to flourish and see how many animals you can spot hiding in the leaves along the way.

Julia is very short for her age, but by the end of the summer run of THE WIZARD OF OZ, she’ll realize how big she is inside, where it counts. She hasn’t thought of herself as a performer, but when the director casts her as a Munchkin, she begins to see herself in a new way. As Julia becomes friendly with Olive, one of the adults with dwarfism who has joined the crew, and Mrs. Chang, her artistic neighbor, Julia’s sense of self grows. Soon, she doesn’t want to fade into the background because her director has big plans for her!

La Paz is a happy, but noisy village. A little peace and quiet would make it just right. So the villagers elect the bossy Don Pepe as their mayor. Before long, singing of any kind is outlawed. Even the teakettle is afraid to whistle! But there is one noisy rooster who doesn't give two mangos about this mayor's silly rules. Instead, he does what roosters were born to do. He sings: "Kee-kee-ree-KEE!" Carmen Deedy's masterfully crafted allegory and Eugene Yelchin's bright, whimsical mixed-media paintings celebrate the spirit of freedom -- and the courage of those who are born to sing at any cost.

Harlem is home to all kinds of kids. Jin sees life passing her by from the window of her family's bodega. Alex wants to help the needy one shelter at a time but can't tell anyone who she really is. Elvin's living on Harlem's cold, lonely streets, surviving on his own after his grandfather was mysteriously attacked. When these three strangers join forces to find out what happened to Elvin's grandfather, their digging leads them to an enigmatic artist whose missing masterpieces are worth a fortune! But if they don't find the paintings soon, nothing in their neighborhood will ever be the same.

Raymie Clarke has come to realize that everything depends on her. And she has a plan. If Raymie can win the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition, then her father will see her picture in the paper and come home. To win, not only does Raymie have to do good deeds and learn how to twirl a baton; she also has to contend with Louisiana Elefante, who has a show-business background, and stubborn Beverly Tapinski, who’s determined to sabotage the contest. But as the competition approaches, the three girls form an unlikely friendship and challenge themselves to come to the rescue in unexpected ways.

Nadia lives in the city of Canaan, where life is safe and structured, hemmed in by white stone walls and no memory of what came before. But every twelve years the city descends into the bloody chaos of the Forgetting, a day of no remorse, when each person's memories - of parents, children, love, life, and self - are lost… unless they have been written. In Canaan, your book is your truth and your identity, and Nadia knows exactly who hasn't written the truth. Because Nadia is the only person in Canaan who has never forgotten. But when Nadia begins to use her memories to solve the mysteries of Canaan, she discovers truths about herself and Gray, the handsome glassblower, that will change her world forever. As the anarchy of the Forgetting approaches, Nadia and Gray must stop an unseen enemy that threatens both their city and their own existence - before the people can forget the truth. And before Gray can forget her. MATURE THEMES: This book contains language or subject matter that may be considered objectionab

Alfie Bloom knows he's about to have another dreadful summer. Not only will his inventor father be locked away in his workshop, but his best friend is visiting relatives abroad, which means he'll have no one. But then Alfie receives a strange letter inviting him to meet with a lawyer about his "inheritance." Alfie has no idea what they're talking about, but he goes along and makes a shocking discovery - someone has left him a castle! But being the owner of a castle isn't all fun. Hexbridge conceals a centuries-old secret, the heart of a dangerous mystery that threatens to destroy Alfie's new home, his new friends… and everyone unfortunate enough to live within 1000 miles of the castle. Can this ordinary boy figure out a way to deal with this extraordinary challenge? Or will he doom himself and his friends to a grisly fate?

Victor Shmud has been many things: Knuckle Doctor, a Hunter of Ghost Bears, a Tattoo Artist, the Guy at the Restaurant That Puts the Sugar in Those Little Envelopes, a Computer Scientist, an Octopus Wrestler, and a Wedding Planner. In fact, he's been nearly everything. But his newest gig is beautifuller (yes, that's a word; he's also a Licensed Wordmaker). He can make anyone gorgeous with a gob of his beauty treatment (complete with Mustard Molecules). But before he can work his beautifuller magic, he's vaporized (along with his associate, the very fluffy Dumpylumps) by a video game. Will Victor ever get back to Earth?

Forced to live on his own after his mom dies and her boyfriend abandons him, 12-year-old Jayson does whatever it takes to get by. He will do anything to avoid the foster care system and manages to get away with his deception until the day he gets caught stealing a new pair of basketball sneakers. Game over. Within a day, a social worker places him with a family from the other side of town, the Lawtons. New home, new school, new teammates. At first Jayson is combatative, testing the Lawtons' patience at every turn. He wants out, yet the Lawtons refuse to take the bait. But not everyone in Jayson's new life is so ready to trust him. It's on Jayson to believe that he deserves a better life than the one he once had. The ultimate prize if he can? A trip to play in the state finals at Cameron Indoor Stadium - home to the Duke Blue Devils and launching pad to his dream of playing bigtime college ball. Getting there will be a journey that reaches far beyond the basketball court.

Mira has always almost had it all... until it all crashes and burns. She's hurt in a horrible car accident, and the only way the doctors can help is to try experimental prosthetics and chips that are implanted directly into her brain. It's a huge risk, but after months of testing and therapy, Mira is back - and better than ever. But soon her friends turn against her as their parents call her on unfair advantages and get her cut from lacrosse and the scholarships she was depending on for college. And with her enhanced hearing, she knows how many people in her school and her town are calling her a robot, a cyborg. Is that true? Is Mira human, or is she somehow something other? How can she overcome the way people see her and just be herself... especially if she's not really sure who that is anymore?

Five friends make up the unstoppable prank-pulling force at Fountain Point Middle School. But they can't let anyone know they are the pranksters. Enter the pickle-making club. They use the club name as a cover up to plan their next pranks. Can they keep their identities a secret from everyone?

A middle grade take on Anna and the French Kiss will have readers swooning! Most people go to Paris to fall in love, but twelve-year-old Petunia Beanly goes to Paris to hide from it. She knows how much love hurts. She’ll never forget how painful it was to mess up badly with Windel Watson, the only boy who has ever made her heart turn over. Besides, love is really only for the golden people, like Pet’s gorgeous, glamorous, and infuriating older sister, Ava. So when Pet and her family move to Paris for a year, her plan is to stay in her new room with the blankets over her head. But Paris knows how to find its way into the shyest of hearts. And Paris has a surprise in store for both Beanly sisters that will change the way they see themselves, each other, and the swirling adventure that is a first crush.

Sunshine’s Luiseach powers are now fully awakened. For months Sunshine has felt spirits everywhere. She tries to ignore them, but it is impossible. Hoping to get her powers under control she agrees to undergo training with her Luiseach mentor, even though she still hopes to give up her powers someday. She and her mentor clash left and right; he doesn’t understand or approve of her attachment to the humans in her life; and she can’t understand how he could give her up so many years ago. Sunshine’s training is every bit as terrifying and creepy as her test was, and along the way she meets and befriends another young Luiseach, forcing her to confront her feelings for Nolan. Though her mentor is reluctant to answer her questions, she finally learns more about her lineage, as well as the rift that threatens the future of Luiseach and the human race and the role she has in repairing it.

It’s a big day in the big city for Stick Cat and his best friend, Edith. There are treasures to hunt, songs to sing, pigeons to catch, and naps to take. But way up on the twenty-third floor, danger lurks just around the corner. Terrible noises and violent crashes trap a desperate man in the building across the alley. Stick Cat will need to navigate his way across the alley, and around Edith’s peculiar ways, to attempt a rescue.

Petrel is an outcast on the ancient ship, an icebreaker, that has been following the same course for 300 years. In that time, the ship's crew has forgotten its original purpose and broken into three warring tribes. Everyone has a tribe except Petrol. Nicknamed the Nothing Girl, Petrel has been ostracized ever since her parents were thrown overboard as punishment for a terrible crime. But Petrel is a survivor. She lives in the ship's darkest corners, and trusts no one except two large gray rats - that is, until a mysterious boy is discovered barely alive on an iceberg, and brought onto the ship. He claims to have forgotten even his name. The tribes don't trust strangers, so Petrel hides the boy, hoping he will be her friend. What she doesn't know is that the ship guards a secret - a secret the boy has been sent to destroy.

Wren Baker has never felt brave a day in her life. She doesn't even know what she's afraid of, really. Only that if she raises her voice or leaves her mark or ventures too far from home, she'll risk falling flat on her face. But that all changes when Wren's cousin, Silver, walks into her life. Silver is totally fearless. Maybe that's why she's the most popular girl in the sixth grade. She dares Wren to take risks, to live out loud, to finally spread her wings. And when Silver decides to undertake the journey of a lifetime, Wren is forced to make a decision: Is she in or is she out? There's only one way Wren will ever learn to fly. It's time for her to stand at the edge of the unknown...and jump.