From the author of Five Things About Ava Andrews comes a new middle grade stand-alone novel with STEM and activism themes, set against the backdrop of beautiful Zion National Park. With the perfect blend of humor and heart, this poignant story about family, grief, and changes beyond our control is perfect for fans of Rebecca Stead, Meg Medina, and Lynne Kelly.When life doesn't make sense, twelve-year-old amateur astronomer Tuesday Beals has always looked to the stars above Zion National Park, where she lives. Her beloved late uncle Ezra taught her astronomy, but now their special stargazing sites are all she has left of him, along with his ashes and a poem that may be a riddle.Then a new housing development next door threatens to ruin the night skies and her favorite astronomy spots. Desperate to focus on something besides the growing uncle-sized chasm between her and her mother, the park archeologist, Tuesday takes up photography with her best...

From Margaret Dilloway, author of Summer of a Thousand Pies, comes a heartfelt and funny story about a shy eleven-year-old who learns to manage her anxiety through improv classes—and discovers her activist voice. Perfect for fans of Sharon Draper, Lynda Mullaly Hunt, and Holly Goldberg Sloan. Eleven-year-old Ava Andrews has a Technicolor interior with a gray shell. On the inside, she bubbles with ideas and plans. On the outside, everyone except her best friend, Zelia, thinks she doesn't talk or, worse, is stuck-up. What nobody knows is that Ava has invisible disabilities: anxiety and a heart condition. Ava hopes middle school will be a fresh start, but when Zelia moves across the country and Ava's Nana Linda pushes her to speak up about social issues, she withdraws further. So Ava is shocked when her writing abilities impress her classmates and they invite her to join their improv group, making up stories onstage. Determined to prove she can...

A heartfelt contemporary middle grade novel about a girl who must try to save her aunt's failing pie shop, perfect for fans of The Thing About Jellyfish, Fish in a Tree—and The Great British Baking Show.When Cady Bennett is sent to live with the aunt she didn't even know she had in the quaint mountain town of Julian, she isn't sure what to expect. Cady isn't used to stability, after growing up homeless in San Diego with her dad. Now she's staying in her mother's old room, exploring the countryside filled with apple orchards and pie shops, making friends, and working in Aunt Shell's own pie shop—and soon, Cady starts to feel like she belongs.Then she finds out that Aunt Shell's shop is failing. Saving the business and protecting the first place she's ever really felt safe will take everything she's learned and the help of all her new friends. But are there some things even the perfect pie just can't fix?Summer of a...

In this epic historical saga reminiscent of Game of Thrones meets Memoirs of a Geisha, two very different women find their fates intertwined. At the dawn of the shogun era, in 12th century Japan, Tomoe is strong but obedient, a beautiful onnabugeisha (woman who studies the art of war), the concubine and army captain to the reckless orphan Yoshinaka, whose vow to avenge his father's death and oust his cousin from power takes over their lives. Yamabuki is the sheltered, shy noble sold off to become rough Yoshinaka's legal wife, sent to live in the remote mountains of Japan, where her scornful lady-in-waiting is none other than the warrior woman Tomoe. As the epic Gempei War begins and the women prepare for battles both literal and of the heart, losing means death, but victory might mean losing everything.

Xander Miyamoto should be feeling great. It's the beginning of summer vacation, his mother has returned from a long absence, and he has learned that he is a warrior with special powers. Xander never would have guessed that the old Japanese folktale about Momotaro, the hero who sprang from a peach pit, was real, much less part of his own heritage. But instead of reveling in his recent victory against the oni, monsters bent on creating chaos, Xander is feeling resentful. What took his mother so long to come back? Why does his father insist on ruining the summer with study and training? And why is Xander plagued by nightmares every night? Maybe this whole Momotaro thing is overrated. Xander's grandmother gives him a special baku charm to use to chase his nightmares away. He just has to be careful not to rely on it too much. If he does, the baku will not only take his dreams, but those of everyone in the house, forever. Without dreams, there is no hope, no motivation, no imagination,...

Xander Miyamoto would rather do almost anything than listen to his sixth grade teacher, Mr. Stedman, drone on about weather disasters happening around the globe. If Xander could do stuff he's good at instead, like draw comics and create computer programs, and if Lovey would stop harassing him for being half Asian, he might not be counting the minutes until the dismissal bell. When spring break begins at last, Xander plans to spend it playing computer games with his best friend, Peyton. Xander's father briefly distracts him with a comic book about some samurai warrior that pops out of a peach pit. Xander tosses it aside, but Peyton finds it more interesting. Little does either boy know that the comic is a warning. They are about to be thrust into the biggest adventure of their lives—a journey wilder than any Xander has ever imagined, full of weird monsters even worse than Lovey. To win at this deadly serious game they will have to rely on their wits, courage, faith, and especially,...

Winner of the ALA Reading List Award Difficult and obstinate. Thriving under a set of specific and limited conditions. That pretty much describes me. Maybe that's why I like these roses so much. Roses are Galilee Garner's passion. An amateur breeder, she painstakingly cross-pollinates her plants to coax out new, better traits, striving to create a perfect strain of her favorite flower, the Hulthemia. Her dream is to win a major rose competition and one day have her version of the bloom sold in the commercial market. Gal carefully calibrates the rest of her time to manage the kidney failure she's had since childhood, going to dialysis every other night, and teaching high school biology, where she is known for her exacting standards. The routine leaves little room for relationships, and Gal prefers it that way. Her roses never disappoint her the way people have. Then one afternoon, Riley, the teenaged daughter of Gal's estranged...

The critically acclaimed, award-winning author of How to Be an American Housewife returns with a poignant story of estranged sisters reunited when a request from their ailing mother reveals a long-buried family secret.Rachel and Drew Snow are sisters. Though they were confidants and cohorts as little girls, their lives have followed completely different paths. In fact, as adults they appear to occupy different planets. Rachel hasn't returned to her childhood home since being kicked out by her strict father after an act of careless teenage rebellion. Despite the estrangement from her parents, Rachel married a good man and is a mother to two strong-minded teens—she has a full, authentic life. Drew, younger by four years, followed her passion for music and works a variety of side jobs to supplement gigs and recording sessions. She's now at an impasse, longing for the stability that has always eluded her. Both sisters recall how close they were,...