Oklahoma Library
Association’s
Smorgasbord*
For the
Sequoyah Young Adult Book
Award
2007 Masterlist
*a diversified grouping of
helpful materials for promoting the 2007 masterlist, including annotations,
book talks and other information about the books and authors.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SEQUOYAH YOUNG ADULT BOOK
AWARD
2007 MASTERLIST
AUTHOR TITLE PAGE
Allende, Isabel Kingdom
of the Golden Dragon 3
Alvarez, Julia Finding
Miracles 5
Bennett, Cherie A Heart Divided 8
Choldenko, Gennifer Al
Capone Does My Shirts 10
Cummings, Priscilla Red
Kayak 13
Fusco, Kimberly Newton Tending
To Grace 15
Hobbs, Will Leaving
Protection 17
McDonald, Joyce Devil
On My Heels 19
McMullan, Margaret How
I Found the Strong: A Civil War Story 21
Petersen, P. J. Rob&Sara.Com 24
Schmidt, Gary D. Lizzie
Bright and the Buckminster Boy 26
Shusterman, Neal The
Schwa Was Here 28
Thurlo, Aimee The
Spirit Line 30
Torrey, Michele Voyage
of Ice 33
Westerfeld, Scott The
Secret Hour 35
KINGDOM OF THE GOLDEN DRAGON
ISABEL ALLENDE
Allende, Isabel. Kingdom of the Golden Dragon. Translated
by Margaret Sayers Peden.
Grades 7-12.
Annotation
When
Alex Cold and his friend Nadia travel to the
Booktalk
While
meditating together in their mountain hermitage, Dil Bahadur, the
eighteen-year-old prince of the Kingdom of the Golden Dragon, and his mentor,
Tensing, a Buddhist Monk, have the same vision of a distressed white eagle
circling above them. They had been taught that compassion is the path signaled
by Buddha, so wordlessly they rise, throw yak skins over their wool tunics, and
put on the leather boots they wear only on long walks in the harsh winter.
Picking up their staffs and an oil lantern, they pack packets of yak butter and
flour to make tsampa, and set out in
the direction the great white bird had taken.
In
a crevice in the snow, Nadia Santos surrenders to death. Cold, hunger, or
thirst no longer torments her. She floats in a waking sleep, dreaming of the eagle.
Her spirit has already liberated itself from fear as she lets go of the bonds holding
her to the world and gently drifts upward, without pain.
Near
Teenager
Alexander Cold is once again united with his famous grandmother, Kate Cold, as
she goes on assignment for International
Geographic to the legendary Kingdom of the Golden Dragon, a small remote
country near
Who
is Tex Armadillo working for and why is he working with the Blue Warriors of
the Scorpion Sect, a band of bandits who traffic in slaves and stolen property?
Who is the Collector and who is his agent The Specialist? Who are the Yeti and
why are they dying in their secret valley? Join Alex, Nadia and Kate as they
discover if it is their karma to solve a mystery and make many friends in the
Kingdom of the Golden Dragon.
Reviews
Booklist
Horn Book Guide
School Library Journal
Voice of Youth Advocates
Author Website
http://www.isabelallende.com
http://www.isabel-allende.com (en Espanol)
Other Books by the Author
City of the Beasts.
Fifteen-year-old Alexander Cold takes the trip of a lifetime
joining his fearless grandmother, a magazine reporter for International Geographic, on an expedition to the dangerous, remote
world of the Amazon to document the legendary Yeti of the Amazon known as the
Beast.
When Alexander Cold and his friend Nadia Santos accompany his
globe-trotting grandmother, Kate Alexander, to
Awards or Honors
Isabelle Allende has received
numerous awards and honors for her adult fiction.
Her young adult
books have been translated to more than 27 languages.
She was appointed
as Ambassador to the Hans Christian Andersen Bicentenary, Copenhagen 2004.
Latino Literacy
Now, USA 2004 Best Young Adult Fiction for El Reino
FINDING MIRACLES
JULIA ALVAREZ
Alvarez, Julia. Finding
Miracles.
Grades 6-9.
Annotation
On his first day at an
American high school, Pablo is instantly drawn to Milly’s eyes, a window to her
past.
Booktalk
A Adoption. Adopted.
American. Allergy. Allergies.
B Birth
country. Birth date. Bolivars.
Box. Box of secrets.
C Culture.
D Democracy. Disowned?
E Eyes. Esperanza.
Espanol.
F Family. Fifteen.
G Grandmother. Gracias.
H Happy. Hola.
Hablas espanol?
I Itch. Itching.
Immigrant. Immigration.
J Joy.
K Kaufman. Kate.
L
M Milagros. Miracles.
Milly.
N Nate. Nada, nada.
O Orphanage. Ointment.
P Popular. Popularity.
Pablo. Past. Poverty.
Parents. Peace Corps. Pablito.
Q Quince. Que!??
R Refugee. Revolutionaries. Red rash.
Ralston High.
S Shadow
culture. Spanish. Senor.
Senorita. Scratch. Scratch.
Scratching.
T The
box. Tyranny.
U
V
W Wedding. Wish.
X X-ray.
Y Yankee. (Yanqui)
Yerbabuena (greenish ointment)
Z Zancudo
(mosquito)
Reviews
Booklist
Kirkus Review
School Library Journal
Author website
http://www.alvarezjulia.com/
http://www.JuliaAlvarez.com
Related Books on Topic: Popularity
Cooney,
Caroline B. Burning Up: A Novel.
When
a girl she had met at an inner-city church is murdered, fifteen-year-old Macey
channels her grief into a school project that leads her to uncover prejudice
she had not imagined in her grandparents and their wealthy
Mazer, Harry.
A
Boy No More.
Readers. 2004.
After
his father is killed in the attack on
Oates,
Joyce Carol. Big Mouth & Ugly Girl.
When
sixteen-year-old Matt is falsely accused of threatening to blow up his high
school his friends turn against him, and an unlikely classmate comes to his
aid.
Taylor,
Mildred D. The Land.
The
son of a part-Indian, part-African slave mother and a white plantation owner
father finds himself caught between the two worlds of his parents as he pursues
a dream of owning land in the aftermath of the Civil War.
Books of Interest to Hispanic Students
Alvarez,
Julia. Before We Were Free.
In
the early 1960’s, in the Dominican Republic, twelve-year-old Anita learns her
family is involved in the underground movement to end the bloody rule of the
dictator, General Trujillo.
Osa,
Nancy.
Violet
Paz, a
Soto,
Jovanovich.
1990.
Eleven
short stories focusing on the everyday adventures of Hispanic young people
growing up in
Soto,
Putnam. 2002.
A
collection of poems about best friends facing the challenges of sports tryouts,
first dances, and more.
Soto,
Ten
stories portray some of the struggles and hopes of young Mexican Americans.
Soto,
Fourteen-year-old
Lincoln Mendoza, an aspiring basketball player, must come to terms with his
divided loyalties when he moves from the Hispanic inner city to a white
suburban neighborhood.
Annotation
When Kate moves from New York City to a small town
near Nashville, Tennessee, she sees firsthand what she has always heard about
the “Yankees and Confederates,” and what it means to fight for something in
which she believes.
Book talk
Kate
knows she has very liberal-minded parents, but when they make the decision to
move from their home in
Poor
Kate. The move to
Kate
just knows things are not going to be good in this new town. Then she meets Jackson Redford, III.
Reviews
Booklist
Horn Book
Kirkus Review
Voice of Youth Advocates
Author Website
www.cheriebennett.com
Related Websites on Topic
FOTC Flags of the Confederacy
www.confederateflags.org
Study the numerous flags of
the Confederate States of
Race, Racism and the Law
http://academic.udayton.edu/race
This site examines issues of
race and the role of the law.
The Dixieland Ring
www.geocites.com/BourbonStreet/2757
Come enjoy a tour of the
history of the Confederate South.
Other Works by the Author
Anne Frank and Me.
After suffering a concussion while on a class trip
to a Holocaust exhibit, Nicole finds herself living the life of a Jewish
teenager in
Life in the
Sixteen-year-old Lara, winner of beauty pageants and
the Homecoming Queen, is distressed and bewildered when she starts gaining
weight and becomes a fat girl.
Searching for David’s
Heart.
Darcy and her brother, David, are soul mates until
David gets a girlfriend, and starts to treat Darcy like she's a pest.
AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS
GENNIFER CHOLDENKO
Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons. 2004. Grades 5-8.
Annotation
When
Moose Flanagan’s dad takes a job at the
Booktalk
“We
have rules here,” said the Warden.
“Rule
Number One: There’s no contact with the convicts. You can never trust a con.
Nobody came here for singing too loud in church. They are conniving men with no
sense of right and wrong.”
“Rule
Number Two: Do not enter an area that is fenced off.”
“Rule
Number Three: No visitors unless you’ve made your request in writing one week
prior to visiting day.”
“Rule
Number Four: Do not speak to any outsiders about what goes on here. Don’t go
shooting your mouth off about Al Capone. That brings hordes of reporters
crawling out of the woodwork.”
“Rule
Number Five: You must walk through the metal detector upon entering and leaving
the island. No dogs, cats or pets of any kind. No play guns, ropes or anything
that can be used as a weapon. “
“That’s
it,” said the Warden. “Welcome to
Twelve-year-old
Moose Flanagan’s life takes a turn for the worse when his dad accepts a job at
the
The
employees’ children must ride the ferry to the mainland for school and back
each day. For Moose, however, life couldn’t have gotten worse. First, there is
his autistic older sister, Natalie. Her prize possession is a box of buttons
and she screams if she can’t have them. But her screaming can be set off by all
sorts of other things, too, and at the most inconvenient times and places.
Naturally Moose’s mom expects him to watch Natalie and keep her out of trouble,
which keeps him from playing baseball with the other kids.
Then
there is Piper, the Warden’s mischievous daughter, who somehow gets Moose
involved in her wild schemes despite his best efforts to follow the rules. Her
latest plan is a laundry service to make money from her classmates. “Get your
clothes laundered by Al Capone and other world-famous public enemies…cost only
5 cents.” Somehow Moose has to stay out of trouble, avoid making Piper mad and
keep the Warden from noticing Natalie’s strange behavior, all so his father can
continue to keep his job. Moose might even have to break some rules along the
way!
Reviews
Booklist
Horn Book
Publishers Weekly
School Library Journal
Voice of Youth Advocates
Author Website
http://www.choldenko.com/
Other Books by the Author
Notes from a Liar and Her
Dog.
Antonia
MacPherson, “Ant” believes lying is a way of life. If it were not for her best
friend, Harrison, and her dog Pistachio, she would be miserable because no
matter what she does her mother thinks she’s wrong.
Moonstruck: The True Story of the Cow
Who Jumped Over the Moon.
Hyperion. 1997.
Once
upon a time only horses jumped over the moon, until one day when a curious cow
decides to try this jump herself.
Awards or Honors
American Library Association
Notable Best Books, 2005
Best
Book for Young Adults
Best
Children’s Books of the Year –
Book Sense Pick of the List, 2004
Borders Original Voice
California Library Association Beatty Award
Capital
Choices Noteworthy Books for Children
CBC-NCSS
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People, 2005
Children’s
Bookseller’s Award
Children’s Book of the Month Selection
Children’s
Choice Nominee for
CUFFIE'S
Best Title of the Year
Judy
Lopez Honor Award
Junior
Library Guild Selection
Kirkus
Reviews
Best Book of the Year
Newbery
Honor Medal
New York Library Best 100 Books for
New York Library’s Books for the Teen
Age, 2005
New
York Times
Bestseller List
Parents'
Choice Silver Medal
Publisher's
Weekly Best
Book of the Year
San
Francisco Chronicle’s Top Ten Children's Books, 2004
Scholastic
Book Club (
School
Library Journal Best Book of the Year
Short-listed
for the Carnegie Medal (
Special Needs Award (
VOYA's Top Shelf Fiction for Middle School Readers, 2004
RED KAYAK
PRISCILLA CUMMINGS
Cummings, Priscilla.
Red Kayak.
Grades 7+.
Annotation
After discovering the secret
behind a tragic river accident, thirteen-year-old Brady struggles to choose
between loyalty to his friends and the truth.
Booktalk
Imagine
it is a cold, cloudy morning. As usual,
you are on your way to school with your best friends, J.T. and Digger. You see your new neighbor float by in a red
kayak. You want to yell out that
conditions are dangerous today; that Mr. DiAngelo shouldn’t be on the river,
but you don’t. You continue to school,
ace an algebra quiz, and go to Spanish class. But the red kayak continues to
bother you. Suddenly you are called out
of school to help with an accident and to help search the river for your
neighbors. Not Mr. DiAngelo, as you
expected, but Mrs. DiAngelo and her three-year-old son, Ben. You board your boat with your dog,
Tilly. You search the creeks and coves
for any sign of the red kayak, when suddenly Tilly barks and points to a cove,
where you spot a bit of yellow lifejacket.
When you draw closer, you see little Ben. You yank him from the water. You give him CPR. Somehow you steer the boat toward the
ambulance waiting at the dock.
You
are Brady Parker. You are a hero, but
your life will never be the same. For you do not know it yet, but there is more
to the accident than meets the eye. You
will soon discover a terrible secret that threatens your friendships, your
reputation, and your future. Will you
keep the secret of the Red Kayak?
Reviews
Kirkus Review
School Library Journal 09/04
Author Website
http://www.childrensbookguild.org/Cummings.htm
Related Web Sites on Topic
The American Red Cross
http://www.redcross.org/services/youth/izone/quizzes.html
Do
you know how to stay safe around the water? Test your water safety skills by
taking the Red Cross Water Safety Quiz.
Character Counts!
http://www.charactercounts.org/
Ideas,
handouts and free lesson plans based on the six pillars of character:
trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship.
Department of Justice
http://www.usdoj.gov/kidspage/
The
Department of Justice site for kids and includes information on what happens
inside a courtroom.
Other Books by the Author
Saving Grace.
Grace’s
family falls upon hard times during the Depression, forcing her to choose
between adoption by a new family or staying with her own.
What Mr. Mattero Did. New York:
Dutton Children’s Books. 2005.
Melody,
an eighth-grader at
Awards or Honors
The New York Public Library’s Books for the
Teen Age, 2005
TENDING TO GRACE
KIMBERLY NEWTON FUSCO
Fusco, Kimberly Newton. Tending
to Grace. New York: Knopf Books. 2004.
Grades 6-9.
Annotation
When Cornelia's mother runs off with a
boyfriend and leaves her with an eccentric aunt, Cornelia must find the
strength to confront the truth about herself and her mother.
Booktalk
"Turning
to stone is hard work. First you have to
let the anger climb up from deep within you and as it turns over and over and
rises up through your chest, you have to clamp your teeth over it and push it
back down. Then you sort of imagine
yourself getting real heavy, folding over onto yourself, getting thick so
nothing can reach the spot far inside that hasn't turned hard yet. And you know that if you get it right, you're
not so afraid."
Cornelia
does her best to turn to stone. Because
she stutters, Cornelia has trouble in school and has learned to keep her mouth
shut. She spends her time reading and taking care of her flaky mother. But when her mother decides to go to Vegas
with her boyfriend, Cornelia is left with eccentric Aunt Agatha. Though brokenhearted and angry, Cornelia does
her best to care for her aunt and stay out of the way while she waits for her
mother’s return. But Cornelia can't hide forever and soon develops a
relationship with her aunt and a neighbor girl. Will Cornelia’s discovery about
her aunt keep her from returning to her mom?
Will she allow herself to forgive and trust after everything she has
learned? For answers, read Tending to Grace by Kimberly Newton
Fusco.
Reviews
School Library Journal
Horn Book
Voice of Youth Advocates
Author Website
http://www.kimberlynewtonfusco.com/header.htm
Related Books on Topic
Quarles, Heather. A Door
Near Here.
Four siblings struggle to
maintain a semi-normal home life when their single mother’s alcoholism becomes
debilitating.
Matthews, Kenzi. John
Riley’s Daughter.
Living
in a small
Rottman, S.L. Stetson.
Seventeen-year-old
Stetson meets the sister he never knew he had and together they try to make
sense of their past.
Awards or Honors
Best Books for Young Adults,
2005
Books for the Teen Age,
International Reading
Association, Notable Book, Young Adult Fiction, 2005
Top Ten New Voices for Youth,
The American Library Association's Booklist, 2004
LEAVING
PROTECTION
WILL
Hobbs,
Will. Leaving Protection.
Grades
6-10.
Annotation
While fishing for king salmon
on the Storm Petrel, 16-year-old Robbie
Daniels discovers the owner is after something more valuable than salmon.
Booktalk
The Storm
Petrel is a fishing troller owned by Tor Torsen. 16-year-old Robbie Daniels has a new deckhand
license. Regardless of a rocky start, the reclusive Torsen takes a chance on
the green deckhand and hires Robbie for the king salmon run. Robbie makes many mistakes. Is the biggest one finding the metal plaques
hidden on the Petrel? What are they and from where did they
come? When Robbie learns the truth about
the plates, does he know too much? These
are just a few questions for which Robbie must find answers after leaving his
home, Port Protection, and joining Tor Torsen on the Storm Petrel. Go with Robbie
as he learns to catch king salmon, discovers the truth behind the metal plates,
and battles a raging storm in Leaving
Protection by Will Hobbs.
Reviews
Booklist
Bulletin
of the Center for Children's Books
Horn
Book Fall 2004
Kliatt
Library
Media Connection
School
Library Journal
Author's Website
www.willhobbsauthor.com
This website includes a biography of the author,
questions and answers about
Other books by the author
Down the
In
the wake of
Downriver.
Jessie
and the other rebellious teenage members of a wilderness survival school team
abandon their adult leader and try to run the dangerous white water of the
Far North.
After
the destruction of their floatplane, sixteen-year-old Gabe and his friend,
Raymond, struggle to survive a winter in the wilderness of the Northwest
Territories of Canada.
Jason's Gold.
Fifteen-year-old
Jason embarks on a 10,000 mile journey, in 1897, in hopes of striking it rich
after hearing the news that gold has been discovered in
River Thunder.
Despite
some reservations, sixteen-year-old Jessie joins her companions from the previous
year's adventure on the
After
14-year-old Andy slips away from his kayaking group to visit the wilderness
site of his archaeologist father's death, a storm strands him on Admiralty
Island, Alaska, where he manages to survive, encounters unexpected animal and
human inhabitants, and looks for traces of the earliest prehistoric immigrants
to America.
Awards or Honors
100
Best Young Adult Books of he Twentieth Century (Far North and Downriver)
Best
Books for Young Adults by the American Library Association (7 Books)
Edgar
Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Mystery, 1998
Mountains
and Plains Booksellers Award
Western
Writers of