Scholastic Book Fairs Podcast

What does it mean when the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence is your father and also your slave owner? Beverly, Harriet, Madison, and Eston are Thomas Jefferson's children by one of his slaves, Sally Hemings. While they do get special treatment, better work, better shoes, even violin lessons, they are still slaves, and are never to mention who their father is. The lighter-skinned children have been promised a chance to escape into white society, but what does this mean for the children who look more like their mother? As each child grows up, their questions about slavery and freedom become tougher, calling into question the real meaning of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Wild and dangerous creatures abound in their native habitats. Young children ages 3 and up will discover the different creatures that live in swamp and learn just what makes these beasts the most feared and fearsome alive. Cover is die cut around a unique plastic figure that is glued onto first spread.

M Freeman has been homeschooled her entire life so she has no idea just how unusual her education has been - not until she leaves home to attend the prestigious (and mysterious) Lawless School. Suddenly, it's very clear to M that her tutors have been preparing her all along for a life of crime. She excels at escape tactics. She's a whiz at spotting forgeries. Her years of piano lessons pay off when picking pockets and cracking safes. M's newfound talent for criminal mischief soon brings her to the attention of the Masters, the secretive school's most secretive clique. M's interest in the Masters is personal; joining this international dishonor society is her best chance to learn the truth about her father's life - and his death. But when her first real-world heist goes wrong, M is left wondering: Is there truly honor among thieves? This debut novel is full of twists and turns, reveals and reversals. Spoiling the ending for your friends would be criminal!

After their first harvest in 1621, the Pilgrims at Plymouth shared a three-day feast with their Native American neighbors. Of course, the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag didn’t know it at the time, but they were making history, celebrating what would become a national holiday.

Shalini is new to L.A. Not new like from New York City new—or even Kansas new. New like from India new. And in the US, she has it all wrong: the way she dresses, the way she talks, the way she wears her hair. And then there is the ring, which makes her way different from everyone else—because Shalini has been engaged since she was three to Vikram, back in India. Shalini’s life has been turned upside down. She doesn’t fit in, her mom is depressed, and email is no substitute for being with Vikram. But when she meets Toby at school, Shalini’s heart gets turned upside down, too. Just looking at Toby makes her stomach flutter. She thinks she loves Vikram, but he never made her feel like this. In LOVETORN, Shalini discovers that her heart must ultimately make its own choices, even when it seems as if her destiny has already been chosen.

Whose eyes flash like mirrors in the dark? What animal can see behind itself? Can animals be recognized by their eyes? The lush wildlife photography will keep readers guessing, as each page features a new animal photo. Children can lift the flap to discover the animal's identity and learn a bit more about each one!

Nick is the shortest seventh-grader in the history of the world (he’s pretty sure), doesn’t fit in with any groups or clubs (who needs ’em?), and spends more time inside than outside his locker (they’re roomier than you’d think). Things only get worse when a well-intentioned guidance counselor forces Nick to join the school’s lamest club—along with fellow misfits Molly and Karl—in her quest to cure all three of their “peer allergies.” What starts off as a reluctant band of hopeless oddballs morphs into an effective and empowered team ready to face whatever middle school throws at them, including bullies, awkward romance, zany adults, and a brave new world of surprising friendships.

At the end of World War II, Jack Baker, a landlocked Kansas boy, is suddenly uprooted after his mother's death and placed in a boy's boarding school in Maine. There, Jack encounters Early Auden, the strangest of boys, who reads the number pi as a story and collects clippings about the sightings of a great black bear in the nearby mountains. Newcomer Jack feels lost yet can't help being drawn to Early, who won't believe what everyone accepts to be the truth about the Great Appalachian Bear, Timber Rattlesnakes, and the legendary school hero known as The Fish, who never returned from the war. When the boys find themselves unexpectedly alone at school, they embark on a quest on the Appalachian Trail in search of the great black bear. But what they are searching for is sometimes different from what they find. They will meet truly strange characters, each of whom figures into the pi story Early weaves as they travel, while discovering things they never realized about themselves and others in their lives.

Fully re-illustrated for its anniversary, this classic is funnier and more kid-appealing than ever. In celebration of twenty-five gleeful years in print, Tedd Arnold has created all-new artwork in the zany style he is now known and loved for - the style of his bestselling character, Fly Guy.

In his new young adult book, James Swanson transports readers back to one of the most shocking, saddest, and terrifying events in American history. He deploys his signature "you are there" style--a riveting, ticking clock pace, an unprecedented eye for dramatic details, and impeccable historical accuracy--to tell the story of the JFK assassination as it has never been told before. Illustrated with archival photos, diagrams and extensive back matter, this important book will enthrall readers.

Eleven-year-old Delphine has it together. Even though her mother, Cecile, abandoned her and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, seven years ago. Even though her father and Big Ma send them from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to stay with Cecile for the summer. And even though Delphine has to take care of her sisters, as usual, and learn the truth about the missing pieces of the past. When the girls arrive in Oakland in the summer of 1968, Cecile wants nothing to do with them. She makes them eat Chinese takeout dinners, forbids them to enter her kitchen, and never explains the strange visitors with Afros and black berets who knock on her door. Rather than spend time with them, Cecile sends Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern to a summer camp sponsored by a revolutionary group, the Black Panthers, where the girls get a radical new education.

Jordan Johnston is average. Not short, not tall. Not plump, not slim. Not blond, not brunette. Not gifted, not flunking out. Even her shoe size is average. She’s ordinary for her school, for her town, for even the whole wide world, it seems. But everyone else? They’re remarkable. She sees evidence everywhere—on TV, in magazines, and even in her classroom. Tremendously talented. Stunningly beautiful. Wildly gifted. And some of them are practically her age! Jordan feels doomed to a life of wallowing in the vast, soggy middle. So she makes a goal: By the end of the year, she will discover her great talent. By the end of the year, she will no longer be average. She will find a way to become extraordinary, and everyone will know about it!

Primrose Squarp is back! The wise and curious heroine of the Newbery Honor Book EVERYTHING ON A WAFFLE is facing another adventure-filled year in Coal Harbor. Even though her parents, once lost at sea, are home, there are a whole slew of problems and mysteries to keep Primrose busy. There's Uncle Jack and Kate Bowzer, who may (or may not) be in love. There's Ked, a foster child who becomes Primrose's friend. And there's the new development on the outskirts of town that threatens the Coal Harbor Primrose knows and treasures.

Ethan thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He's being haunted in his dreams again, and whatever is haunting him is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Even worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself, forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn't know why, and most days he's too afraid to ask. Sometimes there isn't just one answer or one choice. Sometimes there's no going back. And this time there won't be a happy ending.

Don't get yourself noticed and you won't get yourself hanged. In the faery slums of Bath, Bartholomew Kettle and his sister Hettie live by these words. Bartholomew and Hettie are changelings - Peculiars - and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them. One day a mysterious lady in a plum-colored dress comes gliding down Old Crow Alley. Bartholomew watches her through his window. When Bartholomew witnesses the lady whisking away the boy who lives across the alley, he forgets the rules and gets himself noticed. First he's noticed by the lady in plum herself, then by something darkly magical and mysterious. Part murder mystery, part gothic fantasy, part steampunk adventure, THE PECULIAR is Stefan Bachmann's riveting, inventive, and unforgettable debut novel.