| MAINE STUDENT BOOK AWARD
A Joint Project of:
Maine Library Association
Maine Association of School Libraries
Maine Reading Association
** 2008-2009 Reading List of Maine Student Book Award Nominees **
(copyright 2007 titles)
Publisher, genre or Dewey number, suggested grade levels, and number of pages
are indicated after each title.
For more information or to contact the MSBA Committee, please visit our web site:
www.windham.lib.me.us/msba.htm
Applegate, Katherine. Home of the Brave. Feiwel and Friends. Poetic narrative.
Gr. 5-8. 249p. Good read aloud. Ten-year old Kek, a Sudanese refugee,
witnessed the murder of his father and brother; his mother is missing. In
touching verse, Kek tells the story of his relocation to frozen Minnesota to
live with relatives. Although he misses his family and way of life very much,
Kek finds some comfort in caring for an elderly widow's cow, an animal that
reminds him of home.
Banks, Kate. Lenny's Space. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Realistic fiction. Gr.
4-6. 151p. Good read aloud. At age nine, Lenny is extremely bright but cannot
control himself in school. His interests are not like those of his classmates.
With the help of a sympathetic counselor, Lenny gains a friend who has
leukemia; he also learns that there are times when everyone needs to cry.
Burns, Loree Griffin. Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of
Ocean Motion. Houghton Mifflin. Nonfiction (551.46). Gr. 5-8. 56p.When
sneakers washed up off the coast of the state of Washington, scientist Curt
Ebbesmeyer used them to learn about the movement of trash by ocean currents.
Photographs illustrate and add to the scientific explanation of ocean patterns
as well as the effects of ocean-borne trash.
Compestine, Ying Chang. Revolution is not a Dinner Party: a Novel. Henry Holt.
Historical fiction. Gr. 5-8. 248p. The happy existence of Ling and her family
is threatened when Comrade Li, an officer of the Communist Party, moves into
their apartment. Despite the harsh treatment of the government, Ling manages
to excel at school and survive the repression with wit, hope, and courage.
This is a gripping account of life during China's Cultural Revolution in the
1970's.
Creech, Sharon. The Castle Corona. Joanna Cotler. Fantasy. Gr. 4-6. 320p. Good
read aloud. In this entertaining and richly imagined fairy tale romp, two
young and poor Italian peasant children, Enzio and Pia, find a pouch marked
with the royal seal. The pouch leads them to the castle where the outspoken
Enzio and Pia find new lives with an unconventional, dissatisfied royal family
and its advisors, the royal hermits.
Duble, Kathleen Benner. Bravo Zulu, Samantha! Peachtree. Realistic fiction.
Gr. 4-6. 133p. Good read aloud. Samantha, age twelve, dreads spending a month
of her summer vacation with her short-tempered, stubborn grandfather, a
retired Air Force officer interested only in aviation. When Sam finds out that
her grandfather has secretly been building a plane, she must decide to spill
the beans or convince the Colonel to accept her help.
French, Jackie. Rover. HarperCollins. Historical/adventure fiction. Gr. 6-8.
283p. When Vikings destroy her village and brutally kill her mother, Hekja and
her brave puppy Snarf become slaves to the brave warrior Freydis, daughter of
Eric the Red who founded Greenland. Hekja and Snarf prove their bravery and
courage through many dangerous adventures, eventually gaining their freedom.
Hekja's story has plenty of action and is bursting with historical detail.
Funke, Cornelia. Igraine the Brave. Chicken House/Scholastic. Fantasy. Gr.
4-6. 212p. Good read aloud. Although her parents are magicians, Igraine finds
magic dull as dishwater; instead, she yearns to become a swashbuckling knight.
When Osmund the Greedy attempts to steal her parent's Singing Books of Magic
and her parents are accidentally turned into pigs, Igraine, her
magician-in-training brother, a giant, and a knight work together to save the day.
George, Jessica Day. Dragon Slippers. Bloomsbury. Fantasy. Gr. 5-8. 324p.
Creel, a feisty, orphaned peasant girl, is forced by her aunt to surrender to
a local dragon in the hope that the knight who rescues Creel will want to
marry her. No such luck. Instead, Creel befriends the dragon and receives a
pair of magical slippers that link her to all the dragons of the kingdom and
later enable Creel to help the prince keep the peace.
Graff, Lisa. The Thing about Georgie: a Novel. Laura Geringer. Realistic
fiction. Gr. 4-6. 220p. Good read aloud. Nine-year-old dwarf Georgie has a
good life with caring parents and Andy, a terrific best friend. Georgie's
parents announce that they are expecting a new baby, Georgie and Andy have a
serious falling out, and Georgie is forced to work on a school project with a
girl he can't stand. Georgie finds himself more than a little stressed.
Haig, Matt. Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest. Putnam. Fantasy. Gr. 5-8.
316p. After Samuel and his sister Martha lose their parents in an automobile
accident, the children are sent to live with their aunt in Norway. They are
warned to avoid the attic and the ominous Shadow Forest nearby, but Martha
disobeys and enters the woods only to disappear. Samuel, armed with a book
about the magical Scandinavian creatures like trolls and huldres, sets off to
rescue her.
Hale, Shannon. Book of a Thousand Days. Bloomsbury. Fantasy. Gr. 6-8. 305p.
Just after fifteen-year-old Dashti, a poor shepherd girl from the Mongolian
steppes, pledges her allegiance as maid to Princess Saren, the two girls are
sealed for seven years into a stone tower, because Saren has refused to wed
the evil lord her father has chosen for her. Dashti's optimism, common sense,
and her ability to heal through song help keep her and the lady alive. After
the two escape, Dashti must defeat the horrid lord to save her lady and the
land.
Heuer, Karsten. Being Caribou: Five Months on Foot with a Caribou Herd.
Walker. Nonfiction (599.65). Gr. 4-8. 48p. The migration of a herd of caribou
to the birthing grounds in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is told and
illustrated with breathtaking photos by a wildlife biologist.
Higgins, F. E. The Black Book of Secrets. Feiwel and Friends. Gr. 6-8. 273p.
Raised as a pickpocket by his scurrilous parents, young Ludlow Fitch runs away
to the small village of Pagus Parvus. Having been taught to read and write by
a bookseller, Ludlow gains employment recording people's confessions in the
Black Book of Secrets for Joe Zabbidou, a pawnbroker who pays cash for secrets.
Hill, Kirkpatrick. Do Not Pass Go. Margaret K. McElderry. Realistic fiction.
Gr. 5-8. 220p. Deet, a teenager, lives in Alaska and is embarrassed by his
disorganized and financially struggling parents. His world is turned upside
down when his father is arrested for drug possession and sent to prison. Deet
often goes to the jail to visit, overcoming his shame and emerging more
sensitive and less judgmental of others.
Jonell, Lynne. Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat. Henry Holt. Fantasy. Gr.
4-7. 346p. Good read aloud. Since her parents have inherited millions, Emmy
seems less and less important to them; even her teacher and classmates hardly
acknowledge her existence. After she is bitten by the class rodent, Emmy
starts to hear the rat's smart aleck comments. With his help, Emmy discovers
that her nasty nanny, Miss Barmy, and the sneaky Prof. Vole are plotting to
get rid of Emmy in order to steal her parent's fortune.
Kinney, Jeff. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Greg Heffley's Journal. Amulet. Humorous
fiction. Gr. 4-8. 217p. In short chapters and hilarious, earthy dialog
punctuated with cartoons, sixth-grader Greg records his experiences during a
year of middle school.
La Fevers, Robin L. Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos. Houghton Mifflin.
Mystery. Gr. 5-8. 343p. Theodosia Throckmorton, the daughter of archeologists
who run a London museum of "Legends and Antiquities," has a unique talent for
sensing black magic and curses in the artifacts her parents retrieve from
Egypt. In this rollicking tale, Theodosia uncovers a secret evil society
intent on taking over the world.
Lupica, Mike. Summer Ball. Philomel. Sport fiction. Gr. 5-8. 244p. At summer
basketball camp, Danny, a talented and spunky thirteen-year-old, finds himself
up against an antagonistic coach and must prove that he and his unlikely team
are the winning players he knows they can be.
Mason, Prue. Camel Rider. Charlesbridge. Adventure fiction. Gr. 5-8. 204p.
Adam, an Australian boy living with his family in Abudai in the Middle East
and Wadil, an Arab boy sold into slavery to become a camel rider, unexpectedly
join together after war erupts in the area. The two boys, neither speaking
the same language, rely on one another for food, shelter, and safety as they
embark on a dangerous journey across a desert wilderness to rescue Adam's
beloved dog.
Paulsen, Gary. Lawn Boy. Wendy Lamb. Realistic fiction. Gr. 4-6. 88 p. The
narrator of this slapstick story receives a used riding lawn mower from his
grandmother for his twelfth birthday. One lawn-mowing job turns into two, then
three, then more. Soon the energetic young entrepreneur is making and
investing big money.
Peck, Richard. On the Wings of Heroes. Dial. Historical fiction. Gr. 4-8.
148p. Good read aloud. As World War II begins, life in rural Illinois changes
radically for Davy Bowman, his family, and their close-knit neighborhood.
Davy's older brother is sent overseas and becomes a B-17 pilot. Those at home
support the war effort and anxiously wait for the soldiers and a more normal
life to return.
Pinkwater, Daniel Manus. The Neddiad. Houghton Mifflin. Humorous fiction. Gr.
5-7. 307p. In this often wacky story set in the 1940s, young Neddie
Wentworthstein travels west with his family. On the trip to visit old time
Hollywood, a shaman gives a stone turtle to Neddie, and eventually he must use
its supernatural power to save the world from the return of the ice age.
Resau, Laura. Red Glass. Delacorte. Realistic fiction. Gr. 7-8. 275p.
Fragile, frightened teenager Sophie agrees to accompany Pablo, a traumatized
Mexican orphan her parents rescued, on a trip to his remote Mexican village.
When her two traveling companions, one being her boyfriend, face grave danger
in Guatemala, Sophie draws on her strength, and, traveling alone, goes to
rescue them. Resau gives us a warm, real story with lush descriptions and
believable characters.
Schlitz, Laura Amy. Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval
Village. Candlewick. Reader's theater (812). 85p. Gr. 6-8. Finely wrought
first person monologs and dialogs by the inhabitants of an English manor in
the year 1255 shed light on their lives and concerns.
Scott, Elaine. When is a Planet not a Planet?: the Story of Pluto. Clarion.
Nonfiction (523.48). Gr. 4-6. 43p. Exactly what makes a planet a planet? This
book is a history of astronomy and the offers an explanation as to Pluto's
recent demotion in status. It includes historical facts, photos, a glossary,
an index, and suggested reading.
Scott, Michael Dylan. The Alchemyst. Delacorte. Fantasy. Gr. 5-8. 375p. For
hundreds of years Nick Fleming (a.k.a. Nicholas Flamel) has protected a
valuable book, the Codex, containing the secret to eternal life; in recent
years he has run a small bookstore in San Francisco, but now Flamel has been
found out by the evil Dr. John Dee who wants the Codex to give him eternal
life and to enslave mankind. Fifteen-year-old twins, Josh and Sophie, who
happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, are reluctantly drawn into
the fight between good and evil and fulfill the prophecy of the Codex.
Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A Novel in Words and Pictures.
Scholastic. Fantasy. Gr. 4-8. 533p. Good read aloud. The year is 1931, the
setting is a train station in Paris, and the story is unique. Told in text and
exquisitely detailed double-page illustrations, a mystery unfolds around a
young boy called Hugo, his new friend Isabelle, an automaton, and a magician
turned filmmaker.
Sheth, Kashmira. Keeping Corner. Hyperion. Realistic fiction. Gr. 7-8. 281p.
Set in India during the 1940s, this is a poignant story of a young girl
widowed at age thirteen. The Brahmin custom is for Leela to shave her head,
wear dark clothes, and "keep corner," the practice of not leaving her parent's
home for a year. Mahatma Gandhi's beliefs, an encouraging teacher, and a
supportive older brother help convince Leela's family to allow her to move
toward a future in which she will become more than a widow - a teacher.
Sidman, Joyce. This is Just to Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness. Houghton
Mifflin. Poetry (811). Gr. 4-8. 47p. The students in Mrs. Merz's fictional
sixth-grade class are asked to write poems of apology for actions they have
taken. Using a variety of poetic forms, the students convey an array of
emotions, from expressing their regrets to dead pets and angry siblings to
apologizing for stealing doughnuts from the teacher's lounge. Responses to
the apologies are included and make for thoughtful reading.
Singer, Marilyn. Venom. Darby Creek. Nonfiction (591.6). Gr. 4-8. 96p. Venom
is a solid introduction to all kinds of poisonous and venomous creatures,
including snakes, spiders, salamanders, bees, and more. The book is packed
with colorful photos, fascinating facts, and weird sidebar stories.
Smith, Roland. Peak. Harcourt. Adventure fiction. Gr. 6-8. 246p. 442p. Gifted
climber, Peak Marcello, is arrested for attempting to scale New York's
Woolworth Building and lands in jail. He is bailed out by his famous mountain
climber dad, a man he hardly knows, who gets Peak out of trouble but onto Mt.
Everest where Peak may become the youngest person to reach the top of this
fabled mountain.
St. John, Lauren. The White Giraffe. Dial. Adventure fiction. Gr. 4-6. 180p.
Good read aloud. When eleven-year old Martine's parents perish in a house fire
in England, she is sent to live on a game preserve in Africa with a grouchy
grandmother she's never met. Martine's love for the animals makes her
existence livable, and she discovers she has a mystical gift which helps her
rescue a rare white giraffe.
Stewart, Trenton Lee. The Mysterious Benedict Society. Little, Brown.
Adventure fiction. Gr. 5-8. 485p. After four exceptionally gifted orphans,
Reynie, Kate, Sticky, and Constance, take test after test to be accepted at a
special school run by Mr. Benedict, the spunky, intelligent children become
secret agents whose mission is to foil the plan of an evil genius to brainwash
the world with subliminal messages.
Thompson, Kate. The New Policeman. Greenwillow. Fantasy. Gr. 7-8. 442p. His
mother jokes that she'd like more time, and J.J., her fifteen-year old son, a
fiddle player, sets out on a quest into a fairyland of eternal youth into
which time has been leaking. This rich tale of Irish culture, music, mystery,
and folklore combines with the common concern about the pace and stress of
modern life.
Thomson, Sarah L. Dragon's Egg. Greenwillow. Fantasy. Gr. 4-6. 267p. Good read
aloud. In a lively adventure, Mella, age twelve, is a young but very talented
keeper to common, domestic dragons. Unintentionally, Mella takes on the care
and delivery of a wild dragon's egg to its hidden hatching grounds in the
Dragontooth Mountains. Aided by a young squire, Mella proves that her courage
and spunk can forge a peace among humans and the threatened and threatening
wild dragons. This is an engaging fantasy by a Maine author.
Urban, Linda. A Crooked Kind of Perfect. Harcourt. Realistic fiction. Gr. 4-6.
213p. Although ten-year-old Zoe Elias really wants to be a concert pianist,
her eccentric, agoraphobic dad instead buys her a Perfectone D-60 electric
organ. In spite of losing her best friend, her mother being a workaholic, and
her dad being unable to leave the house, Zoe gamely practices for the upcoming
Perform-O-Rama organ competition. Zoe and her story turn out to be true winners.
Wells, Rosemary. Red Moon at Sharpsburg: a Novel. Viking. Historical fiction.
Gr. 5-8. 236p. India Moody loves learning about plants and healing. When the
Civil War breaks out and her father dies, twelve-year-old India must shoulder
the overwhelming and disheartening responsibilities of a young Southern woman
during this terrible war. Throughout it all, India continues to hope one day
she will study science at Oberlin College.
Woodson, Jacqueline. Feathers. Putnam. Realistic fiction. Gr. 5-8. 118p. The
reaction of Frannie's classmates to the addition of a white boy to their
all-black sixth grade class sets Frannie thinking about friendship, prejudice,
faith, and family in this touching story about hope.
Zimmer, Tracie Vaughn. Reaching for Sun. Bloomsbury Children's. Poetic
narrative. Gr. 5-8. 181p. Images of growing plants intertwine with the
characters in this tender story told in verse. Josie suffers from cerebral
palsy and the stresses of seventh grade. Her grandmother has sold the land
around the family home to developers to pay for Josie's mother to finish
college. When Jordan, a lonely boy who loves science just as Josie does, moves
in to a newly built mansion next door, he and Josie become true friends.
** Maine Student Book Award **
PAST WINNERS LIST
2007-2008 School Year Winner: Rules by Cynthia Lord
Second Place: The Homework Machine by Dan Gutman
Third Place: Heat by Mike Lupica
Fourth Place: The Legend of Thunderfoot by Bill Wallace
2006-2007 School Year Winner: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Second Place: Flush by Carl Hiaasen
Third Place: The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
Fourth Place: Sea Legs by Alex Shearer
2005-2006 School Year Winner: The End of the Beginning (Being the Adventures
of a Small Snail and an even Smaller Ant) by Avi
Second Place: Heartbeat by Sharon Creech
Third Place: Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Fourth Place Tie: Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliet
Shredderman:Secret Identity by Wendelin Van Draanen
2004-2005 School Year Winner: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Second Place: Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
Third Place: Kensuke's Kingdom by Michael Murpurgo
Fourth Place: Leon and the Spitting Image by Allen Kurzweil
2003-2004 School Year Winner: Loser by Jerry Spinelli
Second Place: Double Fudge by Judy Blume
Third Place: The Thief Lord by Coneilia Funke
Fourth Place: Ruby Holler by Sharon Creech
2002-2003 School Year Winner: Love That Dog by Sharon Creech
Second Place: The School Story by Andrew Clements
Third Place: Dial-A-Ghost by Eva Ibbotson
2001-2002 School Year Winner: Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
Second Place: Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos
Third Place: Island of the Aunts by Eva Ibbotson
2000-2001 School Year Winner: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.
K. Rowling
Second Place: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis
Third Place: The Landry News by Andrew Clements
1999-2000 School Year Winner: Holes by Louis Sachar
Second Place: My Life in Dog Years by Gary Paulsen
Third Place: Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos
1998-1999 School Year Winner: Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Second Place: Wringer by Jerry Spinelli
Third Place: Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
1997-1998 School Year Winner: Falling Up by Shel Silverstein
1996-1997 School Year Winner: Math Curse by Jon Scieszka
1995-1996 School Year Winner: Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
1994-1995 School Year Winner: The Giver by Lois Lowry
1993-1994 School Year Winner: The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid
Tales by Jon Scieszka
1992-1993 School Year Winner: Shiloh by Phyllis Naylor
1991-1992 School Year Winner: Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume
1990-1991 School Year Winner: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
American Library Association's
Best Books For Young Adults
** 2008 Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults **
Alexie, Sherman. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. Illus. by
Ellen Forney. Little, Brown, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-316-01368-0; $16.99.
Beah, Ishmael. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. Farrar, Straus &
Giroux/Sarah Crichton, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-374-10523-5; $22.00.
Downham, Jenny. Before I Die. Random House/David Fickling, 2007; ISBN13:
978-0-385-75155-1; $15.99.
Hemphill, Stephanie. Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath.
Random House/Alfred A. Knopf, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-375-83799-9; $15.99.
Jones, Lloyd. Mister Pip. Dell Publishing/Dial Press, 2007; ISBN13:
978-0-385-34106-6; $20.00.
Landy, Derek. Skulduggery Pleasant. HarperCollins, 2007; ISBN13:
978-0-06-123115-5; $17.99.
Peet, Mal. Tamar: A Novel of Espionage, Passion, and Betrayal. Candlewick,
2007; ISBN13: 978-0-7636-3488-9; $17.99.
Polly, Matthew. American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend
of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New China. Penguin Group USA/Gotham Books,
2007; ISBN13: 978-1-59240-262-5; $26.00.
Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A Novel. Illus. by Brain
Selznick. Scholastic, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-439-81378-5; $22.99.
Tan, Shaun. The Arrival. Illus. by Shaun Tan. Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine,
2007; ISBN13: 978-0-439-89529-3; $19.99.
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