Found (Missing Series #1) by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Fans of Margaret Peterson Haddix's Shadow Children series will LOVE her new series, Missing, which begins with Found.

When thirteen-year-olds Jonah and Chip, who are both adopted, learn they were discovered on a plane that appeared out of nowhere, full of babies with no adults on board, they realize that they have uncovered a mystery involving time travel and two opposing forces, each trying to repair the fabric of time. The cliff-hanger ending promises that the next book in the series will pick up with the same action and adventure that permeates this book.

The many fans of Margaret Peterson Haddix will love other books by her, including the previously mentioned Shadow Children series (starting with Among the Hidden), Double Identity, Running Out of Time, and my personal favorite Takeoffs and Landings. Another author you may enjoy is Eoin Colfer. And don't forget the ultimate classic of time travel, The Time Machine by H.G. Wells.

Burning Up by Caroline B. Cooney

Another suspenseful book from prolific author Caroline B. Cooney. 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 Connecticut community. This is a book which caused me to reflect on the issue of prejudice.

Although I enjoyed Burning Up, the series The Face on the Milk Carton sremains my favorite book by Ms. Cooney. Fatality by the same author is on my summer reading list, as it has been recommended by one of my students. If you like Caroline B. Cooney, you'll also enjoy Lois Duncan.

Miracle on 49th Street by Mike Lupica

Here's another sports book from Mike Lupica for all his fans. Josh Cameron, introduced to readers in Travel Team and its sequel Summer Ball, "stars" in this new book. Josh meets a girl, Molly Parker, who claims to be his daughter. There's some basketball court action, but most of the book is about Josh and Molly's attempt to begin a father-daughter relationship.

I heartily recommend Lupica's other books, and I can't wait to read Heat, another of his latest reads. Other great sports books are Night Hoops by Carl Deuker; great sport writers include John Feinstein, John Tunis, and Thomas Dygard.

A House Called Awful End by Philip Ardagh

"When Eddie Dickens was eleven years old, both his parents caught some awful disease that made them turn yellow, go a bit crinkly around the edges, and smell of old hot water bottles." So starts this book, the first in the Eddie Dickens Trilogy. Eddie's Mad Uncle Jack and Even Madder Aunt Maud take Eddie to their home, Awful End. A madcap series of zany adventures begins, with zany characters abounding throughout the pages of this quick read (alright, I didn't actually read this book, I listened to it on audio CD in my car, but that's considered reading, too!).

You'll love this book if you liked A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket (for the offbeat humor, use of vocabulary definitions, and frequently absurd happenings). And if you really liked this book, continue on with the series!

Drita My Homegirl by Jenny Lombard

When ten-year-old Drita and her family, refugees from Kosovo, move to New York City, Drita is teased about not speaking English well, but after Maxie, a popular student, is forced by their teacher to learn about Kosovo as a punishment for teasing Drita, the two girls soon bond.

The theme is a perennial favorite of middle school literature: that despite our differences, we truly are more alike than we may have originally have thought. This book, the first by the author, was a quick and enjoyable read. I particularly liked the format, with Drita and Maxie telling their side of the story in alternating chapers.

If you liked this book, you'll also like Defining 'Normal' by Julie Anne Peters (for the theme) and Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen (for the alternating chapters format).