Thursday, May 9, 2013

The White Bicycle

The White Bicycle
Beverley Brenna
Fiction B7506

The White Bicycle follows the story of Taylor Jane Simon, a fictional teen with Asperger's syndrome who travels to the south of France for summer work. Striking images of the French countryside frame a journey toward independence in which Taylor draws on memories of her past to make sense of the present. An impossible mother, a confusing job, the worry of potentially acquiring two new siblings, and a meeting with a surprising new mentor are among the themes woven into this coming-of-age story. Readers will find Taylor's search for identity personal as well as universal.

HaRoun and the Sea of Stories

HaRoun and the Sea of Stories
Salman Rushdie
Fiction R895h

Set in an exotic Eastern landscape peopled by magicians and fantastic talking animals, Salman Rushdie's classic children's novel Haroun and the Sea of Stories inhabits the same imaginative space as The Lord of the Rings, The Alchemist, and The Wizard of Oz. In this captivating work of fantasy from the author of Midnight’s Children and The Enchantress of Florence, Haroun sets out on an adventure to restore the poisoned source of the sea of stories. On the way, he encounters many foes, all intent on draining the sea of all its storytelling powers.

Dark Triumph

Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin, #2)
Robin LaFevers
Fiction L131d

Sybella arrives at the convent’s doorstep half mad with grief and despair. Those that serve Death are only too happy to offer her refuge—but at a price. The convent views Sybella, naturally skilled in the arts of both death and seduction, as one of their most dangerous weapons. 

But those assassin's skills are little comfort when the convent returns her to a life that nearly drove her mad. And while Sybella is a weapon of justice wrought by the god of Death himself, He must give her a reason to live. When she discovers an unexpected ally imprisoned in the dungeons, will a daughter of Death find something other than vengeance to live for?

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Ransom Riggs
Fiction R448m

A mysterious island. 

An abandoned orphanage. 

And a strange collection of very curious photographs. 

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience.

As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here - one of whom was his own grandfather - were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow - impossible though it seems - they may still be alive.