Curveball

Curveball: the year I lost my grip by Jordan Sonnenblick

Jordan Sonnenblick has to be one of my favourite authors, he writes with both heart and humor. His books are great read alouds that have real feeling, that we all can relate to (whether we've been in that circumstance or not, some things are just part of the human condition - we have parents, we have siblings, we have friends, we go to school.) Although curveball is written about a slightly older teen, I think middle school students will still enjoy the character of Peter Friedman - pitcher (used to be), photographer (wanna be) his best friend AJ (ace pitcher) and new friend Angelika (wanna be girlfriend).

Here's the summary from the book jacket.

Sometimes, the greatest comebacks take place far away from the ball field.

Meet Peter Friedman, high school freshman. Talented photographer. Former baseball star. When a freakish injury ends his baseball career, Peter has some major things to figure out. Is there life after sports? Why has his grandfather suddenly given him thousands of dollars worth of camera equipment. And is it his imagination, or is the super-hot star of the girls swim team flirting with him, right in front of the amazing new girl in his photography class?

In his new novel Jordan Sonnenblick performs his usual miraculous feat: exploring deep themes of friendship, romance, family and tragedy, while still managing to be hilariously funny.

Here's an interview with Jordan Sonnenblick - I love the part  "what will you do when life throws you a curveball?"

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever

Today is the day, we are hosting a free webcast with author Jeff Kinney author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and today is also the release date for book six Cabin Fever. If you are a fan don't miss out, be ready at 8:00 a.m.
See you there.

The Black

The Black by D.J. MacHale

At the end of The Light, Book One of the Morpheus Road Trilogy, Marshall learned the truth about what happened to his best friend Cooper. Now in Book Two the POV switches and we get to see his side of the mystery. What does his story have to do with Marshall and the journey along The Morpheus Road? It's time to learn more...

Here's D.J. MacHale giving a short description where this all came from.

Kick

Kick by Walter Dean Myers and Ross Workman

Walter Dean Myers is a very established young adult author, he probably gets tons of emails and letters sent to him every year. So what was it that made him want to write a book with one of those letter writers?

Kick is the result of the collaboration between Myers and teenager Ross Workman. Here's the summary:
Kevin Johnson is thirteen years old. and heading for juvie. He's a good kid, a great friend, and a star striker for his Highland, New Jersey, soccer team. They're competing for the State Cup, and Kevin wants to prove he has more than just star-player potential.
Kevin's never been in any serious trouble ... until the night he ends up in jail. Enter Sergeant Brown, a cop assigned to be Kevin's mentor.
If Kevin and Brown can learn to trust each other, they might be able to turn things around before it's too late.
Here's an introduction from the authors.

Gone series

Gone by Michael Grant

In a blink of an eye. Everyone disappears. Gone.

Except for the young. Teens. Middle schoolers. Toddlers. But not one single adult. No teachers, no cops, no doctors, no parents. Just as suddenly there are no phones, no internet, no television, . No way to get help. and no way to figure out what's happened.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents, unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers, that grow stronger by the day.

It's a terrrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: On your birthday you disappear just like everyone else.

This series has a lot of fans, so I thought I'd run a profile on it. So obviously this is book one.

Here's the trailer.

And an interview with the author.

Havoc

Havoc by Chris Wooding

There's no going back. Everyone know the rumors - if you gather the right things and say the right words, you'll be taken to Malice, a world that exists within a terrifying comic book.

Seth managed to escape from Malice, but it meant leaving his best friend Kady, trapped there. And he's not sure whether he should try to take down the Malice comic from his own world or go back with an artifact he thinks can help from within. He is sure that he's desperate to save Kady.

Meanwhile, Kady has her own battles to fight. She's trying to find Havoc, a rebel group of kids who want to fight Tall Jake, Malice's cruel overlord. But she can't help feeling that someone's watching her and that Tall Jake knows what her plans are before she puts them into action.\

Malice is spreading. Tall Jakce is gaining influence on the world outside the comic. Seth and Kady think the if they gather the right objects and find the right people, they'll be able to defeat Tall Jake once and for all. The only question is ... how?

Here's the book trailer:

And here's a short interview with the author.

Liar

Liar by Justine Larbalestier

Micah freely admits that she is a complusive liar. And that maybe the one honest thing she will ever tell you. Over the year's she has duped her classmates, her teachers, and even her parents. But when her boyfriend, Zach, dies under suspicious circumstances, the shock might be enough to set her straight. Or maybe not. Especially when lying comes as naturally to her as breathing. Was Micah dating Zach? Or was Sarah his real girlfriend? And are the stories Micah tells about inheriting a "family gene" real or are they something that exists only in Micah's mind?

There has been a ton of buzz about this one in the publishing world, so I can't wait for it to come home with me.

Here's the book trailer and an interview with the author.

The Sorceress

The Sorceress (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flammel #3) by Michael Scott

Nicholas Flammel's heart almost broke as he watched his beloved Paris crumble before him. The city was destroyed by Dee and Machievelli , but Flammel played his own role in the destruction. Sophie and Josh Newman show every sign of being the twins of prophecy, and Flammel had to protect them and the pages from the Dark Elders.

But Nicholas grows weaker with each passing day. Perenell is still trapped in Alcatraz, and now that Scatty has gone missing, the group is without protection. Except for Clarent - the twin sword to Excalibur. But Clarent's power is unthinkable, it's evil making it nearly impossible to use without its darkness seeping into the soul of whoever wields it.

If he hopes to defeat Dee, Nicholas must find an Elder who can teach Josh and Sophie the third elemental magic - Water Magic. The problem? The only one who can do that is Gilgamesh, and he is quite quite insane.

Here's a promo from the author about The Immortal Nicholas Flammel series.

David Lubar

True Talents by David Lubar

Here's one more of my favourites by David Lubar.

It's been over a year since 14 year old Eddie "Trash" Thalmeyer and his friends from Edgeview Alternative School found out about their special "hidden talents". Trash can move things with his mind, Torchie is a fire-starter, Cheater reads minds, Lucky finds lost objects, Flinch can predict the future and Martin can see into people's souls. Now back home with their families, all the boys want to do is get back to their normal lives, start attending high school, and keep in touch with their friends from Edgeview.

When Trash tests his power in a bank and accidentally steals a fistful of cash - the real story of this group of friends and their hidden talents will come to light.

Here's an interivew with the author.

Dream House Kings Series

Dream House Kings Series by Robert Libarulo

As you can see these are the first three titles in the series. Here's a little write-up.

Dream house... or bad dream?

When the Kings move from L.A. to a secluded small town, fifteen-year-old Xander is beyond disappointed. He and his friends loved to create amateur films ... but the tiny town of Pinedale is the last place a movie buff and future filmmaker wants to land.

But he, David, and Toria are captivated by the many rooms in the old Victorian fixer-upper they moved into - as well as the heavy woods surrounding the house.

They soon discover there's something odd about the house. Sounds come from the wrong directions. Prints of giant, bare feet appear in the dust. And when David tries to hide in the linen closet, he winds up in locker 119 at his new school.

Then the really weird stuff kicks in: they find a hidden hallway with portals leading to far-off places - in long-ago times. Xander is starting to wonder if this kind of travel is a teen's dream come true ... or his worst nightmare.

Here's an interview with the author.

New titles by Gordon Korman

Zoo break by Gordon Korman

Griffin Bing knows about breaking into places. And he's determined to help his friend Savannah find her missing monkey, even if it is on a floating zoo. Griffin the man with a plan, organizes the biggest zoobreak this zoo has ever seen. There's only one problem: after you break a bunch of animals out of a zoo, where do you put them?

This is the follow up book to Swindle. And I thought I'd include this interview with Gordon Korman about how he got his start in writing and he also talks about Swindle which will be a good reminder why this is such a fun book to read.