Life is miserable for sixth-grader Lerner Chanse at her new school, where the MPOOE (Most Powerful Ones on Earth) Club ruthlessly rules over the SLUGs (Sorry Losers Under Ground). Then Lerner accidentally discovers that her pet worm Fip eats paper — with startling results. When he eats a word, that item simply disappears from the world, forever. Now that Lerner knows about Fip’s magic, she has some extraordinary powers of her own. Lerner soon discovers that extraordinary power brings extraordinary responsibility.
The Word Eater
Oscar knows he’s different. He can’t remember where he comes from, he has an encyclopedic knowledge of magical herbs and their uses, and he just does not understand human interaction. As the apprentice to Caleb, the last magician in the magic-steeped Barrow, Oscar’s job is to collect the herbs, prepare the charms and tinctures, do his chores, and avoid trouble. That changes when a mysterious destructive force arrives and it is up to Oscar and his friend Callie to protect the Barrow and its inhabitants.
The Real Boy
In this wordless fantasy, a girl loses her stuffed fox but finds it in a fantastic forest. This imaginative tale is told in sequential panels (rather like a graphic novel) in which no words are needed.
Little Fox in the Forest
When their parents go on a trip, Yorick decides to play around with his father’s alchemy. Accidentally inventing a shrinking potion, a very tiny Yorick must rely on his younger — now much larger brother — Charles to keep him safe until the spell can be reversed. Steig’s rich language and cartoon illustration set the tale in medieval times and remain as fresh today as when the book was first published.
The Toy Brother
When a girl and her brother return to the park to retrieve the forgotten jump rope, they discover a group of foxes jumping rope. They watch from afar until soon, foxes and children are jumping rope together. Wishes do come true in this mellow fantasy of talking animals with illustrations bathed in soft color.
The Fox Wish
When their grandmother falls ill, Ivy Sparrow and her older brother, Seb, discover an entirely different London and the truth about their grandmother. Fast-paced and well-written, this magical adventure features a unique look to make the common rather uncommon.
The Uncommoners: Crooked Sixpence
Three unlikely heroes emerge to save their worlds by lighting five beacons. Told through action-packed sequential panels of art and conversation bubbles, the characters bring magic and fantasy to a thrilling end of the first installment in a new graphic series.
5 Worlds: The Sand Warrior
Four young people come together at the Metropolitan in New York City on the very day that Pearl Harbor is bombed. Their quest involves Arthurian legend, creepy villains, and a bit of magic in this well-paced, riveting narration will be enjoyed by sophisticated listeners.
The Metropolitans
This wordless time-travel fantasy takes readers on a trip to a world of secret messages left in secret boxes hidden in secret places. The story begins as three boys discover a box in the top floor of their urban boarding school that holds decades-old sepia photographs of a schoolboy, a postcard, and a map leading to a location on the coast.
The Secret Box
Retellings in verse present a host of memorable females in traditional stories from around the world. Join Prince Ivan’s quest, revisit the girl in the tower, listen to Sheherazade as she spins her tales. Then examine the detailed, luminous illustrations to find hidden people and things in this inventive recasting of familiar folktales.
Princess Tales Around the World
An young girl raised by a witch, a swamp monster, and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon, must unlock the powerful magic buried deep inside her. Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch in the forest, Xan, is kind and gentle. The swiftly paced plot draws many threads together to form a web of characters, magic, and interwoven lives. (Winner of the 2017 Newbery Medal)
The Girl Who Drank the Moon
Piper Green lives off the coast of Maine on Peek-a-Boo Island. Could it be the fairy tree that grows in her front yard that brings her the pony? This latest story about Piper and her life on the island is as satisfying as the others in the cheery series, but can be read as a stand-alone.
Piper Green and the Fairy Tree: The Sea Pony
Join a mother and her children on an imaginative journey to places where bears ride bicycles and wear scarves, lions read books, and buses are fish that fly through the clouds. Highly detailed, inventive black and white illustrations with splashes of red move the journey along until the very satisfying conclusion.
Imagine a City
The unicorn that Lucy got for 25 cents isn’t the special Sparkle she had envisioned. This unicorn resembles s a speckled goat plus he’s got fleas and is quite naughty. Lucy considers returning Sparkle but discovers that she loves him in spite of his peculiarities. Line illustrations are detailed adding humor and movement to the satisfying story.
A Unicorn Named Sparkle
Charles’ brother and sister told him there was no such thing, but the little boy and his sled set out to find the wish tree. In this sensitive story, a boy’s conviction and kindness are rewarded in kind. Illustrations in muted color accompany the text.
The Wish Tree
Robbie Darko loves magic but simply is not good at it. That is, until his grandmother teaches him a few tricks she learned as a professional magician. Filled with pathos and good nature, this novel is sure to resonate with readers.
Dorko the Magnificent
Nine tales from German folklore are presented in a large, vibrantly illustrated format are made to share. Well-known tales such as Hansel and Gretel, Puss in Boots, and Sleeping Beauty are included, as are lesser-known stories.
Tales from the Brothers Grimm
Hardscrabble Street transformed when Dr. Fell moved into the old abandoned house. Only Jerry, Nancy and Gail seem to be immune to a web that captivated kids and grownups as they played on Dr. Fell’s amazing new playground. Part mystery, part magic, this creepy story is not recommended for the fainthearted!
Dr. Fell and the Playground of Doom
Charlie learns that wishes granted by a magic fish do not work as planned. In fact, Charlie learns that it sometimes takes a lot more to confront the most difficult things, including her older sister’s heroin addiction.
The Seventh Wish
Middle school is stressful for everyone, especially for Ava. When she discovers her pencil can answer questions, Ava learns that there’s more to consider than just being right. Magic allows tough topics to be tackled.
All the Answers
Tuesday McGillycuddy, first introduced in Finding Serendipity is back to save stories from colliding and writers from being hurt when thrown far away from where they start.
A Week Without Tuesday
A mother warns her seven children not to open the door in her absence, but alas, the children are duped by a tricky witch named Heckedy Peg. Their mother’s wisdom, however, cleverly saves the day. Told in the cadence of a folktale, this richly illustrated tale makes a fine read aloud.
Heckedy Peg
Nory, Elliott, Andres, and Bax are just four of the students in Dunwiddle Magic School’s Upside-Down Magic class. In their classroom, lessons are unconventional, students are unpredictable, and magic has a tendency to turn wonky at the worst possible moments. This is the first book in an offbeat series about a group of misfits who set out to prove that life on the other side of ordinary has its charms.
Upside-Down Magic
Bod is an unusual boy who inhabits an unusual place—he’s the only living resident of a graveyard. Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians’ time as well as their ghostly teachings—such as the ability to Fade so mere mortals cannot see him. (2009 Newbery Medal Winner)