“THE INVISIBLE ORDER, Book One: Rise of the Darklings,” by Paul Crilley, Egmont, 16.99 (ages 9-12)
At 12, Emily Snow is supporting herself and her younger brother by selling watercress in Victorian England. One early winter morning on her way to buy supplies, she encounters a piskie — a small fey creature that has been cornered by a group from an opposing clan. By rescuing him, she unknowingly becomes involved in a war between the Seelie and the Unseelie, two opposing factions of fairies that have been battling each other throughout the long centuries of human history.
“HALT’S PERIL,” by John Flanagan, Philomel, $17.99 (ages 9-12)
In this ninth installment of the Ranger’s Apprentice series, Rangers Halt and Will, and the young warrior Horace, are in pursuit of the men who killed Halt’s only brother. The kingdom has been divided into factions and the Outsiders are looking to overtake Araluen. It will take every bit of skill and cunning for the Rangers to survive.
“THE FENCES BETWEEN US,” by Kirby Larson, Scholastic, $12.99 (ages 9-12)
In “The Fences Between Us,” readers are introduced to Piper, a young girl living in Seattle in 1941. After Japanese bombers attack Pearl Harbor, Piper begins recording everything around her. Piper’s father is the pastor for a Japanese Baptist church, and when its members are taken away to Minidoka, Idaho, to be interned, Piper’s family follows them to Idaho. Piper is miserable, but as her friendship with Betty, a Japanese-American girl interned in the camp, grows, Piper discovers she too can make a difference.
“A JOURNEY TO THE NEW WORLD,” by Kathryn Lasky, Scholastic, $12.99 (ages 9-12)
Twelve-year-old Remember Patience Whipple (“Mem” for short) and her parents to the New World after 65 days on the Mayflower. Mem is fearless, even when it comes to Native Americans. It will take a lot of hard work and help from new friends if Mem and her family are going to survive their first year in a strange new world.
