National Network for Equitable Library Service

It's 1977, and 10-year-old Tina couldn't be happier about her life. Not because she just moved to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, but because she's finally old enough to make her dream come true: she can play on a real hockey team. But when she tries to join the league, she learns that girls aren't allowed to play on the boys' team-and there's no team for girls.Despite jeers from classmates and cruelty from some of the town's adults, Tina is determined to play. She wants it more than anything.

When Cricket McKay and her best friend, Shilo, discover that a cougar has been seen in the town of Waterton, they are thrilled that school closes for a few days as a precaution. The townspeople are worried though. They want the cougar caught and relocated, which could be disastrous for the cougar. Cricket's dad, the national park's warden, is receiving reports of the cougar causing all kinds of trouble around town, but it's the type of trouble it doesn't make sense for a cougar to get into. Then Cricket and Shilo find evidence that another animal may be to blame.

Milton the washing machine and W. P. (Whirlpool) the dryer are being delivered to a new home in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia. The pair are excited to start their new jobs in the Crosby home, and are just getting settled in to the basement when "the kid" comes home from school. Sidney straps on a pair of Rollerblades, drags out a beat-up hockey net, and starts to practice. Every now and then a loud carrong echoes off W.

Sixteen-year-old Robin Ellis (aka Robin CookieJars) wants to be the best jammer on her roller-derby team and maybe one day play for the Creek City Roller Derby All-Stars like her idol, Annie Mossity. But star junior player April Reid (aka April Powers) always seems to be one lap ahead. Until recently, that is. Robin has noticed that April has been losing a lot of weight, and her game is suffering. This may be Robin's chance to finally grab the MVP title. But her success may come at a very heavy cost.

Hyperorganized perfectionist Beatrice More is determined to plan a spectacularly professional birthday party for her little sister, Sophie. But she is foiled at every turn: her mother insists on making a homemade cake (disaster!), her father offers up discount mismatched decorations (debacle!), guests are hard to find in their new neighborhood (dire!), and no gift seems remotely special enough (defeated!). Will Beatrice's organizational skills be enough to turn this party around, or will she need a little help from her friends and maybe even from Sophie herself?

Resourceful fourteen-year-old Odette is on the move again, traveling as a stowaway on a cheese cart with her hapless mother, Anneline. They are in Burgundy, France, in 1799, fleeing yet another calamity caused by Anneline (who is prone to killing people accidentally). At dawn they find themselves in a town called Nevers, which is filled with eccentric characters, including a man who obsessively smells hands, another who dreams of becoming a chicken and a donkey that keeps the town awake at night, braying about his narrow life.

Things aren't going so well for fifteen-year-old Dylan Maples. He's sick of his own reflection, his parental units are driving him nuts, and, worst of all, he's trying to come to terms with the unexpected death of one of his best friends. Now, to top things off, he's been roped into a family trip to stay with family friends in New Brunswick.

Fourteen-year-old Roonie loves hip-hop almost as much as she loves her grandmother. She cannot wait to compete in her school's dance competition. But as her grandmother's health deteriorates, Roonie becomes more and more reluctant to visit her in the care home. These feelings of guilt and frustration cause Roonie to mess things up with her hip-hop dance partner and best friend, Kira. But while doing some volunteer hours in the hospital geriatric ward, Roonie meets an active senior recovering from a bad fall.

What would it be like if the moon was your friend? Find out as you walk alongside a little boy who journeys through life to achieve his dream of becoming an astronaut. Then blast off with your little one as you zoom to the moon together! The story begins when a little boy, who is flying his kite, notices a sad Moon. He sends up kites to her, writing notes promising he will come to see her someday. This promise propels him through years of studying, learning, and training to become an astronaut. Until...he finally goes up, up, up in a big rocket ship with a fiery tail!

If you ask her, Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela has way too many names: six! How did such a small person wind up with such a large name? Alma turns to Daddy for an answer and learns of Sofia, the grandmother who loved books and flowers; Esperanza, the great-grandmother who longed to travel; José, the grandfather who was an artist; and other namesakes too. As she hears the story of her name, Alma starts to think it might be a perfect fit after all-and realizes that she will one day have her own story to tell.