Rosy and the Secret Friend, by Margaret McNamara

Fairy Bell SistersSummary:  Usually, when the Summer People take over the cottages of Sheepskerry Island, the Fairy Bell Sisters go into hiding, but when kind-hearted Rosy realizes that a Summer Child named Louisa needs help, she does the unthinkable and befriends her.

Balzer+Bray

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Doll Bones, by Holly Black

Summary:  Zach, Alice, and Poppy, friends from a Pennsylvania middle school who have long enjoyed acting out imaginary adventures with dolls and action figures, embark on a real-life quest to Ohio to bury a doll made from the ashes of a dead girl.

Margaret K. McElderry Books

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Kicks: Saving the Team, by Alex Morgan

The Kicks series
Summary: After moving to California, seventh-grader Devin is afraid she will not make the soccer team but finds, instead, a team is so bad that she is compelled to take the lead and turn it into something the players and coach can all be proud of.

Simon & Schuster

Hidden Summer, by Gin Phillips

Summary: When twelve-year-old Nell and her best friend, Lydia, are forbidden to see each other, they hatch a plan to spend their summer days in an abandoned miniature golf course, where they soon find others in search of a home.

Dial

Twerp, by Mark Goldblatt

Summary: In Queens, New York, in 1969, twelve-year-old Julian Twerski writes a journal for his English teacher in which he explores his friendships and how they are effected by girls, a new student who may be as fast as Julian, and especially an incident of bullying.

Random House

Rogue, by Lyn Miller-Lachmann

Summary: An eighth-grade girl with Asperger’s syndrome tries to befriend her new neighbor, facing many challenges along the way.

Nancy Paulsen Books

The Center of Everything, by Linda Urban

Summary:  For Ruby Pepperdine, the center of everything is on the rooftop of Pepperdine Motors, stargazing from the circle of her grandmother Gigi’s hug. Now Ruby’s best friend, Lucy, is mad at her. Worst of all, Ruby regrets what happened with Gigi. And now it’s too late to make things right. But Ruby has one last hope. It all depends on what happens on Bunning Day, when the entire town will hear her read her winning essay. And it all depends on her twelfth birthday wish– unless she messes that up too.

Harcourt

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Colossus Rises, by Peter Lerangis

Summary: Teens Jack, Marco, Aly, and Cass begin a quest to find seven pieces of Atlantis’ power that were hidden long ago and that will, if returned to Atlantis, save them from certain death due to the genetic abnormality that also gives them superior abilities.

Harper

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Starring Jules (as herself), by Beth Ain

Summary:  Jules doesn’t want to ruin THE OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME, and she’s willing to turn to anyone for help–even her know-it-all ex-best friend! If only that lovely new girl in class would turn out to be the new best friend of her dreams, maybe, just maybe, Jules will be ready for her close-up.

Scholastic

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Abraham Lincoln & Frederick Douglass: the story behind an American friendship, by Russell Freedman

Summary:  Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass were both self-taught, both great readers and believers in the importance of literacy, both men born poor who by their own efforts reached positions of power and prominence–Lincoln as president of the United States and Douglass as the most famous and influential African American of his time. Though their meetings were few and brief, their exchange of ideas helped to end the Civil War, reunite the nation, and abolish slavery.

Clarion

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Each Kindness, by Jacqueline Woodson

Summary:  Chloe and her friends won’t play with the new girl, Maya. Maya is different–she wears hand-me-downs and plays with old-fashioned toys. Every time Maya tries to join Chloe and her gang, they reject her. Eventually, Maya plays alone, and then stops coming to school altogether. When Chloe’s teacher gives a lesson about how even small acts of kindness can change the world, Chloe is stung by the lost opportunity for friendship, and thinks about how much better it could have been if she’d shown a little kindness toward Maya.

Nancy Paulsen Books

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Prairie Evers, by Ellen Airgood

Summary:  Prairie Evers has been homeschooled by her granny and has learned the most from traipsing through nature. But now she has to attend public school, and feels just like her chickens–cooped up and subject to the pecking order. School is a jolt for Prairie until she meets Ivy, her first true friend. When Prairie finds out that Ivy’s home may not be the best place for Ivy, Prairie must corral all her optimism and determination to hatch a plan to help.

Penguin

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Third Grade Angels, by Jerry Spinelli

Summary:  George (“Suds”) has a third grade teacher who will hold a competition every month to see which student deserves to be awarded “the halo”-which student is best-behaved, kindest to others, and, in short, perfect. Suds is determined to be the first to earn the halo, but he’s finding the challenge of always being good to be more stressful than he had anticipated. Does he have to be good even outside of school? (Does he have to be nice to his annoying little sister?) And if Mrs. Simms doesn’t actually see him doing a good deed, does it even count?

Arthur A. Levine

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Stealing Air, by Trent Reedy

Summary: Three sixth-grade boys band together to build an experimental aircraft, enduring social and practical difficulties in the process.

Arthur A. Levine

Tracing Stars, by Erin Moulton

Summary:  Indie Lee Chickory knows she’s not as cool as her older sister Bebe. Bebe has more friends, for one. And no one tells Bebe she’s a fish freak, for two. So when Indie accidentally brings her pet lobster to school, makes a scene, loses him in the ocean and embarrasses Bebe worse than usual, she makes a wish on a star to become a better Chickory. She tries to do this by joining the stage crew of the community’s theater production, The Sound of Music . (Bebe has a starring role.) But Bebe is worried that Indie will embarrass her again, so she gives her a makeover and tells her who she should be friends with.  When things come to a head, Indie realizes that being true to yourself is more important than being cool. But what’s even more surprising is that Bebe realizes it, too.

Philomel

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