Cool New Books for April
April marks the release of the sixth installment in Anthony Horowitz's series of adventures starring teen spy Alex Rider. ARK ANGEL introduces readers to multibillionaire Nikolei Drevin, who's being targeted by a group of eco-terrorists known as Force Three. This month's roundup of Cool New Books also includes THE WRIGHT 3 by Blue Balliett, the highly anticipated sequel to CHASING VERMEER (which many referred to as "THE DA VINCI CODE for kids"); HEAT, Mike Lupica's touching tale of a 12-year-old boy who dreams of pitching in the Little League World Series; and picture books by comedian Billy Crystal and boxer Oscar De La Hoya, who each draw from personal experiences to tell entertaining and heartwarming stories.
Stand-Alone Fiction
 THE AMAZING STORY OF ADOLPHUS TIPS
Michael Morpurgo
Scholastic Press
ISBN: 043979661X
Ages 7-10
208 pages
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It's 1943, and 12-year-old Lily Tregenza lives on a farm in a seaside village in England. Her life is hardly affected by World War II…until Lily and her family, along with 3,000 other villagers, are ordered to evacuate their homes to allow the Allied forces to practice their landings for D-day. It's a dangerous operation, with guns firing and bombs exploding, and the whole area is off-limits. But Adolphus Tips, Lily's beloved cat, has other ideas --- barbed wire and "Keep out!" signs mean nothing to her.
 THE EARTH DRAGON AWAKES: The San Francisco Earthquake of 1906
Laurence Yep
HarperCollins
ISBN-10: 0060275243
ISBN-13: 9780060275242
Ages 8-12
128 pages
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On the morning of April 18, 1906, Henry hears a low rumbling that sounds like a train is coming. The windows rattle, the doors thump, and then Henry hears a crash. Across town, Henry's friend Chin waits for the trembling to stop, but it goes on and on. Henry and Chin are in the middle of an earthquake! When it subsides, the boys and their families are lucky to be alive. But now they must escape the fires that have broken out and find their way to safety --- before it's too late.
 HEAT
Mike Lupica
Philomel Books
ISBN: 0399243011
Ages 10-up
324 pages
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Michael Arroyo can throw some serious heat, and he dreams of pitching in the Little League World Series. But unfortunately he must deal with the reality of his day-to-day life. Newly orphaned after his father led the family's escape from Cuba, Michael can only rely on his older brother Carlos, who's 17. If Social Services hears of the boys' situation, they either will be separated in the foster care system or sent back to Cuba. Michael and Carlos do their best to carry on alone --- until someone questions how a 12-year-old boy could possibly throw with as much power as Michael Arroyo throws. Michael has no way to prove his age, no birth certificate, and no parent to fight for his cause.
 SPACE DOGS
Justin Ball and Evan Croker
Knopf
ISBN-10: 0375832564
ISBN-13: 9780375832567
Ages 8-12
272 pages
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Laika is the first dog in space. Launched into orbit by the Soviet Union, Laika's craft is accidentally sucked through a wormhole and onto the Planet Gersbach, inhabited by highly intelligent but very tiny people. When a mysterious disturbance of gravity (D.O.G.) threatens to destroy Gersbach, Commanders Belka and Strelka are just the men to seek and destroy the source of D.O.G. Their vehicle? A highly sophisticated craft that looks exactly like a terrier. With the help of the Buckleys, a lovable Earth family with problems of their own, the mission to save their planet may still prevail.
 TRAVIS & FREDDY'S ADVENTURES IN VEGAS
Henry Johnson and Paul Hoppe
Dutton Children's Books
ISBN: 0525476466
Ages 8-12
176 pages
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Best buds Travis and Freddy --- one the coolest kid and the other the biggest brain at Walla Walla Junior High --- set out to save Travis's dad from disaster by winning big in Las Vegas, armed only with Travis's charm and Freddy's latest invention: a pair of glasses wirelessly connected to a laptop programmed with his homemade guaranteed-to-win-at-blackjack software. But the appearance of Johnny Large, the meanest --- and shortest --- gangster in Vegas poses a great threat to the two boys. It's going to take a lot of luck (and some help from Sam, their new lady cabdriver friend) to get out of Vegas alive!
Series Books
Alex Rider
 ARK ANGEL: An Alex Rider Adventure
Anthony Horowitz
Philomel/Penguin Young Readers Group
ISBN: 0399241523
Ages 8-12
324 pages
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Shot outside the offices of MI6 and left for dead by Scorpia, Alex Rider awakens in a top-secret hospital, looking forward to his release. But when the boy in the next room is the victim of a kidnapping attempt by a terrorist organization known as Force Three, it is Alex who saves him --- only to be kidnapped himself. The boy's father is none other than Nikolei Drevin, a multibillionaire who single-handedly is funding the first luxury hotel in outer space, Ark Angel. Drevin cannot thank Alex enough for coming to his son's rescue and invites him to stay at his lavish estate for two weeks. But soon Alex will learn the truth about this wealthy developer and what he hopes to accomplish with Ark Angel.
Sequel to CHASING VERMEER
 THE WRIGHT 3
Blue Balliett
illustrated by Brett Helquist
Scholastic Press
ISBN: 0439693675
Ages 9-12
318 pages
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Spring semester at the Lab School in Hyde Park finds Petra and Calder drawn into another mystery when unexplainable accidents and ghostly happenings throw a spotlight on Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House, and it's up to the two young sleuths to piece together the clues. They become tangled in a dangerous web thanks to the return of Calder's friend Tommy (which creates a tense triangle), H.G. Wells's THE INVISIBLE MAN, 3D pentominoes, and the hunt for a coded message left behind by Wright.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
 THE SEA OF MONSTERS: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book Two
Rick Riordan
Hyperion Books for Children/Miramax
ISBN: 0786856866
Ages 10-up
340 pages
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After a summer spent trying to prevent a catastrophic war among the Greek gods, Percy Jackson finds his seventh-grade school year surprisingly quiet. But soon enough, Percy discovers trouble at Camp Half-Blood: the magical borders that protect Half-Blood Hill have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and the only safe haven for demigods is on the verge of being overrun by mythological monsters. To save the camp, Percy needs the help of his best friend, Grover, who has been taken prisoner on an island somewhere in the Sea of Monsters, the dangerous waters Greek heroes have sailed for millennia.
Sequel to THE TAIL OF EMILY WINDSNAP
 EMILY WINDSNAP AND THE MONSTER FROM THE DEEP
Liz Kessler
Candlewick Press
ISBN: 0763625043
Ages 8-12
224 pages
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An island set in a glittering blue sea, sparkling with white sand and palm trees, a secret place where humans and merfolk live together. To Emily Windsnap --- half-mermaid, half-human --- her new home is perfect. That is, until Emily ruins everything by waking a legendary sea monster known as the Kraken from its hundred-year sleep. As the Kraken rises from the deep, putting the future of the islanders in jeopardy, Emily makes a desperate attempt to save them.
Picture Books
 GRANDPA'S LITTLE ONE
Billy Crystal
illustrated by Guy Porfirio
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060781734
Ages 4-8
40 pages
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Billy Crystal is a Tony Award-winning comedian, director, actor and bestselling author. But above all things, he's a devoted grandfather. Based on his own experiences, GRANDPA'S LITTLE ONE tells the story of the first year in his granddaughter's life. It's a year filled with tender memories of every first-time event: first smile, first swim, first giggle and laugh, first piece of cake.
 THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA
Lauren Child
captured by Polly Borland
Hyperion Books for Children
ISBN: 0786838868
Ages 5-up
44 pages
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When a young lady shows up at the castle, only the queen will be able to determine if she's really the princess she claims to be. While it's true that her impeccable manners, irresistible charm, and stunning good looks are strong indications that she's indeed royalty, only a tiny green pea hidden under a dozen down mattresses can prove beyond the shadow of a doubt whether or not she's the real deal.
 SUPER OSCAR
Oscar De La Hoya
illustrated by Lisa Kopelke
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 1416906118
Ages 4-8
32 pages
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Before he became the World Welterweight Champion, Oscar De La Hoya was a little boy growing up in East Los Angeles. Told in both English and Spanish, SUPER OSCAR is a fictional account of one of Oscar's favorite memories --- the picnics his close-knit neighborhood held every Saturday. When it's Oscar's turn to organize the picnic, he forgets all about it until the last minute, so he has lots of catching up to do!
--- Compiled and written by Tom Donadio
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