Gennifer Choldenko

A twelve-year-old boy named Moose moves to Alcatraz Island in 1935 when guards’ families were housed there, and has to contend with his extraordinary new environment in addition to life with his autistic sister Natalie. A Newbery Honor Book &amp;amp;amp; ALA Notable Book. Reprint. Jr Lib Guild &amp;amp;amp; Children’s BOMC.

Al Capone Does My Shirts

Alcatraz Island in the 1930s isn’t the most normal place to grow up, but it’s home for Moose Flanagan, his autistic sister, Natalie, and all the families of the guards. When Moose’s dad gets promoted to Associate Warden, despite being an unlikely candidate, it’s a big deal. But the cons have a point system for targeting prison employees, and his dad is now in serious danger. After a fire starts in the Flanagan’s apartment, Natalie is blamed, and Moose bands with the other kids to track down the possible arsonist. Then Moose gets a cryptic note from the notorious Al Capone himself. Is Capone trying to protect Moose’s dad too? If Moose can’t figure out what Capone’s note means, it may be too late.

Al Capone Does My Homework

Nico Medina

Who HQ

David Groff

The island of Alcatraz has always been a place that’s fascinated visitors, from the Native American tribes who believed it was home to evil spirits to the Spanish explorers who discovered the island. In modern times, it was a federal prison for only 29 years, but now draws over a million visitors each year. Learn the history of America’s most famous prison, from its initial construction as a fort in the 1800s, to its most famous residents such as Al Capone and “Machine Gun” Kelly. Where Is Alcatraz? also chronicles some of the most exciting escape attempts—even one that involved chipping through stone with spoons and constructing rafts out of raincoats!

Where Is Alcatraz?

Lori Haskins

Janet Hamlin

An easy-to-read study of Alcatraz, “The Rock,” describes how America’s renowned prison housed some of the country’s most notorious criminals.

Breakout! Escape from Alcatraz 

Jacqueline Woodson

James Ransome

Jacqueline Woodson is the 2018-2019 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature

In this moving picture book from multi-award winning author Jacqueline Woodson, a young girl and her grandmother prepare for a very special day–the one day a month they get to visit the girl’s father in prison. “Only on visiting day is there chicken frying in the kitchen at 6 a.m, and Grandma in her Sunday dress, humming soft and low.” As the little girl and her grandmother get ready, her father, who adores her, is getting ready, too, and readers get to join the community of families who make the trip together, as well as the triumphant reunion between father and child, all told in Woodson’s trademark lyrical style, and beautifully illusrtrated by James Ransome.

Visiting Day

making friends

mother-daughter relationships

prisoners

secrets

Ruby’s mom is in prison, and to tell anyone the truth is to risk true friendship in this novel from the author of The Summer Before Boys that accurately and sensitively addresses a subject too often overlooked. Eleven-year-old Ruby Danes is about to start middle school, and only her aunt knows her deepest, darkest, most secret secret: her mother is in prison.  Then Margalit Tipps moves into Ruby’s condo complex, and the two immediately hit it off. Ruby thinks she’s found her first true-blue friend–but can she tell Margalit the truth about her mom? Maybe not. Because it turns out that Margalit’s family history seems closely connected to the very event that put her mother in prison, and if Ruby comes clean, she could lose everything she cares about most.

Ruby on the Outside

Cory Doctorow

civil rights

law and crime

prison or jail

Marcus, a.k.a w1n5t0n, is only seventeen years old, but he figures he already knows how the system works-and how to work the system. Smart, fast, and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting his high school’s intrusive but clumsy surveillance systems. But his whole world changes when he and his friends find themselves caught in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco. In the wrong place at the wrong time, Marcus and his crew are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret prison where they’re mercilessly interrogated for days. When the DHS finally releases them, Marcus discovers that his city has become a police state where every citizen is treated like a potential terrorist. He knows that no one will believe his story, which leaves him only one option: to take down the DHS himself.

Little Brother

Walter Dean Myers

prejudice and racism

self-perception

This New York Times bestselling novel from acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers tells the story of Steve Harmon, a teenage boy in juvenile detention and on trial. Presented as a screenplay of Steve’s own imagination, and peppered with journal entries, the book shows how one single decision can change our whole lives. Monster is a multi-award-winning, provocative coming-of-age story that was the first-ever Michael L. Printz Award recipient, an ALA Best Book, a Coretta Scott King Honor selection, and a National Book Award finalist.Monster is now a major motion picture called All Rise and starring Jennifer Hudson, Kelvin Harrison, Jr., Nas, and A$AP Rocky.The late Walter Dean Myers was a National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, who was known for his commitment to realistically depicting kids from his hometown of Harlem.Share this highly readable novel at home or in the classroom–it’s sure to spark debate and conversation. Walter Dean Myers said: I would like young people to consider what happened to Steve Harmon, as well as why. There were decisions that Steve made and some he clearly should have made, but didn’t. As the author, I’ll be satisfied if the reader forms his or her own opinion about these decisions and the consequences.

Monster

Karen English

Black history

A powerful middle grade coming-of-age novel set in a slowly integrating upper middle class Los Angeles neighborhood in the summer of 1965, from a Coretta Scott King Honor Award-winning author. Perfect for fans of Rita Williams-Garcia and Sharon M. Draper.  It’s 1965, Los Angeles. Sophie is the new black kid in a nearly all-white neighborhood; her beloved sister, Lily, is going away to college soon; and her parents’ marriage is rocky. Plus, there’s her family’s new, disapproving housekeeper to deal with. Then riots erupt in nearby Watts and a friend is unfairly arrested, and Sophie learns that life–and her own place in it–is even more complicated than she’d once thought.  “Honest, witty . . . relatable. Unfairness and race-consciousness run through the story–so do surprises. Bigotry wears many guises. Kindness does too.” –Wall Street Journal  “Thoughtful and well-wrought . . . . Compassionate, pointed, and empowering.” –Booklist, starred review  “An impressive coming-of-age story.” –Kirkus Reviews,  starred review  “Reveals how an impressionable and intelligent child learns from the injustices that touch her, her family, and her friends.” –Publishers Weekly,  starred review

It All Comes Down to This

Coe Booth

family problems

self-esteem

homelessness and poverty

An astonishing new voice in teen literature, writing what is sure to be one of the most talked-about debuts of the year.Tyrell is a young African-American teen who can’t get a break. He’s living (for now) with his spaced-out mother and little brother in a homeless shelter. His father’s in jail. His girlfriend supports him, but he doesn’t feel good enough for her – and seems to be always on the verge of doing the wrong thing around her. There’s another girl at the homeless shelter who is also after him, although the desires there are complicated. Tyrell feels he needs to score some money to make things better. Will he end up following in his father’s footsteps?

Tyrell

Leslie Staub

Edwidge Danticat

separation

Haitian Americans

immigration and emigration

A touching tale of parent-child separation and immigration, from a National Book Award finalist

After Saya’s mother is sent to an immigration detention center, Saya finds comfort in listening to her mother’s warm greeting on their answering machine. To ease the distance between them while she’s in jail, Mama begins sending Saya bedtime stories inspired by Haitian folklore on cassette tape. Moved by her mother’s tales and her father’s attempts to reunite their family, Saya writes a story of her own—one that just might bring her mother home for good.

With stirring illustrations, this tender tale shows the human side of immigration and imprisonment—and shows how every child has the power to make a difference.

Mama's Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation

Alexandre Dumas

revenge

treasure hunts

Edmond Dantès, a merchant sailor in the early 19th Century, is wrongfully imprisoned for life without trial. After years of incarceration on the remote island prison of the Château d’If, he learns of a vast treasure on the island of Monte Cristo and becomes determined to escape in order to retrieve the treasure and use it for vengeance against the men who betrayed him. Classics Illustrated tells this wonderful tale in colorful comic strip form, offering an excellent introduction for younger readers. This edition also includes theme discussions and study questions, which can be used both in the classroom or at home to further engage the reader in the story. The Classics Illustrated comic book series began life in 1941 with its first issue, Alexandre Dumas’ “The Three Musketeers”, and has since included over 200 classic tales released around the world. This new CCS Books edition is specifically tailored to engage and educate young readers with some of the greatest works ever written, while still thrilling older readers who have loving memories of this series of old. Each book contains dedicated theme discussions and study questions to further develop the reader’s understanding and enjoyment of the work at hand.

The Count of Monte Cristo

Janae Marks

baking

father-daughter relationships

An Amazon Best Book of the Month  #1 Kids Indie Next List  A Junior Library Guild Selection * Four Starred Reviews From debut author Janae Marks comes a captivating story full of heart, as one courageous girl questions assumptions, searches for the truth, and does what she believes is right–even in the face of great opposition. Zoe Washington isn’t sure what to write. What does a girl say to the father she’s never met, hadn’t heard from until his letter arrived on her twelfth birthday, and who’s been in prison for a terrible crime? A crime he says he never committed. Could Marcus really be innocent? Zoe is determined to uncover the truth. Even if it means hiding his letters and her investigation from the rest of her family. Everyone else thinks Zoe’s worrying about doing a good job at her bakery internship and proving to her parents that she’s worthy of auditioning for Food Network’s Kids Bake Challenge.But with bakery confections on one part of her mind, and Marcus’s conviction weighing heavily on the other, this is one recipe Zoe doesn’t know how to balance. The only thing she knows to be true: Everyone lies.When Marcus tells Zoe he is innocent, and her grandmother agrees, Zoe begins to learn about inequality in the criminal justice system, and she sets out to find the alibi witness who can prove his innocence. (Publishers Weekly, An Anti-Racist Children’s and YA Reading List)–School Library Journal (starred review)

From the Desk of Zoe Washington

competition

In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king’s champion. Her name is Celaena Sardothien. The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass–and it’s there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena’s fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.

Throne of Glass

Alexandra Diaz

“With every chapter, readers will be further immersed in Santiago’s story as they root for his triumph over injustice.” –Booklist (starred review) “With unflinching conviction, Diaz sketches a frank, brief account of refugee youth in an uncaring bureaucratic system.” –Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “Harrowing but deeply illuminating.” –School Library Journal “Diaz’s crucial narrative shines a disconcerting light on the plight of children in US detention centers along the southern border.” –Publishers Weekly (starred review) A young boy gets detained by ICE while crossing the border from Mexico to the United States in this timely and unflinching novel by award-winning author Alexandra Diaz. The bed creaks under Santiago’s shivering body. They say a person’s life flashes by before dying. But it’s not his whole life. Just the events that led to this. The important ones, and the ones Santiago would rather forget.  The coins in Santiago’s hand are meant for the bus fare back to his abusive abuela’s house. Except he refuses to return; he won’t be missed. His future is uncertain until he meets the kind, maternal María Dolores and her young daughter, Alegría, who help Santiago decide what comes next: He will accompany them to el otro lado, the United States of America. They embark with little, just backpacks with water and a bit of food. To travel together will require trust from all parties, and Santiago is used to going it alone. None of the three travelers realizes that the journey through Mexico to the border is just the beginning of their story.

Santiago's Road Home

Aida Salazar

From the prolific author of The Moon Within comes the heart-wrenchingly beautiful story in verse of a young Latinx girl who learns to hold on to hope and love even in the darkest of places: a family detention center for migrants and refugees.Nine-year-old Betita knows she is a crane. Papi has told her the story, even before her family fled to Los Angeles to seek refuge from cartel wars in Mexico. The Aztecs came from a place called Aztlan, what is now the Southwest US, called the land of the cranes. They left Aztlan to establish their great city in the center of the universe-Tenochtitlan, modern-day Mexico City. It was prophesized that their people would one day return to live among the cranes in their promised land. Papi tells Betita that they are cranes that have come home.Then one day, Betita’s beloved father is arrested by Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) and deported to Mexico. Betita and her pregnant mother are left behind on their own, but soon they too are detained and must learn to survive in a family detention camp outside of Los Angeles. Even in cruel and inhumane conditions, Betita finds heart in her own poetry and in the community she and her mother find in the camp. The voices of her fellow asylum seekers fly above the hatred keeping them caged, but each day threatens to tear them down lower than they ever thought they could be. Will Betita and her family ever be whole again?

Land of the Cranes

Matt De La Peña

Christian Robinson

The team behind the Newbery Medal winner and Caldecott Honor book Last Stop on Market Street and the award-winning New York Times bestseller Carmela Full of Wishes once again delivers a poignant and timely picture book that’s sure to become an instant classic. Milo is on a long subway ride with his older sister. To pass the time, he studies the faces around him and makes pictures of their lives. There’s the whiskered man with the crossword puzzle; Milo imagines him playing solitaire in a cluttered apartment full of pets. There’s the wedding-dressed woman with a little dog peeking out of her handbag; Milo imagines her in a grand cathedral ceremony. And then there’s the boy in the suit with the bright white sneakers; Milo imagines him arriving home to a castle with a drawbridge and a butler. But when the boy in the suit gets off on the same stop as Milo–walking the same path, going to the exact same place–Milo realizes that you can’t really know anyone just by looking at them.

Milo Imagines the World

Richard Paul Evans

The electrifying #1 New York Times bestselling first installment of the action-packed Michael Vey series from author Richard Paul Evans. My name is Michael Vey, and the story I’m about to tell you is strange. Very strange. It’s my story. To everyone at Meridian High School, Michael Vey is an ordinary fourteen-year-old. In fact, the only thing that seems to set him apart is the fact that he has Tourette’s syndrome. But Michael is anything but ordinary. Michael has special powers. Electric powers. Michael thinks he’s unique until he discovers that a cheerleader named Taylor also has special powers. With the help of Michael’s friend, Ostin, the three of them set out to discover how Michael and Taylor ended up this way, but their investigation brings them to the attention of a powerful group who wants to control the electric children - and through them the world. Michael will have to rely on his wits, powers, and friends if he’s to survive.

The Prisoner of Cell 25

Nicholas Flamel appeared in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter–but did you know he really lived? And his secrets aren’t safe! Discover the truth in book three of the New York Times bestselling series the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. The Problem: Perenelle Flamel is trapped.  What’s Worse: Sophie and Josh might soon be as well.  Paris was destroyed by John Dee and Niccolo Machiavelli, but the missing pages of the Book of Abraham the Mage are still protected from Dee and the Dark Elders. Except Perenelle is imprisoned on Alcatraz and now Scatty is missing, leaving a weakening Nicholas as Sophie and Josh’s only protection in Lond, a city Dee has under his control. The only hope of defeating Dee and escaping London is to find an Elder to teach the twins the third elemental magic–Water Magic. The bad news? The lone option is Gilgamesh the King, and he is absolutely insane. The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel has everything you loved about Harry Potter, including magic, mystery, and a constant battle of good versus evil.–Bustle Read the whole series!The AlchemystThe MagicianThe SorceressThe NecromancerThe WarlockThe Enchantress

The Sorceress

Nicholas Flamel appeared in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter–but did you know he really lived? And his secrets aren’t safe! Discover the truth in book five of Michael Scott’s New York Times bestselling series the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel.  The Oaths: Many have made them.  The Betrayals: Almost as many will undo them. The twins of prophecy have been divided–the end has begun. Josh Newman has chosen a side, and he will not stand with his sister, Sophie, or the Alchemyst, Nicholas Flamel. He will fight alongside Dee and the mysterious Virginia Dare. With San Francisco on the bring of ruin at the hands of Machiavelli, and Billy the Kid, Scatty, and Joan of Arc in another dimension called the Shadowrealm, the world stands at the edge of destruction. It is up to Sophie alone to find her twin before the battle begins pr all is lost–forever. “The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel has everything you loved about Harry Potter, including magic, mystery, and a constant battle of good versus evil.”–Bustle Read the whole series! The Alchemyst The Magician The Sorceress The Necromancer The Warlock The Enchantress

The Warlock

Jeff Brown

Macky Pamintuan

Flat Stanley is taking over the world, one city at a time! In this fantastic twelfth installment in the renowned Flat Stanley’s Worldwide Adventures chapter book series, the Lambchop family is ready to explore San Francisco, California! Don’t miss any of Flat Stanley’s worldwide adventures!Not only will kids love going on a fun adventure with Stanley, this installment of the Worldwide Adventures series has fun, fascinating facts about San Francisco in the back of the book, and is perfect for Common Core State Standards, like multicultural adventure, plot and character development story elements, and compare and contrast.This unforgettable adventure features fun, fascinating facts about San Francisco! And for parents and teachers, each Flat Stanley book is aligned to the Common Core State Standards, like multicultural adventure, plot and character development story elements, and compare and contrast! Don’t miss any of Flat Stanley’s worldwide adventures!

Escape to California

Diane Zahler

Can a common girl save a prince trapped in the Tower of London? April. England. 1483. The king is dead. Long live the king. Nell Gould is the daughter of the royal butcher, a commoner, but she has been raised as the playmate of King Edward and Queen Elizabeth’s royal children: Princess Cecily, Princess Bess, Prince Dickon, and Prince Ned, heir apparent and Nell’s best and closest friend. They think alike, her and Ned, preferring books and jousts to finery and gossip and the sparkle of the court. But when King Edward dies, Prince Ned is imprisoned in the Tower of London by his scheming uncle, the evil Richard III–and Nell with him. Can they escape? Is Nell the key? Based on the real royal scandal of the Princes in the Tower, Daughter of the White Rose covers a shocking episode in medieval history that has captured the imagination for 530 years. A story of murder, betrayal, resilience, and growing up, this girl-led medieval middle-grade novel will make a perfect companion to Catherine, Called Birdy and The Mad Wolf’s Daughter.

Daughter of the White Rose

Reem Faruqi

From the award-winning, ALA Notable author of Unsettled and Lailah’s Lunchbox,  this is a captivating coming-of-age middle grade novel in verse about seventh grader Aafiyah Qamar, a Pakistani American girl who hatches a special plan to help her family but finds that doing what’s right isn’t always easy. For fans of The Thing About Jellyfish and Clean Getaway, this is a heartfelt, soul-searching story with laughter, hope, and lessons learned.Seventh grader Aafiyah loves playing tennis, reading Weird but True facts, and hanging out with her best friend, Zaina. However, Aafiyah has a bad habit that troubles her–she’s drawn to pretty things and can’t help but occasionally “borrow” them.But when her father is falsely accused of a crime he hasn’t committed and gets taken in by authorities, Aafiyah knows she needs to do something to help. When she brainstorms a way to bring her father back, she turns to her Weird but True facts and devises the perfect plan.But what if her plan means giving in to her bad habit, the one she’s been trying to stop? Aafiyah wants to reunite her family but finds that maybe her plan isn’t so perfect after all. . .A story about family, friendship, change, and hope. –Kirkus”In Aafiyah, Faruqi creates a relatable but flawed protagonist whose road to redemption makes for an engaging, warmhearted story.” –BooklistMuch like in her previous novel Unsettled, Faruqi’s elegantly crafted verse illuminates a Muslim family navigating and ultimately transcending domestic challenges. –Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books”This story [has] a well-characterized, flawed heroine and a lot of heart.” –Publishers Weekly

Golden Girl

Michael Morpurgo

Benji Davies

From bestselling author Michael Morpurgo comes a beautifully illustrated classic story about a lighthouse keeper, a daring rescue and puffins, for fans of War Horse and The One and Only Ivan. As a child, Allen is saved from a nautical disaster by Benjamin Postlethwaite, a solitary lighthouse keeper. Years later, Allen returns to the lighthouse, and the two nurse an injured young puffin back to health. When Allen is called up to fight in World War Two, he’s not sure he’ll see his mother or Benjamin again, but his fond memories of his time at the lighthouse keep him going, even through prison camp. Allen and Ben’s enduring friendship over the years is the basis for this story about friendship, art, war and an incredibly adorable puffin. From masterful storyteller Michael Morpurgo and world-class illustrator Benji Davies comes this truly beautiful tale which will enchant readers of all ages.

The Puffin Keeper

Karen Foxlee

“Magic is “messy and dangerous and filled with longing,” we learn in this brave tale of grief, villainy and redemption that borrows from the story of the Snow Queen. Set in a vast, chilly museum, the tale brings together a valiant girl, a charmed boy, a magical sword and a clock ticking down to the end of the world.”–The Wall Street JournalThis is the story of unlikely heroine Ophelia Jane Worthington-Whittard who doesn’t believe in anything that can’t be proven by science. She and her sister Alice are still grieving for their dead mother when their father takes a job in a strange museum in a city where it always snows. On her very first day in the museum Ophelia discovers a boy locked away in a long forgotten room. He is a prisoner of Her Majesty, the Snow Queen. And he has been waiting for Ophelia’s help. As Ophelia embarks on an incredible journey to rescue the boy everything that she believes will be tested. Along the way she learns more and more about the boy’s own remarkable journey to reach her and save the world. A story within a story, this a modern day fairytale about the power of friendship, courage and love, and never ever giving up.

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy

Adam Jay Epstein

In the first book of a new action-packed middle-grade trilogy by the bestselling author of The Familiars series, a young inventor and a group of treasure seekers plunder dungeons across a kingdom under threat.

Escape to the Above

In 1776, young Sophia Calderwood witnesses the execution of Nathan Hale in New York City, which is newly occupied by the British army. Sophia is horrified by the event and resolves to do all she can to help the American cause. Recruited as a spy, she becomes a maid in the home of General Clinton, the supreme commander of the British forces in America. Through her work she becomes aware that someone in the American army might be switching sides, and she uncovers a plot that will grievously damage the Americans if it succeeds. But the identity of the would-be traitor is so shocking that no one believes her, and so Sophia decides to stop the treacherous plot herself, at great personal peril: She’s young, she’s a girl, and she’s running out of time. And if she fails, she’s facing an execution of her own.

Master storyteller Avi shows exactly how personal politics can be in this “nail-biting thriller” (Publishers Weekly) that is rich in historical detail and rife with action.

Sophia's War: A Tale of the Revolution

Franklin W. Dixon

An invitation from Cap Bailey, science teacher at Bayport High, to accompany him out West to Wildcat Swamp on an archaeological expedition triggers off a series of dangerous events for Frank and Joe Hardy. On their way West the boys and Cap have a near-fatal accident in a private plane which has been sabotaged. Though warned to leave the area, Frank, Joe, and Cap doggedly remain until they have caught the cunning ex-convicts they are up against in this swift-paced adventure.

The Secret of Wildcat Swamp

Sally M. Walker

The worst maritime disaster in American history wasn’t the Titanic. It was the steamboat Sultana on the Mississippi River–and it could have been prevented.

Sinking the Sultana: A Civil War Story of Imprisonment, Greed, and a Doomed Journey Home

David Biedrzycki

A missing cub, a carnival, and a gang of cat burglars… Hold on to your hats! 

Best-selling author David Biedrzycki brings back the hilarious bears from Breaking News: Bear Alert, but now they have sleepy bear cub in tow. When the cub goes missing Mama and Papa Bear go on the hunt. Their search takes them to the town carnival where the whole family rides the Ferris wheel, rocks the rollercoaster, and inadvertently foils another dastardly plot by the persistent cat burglars from Bear Alert. Covering the story is intrepid—but bumbling—reporter Chad Newsworthy and the rest of the crew at Channel 3 News.

Bears to the Rescue

Kate Messner

Told in letters, poems, text messages, news stories, and comics–a series of documents Nora collects for the Wolf Creek Community Time Capsule Project–Breakout is a thrilling story that will leave readers thinking about who’s really welcome in the places we call home. Nora Tucker is looking forward to summer vacation in Wolf Creek–two months of swimming, popsicles, and brushing up on her journalism skills for the school paper. But when two inmates break out of the town’s maximum security prison, everything changes. Doors are locked, helicopters fly over the woods, and police patrol the school grounds. Worst of all, everyone is on edge, and fear brings out the worst in some people Nora has known her whole life. Even if the inmates are caught, she worries that home might never feel the same.

Breakout

Kathryn Fitzmaurice

Eleanor “Groovy” Robinson loves cooking and plans to go to culinary school just as soon as she’s old enough. But even Groovy’s thoughtfully—planned menus won’t fix the things that start to go wrong the year she turns eleven—suddenly, her father is in jail, her best friend’s long-absent mother reappears, and the swallows that make their annual migration to her hometown arrive surprisingly early. As Groovy begins to expect the unexpected, she learns about the importance of forgiveness, understands the complex stories of the people around her, and realizes that even an earthquake can’t get in the way of a family that needs to come together. Kathryn Fitzmaurice’s lovely debut novel is distinctively Californian in its flavor. Her rich characters and strong sense of place feel both familiar and fresh at first meeting—and worth revisiting, again and again.

The Year the Swallows Came Early

Claire Rudolf Murphy

Offers a look at the life of the children who grew up on this infamous island with their families throughout its long and diverse history as a military prison, maximum security prison, and site of a Native American uprising, enhanced with period photos, interviews, and first-hand accounts.

The Children of Alcatraz

Beth Vrabel

Noah is not having a good year.
His mom is in prison, he’s living with his mom’s boyfriend—who he’s sure is just waiting until his mother’s six month sentence is up to kick him out—and he’s officially hated by everyone at his middle school, including his former best friend. It’s Noah’s fault that the entire football program got shut down after last year.
One day, Noah notices a young bear at the edge of the woods with her head stuck in a bucket. A bucket that was almost certainly left outside as part of a school fundraiser to bring back the football team. As days go by, the bear is still stuck—she’s wasting away and clearly getting weaker, even as she runs from anyone who tries to help. And she’s always alone.
Though Noah ignores the taunts at school and ignores his mother’s phone calls from jail, he can’t ignore the bear. Everyone else has written the bear off as a lost cause—just like they have with Noah. He makes it his mission to help her.
But rescuing the bear means tackling his past—and present—head-on. Could saving the bear ultimately save Noah, too?

Bringing Me Back

R.L. Stine

Losing sight of their tour group while visiting London, Sue and Eddie find themselves in a gloomy prison tower and are horrified when they discover that they have traveled back in time to the seventeenth century. Original.

A Night in Terror Tower

Evil tree. Bad Apple? Twenty years ago, all the evil villains were banished from the kingdom of Auradon to the Isle of the Lost–a dark and dreary place protected by a force field that makes it impossible for them to leave. Stripped of their magical powers, the villains now live in total isolation, forgotten by the world. Mal learns from her mother, Maleficent, that the key to true darkness, the Dragon’s Eye, is located inside her scepter in the forbidden fortress on the far side of the island. The eye is cursed, and whoever retrieves it will be knocked into a deep sleep for a thousand years. But Mal has a plan to capture it. She’ll just need a little help from her “friends.” In their quest for the Dragon’s Eye, these four kids begin to realize that just because you come from an evil family tree, being good ain’t so bad.

Isle of the Lost

K. A. Holt

Timothy is on probation. It’s a strange word—something that happens to other kids, to delinquents, not to kids like him. And yet, he is under house arrest for the next year. He must check in weekly with a probation officer and a therapist, and keep a journal for an entire year. And mostly, he has to stay out of trouble. But when he must take drastic measures to help his struggling family, staying out of trouble proves more difficult than Timothy ever thought it would be. By turns touching and funny, and always original, House Arrest is a middlegrade novel in verse about one boy’s path to redemption as he navigates life with a sick brother, a grieving mother, and one tough probation officer.

House Arrest

Soon to be a major motion picture!When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that got her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that killed most of America’s children, but she and the others emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.But when the truth about Ruby’s abilities-the truth she’s hidden from everyone, even the camp authorities-comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. On the run, she joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp: Zu, a young girl haunted by her past; Chubs, a standoffish brainiac; and Liam, their fearless leader, who is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.While they journey to find the one safe haven left for kids like them-East River-they must evade their determined pursuers, including an organization that will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. But as they get closer to grasping the things they’ve dreamed of, Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.

Top 10 Prison Or Jail Books

Prison Or Jail

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