Showing results by narrator "Kevin R. Free" in All Categories

In this compelling novel, Golden Kite Award-winning children’s author Tony Abbott explores Jim Crow laws and family strife from multiple perspectives. During the summer of 1959, Bobby and his family are visiting Civil War battlefields. Tempers flare as an accident cuts their trip short and forces them to return home by bus. On their journey, they witness a black family getting denied bus seats. In brief flashes of insight, young Bobby begins to question his assumptions about race.

Gary Paulsen was one of the kids who slipped through the cracks, until art and dogs saved him. So are Jake, Jojo, and Jamie, all 12-year-olds who, like Gary Paulsen, had to grow up too fast. Gary Paulsen’s three poignant novellas add up to an unforgettable book.

Two gay men—one young, one ageless—sink their teeth into reclaiming their lives and identities from those who would silence them in this insatiable romantic horror novel from Hugo and Nebula Award–nominated author Kellan McDaniel.

Damballah, Hiding Place, and Sent for You Yesterday provide a stunning introduction to the uncompromising work of John Edgar Wideman, whose literary achievements have inspired The New York Times to name him “one of America’s premier writers of fiction”. Damballah’s narratives examine the vexed history of Homewood, a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, neighborhood whose origins are rooted in a time when slavery was still legal in the United States of America.

Arriving in New York City full of idealism, Paul discovers the queer community gathering strength in the face of government inaction and social stigma. As he protests, parties, and makes a new home, he finds himself pulling away from his HIV-negative boyfriend to pursue an intense bond with a passionate, HIV-positive artist. Paul’s awakening parallels ACT UP’s rise, successes, and controversies. And then everything shifts again, as his family is thrust into their own life-and-death struggle that tests him even further.

So whether you're looking to unravel the mysteries of America's past or just want to learn more about our country's presidents, U.S. History 101 has all the answers--even the ones you didn't know you were looking for.

This revelatory and gripping nonfiction middle grade book explores a deeply troubling chapter in American history that is still playing out today: the strange case of Prince Edward County, Virginia, the only place in the United States to ever formally deny its citizens a public education, and the students who pushed back.

Malachi and his friends are just your regular average kids from hell. The suburbs that is, not the fiery pit part. But when Hell’s Bells ring out—signaling that a soul has escaped from one of the eternal circles, Mal and his friends can’t help but take the opportunity for a little adventure. Before they know it, they’ve somehow slipped through the veil and found themselves in the middle of Salem, Massachusetts, on Halloween night. And what’s even worse, they’ve managed to bring the escaped soul with them!

The boxmates from the B.E.S.T. Academy are lost at sea and their best friend, Grayson Bix, is missing. Their hoverpod is busted, their stomachs are empty, and their hopes are crushed. When a mysterious vessel approaches, Ace, Leo, and Jayla are certain they'll be carted back to the Tower of Power, with their punishments for escaping awaiting. But a twist: The crew is rescued and introduced to a vibrant and thriving underwater world that is off the grid and out of Bixonics's eye...and one step closer to finding Grayson.

Kayla needs to return her library books so she can check out new ones. But she can’t find one of them. Where could it be? Can King and Kayla’s friend Jillian help?

Miles Lewis loves science and sports. But when his teacher announces a class field trip to an ice skating rink to learn about physics, he isn't so excited. He's never ice skated before, and his friend RJ won't let him forget it. RJ even challenges him to a bet: If Miles skates without falling, RJ will put a “Miles is the man” sign on his backpack.

Miles has been waiting forever to be part of a city-wide science competition. Now his dream is finally coming true, and he's even part of an all-star team that includes his good friend, Jada. He should be in his element, so he can't seem to figure out why he feels like the weak link instead. While everyone else is rocking the project, Miles keeps messing up, and the team bickers and loses momentum. Miles is filled with self-doubt, and he has to wonder: Is he really a whiz at science, or is he actually a flop?

Rufus may have successfully sent the feylings home to the Green World, but he still has one pesky feyling under his wing: Nettle, his sometimes enemy, now mentor. Nettle is in charge of helping Rufus and his cousin Abigail protect Feylawn, their grandfather’s magical and mysterious homestead. But this difficult task becomes even more dangerous when a leopard appears in the woods without warning; strange, waterlogged women arrive to warn of impending doom; and a goblin begins digging his way back to Earth, hungry for revenge.

As far as this ice-cream-loving kid is concerned, every meal should include ice cream. In any form, in every flavor, he loves it all. But what he doesn't love is seeing other people with ice cream...while he's still waiting in line for his. That's when he can get his mad, "no-ice-cream-yet, waiting-in-a-long-line face"—until he finally gets his cone, and his mad face melts into something sweet. Heidi Woodward Sheffield gently explores a range of emotions as they relate to this delicious everyday experience.

When night falls upon Ditchfield Juvenile Detention Facility in the Maryland foothills, whatever the watch tower lights don’t touch is taken by the shadows. Inside are young men the state calls lost causes and future convicts. The violent. The mentally ill. The forgotten. Gordon Pope hates Ditchfield. Rumors have swirled about the place for years. Whispers of beatings. Mental abuse. Even experiments. Every patient he’s had that ended up there took a chunk of his heart with them.

In 1911, famed cartoonist Winsor McCay debuted one of the first animated cartoons, based on his sophisticated newspaper strip Little Nemo in Slumberland, itself inspired by Freud’s recent research on dreams. McCay is largely forgotten today, but he unleashed an art form and the creative energy of artists from Otto Messmer and Max Fleischer to Walt Disney and Warner Bros.’ Chuck Jones. Wild Minds is an ode to our colorful past and to the creative energy that later inspired The Simpsons, South Park, and BoJack Horseman.

A thoughtful little Rabbit sets out to find the perfect gift for his nana. He knows she will love anything he brings her, but Rabbit wants this gift to be extra special. As he travels on his quest, Rabbit encounters an assortment of creatures - a crow, a smiling full moon, a stickler (whatever that is), a big fish, and a volcano. Each is certain they offer the best advice, but nothing they suggest seems right for his nana. It's not until Rabbit reaches the highest peak that he finds exactly what he's been searching for.

A lovable dog helps his human girl solve a mystery. Kayla lost a tooth, but now it's missing! What does Kayla know? Her tooth is not inside the tooth fairy pillow. It's not inside her backpack. It's not inside the car. What does King know? Mason's hand smells like the tooth fairy pillow. How will they solve the mystery?

Jonathan Lewis-Adey was nine when his mother, Sid, vanished entirely from his life. It’s not until he’s a grown man that Jonathan finally reconnects with his beloved lost parent, only to find, to his shock and dismay, that the woman he knew as 'Sid' in Toronto has become an elegant man named Sydney living in his native Trinidad. For nine years, Jonathan has paid regular visits to Sydney, trying with quiet desperation to rediscover the parent he adored inside this familiar stranger.

Jonathan Lewis-Adey was nine when his parents separated, and his mother, Sid, vanished entirely from his life. It is not until he is a grown man that Jonathan finally reconnects with his beloved lost parent, only to find, to his shock and dismay, that the woman he knew as "Sid" in Toronto has become an elegant man named Sydney living in his native Trinidad.