Synopses & Reviews
National Book Award nominee!
The magic of Savvy meets the complexity of When You Reach Me in this "blithe magical puzzle." --The Wall Street Journal
Told in multiple viewpoints, A Tangle of Knots is a magnificent puzzle. In a slightly magical world where everyone has a Talent, eleven-year-old Cady is an orphan with a phenomenal Talent for cake baking. But little does she know that fate has set her on a journey from the moment she was born. And her destiny leads her to a mysterious address that houses a lost luggage emporium, an old recipe, a family of children searching for their own Talents, and a Talent Thief who will alter her life forever. However, these encounters hold the key to Cady's past and how she became an orphan. If she's lucky, fate may reunite her with her long-lost parent.
Lisa Graff adds a pinch of magic to a sharply crafted plot to create a novel that will have readers wondering about fate and the way we're all connected.
Praise for A TANGLE OF KNOTS
"Lisa Graff has created a beautiful world of deliciously interconnected stories that draw you in." --Abby West, Entertainment Weekly [A-]
* "Subtle and intricate, rich with humor and insight, this quietly magical adventure delights." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review
* "Combining the literary sensibility of E. B. White with the insouciance of Louis Sachar, Graff has written a tangle that should satisfy readers for years to come." --Booklist, starred review
"Graffs story has a warmth and gentle humor that, along with the premise, calls to mind Ingrid Laws Savvy." --Publishers Weekly
Review
“Vladimir Radunsky created the artwork for the 1998 hardcover, and another of his striking paintings adorns Farrar, Straus and Girouxs 10th-anniversary edition . . . Wrapped in an acetate jacket, the whole package has a crisp, sparkling appeal. Kid-friendly bonus materials include lighthearted personal perspectives written by Sachars older brother, daughter, and wife; his Newbery acceptance speech; and several black-and-white photos, mostly taken on the movie set.” —SLJs Extra Helping"Stanley Yelnats IV has been wrongly accused of stealing a famous baseball player's valued sneakers and is sent to Camp Green Lake, a juvenile detention home where the boys dig holes, five feet deep by five feet across, in the miserable Texas heat. It's just one more piece of bad luck that's befallen Stanley's family for generations...There is no question, kids will love Holes." —Starred, School Library Journal
Review
"The whole work is seamless, compelling, and memorable—impossible to put down; difficult to forget."
—The Horn Book
(star) "“A story of Denmark and the Danish people, whose Resistance was so effective in saving their Jews.”—School Library Journal, starred review
Review
Praise for A TANGLE OF KNOTS:
"[A] blithe magical puzzle." --Meghan Cox Gurdon, The Wall Street Journal
"Lisa Graff has created a beautiful world of deliciously interconnected stories that draw you in." --Abby West, Entertainment Weekly [A-]
* "Subtle and intricate, rich with humor and insight, this quietly magical adventure delights." --Kirkus Reviews *STARRED*
* "Combining the literary sensibility of E. B. White with the insouciance of Louis Sachar, Graff has written a tangle that should satisfy readers for years to come." --Booklist *STARRED*
"Graffs story has a warmth and gentle humor that, along with the premise, calls to mind Ingrid Laws Savvy." --Publishers Weekly
Review
and#8220;A powerful and provocative noveland#8221;and#8212;
The New York Times and#8220;Wrought with admirable skill -- the emptiness and menace underlying this Utopia emerge step by inexorable step: a richly provocative novel.and#8221;and#8212;Kirkus, starred review
and#8220;Lowry is once again in top form raising many questions while answering few, and unwinding a tale fit for the most adventurous readers.and#8221;and#8212;Publishers Weekly, starred review
and#8220;The simplicity and directness of Lowry's writing force readers to grapple with their own thoughts.and#8221;and#8212; Booklist, starred review
and#8220;The theme of balancing the values of freedom and security is beautifully presented.and#8221;and#8212; The Horn Book Magazine, starred review
Synopsis
A New York Times Bestseller
Adapted into the movie Holes
Interest Level: Middle/High School
Reading Grade Level: 3rd & 4th
Lexile Level: 660L
Theme: Belonging/Sense of Self
An Accelerated Reader(r) title
Synopsis
A darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment
Stanley Yelnat's family has a history of bad luck, so he isn't too surprised when a miscarriage of justice sends him to a boys' juvenile detention center, Camp Green Lake. There is no lake - it has been dry for over a hundred years - and it's hardly a camp. As punishment, the boys must each dig a hole a day, five feet deep, five feet across, in the hard earth of the dried-up lake bed. The warden claims that this pointless labor builds character, but she is really using the boys to dig for loot buried by the Wild West outlaw Kissin' Kate Barlow. The story of Kissin' Kate, and of a curse put on Stanley's great-great-grandfather by a one-legged gypsy, weaves a narrative puzzle that tangles and untangles, until it becomes clear that the hand of fate has been at work in the lives of the characters - and their forebears - for generations.
With this wonderfully inventive, compelling novel that is both serious and funny, Louis Sachar has written his best book to date.
Synopsis
10th Anniversary Edition Louis Sachar received great recognition for his groundbreaking story of Stanley Yelnats - a boy with a history of bad luck. As School Library Journal predicted in their starred review of the book when it was first published, “Kids will love Holes.” A decade later, the book is still quenching young readers thirst for a gripping story about a far-reaching family curse, friendship, adventure, endurance, and, finally, a generous helping of good karma. Celebrate with this special 10th Anniversary Edition, which includes portraits of the author as a little brother (by his big brother), as a husband (by his wife), and as a father (by his daughter), along with photos and Louis Sachars 1999 Newbery acceptance speech. Vladimir Radunsky, who created the original iconoclastic cover illustration, has made new art from the familiar images. Wrapped in an acetate jacket, this edition is an appealing package that will be equally welcome in public, school, or home libraries. Holes is a 1998 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and the winner of the 1998 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the 1999 Boston Globe - Horn Book Award for Fiction and the 1999 Newbery Medal.
Synopsis
It's been approximately sixteen years since one of the most prolific and influentional novels of our time--Lois Lowry's The Giver--received the Newbery Medal in 1994. The story centers on twelve-year-old Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal world. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver does he begin to understand the dark secrets behind this fragile community. This gift edition celebrates this Houghton Mifflin touchstone and a Two-Time Newbery Medalist with twelve freshly brushed illustrations by acclaimed artist Bagram Ibatoulline. The Giver as a book stands on its own, of course, but the illustrations of Ibatoulline add to and amplify this work to make it a gift that is even easier to give. Who wouldn't want to give The Giver as a gift? The Giver is the first in the trilogy of books that includes Gathering Blue and The Messenger. This is not their first collaboration as Lowry's text met Ibatoulline's illustration in the picture book Crow Call published by Scholastic in Fall 2009.
Synopsis
Told in multiple viewpoints,
A Tangle of Knots is a magnificent puzzle. In a slightly magical world where everyone has a Talent, eleven-year-old Cady is an orphan with a phenomenal Talent for cake baking. But little does she know that fate has set her on a journey from the moment she was born. And her destiny leads her to a mysterious address that houses a lost luggage emporium, an old recipe, a family of children searching for their own Talents, and a Talent Thief who will alter her life forever. However, these encounters hold the key to Cady's past and how she became an orphan. If she's lucky, fate may reunite her with her long-lost parent.
Lisa Graff adds a pinch of magic to a sharply crafted plot to create a novel that will have readers wondering about fate and the way we're all connected.
Synopsis
This 25th anniversary edition marks another milestone for the Newbery Medal-winning classic Number the Stars. By the author of The Giver, this remarkable work of historical fiction tells the profound story about a very brave ten-year-old Danish girl and how the Nazis threaten her Jewish best friend in the war-torn world of 1943.
Synopsis
This 25th anniversary edition celebrates a true milestone for this Newbery Medal-winning classic with a fresh new look and an introduction by Lois Lowry. This time-honored story champions a young girl's bravery and good will in helping her best friend survive in a very unwelcoming, war-torn world.
As the German troops begin their campaign to "relocate" all the Jews of Denmark, Annemarie Johansens family takes in Annemaries best friend, Ellen Rosen, and conceals her as part of the family.
Through the eyes of ten-year-old Annemarie, we watch as the Danish Resistance smuggles almost the entire Jewish population of Denmark, nearly seven thousand people, across the sea to Sweden. The heroism of an entire nation reminds us that there was pride and human decency in the world even during a time of terror and war.
Synopsis
In Lois Lowryand#8217;s Newbery Medaland#8211;winning classic, twelve-year-old Jonas lives in a seemingly ideal world. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver does he begin to understand the dark secrets behind his fragile community.
Synopsis
The Giver, the 1994 Newbery Medal winner, has become one of the most influential novels of our time. The haunting story centers on twelve-year-old Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community. Lois Lowry has written three companion novels to The Giver, including Gathering Blue, Messenger, and Son.
Synopsis
The magic of Savvy meets the complexity of When You Reach Me in this "blithe magical puzzle," --The Wall Street Journal
Told in multiple viewpoints, A Tangle of Knots is a magnificent puzzle. In a slightly magical world where everyone has a Talent, eleven-year-old Cady is an orphan with a phenomenal Talent for cake baking. But little does she know that fate has set her on a journey from the moment she was born. And her destiny leads her to a mysterious address that houses a lost luggage emporium, an old recipe, a family of children searching for their own Talents, and a Talent Thief who will alter her life forever. However, these encounters hold the key to Cady's past and how she became an orphan. If she's lucky, fate may reunite her with her long-lost parent.
Lisa Graff adds a pinch of magic to a sharply crafted plot to create a novel that will have readers wondering about fate and the way we're all connected.
"Lisa Graff has created a beautiful world of deliciously interconnected stories that draw you in." --Abby West, Entertainment Weekly [A-]
"Subtle and intricate, rich with humor and insight, this quietly magical adventure delights." --Kirkus Reviews [STARRED]
"Graffs story has a warmth and gentle humor that, along with the premise, calls to mind Ingrid Laws Savvy." --Publishers Weekly
About the Author
'\'Lois Lowry is known for her versatility and invention as a writer. She was born in Hawaii and grew up in New York, Pennsylvania, and Japan. After several years at Brown University, she turned to her family and to writing. She is the author of more than thirty books for young adults, including the popular Anastasia Krupnik series. She has received countless honors, among them the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award, the California Young Readers Medal, and the Mark Twain Award. She received Newbery Medals for two of he Bagram Ibatoulline was born in Omsk, Russia, and attended the State Academic Institute of Arts in Moscow. He has worked in fine arts, graphic arts, mural design, and textile design, and is adept at painting in different styles. This is his first book for Clarion. He lives in Chichester, New York..\''