Mary Bloody Mary
Published by Harcourt Brace and Jovanovich, Hardcover $17.00, Paperback $5.95
Beware, Princess Elizabeth
Published by Harcourt Brace and Jovanovich, Hardcover $17.00, Paperback $5.95
Doomed Queen Anne
Published by Harcourt Brace and Jovanovich, Hardcover $17.00, Paperback $6.00

In brief yet poignant books, Carolyn Meyer has captured the joy and angst of the early years of these royal women.  Factual and totally enjoyable, these historical stories are as exciting as the best fiction.  -JoAnn Fruchtman

     

  The Singer of All Songs (Book One of The Chanters of Tremaris Trilogy)

Written by Kate Constable
Published by Scholastic, $16.95
     Coming this month.  The Singer of All Songs is one of the best sword and sorcery fantasy stories I have read recently.  This first novel by Kate Constable is the story of Calwyn, a novice ice priestess and chanter isolated from the rest of the world by an almost impenetrable wall of ice.  Her life is disrupted when an injured fugitive manages to cross the wall and she decides to help him.  Calwyn and Darrow, the fugitive, are forced to flee when the man Darrow was trying to escape (a former best friend turned dangerous enemy) finds him.  Calwyn and Darrow embark on a dangerous and beautiful journey filled with amazing sites and a variety of characters both friendly and hostile.
-Emma Casale

Pirate Pete Sets Sail
Written by
Published by North-South, $15.95
     This is a fun book about moving.  The story is told as if Pete is the captain of a pirate ship moving his ship to a new secret hideaway.  The illustrations, however, show Pete's family loading all their belongings onto and into their car and driving to their new house.  When Pete is in his crow's nest, the picture shows him sitting on the toilet which as at the very top of all the belongings tied to the roof of the car.  This is sure to get a laugh.  My three-and-a-half-year-old son loved this book- the humor and the pirate theme were both very appealing to him. -Lisa Cody

Oracle Betrayed
Written by Catherine Fisher
Published by HarperCollins, $16.99
     This first installment in a new fantasy series known as The Oracle Prophecies is full of treachery, adventure, suspense and heroism.  In a fantasy world drawn from the cultures of Ancient Greece and Egypt, Mirany uncovers a treacherous plot by the Speaker (a priestess responsible for interpreting the words of the god) and General Argelin.  With the help of an ambitious scribe named Seth and a musician named Obelek, she must find the boy fated to rule the land and protect him from the maneuverings of Hermia and General Argelin.  This book is an excellent addition to the fantasy-lover's library, especially if they enjoyed reading The Thief by Meghan Whelan Turner or The Ugly Goddess by Elsa Marston.  -Emma Casale

                                                                         
Olive's Ocean                                            Kitten's First Full Moon

Written by Kevin Henkes                                    Written by Kevin Henkes
Published by HarperCollins, $15.99                       Published by HarperCollins, $15.99

     Written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes, Kitten's First Full Moon is the charming story of a kitten that mistakes the moon for a bowl of milk.  After numerous attempts at reaching the milk, Kitten gives up and goes home to find a bowl of milk waiting for her. With simple black, white, and gray illustrations and recurring phrases, this gentle tale is perfect for small listeners.    -Sara Backstrom
     Martha is twelve and on the verge of so many new feelings she can hardly sort one from the other.  There's her family- loving and lovable but slightly battered by the demands of Martha's two-year-old sister and her father's pipe dream of becoming a writer, and her grandmother who finally admits that aging hasn't been a picnic and subsequently forces Martha to examine the possibility of losing her.  There's the "almost twin" brother she adores but who seems to be slipping away into his own adolescence.  And then there's Jimmy Manning who is winning her heart- and another little game he is playing at Martha's expense.
     Through it all Martha finds herself confused by the tragic death of a friend she didn't know she had.  Olive Barstow, a shy and quiet classmate, is dead, killed in a tragic accident.  It is only after her death that Martha discovers the special connection they shared.  Olive's death sets Martha on a quest to examine and finally come to cherish her relationships with friends and family.
     Olive's Ocean is simple, even sparse, in its telling.  But it is a story that skillfully takes the reader on Martha's journey to sort the complex emotions and feelings of adolescence.  Kevin Henkes, perhaps best known for his picture books Wemberly Worried, Lily's Purple Plastic Purse, and Owen, has masterfully slipped into Martha's skin to tell this story of one twelve-year-old who rediscovers the important relationships in her life.     -Shawn Nocher