Featured Books: February 2010

The Viper's Nest By Peter Lerangis

$12.99 / 9780545060479 / Scholastic Inc


Shaken by a shocking loss, Amy and Dan flee to an exotic land and trace the footsteps of their most formidable ancestor yet: a military leader of mythic proportions. Includes game cards.

Numbers By Rachel Ward

$17.99 / 9780545142991 / Chicken House

Jem has a secret: whenever she meets someone new, as soon as she looks into their eyes a number pops into her head. That number is a date: the date they will die. Burdened with such awful awareness, Jem avoids relationships. Until she meets Spider, another outsider.

Bone Handbook By Jeff Smith

$9.99 / 9780545211420 / Graphix

This is the ultimate handbook for every BONE fan! Includes character profiles, a timeline of events, interviews with creator Jeff Smith and colorist Steve Hamaker, a showcase of cover art from the original BONE editions, a behind-the-scenes look at how the Scholastic editions were colorized, and other fun stuff!

Irish Country GirlAn Irish Country Girl By Patrick Taylor

$24.99 / 9780765320711 / Forge Books

Some forty-odd years before and many miles to the south, the girl who would someday be Kinky Kincaid was Maureen O’Hanlon, a farmer’s daughter growing up in the emerald hills and glens of County Cork. A precocious girl on the cusp of womanhood, Maureen has a head full of dreams, a heart open to romance, and something more: a gift for seeing beyond the ordinary into the mystic realm of fairies, spirits, and even the dreaded Banshee, whose terrifying wail she first hears on a snowy night in 1922. . . .

Warriors: Power of Three #5: Long Shadows By Erin Hunter

$6.99 / 9780060892166 / HarperCollins

Jaypaw is convinced that StarClan still holds an important place in the warrior code, and his search for answers leads him far back into the past, farther back than even StarClan can remember. Lionblaze, tortured by violent dreams and bloody visions, wishes he had never been prophesied to be one of the three but to turn his back on his littermates would be the ultimate betrayal. And Hollyleaf is terrified that once the Clans lose their faith, the warrior code will fall apart. She's willing to fight tooth and nail to preserve it—whatever the cost. And when murder stalks into the heart of ThunderClan, the cats realize that the darkest shadows don't always lie outside the territory.

Happiness Project

The Happiness Project By Gretchen Rubin

$25.99 / 9780061583254 / Harper

In this lively and compelling account of that year, Rubin carves out her place alongside the authors of bestselling memoirs such as Julie and Julia, The Year of Living Biblically, and Eat, Pray, Love. With humor and insight, she chronicles her adventures during the twelve months she spent test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier.

The Summer We Fell Apart By Robin Antalek

$14.99 / 9780061782169 / Harper Paperbacks

The children of a once-brilliant playwright and a struggling actress, the four Haas siblings grew up in chaos—raised in an environment composed of neglect and glamour in equal measure. When their father dies, they must depend on their intense but fragile bond to remember what it means to be family despite years of anger and hurt. These brothers and sisters are painfully human, sometimes selfish, and almost always making the wrong decisions, but their endearing struggles provide laughter through tears—something anyone who's ever had a sibling can relate to.

It All Changed in an Instant: More Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure By Larry Smith & Rachel Fershleiser

$12.00 / 9780061719431 / Harper Perennial

Funny and bittersweet, witty and wild, or downright tragic, these addictive life stories are both monumental and miniscule. Six-word memoirs have become a global phenomenon, offering anyone and everyone a telling peek at humanity and a chance to find the writer within.

Disney: Alice in Wonderland (Based on the motion picture directed by Tim Burton) By T.t. Sutherland

$16.99 / 9781423128861 / Disney Press

Join Alice as she disappears down a rabbit hole one more time and emerges in the topsy-turvy world of Wonderland! Magical escapades highlight Alice's journey, including a wild encounter with the Queen, the Mad Hatter, the Jabberwocky, and many others!

Shadow Tag By Louise Erdrich

$25.99 / 9780061536090 / Harper

When Irene America discovers that her husband, Gil, has been reading her diary, she begins a secret Blue Notebook, stashed securely in a safe-deposit box. There she records the truth about her life and her marriage, while turning her Red Diary—hidden where Gil will find it—into a manipulative farce. Alternating between these two records, complemented by unflinching third-person narration, Shadow Tag is an eerily gripping read.