2022 Holiday Gifts for Upper Elementary

A guide to baking for kids includes over one hundred recipes, including such offerings as berry scones, fluffy dinner rolls, jam thumbprint cookies, and chocolate cupcakes with nutella frosting.

"A novel in verse about a boy escaping slavers during the nineteenth century"-- Provided by publisher.

Twelve-year-old Aru stretches the truth to fit in at her private school, but when she is dared to prove an ancient lamp is cursed, she inadvertently frees an ancient demon.

Jessi recently moved to Stoneybrook and is one of the newest members of The Baby-sitters Club. She's getting ready to start regularly sitting for the BSC's newest charge, Matt Braddock. Matt has been Deaf since birth and uses sign language to communicate, so Jessi has to use it, too. It's a secret language! Soon all the neighborhood kids want to learn how to sign, which keeps the BSC busy. Jessi's the busiest of all -- she's preparing for her dance school's big show, plus working on another secret, just for Matt. Will Jessi be able to keep the secret and pull off her special event?

"A book exploring the world of the very small, delving deep into the microscopic spaces just beneath our skin"-- Provided by publisher.

"Eleven-year-old Ella Durand is the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, a magic school in the clouds where Marvellers from around the world practice their cultural arts. Despite her excitement, Ella discovers that being the first isn't easy--some Marvellers mistrust her magic. Eventually, she finds friends in elixirs teacher, Masterji Thakur, and fellow misfits Brigit and Jason. When a dangerous criminal escapes prison, supposedly with a Conjuror's aid, Ella becomes the target of suspicion. Worse, Masterji Thakur mysteriously disappears while away on a research trip. With the help of her friends and her own growing powers, Ella must find a way to clear her family's name and track down her mentor before it's too late"-- Provided by publisher

In 1980s Brooklyn, new student JJ Pankowski, an autistic, punk-rock-lover, befriends Pie Velez, an Afro-Latinx math geek and graffiti artist.

When seventh-grade classmates Mattie GЃomez and Mercedes Miller realize they have the same Colombian father, they hatch a plan to run away from a school field trip to meet him for the first time.

"Sue just wants to spend the summer reading and making comics at sleepaway camp with her friends, but instead she gets stuck going to Honduras to visit relatives with her parents and two sisters. They live way out in the country, which means no texting, no cable, and no Internet! The trip takes a turn for the worse when Sue's mother announces that they'll be having a surprise quinceąera for Sue, which is the last thing she wants. She can't imagine wearing a big, floofy, colorful dress! What is Sue going to do? And how will she survive all this "quality" time with her rambunctious family?"-- Amazon.

"A Winter Treasury of Recipes, Crafts and Wisdom (Little Country Cottage) offers nature-based crafts, bakes and gardening projects in a celebration of self-sufficient, eco-friendly, country cottage-style life. The seasonal gardening and growing projects, such as planting bare root berry bushes in the ground or in containers, can be done in a big back yard or on a balcony, making this eco-friendly activity book a fun resource, whether readers are based in town or country. Woven alongside the cooking, crafting and planting projects are little snippets of seasonal information and self-sufficient wisdom from homesteading teacher Angela Fanning of Axe and Root Homestead, with a focus on enjoying and celebrating the best of what the winter season has to offer."-- Publisher description.

"When Brie was younger, her mama used to surprise her with treasure hunts around their island town. After she died three years ago, these became Brie's favorite memories. Now, on her twelfth birthday, her mama has another surprise: a series of letters leading Brie on one last treasure hunt. The first letter guides Brie to a special place. The next urges her to unlock a secret. And the last letter will change life as she knows it"--Provided by publisher.

"Superspy middle schooler Ben Ripley races against time and across state lines - traveling by car, train, boat and plane - to track Murray Hill down before Ben's cyber enemies can find him"--Provided by publisher.

When three children endure separate climate change disasters--a wildfire in the California woods, a close encounter with a hungry polar bear in Canada, and a massive hurricane in Florida--they emerge from their experiences committed to changing the world.

"When Colin finds a shoebox full of letters hidden in a stranger's attic, he knows he's supposed to throw them away. That's his summer job, getting rid of junk. But Colin wants to rescue the letters--and find out what really happened to best friends Rosemary and Toby way back in the 1970s. Meanwhile, across town, Nevaeh also finds a mysterious letter. But this one reads like a confession to a crime. And Nevaeh knows her father, the 'Junk King,' expects her to join the rest of the family in blaming a single suspect: his business rival, Colin's mom."-- Front jacket flap.

Ten-year-old Zeus is kidnapped by the terrible Titans, merciless giants who enjoy snacking on humans, and when in self-defense he pulls a magical thunderbolt from a stone he begins an adventure to rescue his fellow Olympians from the evil Cronus.

"It's 1967, and eleven-year-old Ellis Earl Brown has big dreams. He's going to grow up to be a teacher or a lawyer--or maybe both--and live in a big brick house in town. There'll always be enough food in the icebox, and his mama won't have to run herself ragged looking for work as a maid in order to support Ellis Earl and his eight siblings and niece, Vera. So Ellis Earl applies himself at school, soaking up the lessons that Mr. Foster teaches his class--particularly those about famous colored people like Mr. Thurgood Marshall and Miss Marian Wright--and borrowing books from his teacher's bookshelf. When Mr. Foster presents him with a copy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Ellis Earl is amazed to encounter a family that's even worse off than his own--and is delighted by the Buckets' very happy ending. But when Mama tells Ellis Earl that he might need to quit school to help support the family, he wonders if happy endings are only possible in storybooks. Around the historical touchstone of Robert Kennedy's southern "poverty tour," Linda Williams Jackson pulls from her own childhood in the Mississippi Delta to tell a detail-rich and poignant story with memorable characters, sure to resonate with readers who have ever felt constricted by their circumstances."--From the Publisher.

Maureen and Francine Carter are twins and best friends. They participate in the same clubs, enjoy the same foods, and are partners on all their school projects. But just before the girls start sixth grade, Francine becomes Fran -- a girl who wants to join the chorus, run for class president, and dress in fashionable outfits that set her apart from Maureen. A girl who seems happy to share only two classes with her sister! Maureen and Francine are growing apart and there's nothing Maureen can do to stop it. Are sisters really forever? Or will middle school change things for good?

Five middle schoolers find a fully stocked bomb shelter constructed decades ago in the local woods by an eccentric tycoon and lost until a hurricane exposes the entrance. So, how to keep the hideout secret from interfering grown-ups--and, more particularly, from scary teen psychopath, Jaeger Devlin.

"In Dan McCloskey's debut graphic novel, best friends Pen and Olive live in Cloud Town, an impoverished community on Floating Island, a mysterious landmass that drifts above the earth and happens to sit dangerously close to the Rip--a tear in the fabric of the universe. No big deal or anything. While Pen is brash and brave, Olive is quiet, kind, and also fearful of bullies at school. That is, at least until the day they are nearly squashed by a Care Corp Storm Catcher, a giant android built to protect Cloud Town and the rest of Floating Island from Hurricanes, monsters that travel across the Rip. It isn't the event itself that changes the girls' relationship. It isn't the fear of death that drives them apart, or the questionable decision-making that leads Pen to drag Olive into the cab of the crashed robot. It's the fact that Olive can move the 90-foot-tall machine and Pen can't. Care Corp recruits Olive to train as a pilot, so that she can protect Floating Island when the next attack comes. It's a role reversal, for which neither of the girls are prepared."-- Amazon.com.

"Once upon a time, children imagined St. Nicholas as a stern, skinny bishop who was as likely to dole out discipline as Christmas presents. But thanks to the poem "Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas"--written by Clement C. Moore in 1822 and published the next year in the Troy Sentinel--a plumper, merrier St. Nick was born, transformed into the sleigh-riding, chimney-diving jolly old elf we now call Santa Claus. With gorgeous monochrome illustrations by Matt Tavares that are meticulously true to pre-Victorian times, this reissue of the holiday favorite 'Twas the Night Before Christmas Or Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas honors the poem's original language in a definitive keepsake volume." --amazon.com.

Before she decides whether to accept her stepfather's proposal of adoption, twelve-year-old Adela Ramírez reaches out to her estranged biological father--who is in the midst of a career comeback as a luchador--and the eccentric extended family of wrestlers she has never met, bringing Adela closer to understanding the expansive definition of family.

"Cameron Battle grew up reading The Book of Chidani, cherishing stories about the fabled kingdom that cut itself off from the world to save the Igbo people from danger. Passed down over generations, the Book is Cameron's only connection to his parents who disappeared one fateful night, two years ago. Ever since, his grandmother has kept the Book locked away, but it calls to Cameron. When he and his best friends Zion and Aliyah decide to open it again, they are magically transported to Chidani. Instead of a land of beauty and wonder, they find a kingdom in extreme danger, as the Queen's sister seeks to destroy the barrier between worlds. The people of Chidani have been waiting for the last Descendant to return and save them... is Cameron ready to be the hero they need?"-- Amazon.

"It's Maine, 1924, and the Ku Klux Klan is on the rise. Davy and Jo Michaud have been recently orphaned. Taken in by a distant relative-a famous aviator-they are now working with a group of stunt pilots who spend their time wing walking, leaping from plane to plane, and flying through fireworks! But though the stunts are dangerous, the real threat is building behind the scenes. The KKK is on the rise in Maine that summer, inspired by the racial fears promoted in Birth of a Nation. They spew hatred of immigrants, Blacks, Jews, and French Catholics-that last, a rage that will be directed at Davy and Jo. When Davy and Jo cross paths with the Klan, they get tangled up in a terrible revenge plan, and held as hostages. Can they escape with their lives?"-- Amazon.com.

Eleven-year-old Bo is used to it being just her and her mom in their cozy New York apartment, but when her mom gets married, Bo must adjust to her new sisters and a music-minded blended family that is much larger, louder, and more complex than she ever imagined.

"Omar must contend with being treated like a second-class citizen when he gets a scholarship to an elite boarding school"--Provided by publisher.

A high-seas adventure set in a Thai-inspired fantasy world. This is the story of a young woman's struggle to unburden herself of the past and chart her own destiny in a world of secrets. As assistant to Mangkon's most celebrated mapmaker, twelve-year-old Sai plays the part of a well-bred young lady with a glittering future. In reality, her father is a conman - and in a kingdom where the status of one's ancestors dictates their social position, the truth could ruin her. Sai seizes the chance to join an expedition to chart the southern seas, but she isn't the only one aboard with secrets. When Sai learns that the ship might be heading for the fabled Sunderlands - a land of dragons, dangers, and riches beyond imagining - she must weigh the cost of her dreams. Vivid, suspenseful, and thought-provoking, this tale of identity and integrity is as intricate as the maps of old.

"This unforgettable picture book introduces young readers to the life and work of Maya Angelou, whose words have uplifted and inspired generations of readers. The author of the celebrated autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya was the first Black person and first woman to recite a poem at a presidential inauguration, and her influence echoes through culture and history. She was also the first Black woman to appear on the United States quarter. Newbery Honor and Coretta Scott King Author Award winner Renée Watson uses Angelou's beloved medium of poetry to lyrically chronicle her rich life in a deeply moving narrative. Vivid and striking collage art by Caldecott Honor recipient and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award winner Bryan Collier completes this unforgettable portrait of one of the most important American artists in history."-- Publisher marketing.

"Eleven-year-old Maizy Chen visits her estranged grandparents, who own and run a Chinese restaurant in Last Chance, Minnesota; as her visit lengthens, she makes unexpected discoveries about her family's history and herself"-- Provided by publisher.