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Harold Peabody & the Magic Glasses

Dawn Kopman Whidden, O.M. Faye

2019 Gold Medal
88 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2019 Gold Medal
Harold dreams of being a hero like his father, a Navy SEAL, but－he is what you might call an easy target. He’s short, he’s almost legally blind, and he’s the new kid in town!
When the biggest bully in school smashes Harold’s glasses and he has to get a new pair, something amazing happens. Suddenly, Harold can see anyone’s greatest fear.
Do you know what this means?
R-E-V-E-N-G-E.
And it has never tasted so sweet.
One by one, Harold is going to make bullies pay.
But, in the end, what if Harold becomes the villain in the story . . . instead of the hero?

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Selah's Painted Dream

Dream Horse Adventures Volume 3
Susan Count

2019 Silver Medal
202 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2019 Silver Medal
One word can ruin a great life--moving.
Unless thirteen-year-old Selah can convince Grandpa she should live at the farm, her life is ruined. She'll be forced to move hours from her horse and abandon her equestrian dreams.

Determined to stay, Selah must distract Grandpa from his new sweetheart. She searches for a painted dream horse from Grandpa's past. But, Selah finds his old equine partner neglected and near death.

Then Grandpa reveals his life changing decision that tramples Selah's plans.
Will the one thing that stood in Selah's way become her saving grace?
Purple Dragonfly Award - 2018 First Place - Family Matters
Literary Classics - 2019 Silver Award - Coming of Age
Readers Favorites - 2019 Silver Award - Coming of Age

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Go-Cart Gertie

Cindy Shirley

2019 Bronze Medal
46 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2019 Bronze Medal
When ten-year-old Gertie Gilbert announces that she wants to enter a local go-cart race, her older brother laughs and says, “you’re a girl and girls can't race!" The sibling rivalry begins as the family divides into teams for a little competition. Things really shift gears when the kids feisty Grandma G.G. comes for an unexpected visit. It's the girls versus the boys and the race is on! Gertie sets out to prove that girls can do anything boys can do! This funny family adventure will have readers cheering. The storyline deals with stereotypes, discrimination, sibling rivalry, and family bonding. Does Gertie win the local go-cart race? Grab your copy today and see which team gets the checkered flag.

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Mylee In The Mirror

Ellie Collins

2019 Honorable Mention
180 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2019 Honorable Mention
Freshman year is just starting, and already Mylee fears her family is falling apart. She's not interested in dating or any of the high-school drama it brings, but that's just what she gets when Sam, the most popular guy at school, invites her to the Homecoming dance. Mylee needs advice, so she summons Aphrodite, Goddess of Love and Beauty, her secret confidant.

Tyler is worried about Mylee, his best friend and teammate. Already sad about her family woes, he's livid that Slimeball Sam is trying to ooze his way into her life. And she seems to be falling for Sam's act! Worse, Ty is worried all this attention from such a popular guy will place Mylee officially out of his league.

What does an ancient Greek goddess know about modern teenage romance? Can My and Ty save their friendship and discover what matters most?

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The Field

Ian Dawson

2019 Finalist
241 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2019 Finalist
When fourteen-year-old Daniel Robinson is abducted during a game of hide-and-seek, his focus switches from enjoying his summer vacation to simply staying alive. He must find the courage and strength to escape his captors and get home, no matter what it takes. Will he survive? Or is this a nightmare that's too real to escape?

As Daniel finds himself at the mercy of his captors, his best friend Kyle sets out to bring him back to safety. With nothing but teenage instincts to guide him, Kyle's quest could result in a happy ending—or in tragedy.

In his first novel, author Ian Dawson draws from his real-life experiences to create an action-adventure story about unconditional friendship, courage, and determination.

Welcome to The Field.

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The Other Side of Freedom

Cynthia T. Toney

2018 Gold Medal
198 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2018 Gold Medal
When the reward is the most costly sacrifice of all In a southern farming community in 1925, thirteen-year-old Salvatore and his Italian immigrant father become involved against their will in a crime that results in the murder of an innocent man and family friend. Will Sal keep the secrets about that night as his father asks, or risk everything he and his family cherish in their new homeland, including their lives? Amidst bigotry, bootlegging, police corruption, and gangland threats, Sal must discover whom he can trust in order to protect himself and his family and win back his father’s freedom. Sal’s family, their African-American farmhand, and the girl who is Sal’s best friend find their lives forever changed as dreams are shattered and attitudes challenged in a small community called Freedom.

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Jake, Lucid Dreamer

David J. Naiman

2018 Silver Medal
189 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2018 Silver Medal

“A fantastical tale with a powerful message” raves SPR.

  • 2018 Purple Dragonfly Book Award First Place winner for Middle Grade fiction
  • 2018 Moonbeam Children's Book Awards Gold Medal Winner for Pre-teen fiction - Mature Issues
  • 2018 International Book Award Silver Medal Winner Readers' Favorite for Coming of Age
  • 2018 Finalist for The Wishing Shelf Book Awards and Quarter Finalist for the BookLife Prize

12-year-old Jake has been suppressing his heartbreak over the loss of his mother for the past four years. But his emotions have a way of haunting his dreams and bubbling to the surface when he least expects it. When Jake learns how to take control in his dreams, he becomes a lucid dreamer, and that’s when the battle really heats up.

Using his wits to dodge bullies by day and a nefarious kangaroo hopping ever closer by night, Jake learns about loss, bravery, the power of love, and how you cannot fully heal until you face your greatest fear. This uncompromising novel is a magical yet honest exploration of emotional healing after a devastating loss.

Described as a “poignant coming-of-age novel (that) offers a sensitive and honest examination of a child’s spiritual and emotional battles” by The BookLife Prize.

This moving story is in the genre of magical realism, a type of storytelling popularized by acclaimed authors such as Neil Gaiman, Rebecca Stead, Katherine Applegate, Wendy Maas, and Roald Dahl.

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Charley's Horse

Judith Shaw

2018 Bronze Medal
336 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2018 Bronze Medal
Charley's Horse is the story of an eleven-year-old girl who is crazy about horses. She knows everything about them--except how to ride. 

When her parents split up, Charley is sent to away to riding camp. She resists, but the lure of her own horse for the summer is too strong. She'll live with girls who love horses as much as she does, and she'll learn to ride.  

But her summer horse hates her, the girls in her cabin think she's a freak, and riding lessons scare her silly. A secret friend is all that makes camp bearable. 

Charley's Horse is the story of a young girl's journey through obstacles, isolation, and trials of courage. It's about the chasm between dreams and reality, about the difficulty of fitting in, overcoming fear and insecurity, and finding a way to stay true to herself. It's also about horses and riding, from an author who spent twenty-five years doing nothing but. 

This is not just a novel for horse-mad girls. Their mothers and grandmothers will find themselves in this honest and heartwarming coming of age story.

Charley's Horse is the 2018 Maxy Award Runner Up, Best Young Adult Novel.

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Cascading Petals

Jane C Brady

2018 Honorable Mention
264 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2018 Honorable Mention
2018 Readers' Favorite Award Winner--Coming of Age


Despite the years of bullying in school, Jewel Hart has remained sweet and kind. She has it all--a great life, a great family, and beauty--but she has never been able to obtain the one thing she wants--to belong. 

When Jewel meets Kaiden Carter, a good-looking, charming new student at York Mills High, things start to look up. On the surface, he is perfect, but Jewel can't shake the feeling that everything is not as it seems. 

When the devastation of the rising suicides in her school hits too close to home and drives Jewel into a deep despair, she clings to Kaiden's strength to find her way back. Through the pain and fear surrounding her, she finds hope and the will to go on. But just as she picks herself up, tragedy strikes again, threatening to steal her last glimmer of hope. How will she go on? Can she ever find her place in the world?


Recommended for ages 16+

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING

"In Cascading Petals, by Jane C Brady, we face bullying head-on, not in an abstract manner, but in a deeply personal and realistic way.
Cascading Petals is very much a teen romance story and one that is beautifully told by author Jane C Brady, but it is very much more than that. The author uses the story to explore dark and often hitherto hidden places where teenage minds and angst can reside, especially when faced with the hurtful taunts and lies of not only their peers, but even some of their teachers. The ulterior motive of this book was clearly to shine a light into areas that we, as adults, are often afraid to go and to show just how incredibly debilitating systematic and concerted bullying can be, not just to those being bullied, but often to the perpetrators themselves. Brady tells the story in a no-holds-barred narrative and yet maintains a sensitivity and a compassion that we wish were present inside of those who choose to relieve their own inner pain at the expense of others. This is one of the best books on the subject I've read and Brady is to be congratulated for telling this difficult story without resorting to clichés and over-emotional responses. A great job."⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️-Readers' Favorite

"This beautifully written and heartbreaking story deals with the issue of bullying and suicide. I rode a chaotic and emotional roller coaster ride with this book not only because of the outstanding job the author did with the writing and characters but also with the fact that these things happen to so many teens every single day."⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️-YA Book Divas

This is an excellent story.  Very well-written. I wish that every student could read this book and then discuss it with others.  What a powerful reminder to us all about the hardships of growing up and attending school.
The characters are very well-developed.  I enjoyed them all. I felt their emotions, the ups and downs.  I shed a lot of tears.
I would highly recommend this book to pre-teens, teens and even adults.  It is a good reminder for everyone.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️-Rockin' Book Reviews

"The entire story was moving and brilliantly done." Haddie's Haven 

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The Maker

D. F. Anderson

2018 Finalist
264 Pages
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Children - Coming of Age

2018 Finalist
When a mysterious drawing binder appears on thirteen-year-old Nate Smith’s windowsill, he starts having visions—and drawing them. Strange creatures come for his work, launching him on a space adventure to learn the alien art of making. Armed with an otherworldly pen that brings his drawings to life, Nate must save planets, and his parents, from the dark creations of an alien mastermind. If only he believed he had talent.