Pirates Don't Change Diapers by Melinda Long & Illustrated by David Shannon

Title: Pirates Don't Change Diapers

Author: Melinda Long

Illustrator: David Shannon

Length: 44 pages

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Classification: Children's Book

Release Date: March 1, 2007

Source: Library Book

When the pirate crew turns up at Jeremy Jacob's house and accidentally wakes his baby sister, that wee scallywag howls louder than a storm on the high seas. Sure, there's buried treasure to be found, but nobody's digging up anything until Bonney Anne quits her caterwauling. So, quicker than you can say "scurvy dog," Braid Beard and his swashbuckling pirates become . . . babysitters? Blimey!     This hilarious companion to How I Became a Pirate reveals that minding the nursery can be even more terrifying than walking the plank--especially if you're a pirate. 

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How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long & Illustrated by David Shannon

Title: How I Became a Pirate

Author: Melinda Long

Illustrator: David Shannon

Length: 44 pages

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Classification: Children's Book

Release Date: September 1, 2003

Source: Library Book

Pirates have green teeth—when they have any teeth at all. I know about pirates, because one day, when I was at the beach building a sand castle and minding my own business, a pirate ship sailed into view.So proclaims Jeremy Jacob, a boy who joins Captain Braid Beard and his crew in this witty look at the finer points of pirate life by the Caldecott Honor–winning illustrator David Shannon and the storyteller Melinda Long. Jeremy learns how to say “scurvy dog,” sing sea chanteys, and throw food . . . but he also learns that there are no books or good night kisses on board: “Pirates don’t tuck.” A swashbuckling adventure with fantastically silly, richly textured illustrations that suit the story to a T. 

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The Art of Not Breathing by Sarah Alexander

Title: The Art of Not Breathing

Author: Sarah Alexander
Length: 288 pages
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Classification: Young Adult, Contemporary
Release Date: April 26, 2016
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you, HMH!)

Since her twin brother, Eddie, drowned five years ago, sixteen-year-old Elsie Main has tried to remember what really happened that fateful day on the beach. One minute Eddie was there, and the next he was gone. Seventeen-year-old Tay McKenzie is a cute and mysterious boy that Elsie meets in her favorite boathouse hangout. When Tay introduces Elsie to the world of freediving, she vows to find the answers she seeks at the bottom of the sea.

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor

Title: Into the Dim
(Into the Dim #1)
Author: Janet B. Taylor
Length: 432 pages
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Classification: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Time Travel
Release Date: March 1, 2016
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you, HMH!)
Read:

When fragile, sixteen-year-old Hope Walton loses her mom to an earthquake overseas, her secluded world crumbles. Agreeing to spend the summer in Scotland, Hope discovers that her mother was more than a brilliant academic, but also a member of a secret society of time travelers. Trapped in the twelfth century in the age of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Hope has seventy-two hours to rescue her mother and get back to their own time. Along the way, her path collides with that of a mysterious boy who could be vital to her mission . . . or the key to Hope’s undoing.      Addictive, romantic, and rich with historical detail, Into the Dim is an Outlander for teens. 

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Need by Joelle Charbonneau

Title: Need
Author: Joelle Charbonneau
Length: 352 pages
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Classification: Young Adult, Thriller, Mystery
Release Date: November 3, 2015
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you, HMH Books for Young Readers!)
Read: November 2015

"No one gets something for nothing. We all should know better."
Teenagers at Wisconsin's Nottawa High School are drawn deeper into a social networking site that promises to grant their every need . . . regardless of the consequences. Soon the site turns sinister, with simple pranks escalating to malicious crimes. The body count rises. In this chilling YA thriller, the author of the best-selling Testing trilogy examines not only the dark side of social media, but the dark side of human nature. 

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Waiting on Wednesday #30: Into the Dim

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor

Publication Date: March 1, 2016

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell

Title: Mechanica
Author: Betsy Cornwell
Length: 304 pages
Publisher: Clarion Books
Classification: Young Adult, Fairy Tale Retelling, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Fantasy
Release Date: August 25, 2015
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you HMH Books!)
Read: August 2015

Nicolette’s awful stepsisters call her “Mechanica” to demean her, but the nickname fits: she learned to be an inventor at her mother’s knee. Her mom is gone now, though, and the Steps have turned her into a servant in her own home. 
But on her sixteenth birthday, Nicolette discovers a secret workshop in the cellar and begins to dare to imagine a new life for herself. Could the mysterious books and tools hidden there—and the mechanical menagerie, led by a tiny metal horse named Jules—be the key to escaping her dreary existence? With a technological exposition and royal ball on the horizon, the timing might just be perfect for Nicolette to earn her freedom at last.
Gorgeous prose and themes of social justice and family shine in this richly imagined Cinderella retelling about an indomitable inventor who finds her prince . . . but realizes she doesn't want a fairy tale happy ending after all.

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

Title: Vengeance Road
Author: Erin Bowman
Length: 336 pages
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Classification: Young Adult, Western, Historical Fiction, Adventure
Release Date: September 1, 2015
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you, HMH!)
Read: August 2015

When Kate Thompson’s father is killed by the notorious Rose Riders for a mysterious journal that reveals the secret location of a gold mine, the eighteen-year-old disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers and justice. What she finds are devious strangers, dust storms, and a pair of brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, she gets closer to the truth about herself and must decide if there's room for love in a heart so full of hate.
In the spirit of True Grit, the cutthroat days of the Wild West come to life for a new generation.

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Charlie, Presumed Dead by Anne Heltzel

Title: Charlie, Presumed Dead
Author: Anne Heltzel
Length: 272 pages
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Classification: Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you HMH!)
Read: May 2015

In Paris, family and friends gather to mourn the tragic passing of Charlie Price—young, handsome, charming, a world-traveler—who is presumed dead after an explosion. Authorities find only a bloodied jacket, ID’d as Charlie’s. At the funeral, two teens who are perfect strangers, Lena Whitney and Aubrey Boroughs, make another shocking discovery: they have both been dating Charlie, both think Charlie loved them and them alone, and there is a lot they didn’t know about their boyfriend. Over the next week, a mind-bending trip unfolds: first in London—then in Mumbai, Kerala, and Bangkok, the girls go in search of Charlie. Is he still alive? What did their love for him even mean? The truth is out there, but soon it becomes clear that the girls are harboring secrets of their own. 
No one knows whom to trust in this thrilling tale of suspense and deception.

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Material Girls by Elaine Dimopoulos

Title: Material Girls
Author: Elaine Dimopoulos
Length: 336 pages
Publisher: HMH Books For Young Readers
Classification: Young Adult, Dystopian
Release Date: May 5, 2015
Source: e-galley via NetGalley (Thank you, HMH!)
Read: April 2015

In Marla Klein and Ivy Wilde’s world, teens are the gatekeepers of culture. A top fashion label employs sixteen-year-old Marla to dictate hot new clothing trends, while Ivy, a teen pop star, popularizes the garments that Marla approves. Both girls are pawns in a calculated but seductive system of corporate control, and both begin to question their world’s aggressive levels of consumption. Will their new “eco-chic” trend subversively resist and overturn the industry that controls every part of their lives?Smart, provocative, and entertaining, this thrilling page-turner for teens questions the cult like mentality of fame and fashion. Are you in or are you out?

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***I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Title: Grave Mercy 

(His Fair Assassin #1)

Author: Robin LaFevers

Length: 576 pages

Publisher: HMH Books For Young Readers

Classification: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction

Release Date: April 3, 2012

Source: e-book (purchased)

Read: July 2014

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf? Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others. Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart? 

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