Alex Is Reading...USED BOOKS!

It's easy to forget, looking at all the shiny new wonders we have upstairs in Kidsmith, that there's more than one place to shop for kids' books at the Booksmith. Head down the stairs at the front of the store, hang a right at the bottom, and you'll find our recently expanded and entirely awesome used kids' books section. A couple weeks ago I picked up a copy of Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen, a delicious Newbery-winning novel about fresh air, maple syrup, and coming alive in the country from 1957. Now, you can't have that, because I am keeping it forever, but there are lots of treasures in the Used Book Cellar. Here are a few.

TEN GREAT KIDS' BOOKS IN THE UBC AT THIS VERY MOMENT
(Subtitle: Get Them While You Can)

The Amelia Series by Marissa Moss -- Before Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries, there was Amelia--half doodles, half writing, Amelia's diaries are colorful, fun to read, and star a girl you will want to get to know.

Runaways vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona -- Surprise! Your parents are super villains. This series got me into American superhero comics. All the characters are perfect and the art inside is great.

The Good Neighbors by Holly Black and Ted Naifeh -- Holly Black's scary fairies in comic book form, with art by Courtney Crumrin author and artist Ted Naifeh.

Going Bovine by Libba Bray -- Apathetic teenage boy gets the human version of mad cow disease. Now he's on the roadtrip of his life (literally) with a pal from the ward and a lawn gnome that doubles as the god Baldur. This book is amazing. You will WEEP.

Skellig by David Almond -- Two kids find an angel in the garage. It is not a cute angel. It is a weird angel. This is a weird book. The otherworldly feeling you get from Skellig will stick with you for years.

Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith -- Combines Crown Duel and Court Duel. This princess may come from a poor kingdom, but it's her kingdom, and she'll do anything to protect it. Battle, magic, romance, and intrigue abound.

The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff -- This novel is based on the true (?) story of a Roman legion in ancient Britain that simply disappeared. Rosemary Sutcliff is a sumptuous writer.

American Tall Tales by Mary Pope Osborne and Michael McCurdy -- The author of the Magic Tree House series takes on Americana in this beautifully illustrated and highly entertaining collection of traditional stories.

Fade by Robert Cormier -- Sometimes when people say "YA has gotten really dark!" it means they haven't read Robert Cormier. His books are almost all classics, gritty, grim and sometimes disturbing, but they'll always stay with you. Fade is about a boy with the power to turn invisible--and he's about the last person you WANT to turn invisible.

Heir Apparent by Vivian Vande Velde -- Virtual Reality is awesome...unless you get stuck in the game and your only way out is to beat it. Vande Velde writes fun, fluffy fantasy that hits the spot like candy hits a sweet tooth.

And don't forget....sometimes we have more books in a series downstairs in the UBC that we do upstairs! See here: A LOT OF BOXCAR CHILDREN. You can also find plenty of A Series of Unfortunate Events, Popularity Papers, and more. Whatever you're looking for, there's always some surprise treat to be found.

Happy reading, and happy treasure hunting!