From three-time Newbery honor recipient Christina Soontornvat comes a thrilling fantasy series about kids who can transform into amazing animals! Young Plum is shocked to discover that she’s been accepted to the Guardian Academy on Lotus Island, an elite school where kids learn how to transform into Guardians, magical creatures who are sworn to protect the natural world. The Guardian masters teach Plum and her friends how to communicate with animals and how to use meditation to strengthen their minds and bodies. All the kids also learn to fight, so they can protect the defenseless if needed. To her dismay, Plum struggles at school. While her classmates begin to transform into amazing creatures, Plum can’t even seem to magic up a single feather! If she can’t embrace her inner animal form soon, she’ll have to leave school ― and lose the first group of real friends she’s ever known. Perfect for reluctant readers: Under 200 pages Interior illustrations Magic and adventure

STAND TALL. BE LOUD. GAME FACE ON. This pitch perfect graphic memoir about courage and competition, friendship and belonging is perfect for fans of Smile, New Kid, Rollergirl, and Real Friends. "A captivating middle-grade gem." - The New York Times Book Review ★ "Funny, relatable, and genuine." - Kirkus Reviews, starred review ★ "Captures every nuanced emotion." - School Library Journal, starred review ★ "Genuinely nail-biting." - Publishers Weekly, starred review ★ "Cringe-worthy in the best possible way...inspiring and insightful." - Shelf Awareness, starred review "Delightfully expressive...a standout." - Booklist When cheerleading tryouts are announced, Christina and her best friend, Megan, literally jump at the chance to join the squad. As two of the only kids of color in the school, they have always yearned to fit in-and the middle school cheerleaders are popular and accepted by everyone. But will the girls survive the terrifying tryouts, with their whole grade watching? And will their friendship withstand the pressures of competition? Hilarious and highly relatable, The Tryout by two-time Newbery Honoree Christina Soontornvat and shining new talent Joanna Cacao will make you laugh, cry, and cheer!

A boy on the run. A girl determined to find him. A compelling fantasy looks at issues of privilege, protest, and justice. All light in Chattana is created by one man — the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city. For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them. But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars. The wealthy dine and dance under bright orb light, while the poor toil away in darkness. Worst of all, Pong’s prison tattoo marks him as a fugitive who can never be truly free. Nok, the prison warden’s perfect daughter, is bent on tracking Pong down and restoring her family’s good name. But as Nok hunts Pong through the alleys and canals of Chattana, she uncovers secrets that make her question the truths she has always held dear. Set in a Thai-inspired fantasy world, Christina Soontornvat’s twist on Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables is a dazzling, fast-paced adventure that explores the difference between law and justice — and asks whether one child can shine a light in the dark.

A Newbery Honor Book A Walter Dean Myers Honor Book for Teen Readers From Christina Soontornvat, the visionary and versatile author of three Newbery Honor Books, comes a high-seas adventure set in a Thai-inspired fantasy world. In a fantasy adventure every bit as compelling and confident in its world building as her Newbery Honor Book A Wish in the Dark, Christina Soontornvat explores 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 beautiful and intricate as the maps of old.

From Newberry Honor winning author Christina Soontornvat comes a magical adventure in which Izzy must rescue her sister from a fairy land as dangerous as it is magical. All Izzy wants is for something interesting to happen in her sleepy little town. But her wish becomes all too real when a mysterious song floats through the woods and lures her little sister Hen into the forest...where she vanishes. A frantic search leads to a strange hole in the ground that Izzy enters. But on the other side, she discovers that the hole was not a hole, this place is not Earth, and Hen is not lost. She's been stolen away to the land of Faerie, and it's up to Izzy to bring her home. But inside Faerie, trouble is brewing—and Izzy is in way over her head. A ragtag group of outlaw Changelings offer to help, but she must decide whether a boulder that comes to life, a girl who looks like a ghost, and a boy who is also a stag can help her save Hen before it's too late. Praise for The Changelings: "Fresh and imaginative—new inventions on every page. I loved every ingenious twist and turn right up to the wonderfully satisfying ending."—Katherine Catmull, author of The Radiant Road and Summer and Bird. "The Changelings is charming! Perfect for readers who love stories full of magic, adventure, mystery and fairies, topped off with a satisfying and very happy ending. Soontornvat's debut sparkles and delights!"—Nikki Loftin, author of The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy Perfect for anyone looking for books: for a special 10 or 11 year old girl or boy. that can be fun homeschool materials. for readers who love a magical adventure!

A fun-filled chapter book series that answers the question: What if Frozen's Elsa went to regular school? Exciting things are happening in the skies for Lina's royal family. Her cousin, Iris, is getting married and there is going to be a BIG wedding.Best of all? Lina gets to be a flower girl in the wedding! Best, best, best of all? Claudia gets to come as Lina's special guest! The girls are giddy as they fly up to Granddad's castle for a weekend of pomp and circumstance. Every Windtamer, Spark-Archer, Sky-Painter, and Winterheart is in attendance in all their finery.But the excitement soon turns stressful when Lina learns one of the wedding traditions: Each guest must present a magical present to the newlyweds. What will Lina's gift be?Magically bright two-color art inside!

One person. Small, quiet, insignificant. But when one person, and one person, and one person become many, they can change a planet. Spare, poetic text and breathtaking pictures invite readers on a stirring journey that gently illuminates the causes of climate change as well as how our individual and collective actions can make the world better. With calm, truthfulness, and beauty, To Change a Planet demonstrates the importance of caring for our planet. Eye popping explosions of color on every page create a stunning visual narrative that invites readers to find and follow the same characters through their daily lives and ultimately to a climate march on Washington, where their storylines converge. Clear endnotes vetted by a climate expert answer a myriad of questions in simple language. Meticulously researched and brimming with hope and hands-on solutions that will edify and empower even the youngest readers, To Change a Planet is a loving ode to our only home and vital for every child, classroom, and family. * "Earth's beauty and fragility provide the impetus for activism in this introduction to climate change...An attractive entree to a vital subject for the youngest citizens." - Kirkus Reviews, starred review "The book's overall tone is hopeful, centered around the conviction that, just as we can exacerbate the effects of climate change, so too can we forestall and reverse them." - School Library Journal "Has the potential to inspire all." - Shelf Awarenes

A little boy visits an art museum for the first time in this fun, sweet picture book about first experiences and seeing things from new perspectives. Simon is having a great time at the museum with his parents. There are slippery, slidey floors! Pigeons flying around the reflecting pool! And cheesecake in the café! But they’re not really here for any of that. No, Simon has to look at art. And more art. So. Much. Art. There’s so much art that soon Simon needs to take a break and finds somewhere to sit. From his bench, he begins to notice how many different people are visiting the museum and the many different ways they react to the art they see. Some people are alone. Some are in groups. Some people smile. Some shake their heads. Some even shed a tear. And Simon is right in the center of it, watching until he’s inspired to give all the art another try. By the end of the day, he may even find a piece that can rival a slice of cheesecake!

A unique account of the amazing Thai cave rescue told in a heart-racing, you-are-there style that blends suspense, science, and cultural insight. On June 23, 2018, twelve young players of the Wild Boars soccer team and their coach enter a cave in northern Thailand seeking an afternoon’s adventure. But when they turn to leave, rising floodwaters block their path out. The boys are trapped! Before long, news of the missing team spreads, launching a seventeen-day rescue operation involving thousands of rescuers from around the globe. As the world sits vigil, people begin to wonder: how long can a group of ordinary kids survive in complete darkness, with no food or clean water? Luckily, the Wild Boars are a very extraordinary "ordinary" group. Combining firsthand interviews of rescue workers with in-depth science and details of the region's culture and religion, author Christina Soontornvat—who was visiting family in Northern Thailand when the Wild Boars went missing—masterfully shows how both the complex engineering operation above ground and the mental struggles of the thirteen young people below proved critical in the life-or-death mission. Meticulously researched and generously illustrated with photographs, this page-turner includes an author’s note describing her experience meeting the team, detailed source notes, and a bibliography to fully immerse readers in the most ambitious cave rescue in history.