Published: 2008 Theme: Friendship Best for: 9 and up "Justice, Fortitude, Temperance, Prudence. If you had to choose one virtue, which would be the most important? Was it better to be wise or brave? Reasonable or fair? Marvin decided that the answer to that question might depend on your situation." Here's a wild combination of elements: art history, mystery, philosophy, and a clever beetle. Add in a plucky young boy of 11, divorced parents, and theft from a New York City art museum, and you have a 'can't miss' children's book.

Published: 2014 Theme: Magical Realms Best for: 9 and up "We don't get what we want, life still goes on. We make do. We don't shut down and lie in a corner and cry for the rest of our lives." "Some do," the Apple Tree Man said. "Some people come back and they're never happy again." Aah, the ultimate question... if you glimpsed the world of fairies and magic, would it make you so unhappy with ordinary life? That and many other interesting dilemmas are posed in...

Published: 2011 Theme: Protecting Wilderness Best for: 9 to 12 "Nothing prepared me for seeing her right in front of me. It was as if the lochs and the mountains and the sky were folded deep inside of her, as if she was a small piece of this vast landscape and none of it could exist without her." The combination of ecology, human sadness and triumph, and osprey make up the heart of this unusually beautiful children's book...

Published: 2011 Theme: Threads of Destiny Best for: 9 to 12 "Ben wished the world was organized by the Dewey decimal system. That way, you'd be able to find whatever you were looking for, like the meaning of your dream, or your Dad." After you manage to deal with the sheer size of this children's book (608 pages!), it's pretty easy to settle in to a very poignant and creative story about the intertwining of destiny.