Central Kansas Library System

Three of Dickens's most compelling orphan protagonists-Oliver Twist, Pip, and Esther Summerson-in three of his greatest novels. Perhaps no writer in the English language is more closely associated with orphaned characters than Charles Dickens. The trials and dangers for children without parental protection play a significant part in nearly all his work, as both a source of highly entertaining melodrama and pointed social criticism. Oliver Twist: Having...

"From bookfluencer and host of the BAD ON PAPER podcast, a riotous holiday rom-com about four friends in NYC who hold onto their unconventional Christmas tradition even when their paths diverge--but the changes they fear might be exactly what they need... Hannah and Finn have spent every Christmas together since college. Neither has anywhere else to go--Hannah's parents died, and Finn's disowned him when he came out. Their tradition of offbeat holiday...

"Charming and darkly funny, this debut has definite shades of Roald Dahl-it's a natural successor to Matilda and The Witches. Middle-grade readers who like their fairy tales playing against the rules and their adventure stories with a dash of humor will gobble this up." - ALA Booklist "I absolutely ADORED Birdie's story from beginning to end. The most charming book, footnotes and all!" - Liesl Shurtliff, New York Times bestselling author of Rump "Dragons,...

"Without stopping the book's flow to discuss dyslexia, Banks makes some good points about grades, intelligence, and learning styles." Booklist, ALA -

Vince Elgin is an orphan, having lost his mother and his father in a fire when he was young, but beyond that, his life hasn't been much of a fairy tale. With only a senile grandfather he barely knows to call family, Vince was interned in a group home, where he spun fantastical stories and dreamed that his father, whose body was never found, might one day return for him. But it's been a long time since the fire, a long time since Vince has told himself...

Questions asked by our children are sometimes the most precious and can even be thought-provoking. Read this book and witness this little child's search for the answers to their questions. Why can't we see Jesus? Keep reading and learn the different ways that Jesus can be found in our everyday lives, in our everyday movements.

Tanya Guerrero's How to Make Friends with the Sea is a middle grade debut novel set in the Philippines about a young boy's challenges with anxiety while his mother fosters an orphaned child with a facial anomaly. Pablo is homesick. He's only twelve years old, but he's lived in more countries than he can count. After his parents divorced, he and his mother have moved from place to place for years, never settling anywhere long enough to call it home....

Vous qui aimez les poètes, haïssez-les !Ce titre, ne vous dit-il rien? Ne vous rappelle-t-il pas les cris d'espoir noyés dans le désespoir? Dans ce livre, l'Auteur voit les maux s'affecter. Le jour au jour, ils s'empirent. Il n'y peut rien. Pourtant, il peut faire quelque chose. L'Auteur songeait à faire ce qu'il pouvait, mais il n'a pu rien. Les yeux levés vers le ciel, il ne pouvait que prier. Il se confiait et passait tous ses jours à contempler...

On their way to have a picnic in the park, Casey and Jennie hear their friend from school and neighbor Abby call for help. Her colorful cockatiel Coco is missing. Abby's bird has flown the coop. Oh no! Casey and Jennie decide to take the case to help find Coco. On their quest, they learn about cockatiels, searching place to place. Will Casey and Jennie find Abby's colorful cockatiel?

Four children embark on a quest for a new land at the dawn of human history   Africa, two hundred thousand years ago: Suth and Noli were orphaned the night the murderous strangers came, speaking an unfamiliar language and bringing violence to the peaceful Moonhawk tribe. Determined not to die in the desert, Suth and Noli slip away with Ko and Mana. Suth, the eldest, leads them; Noli's dreams of the future guide them. Ko gives them courage; Mana gives...