Historical Fiction – Set in 12th century Korea
“If a man is keeping an idea to himself, and that idea is taken by stealth or trickery-I say it is stealing. But once a man has revealed his idea to others, it is no longer his alone. It belongs to the world.”
Tree-ear, a Korean orphan, lives beneath a bridge with his crippled, old friend, Crane-man. When Tree-ear breaks an expensive piece of pottery created by an artist named Min, he works off his debt and becomes Min’s assistant. Though Tree-ear dreams of making his own pots, Min uses him only for menial tasks. When a royal buyer wants to see Min’s work, Tree-ear offers to make the treacherous journey to the palace with the vases.
Realistic Fiction
“They say I’m wired bad, or wired sad, but there’s no doubt about it – I’m wired.”
Joey Pigza’s got heart, he’s got a mom who loves him, and he’s got “dud meds,” which is what he calls the Ritalin pills that are supposed to even out his wild mood swings. Sometimes Joey makes bad choices. He learns the hard way that he shouldn’t stick his finger in the pencil sharpener, or swallow his house key, or run with scissors. Joey knows, if he keeps making bad choices, he could just fall between the cracks for good. But he is determined not to let that happen.
Setting: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1998
“If you believe it, you can achieve it.”
The main character in The Million Dollar Kick is a thirteen year-old girl named Whisper Nelson. She is an 8th grade girl who doesn’t like sports; in fact she hates them. While getting doughnuts Briana, her younger sister, happens to enter them into a contest that gives the winner a chance to win a million by kicking against Carmen Applegate, one of the best professional soccer goalies around. Surprisingly, Whisper wins! Whisper’s journey to become a better soccer player is also inspiring. It’s not easy for her to do, but it helps her with much more than just her soccer playing.
Setting: Leamington, Ontario
A humorous, quick read!
Keegan and Alex are the only kids in Leamington who haven’t volunteered to help out with the town’s annual tomato festival. In an attempt to teach them a sense of responsibility, their fathers put them in charge of the tomato toss. The boys decide it’s their responsibility to add a little excitement to the event. They exchange the traditional wooden targets for human targets and, before they know it, they are running the most popular event at the fair. The excitement may be too much for the sleepy town and soon the tomato toss is taken to the street.
ASIJ ES LIBRARY 
