2016 MYRCA Nominees
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The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel
Harper Collins, 2015 9781443410274
Interest level: Grades 5+
It is always good to have a story of your own! Will’s first adventure includes an avalanche and several Sasquatch! Three years later, when Will gets a chance to ride The Boundless, the biggest and longest train in the world, he gets much more than he bargained for. Not everyone on the train is along just for the ride. Theft, murder, magic, Sasquatch and Bog Hags – how will Will’s story end?
Bye Bye Evil Eye by Deborah Kerbel
Cormorant Books, 2015 9781770863941
Interest level: Grades 5+
Dani Price lives a charmed life. She is thirteen, well-liked, beautiful and even has a red Mini Cooper parked in her driveway, just waiting for her to turn sixteen. Her best friend, Kat, invites her to spend three weeks in Greece with her family. However, once they arrive things start to go wrong for Dani. Has she been cursed with the evil eye? Will she be able to break the curse, before it’s too late?
The Cat at the Wall by Deborah Ellis
Groundwood Books, 2015 9781554987078
Interest level: Grades 5+
Before she died, 13-year-old Clare was used to getting away with being a self-centred slacker and a bully because her teachers and parents believed her sweet smile. Until Ms. Zero came along, that is. Now reincarnated as a cat, Clare watches Israeli soldiers occupy a Palestinian home, where a boy hides under the floor. He’s finding it more and more difficult to breathe, and his parents are missing. But why should she care?
Groundwood Books Teacher’s Guide
The Comic Book War by Jacqueline Guest
Coteau Books, 2015 9781550505825
Interest level: Grades 5+
Wham! Kablam! When15-year-old Robert Tourond finds the falling star he saw drop from the sky, he is convinced the universe is sending him a cosmic message that his three brothers, who are overseas fighting in the war, will be safe. To keep his mind off of his brothers, Robert buys comic books and to his amazement he notices similarities between his brothers’ letters and his favourite superheroes. Coincidence or something more?
The Elevator Ghost by Glen Huser
Groundwood Books, 2015 9781554984268
Interest level: Grades 5+
Babysitting the rambunctious children of Blatchford Arms can be a tough gig. But not for Carolina Giddle, the newest tenant, in the building. How does she manage to calm even the wildest of children? Take a look in her babysitting bag, you won’t find the usual tricks. Candlelight, check. Ghoulish treats, check. Ghost stories, check. With her trusty tarantula Chiquita in tow, nobody wants to miss her fantastical, spooky storytelling or the haunting Halloween party she hosts.
Groundwood Books Teacher’s Guide
In Real Life by Cory Doctorow, Jen Wang
First Second, 2015 9781596436589
Interest level: Grades 7+
Teenaged Anda is an experienced gamer, so when she is encouraged to join a guild in an online role playing game she signs up right away. Soon, she meets a kid who collects valuable objects in the game and sells them for real cash, something Anda knows is against the rules. When she finds out the sad truth about her new friend’s real life in China, she wants to help. Will she be able to make a difference before being banned from the game?
Missing in Paradise by Larry Verstraete
Rebelight Publishing, 2015 9780993939020
Interest level: Grades 5+
A mysterious box, a map with GOLD written beside a tiny pinprink, a creepy neighbour strangely interested in the old stuff Gramps left behind when he died – is this every 14-year-old’s dream, or is it a nightmare? Nate isn’t certain, but he feels sure that Gramps wants him to find out just what is going on.
Moon at Nine by Deborah Ellis
Pajama Press, 2015 9781927485590
Interest level: Grades 7+
Fifteen-year-old Farrin is living in Tehran 10 years after the overthrowing of the Shah. Everyone is under surveillance, including the students at Farrin’s school for gifted girls. Farrin is used to being an isolated outsider, but when she meets the new girl, Sadira, she begins to believe that friendship is possible. When their friendship becomes romantic, Farrin and Sadira risk everything to be together in a country where homosexuality is illegal and punishable by death.
Allen and Unwin Teacher’s Guide
The Night Gardener by Johnathan Auxier
Penguin Canada, 2015 9780143189978
Interest level: Grades 5+
Molly and Kip arrive at the Windsor Estate in search of food and shelter but discover a strange mystery instead. A visitor wanders the house at night, leaving a trail of leaves and muddy footprints behind. The inhabitants of the home are changing. At fourteen, Molly is oldest and in charge of keeping her brother safe. Do they leave to save themselves or try to solve the mystery of the Night Gardener?
Outside In by Sarah Ellis
Groundwood Books, 2015 9781554983674
Interest level: Grades 5+
When 14-year-old Lynn meets a mysterious girl at the bus stop, she’s introduced to the community of Underlanders, people who live off the grid, relying on the cast-offs of ‘Citizens’ to survive. As Lynn’ s friendship with the Underlanders grows, she promises to keep them a secret, but when her friends start to question her loyalty to them and her her new-age mother gets involved, Lynn is forced to make a choice.
Groundwood Books Teacher’s Guide
Red Wolf by Jennifer Dance
Dundurn, 2015 9781459708105
Interest level: Grades 5+
Ripped away from his parents, 5-year-old Red Wolf is taken to Bruce County Residential School where the ‘dirty savage’ will be beaten from him. His only comfort is Crooked Ear, his wolf companion, who waits for him to return every summer. As the years go by, Red Wolf finds it increasingly difficult to find his way home, to a family that he no longer remembers and a life he is told to forget.
Rocket Blues by David Skuy
Scholastic Canada, 2015 9781443133753
Interest level: Grades 5+
Hockey is everything for teenager Brian (the Rocket) Rockwood. It is his passion, his escape and his chance to get out of his dangerous neighborhood. But when his coaches tell him he is too small and he will never make it in hockey at his size, he is desperate and determined to prove them wrong. Can Brian prove to them that size isn’t everything and follow his dream to the NHL?
Saving Houdini by Michael Redhill
HarperCollins, 2015 9781443409957
Interest level: Grades 5+
Illusion, deceit and intrigue follow 13-year-old Dashiel Woolf (Dash) on a perilous journey through time. Finding himself in Toronto circa 1920 he enlists the help of an unlikely young ally named Walter. Together they determine the famous Houdini must play a role in getting Dash back where he belongs. Can Houdini help? Is magic the answer? Discover how a friendship can truly stand the test of time!
The Story of Owen, Dragon Slayer of Trondheim by E. K. Johnston
Lerner Publishing, 2015 9781467710664
Interest level: Grades 5+
Siobhan, 16, and Owen, 15, meet on the first day of Grade 11 in small-town southern Ontario. A normal way for a boy to meet a girl in normal days of internet research, cell phones (lousy reception), cars, and … dragons? Yup, real, fire-breathing, people-eating, dragons! And Owen is a dragon slayer-in-training. Theirs is a really, really, interesting story!
Walking Home by Eric Walters
Doubleday Canada, 2015 9780385681575
Interest level: Grades 5+
What would you do to keep your family together? When the authorities in the refugee camp threaten to separate Muchoki, thirteen, and little sister Jata, Muchoki decides the only way to keep them together is to get to the family home he has never seen, to the grandparents he has never met. He must make a decision. Stay and be placed in separate orphan’s homes or walk the hundreds of kilometres to his mother’s ancestral home. With no food or money, should they attempt this dangerous trip? Do they have a choice?
Wings of War by John Wilson
Doubleday Canada, 2015 9780385678308
Interest level: Grades 5+
Edward Simpson is 16 years old and living in Saskatchewan when World War I breaks out. Passionate about airplanes and flying, he becomes a pilot with the Royal Flying Corps in England and soon learns the dangers of flying over battle zones in France. As the fighting against the Germans reaches a pitch during the Battle of the Somme, Edward’s missions become increasingly dangerous. Surrounded by three enemy planes, Edward wonders if he will survive.
A Year in the Life of a Total and Complete Genius by Stacey Matson
Scholastic Canada, 2015 9781443133173
Interest level: Grades 5+
Arthur A. Bean wants to be a famous writer when he grows up so when a grade 7 writing contest is announced, he is sure this is his big break. But with the recent death of his mother he has a lot on his mind and is plagued by writer’s block. Arthur’s troubles are compounded when he is paired with his nemesis, Robbie Zack, on a class assignment. Will Arthur be able to let the past go and realize that friendship can be helpful in difficult times?
Zomboy by Richard Scrimger
HarperCollins, 2015 9781443410687
Interest level: grades 5+
Bob is an average gr 7 kid – a bit awkward, a target for the class bully, and closet romantic harbouring a secret crush on his best friend Olive, or Evil-O as she prefers to be called. But things get complicated when a zombie, “zomboy”, called Imre attends his school. All of a sudden people are choosing sides. There are protests, supporters, and a growing rift between Bob and Evil-O. Can Bob learn to look beyond Imre’s obvious differences and see the boy who just needs a friend?