Silberling, Brad. (Director). (2005). Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events [Motion picture]. United States: Paramount Pictures. Ages 9-12.

***Beware! This is not a happy movie!*** The Baudelaire children, Violet, Klaus and Sunny, think their life can’t get any worse after finding out their house burned down and their parents were killed. But when they are taken to live with their nearest relative, Count Olaf, life most certainly does. Putting the children to work, he is determined to try and kill them, and no one will listen or believe them when they ask for help. After a close call on some train tracks, the children are finally taken away and live with a series of new guardians. But Count Olaf will stop at nothing to get what he wants—he’ll trick, kill, or even marry anyone who gets in his way, including three poor little orphans. Based on the first three novels in the series by Lemony Snicket.

DuPrau, Jeanne. The City of Ember. Random House, 2003. ISBN 978-0375822735. Ages 9-12.

241 years ago, a city was created to save a race of people. A city designed to last 220 years. Now Ember is a dying city, threatened by eternal darkness as the city’s decrepit electric system begins to fail. With food and supplies becoming scarce as well, and a corrupt mayor who likes his position a little too much, it seems as though there is no hope. So when Lina finds her baby sister chewing on a piece of paper that looks like directions out of the isolated city, she teams up with her friend Doon to try and decipher the few words and letters that are still legible on the page. Together they discover the city’s long lost history and secrets regarding the purpose of Ember and why the Builders designed it. But can they really find a way out and save the citizens of Ember, and is it possible with the mayor and his guards watching their every move?

Tass, Nadia. (Director). (2004). Samantha: An American Girl Holiday [Motion picture]. United States: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Ages 9-12.

Following Samantha Parkington through the seasons of her life in Victorian New York, her prim and proper lifestyle becomes one adventure after another when she meets servant girl Nellie O’Malley and they become instant friends. Readers of the American Girl series will not be disappointed by this blending of Samantha’s six stories into one complete movie. The acting and cinematography are better than expected, and the unlikely bond between Samantha and Nellie is one that conveys a beautiful message to viewers that sometimes it is our differences that bring us together. Samantha’s good deeds do not go unnoticed, demonstrating the importance of selflessness and charity.

Lindgren, Astrid. Pippi Longstocking. Puffin Books, 1950. ISBN 978-0142402498. Ages 9-12.

When Pippi Longstocking returns from sea to live on her own at Villa Villekula, it is much to the delight of Tommy and Annike, who are taken to Pippi immediately. For while she may refuse to act and behave like a normal child, that is what makes her special. The three embark on many adventures, including avoiding policemen, going to school, climbing trees, and saving the day. There are very few characters that can live up to Pippi’s legacy, for she is certainly one of a kind. Though the book leans slightly in favor of girls, the gender neutral plots and wild adventures are sure to appeal to both boys and girls.

Pullman, Philip. The Ruby in the Smoke. Dell Laurel-Leaf, 1985. ISBN 0394895894. Ages 12-14.

In nineteenth-century London, sixteen-year-old Sally, a recent orphan, becomes involved in a deadly search for a mysterious ruby. Though Sally's quest to find her father's murder and solve the mystery of the ruby is a fantastic one set in unfamiliar times, tweens will identify with Sally's need to discover the truth and find her place in a world she has been thrust into all alone. Tweens will also enjoy the book's seamless blending of mystery, adventure, and historical fiction. While there is mild drug use, it is portrayed in a negative and harmful light.

Claus, Richard. (Director). (2006). The Thief Lord [Motion picture]. United States: Twentieth Century Fox. Ages 10-14.

After Prosper and Bo’s mother dies, Prosper rescues Bo from their evil aunt and uncle and they run away to Venice (their mother always told them it was a magical place). There they run into the Thief Lord, who turns out to be a wealthy boy named Scipio who has taken in a band of orphans. These orphans normally help him steal from the rich, including his neglectful father, but when a mysterious job is offered to the Thief Lord for a large sum of money, Scipio and his gang are plunged into an adventure involving a magical carousel capable of altering time itself. Based on the bestselling book by Cornelia Funke.

Kenan, Gil. (Director). (2008). City of Ember [Motion picture]. United States: Walden Media. Ages 9-14.

200 years ago, as the world was coming to an end, the lighted city of Ember was created deep within the Earth. The creators locked the instructions on how to one day return to the surface in a box, with the intention of populating the surface once it was safe. Now 200 years later, the box has been long forgotten and a young Messenger named Lina Mayfleet stumbles upon it. Growing up in a now-corrupt Ember full of ancient traditions and a failing generator, it is up to her and her new friend Doon to discover the meaning of the instructions and find a way out of the city of Ember. Based on the first book in the bestselling Books of Ember series by Jeanne DuPrau.

Patterson, James. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment. Little, Brown & Company, 2005. ISBN 031615556X. Ages 11-14.

Max is just a kid, but she’s a kid with a lot of responsibilities—five brothers and sisters to be exact. Oh, and she and her siblings can fly. After the mutant Erasers abduct their youngest sister Angel, the “bird kids,” who are the result of genetic experimentation, take off in pursuit. Throughout their adventurous journey, they also find themselves struggling to understand their own origins and purpose as they fight to keep the only family they’ve ever known together, no matter what the cost.

This story, as well as the others in Patterson’s bestselling series, is adventure-packed and the characters are well developed. The plot is fast-paced and visually dynamic, with short chapters perfect for keeping even the most reluctant reader’s attention. The story tells of a futuristic world when child mutants are created to fight man’s wars in hopes of gaining the most power, even at the expense of the child. Tweens will have an easy time relating to the recombinants’ feelings of not belonging and feeling different, as well as Max’s feelings of responsibility for her younger siblings.

Zusak, Markus. The Book Thief. Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. ISBN 978-0375831003. Ages 12-14.

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young orphaned German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her foster family, their neighbors, and the Jewish man they are hiding in their basement in war-torn Munich. But when the Nazis close in on her Jewish friend, Liesel must witness one of the most heart-wrenching and terrifying experiences of the Holocaust.

Though Liesel begins the story as a nine-year-old and we follow her through her childhood, the content of the story is quite complex and full of adult content simplified through the eyes of a child. Tweens interested in learning about Nazi Germany and Holocaust history, as well as those who have ever experienced issues of abandonment and/or finding themselves will enjoy this story. It can be powerful and emotional at times, but extremely rewarding. Death's commentary and Max's drawings add a special touch to the story as a whole.

Brewer, Heather. The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod: Eighth Grade Bites. Speak, 2007. ISBN 978-0525478119. Ages 12-14.

Three years after the mysterious fire that killed his parents, Vlad is still mourning their deaths. Then his favorite teacher goes missing and is replaced by Mr. Otis Otis. Vlad is convinced that his eccentric substitute had something to do with the disappearance of his teacher, and maybe even his parents’ deaths. And what’s worse, he also seems to know Vlad’s greatest secret—he is the son of a vampire, and half vampire himself. As Vlad learns more about the strange world of vampires known as Elysia, he also begins to learn more about himself and the monster he hope he never becomes.

Creech, Sharon. The Unfinished Angel. Joanna Cotler Books, 2009. ISBN 978-0061430954. Ages 9-12.

For as long as she (or he?) can remember, an angel has inhabited the stone tower of Casa Rosa and looked over the citizens of a small village in the Swiss Alps. But the angel’s purpose has never seemed important or clear until Zola Pomodoro arrives with her father and moves into Casa Rosa. Zola is a colorful character who can see the angel and instructs her to “do something” to help those in need—including a pack of orphans with no place to go. With Zola’s help, the unfinished angel helps to bring a village together and realizes that angels come in many forms.

Philbrick, Rodman. The Last Book in the Universe. Blue Sky Press, 2000. ISBN 0439087589. Ages 10-14.

In the backtimes, the Big Shake nearly destroyed everything. Now in this post-apocalyptic future, there is no color except grey and brown and normals live in the Urb, trapped amidst violence and despair. Against all odds, Spaz must navigate his way through the Urb’s latches, facing gangs and turf wars in order to reach his ill sister. On the way he meets Lanaya, a proov (or a genetically improved human) who lives in Eden, a paradise that lies off limits at the center of the Urb. With the help of others he meets on the way, Spaz manages to reach his sister safely, where he finds her near death. Together they work to sneak her into Eden so that she might be saved. But will a taste of paradise spoil Spaz’s fight for life in the Urb, or will it drive him to fight for something better?

Spaz exists in a world where normals are uneducated and ignorant of their past, and spend most of their time fighting to stay alive and probing their brains like dope addicts to escape the Urb and experience a taste of Eden. Because Spaz has epilepsy, he is unable to probe and thus has a unique clarity in his understanding of the world around him. It is this clarity that allows him to continue the work of his friend Ryter, to tell the story in the last book in the universe, so that others may know their past and work towards a better future. His ability to turn his disability into an advantage makes for a strong main character, and gives the reader hope when viewing such a desolate future existence.

Horowitz, Anthony. Stormbreaker. Puffin Books, 2000. ISBN 0399236201. Ages 12-14.

Alex Rider is saddened by the news that his guardian and uncle Ian was killed in a car accident, but his suspicions rise when he finds his uncle’s car riddled with bullet holes. Soon, Alex is pulled into the world of covert operations and Britain’s MI-6, where Ian Rider had served as a secret agent. Dragged into a case involving a potentially dangerous new computer called Stormbreaker, Alex is coerced into going undercover in his uncle’s place to gather more information. Reluctantly, Alex becomes entangled in a game of cat and mouse as he discovers the truth about Stormbreaker, and seeks out his uncle’s killer. Alex’s unbelievable debut adventure in this engaging spy series is sure to leave you wanting more!

Gaiman, Neil. The Graveyard Book. HarperCollins, 2008. ISBN 978-0060530921. Ages 10-14.

In some ways, Nobody Owens (known simply as Bod) is a normal kid like any other. He has a family and friends who love him, teachers who teach him, and freedom from the burdens of the real world. But that is where normal ends. Raised by ghosts in a graveyard after his family is brutally murdered, Bod grows from toddler to teen in a world of ghouls and witches, spirits and hellhounds. As he experiences one adventure after another, he can’t help but wish for a “normal” life outside the graveyard full of school, friends, and the living. But the graveyard is the only safe place for Bod, who continues to be hunted down by a man known only as “Jack,” the same man who killed his family and is determined to finish the job once and for all. It will take great courage, cunning and the help of the only family he has ever known to defeat Jack once and for all, allowing Bod to finally be freed from life as a child amongst the dead and enter the world of the living as a young man.

Stewart, Trenton Lee. The Mysterious Benedict Society. Megan Tingley Books, 2007. ISBN 978-0316003957. Ages 10-14.

When orphan Reynie Muldoon answers the newspaper ad looking for gifted children, he never imagined the adventure he was signing himself up for. Together with three other bright and parent-less children--Sticky Washington, Kate Wetherall and Constance Contraire--Reynie embarks on a dangerous mission for the mysterious Mr. Benedict. As Mr. Benedict's secrets agents, they go undercover as new students at The Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, a special school on Nomansan Island with sinister intentions that only they can put a stop to.

Riordan, Rick. The Red Pyramid. Hyperion Books, 2010. ISBN 978-1423113386. Ages 9-12.

Siblings Carter and Sadie Kane have grown up apart since their mother died six years earlier. But when their Egyptian archaeologist father sacrifices himself to bring the ancient gods back into power, they are forced to work together to defeat the evil god Set who has imprisoned their father and seeks to destroy the world. Along the way, Carter and Sadie develop allies and defeat enemies with the help of the gods Horus and Isis who have taken host within them. So begins an adventurous race from New York to Phoenix, AZ where two siblings must sacrifice everything they hold dear for the greater good. And as an even greater, unseen enemy stirs, Carter and Sadie come face to face with a sacrifice neither was prepared to make.

The first book in the Kane Chronicles, The Red Pyramid does for Egyptology what Percy Jackson and the Olympians did for Greek mythology. Chock full of history and mythology, Riordan entices young minds with a what-if scenario where ancient Egypt collides with modern day society—where magic is real and the fate of the world lies in the hands of young children. His juxtaposition of Carter, an awkward, dark-skinned 14-year-old, with Sadie, a bitter and abandoned, fair-haired 12-year-old, makes their ultimate journey of becoming a team that more rich and rewarding. Because at the heart of the story are two children who have lost their parents, and turn to one another for support and friendship when all seems lost. That alone would feel like the end of the world, but our heroes find the strength within themselves and one another to do what is right, and not what is easy. This series should speak to tweens much like Riordan’s previous works, offering strong characters who are easy to root for, and more importantly relate to.

Riordan, Rick. The 39 Clues: The Maze Of Bones. Scholastic, 2008. ISBN 978-0545090544. Ages 9-12.

When Grace Cahill dies, she leaves her heirs with a choice—take the $2 million or give it up for one clue that will lead them on a wild journey in search of a great treasure and all the power in the world. For Amy and Dan Cahill, the money is tempting, but the adventure means learning more about their grandmother, their deceased parents, and a family history that includes almost every major figure and event known to man. But there are others who take the clue as well, and they all have one objective in mind—take out their competition. Now Dan and Amy are running for their lives, and searching for the answers to their first clue, and the beginning of the greatest adventure they will ever have. Read all ten of the 39 Clues books, and search for the clues yourself at http://www.the39clues.com/.