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All I wanted was to charm a single, stinking wart onto my face. Yes, onto, not off. A good bog-witch should have at least one. Grandmother had eleven, and a hooked nose to boot. Of course there were rare witches who could pull off a certain dark and terrible beauty. My mother was one, according to Grandmother. Maybe that’s how I got stuck the way I was.

I peered into the moon-silvered water of the rain-barrel. No wart. No dark and terrible beauty, either. Just the same clear brown skin and snub nose I’d always had. Blast it! I smacked my palm into the water. A true bog-witch wouldn’t be sniffling, I told myself fiercely. It only made the tears slip faster down my cheeks. Because I wasn’t a true bog-witch; everyone from Grandmother to my littlest cousin Ezzie knew it. That was why they were all off on a midnight mushroom spree, and I was stuck here, alone, keeping watch over Grandmother’s garden.

I blinked up at the moon. If I closed my eyes, I could almost see them: my cousins, my aunts, my great-aunts, my second-cousins-twice-removed. All of them out there under that brilliant silver eye, laughing and teasing and dancing. I could almost smell the sweet wood-smoke, taste the earthy, buttery fried mushrooms. I loved fried mushrooms. But more than that, I loved being a Bogthistle witch. Even if no one else thought I was one, really.

Excerpt © 2010 Deva Fagan

All Prunella wants is to be a proper bog-witch. Unfortunately, her curses tend to do more good than harm, and she hasn’t got a single stinking wart. When her mixed-up magics allow a sneaky thief to escape her grandmother’s garden, Prunella is cast out until she can prove herself. It’s hard enough being exiled to the decidedly un-magical Uplands, but traveling with the smugly charming young thief, Barnaby, is even worse. He’s determined to gain fame and fortune by recovering the missing Mirable Chalice. And to get what she wants, Prunella must help him. But what if the aspiring villain and the would-be hero are on the right quest . . . for the wrong reason?

What people are saying:
“Spunky characters and surprising plot twists will keep readers laughing and turning pages.” — Kirkus Reviews

“This colorful, fast-paced fantasy is recommended for fans of funny, fairy-tale-inspired stories.” —Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library in School Library Journal

Release date: June 2010

About the author:
Deva Fagan lives in Maine with her husband and her dog, where she has had numerous misadventures. The magical ones are (mostly) confined to her imagination.

1.

I met Fred first.

At a party on Orchard Ave. that Charlotte Kincaid took me to.

Him: “Need a beer?”

Me: “I’ve already got one.”

“Well, drink up,” he instructed. He was pale and skinny and who wears
Docksiders and corduroy? “When you’re ready I’ll get you another.”

Charlotte and I stood shoulder to shoulder chomping pretzels and watching the drunk crowd rock. Charlotte nursed her canned Bud Light and I picked at a pebble of salt wedged between my two front teeth.

“You’re new.”

“Right.” You’re new. No question mark.

I’d been in Meadow Marsh a week. I missed home. And Evie. And Charlotte Kincaid would never be Evie. She was soft-spoken and smelled like baby powder and dryer sheets. She had none of Evie’s charm or spark.

“Let’s sit,” Fred suggested.

“I’d rather not.”

Charlotte shot me a look, then wandered away. Where was she going? Bathroom? Food foraging? “I want to be alone,” I told him, downing the rest of my beer and grabbing another out of the six pack on the floor by his feet.

“You’re at a party.”

I felt my face flush, then twisted the top off the bottle and shoved the cap in my coat pocket.

“You don’t really want to be alone…”

True. I wanted to be with Evie. Or home with Mom and Dad watching crappy TV. I took a bitter swig of beer and handed the bottle back. “You want the rest?” It was time to go.

Excerpt © 2010 Lauren Strasnick

About the Book: First love, broken friendships, and heartache all play a part in this evocative, voice-driven novel about Alex, a girl whose world is ripped apart when her father’s affair splits her family in two.

Alex moves with her mess of a mother to a new town, where she is befriended by hot, enigmatic Fred–and alternately flirted with and cold-shouldered by Fred’s twin sister, Adina. Others warn Alex to steer clear of the twins, whose sibling relationship is considered abnormal at best, but there’s just something about Fred–and something about Adina–that draws Alex to them and makes her want to be part of their crazy world, no matter the consequences.

Release Date: October 5, 2010.

About the Author: Lauren Strasnick is a graduate of Emerson College and the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) MFA Writing Program.  Her first novel, NOTHING LIKE YOU, was published by Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster in Fall 2009.  Her second book, HER and ME and YOU, another S&S teen title, will hit shelves this October.

Chapter One

Meg put the back of one hand to her forehead and leaned against the window sill of her chamber, looking out over the royal vegetable garden to the city of Crown, her imagination flying across the rest of the Kingdom of Greeve and into the wide world beyond. Her green gown flowed gracefully down her semi-slim sides. Her golden tresses—well, her light brown tresses—flowed almost as gracefully down her back. “Alas and alack,” Meg said in a breathless voice, “will no one come to take me away from this foul place?” She snickered. Boring place was more like it.

Meg’s mother was worried about the lack of princes coming to court her daughter. Meg wasn’t. She was more interested in coming up with a way of convincing her parents to let her go on a quest.

Meg left the window to change into a more serviceable skirt, tunic, and short, soft boots. She clipped her hair back and buckled on her sword, then headed downstairs for her first class of the day. She nearly crashed into Dilly, who was coming up the stairs. Dilly used to be Meg’s maid, but now she was Meg’s one and only lady-in-waiting. “Sword lessons?” Dilly asked, after neatly stepping out of Meg’s way.

“Sword lessons,” Meg answered. Swordplay was Meg’s favorite class, followed by statesmanship, a class taught by the austere Lady Fralen. Meg had expected to hate it, but to her amazement, she was pretty good at diplomacy and sort of liked it. Years of trying to get around her mother so she could hunt for frogs or roam the woods with Cam the gardener’s boy had taught her a lot about smooth talking, and it turns out that’s what statesmanship was. That and figuring out what the other person wanted.

Meg tried not to think about her other classes for today, etiquette and magic and dance. She was bad at all three.

“Lucky you,” said Dilly.

“Why, where are you going?”

Dilly made a face. “Eugenia invited me again.” Queen Istilda’s ladies-in-waiting were trying to turn Dilly into a fluffbrain, but so far, Dilly was resisting.

“You can tell me about it tonight.”

“Oh, I will!” Dilly gave a positively evil little laugh. Her reenactments of the embroidery-and-gossip sessions put on by the queen’s ladies were getting better with practice, though Meg suspected Dilly left out some of the talk about Meg not being courted by anyone. Laughing more normally, Dilly went on up the stairs, her brown gown and tidy black hair looking suitably demure.

Excerpt © 2009 Kate Coombs

About the book:
In this sequel to The Runaway Princess, Meg goes on a quest to find her runaway dragon, Laddy, but she gets tangled up with an enchanted forest, an angry giant, and a “mean girls” teen sorceress. Will she and her friends be able to escape with their lives, let alone find the missing dragon?

Release Date: September 2009

About the author:

Kate Coombs lives in the Los Angeles area, where she teaches sick kids in their homes for the school district. Kate is also the author of a picture book called The Secret-Keeper and a comic fantasy for middle grades called The Runaway Princess. In her alter-ego as Book Aunt, she writes a weekly children’s book review blog.

It takes less time for them to conquer the world than it takes me to brush my teeth. That’s pretty disappointing.

I’m in history listening to Mr. Whitehead’s description of the Great Depression. “Everything was changed,” he says, tapping his desk with two fingers the way he does when he wants to call attention to something he’s said. I know he’s about to repeat himself because he always does after the little finger tap. I turn to Jackson to mouth the sentence as Mr. Whitehead speaks it, which is something we do to combat the big yawn boredom.

But we don’t. The second sentence never comes from Mr. Whitehead. It doesn’t come from Jackson either. Instead a voice comes into my head. THAT’S RIGHT. A VOICE. NOT MINE. IN MY HEAD. The voice says. “You are one of the few product who can hear and who have survived. Congratulations. Stand by for a message.”

Excerpt © 2010 Brian Yansky

About the book:

Jesse is in history class when a formidable, efficient race of aliens quietly takes over the earth in less time than it takes him to brush his teeth. Most humans simply fall asleep and never wake up. In moments, everyone Jesse knows and loves is gone, and he finds that he is now a slave to an alien leader. On the bright side, Jesse discovers he’s developing telepathic powers, and he’s not the only one. Soon he’s forging new friendships and feeling unexpectedly hopeful. When a mysterious girl appears in his dreams, talking about escaping, Jesse begins to think the aliens may not be invincible after all. But if Jesse and his friends succeed, is there anywhere left to go?

What people are saying:

“Fast-paced, sly, and surprisingly humane, Alien Invasion & Other Inconveniences is the most fun I’ve had reading a Young Adult Novel this year.”-Gabrielle Zevin, author of, among other novels, Elsewhere.

“Alien Invasion & Other Inconveniences by Brian Yansky combines humor, philosophical depth and a sparkling imagination to create a work that is thoroughly enjoyable.” -Francisco X. Stork, author of, among other novels, Marcelo in the Real World.

“Wry, fierce, richly imagined-the total conquest of humanity has never been so entertaining.” Bestselling author of, among other novels, Eternal, Cynthia Leitch Smith.

“A clever premise, a fast pace, and characters I’d like to hang out with if they’d let me. Eminently readable and thought provoking, too. A+” Ron Koertge, author of, among other novels, Stoner and Spaz.

“Alien Invasion & Other Inconveniences is a fast, fun, funicular of a joyride. Aliens, telepathy, rebels, romance, and humor-what’s not to like? Climb aboard and hang on tight!” National Book Award winner for Godless, and author of many other novels, Pete Hautman

Release date: October 12, 2010

About the author:

Brian Yansky lives in Austin, Texas. He’s written two other novels: My Road Trip to the Pretty Girl Capital of the World and Wonders of the World.