Akron Public Library

Gerda and her mother take in a penniless beggar boy, Kay, and powerful forces take both children on a magical journey, testing their friendship to the extreme along the way. Kay goes missing, so with faith, love, and courage, Gerda goes to find him.

Serene was a word you could put to Brooklyn, New York. Especially in the summer of 1912. Somber, as a word, was better. But it did not apply to Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Prairie was lovely and Shenandoah had a beautiful sound, but you couldn't fit those words into Brooklyn. Serene was the only word for it; especially on a Saturday afternoon in summer. Late in the afternoon the sun slanted down into the mossy yard belonging to Francie Nolan's house,...

Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer, yet her cells--taken without her knowledge--became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first "immortal" human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer and viruses; helped lead to in vitro...

Bullied at school and lonely at home, Lena keeps hoping she'll have a true friend someday. One afternoon, her dreams come true, in the shape of a cuddly white lion cub! As Lena tries to keep playful Snowball out of trouble, the clumsy poachers who kidnapped the valuable cub, and the cruel trophy collector who paid for him, are desperate to get him back. As Lena races to rescue poor Snowball, her new friend Jake will do anything to help.

While attending a fundraising gala, Sarah witnesses a fiery plea delivered by an intruder - a renegade humanitarian, Dr. Nick Callahan. His pleas made on behalf of impoverished African children turns Sarah's life upside down. Sarah impulsively abandons her pampered life to work along his side. Her work takes her to volatile areas, where few have travelled to and even fewer have survived. She discovers harsh realities and encounters and ignites in...

On Christmas Eve, Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by three ghosts who try to convince him to change his life.

Kermit, Oscar, Bert, Ernie and Cookie Monster join Big Bird in a bighearted, cross-country adventure. A meddling social worker sends poor Big Bird off to live with a feathered foster family in Illinois. But try as he might, he doesn't fit in and runs away to return to Sesame Street. Now his old friends need to find him before he runs 'afowl' of trouble en route.

When Ali loses his sister Zahra's school shoes, this young pair dream up a plan to stay out of trouble: they'll share his shoes and keep it a secret from their parents.

In The Angel of Darkness, Caleb Carr brings back the vivid world of his bestselling The Alienist but with a twist: this story is told by the former street urchin Stevie Taggert, whose rough life has given him wisdom beyond his years. Thus New York City, and the groundbreaking alienist Dr. Kreizler himself, are seen anew. It is June 1897. A year has passed since Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, a pioneer in forensic psychiatry, tracked down the brutal serial killer...

Joe nearly gets suspended when he helps the school lunch lady donate leftover food to a local shelter. Wishbone is reminded of Robin Hood, who risks arrest when he robs from the rich to give to the poor.