A tenth anniversary edition of Holes has come in covered in a peculiar translucent white paper wrapper  with its Newbery medal affixed and “10th anniversary edition with bonus material” written across the bottom.  The bonus material includes some black and white photos of Louis Sachar and his daughter on the set of the movie including a shot with the cast.  There is  a final section called “ The real dirt”  which includes Louis Sachar’s acceptance speech from new Newbery awards in 1999 as well as three short pieces about Louis  written by his family.

Reality Check  by Peter Abrahams attracted by eye with its black and white cover illustration of barren winter trees with lettering in red.   Cody Laredo is a high school football star with a great future ahead of him until a series of problems leads him to leave school and break up with his girlfriend.  When ex-girlfriend Clea goes missing however,  Cody takes action, striking out for the other side of the country to try to find her.  Suspense, mystery and detection follow.

Another football themed novel is Million-Dollar Throw  by sports writer Mike Lupica.
Nate Brodie is the quarter back for his school football team.  He gets the opportunity to win a million dollars by throwing a pass in a professional football game.  The pressure is on as Mike’s Dad loses his job and other things go wrong in Nate’s life.    

The Midnight Charter  written by  young British author David Whitley.  This is a thrilling fantasy novel for the young adults set in the city of  Agora.  The society is totally based on trade and anything can be bought and sold – including people, ideas and even emotions.  Through the characters of Lily and Mark we learn about  morality, corruption and power in this self contained dystopia. 

Holes.  Louis Sachar.  New York : Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008
FIC SAC

Reality Check .  Peter Abrahams.  New York : HarperTeen, 2009
FIC ABR

Million Dollar Throw . Mike Lupica. New York, NY : Philomel Books, 2009.
FIC LUP

The Midnight Charter.  David Whitley. New York : Roaring Brook Press, 2009.
FIC WHI