Kentucky Bluegrass Award
Nominees
Grades 3-5
2010-2011
Be Glad Your Nose is on
Your Face and Other
Poems: Some of the
Best of Jack Prelutsky
by: Jack Prelutsky
Illustrated by:
Brandon Dorman
This magnificent treasury of
more than one hundred of
Jack Prelutsky’s best verses,
along with 15 new poems, are
from the past forty years. It
features a CD with classic
performances by the poet
himself. (from the cover)
A book of poetry by Jack
Prelutsky- some of his best
and a few new poems.
For over 40 years, Jack Prelutsky
has written many poetry
books for children. He
became the first Children’s
Poet Laureate in 2006.
In 1993, he published The
Dragons are Singing Tonight, a
book of poems about dragons.
My Dog May Be a Genius was
published in 2008. It was a
Grades 3-5 KBA Nominee for
2010.
Jack Prelutsky has a great
website- designed for kids at
www.jackprelutsky.com.
1
The Cats of Roxville
Station
by Jean Craighead
George
The cats have a language all their
own. In the fields by Roxville
Station, where the wild cats
live, there is a hidden world.
Alongside wildlife and humans
who barely notice them, the
cats of Roxville fight for
territory, hunt, and are
hunted.
A new member of this group, a
hungry kitten called Ratchet,
has recently found her way to
the station where food is left
for them.
Rachet will make a home there
among the other feral cats…if
she can survive on her own in
the suburban wilds.
A boy named Mike spots Rachet
and sets his heart on befriending
her – maybe owning her. But
Mike must learn to “speak” the
language of cats to gain wily
Rachet’s trust. (from the cover)
Realistic fiction- very realistic! A
story of survival and friendship.
Jean Craighead George explores
the society of cats and provides
fascinating information about
these beloved and mysterious
creatures. She based the
information in this book on the
work of German scientist, who
studied cats for 20 years and her
own observations of group of
feral cats near a train station.
Jean Craighead George won the
1960 Newbery Honor for My
Side of the Mountain, along
with many other awards. It is
the story of a boy and a
falcon surviving on a
mountain together.
She won the Newbery Award
for Julie of the Wolves in
1973. It is the story of a girl,
lost in Alaska, becoming
befriended by a wolf pack.
She has recently published
Pocket Guide to the
Outdoors: Based on My Side
of the Mountain in 2009. It
is a guide to the outdoors
and wilderness survival
techniques.
Jean Craighead George is a highly
celebrated and favorite author of
books for children and young adults.
She’s written well over 100 popular
books. She has an amazing web site
at www.jeancraigheadgeorge.com.
2
Extra Credit
by Andrew Clements
Abby Carson is pretty much
failing 6th grade, because
she doesn’t like doing
school work. She will fail,
unless she meets some
specific conditions and
completes an extra-credit
project to have a pen-pal in
another country.
Abby’s first letter arrives in a
small school in Afghanistan,
and Sadeed Bayat is chosen
to be her pen pal…kind of.
He is the best writer, but he is a
boy and it is inappropriate
for boys in his village to
correspond with girls. So his
younger sister dictates and
signs the letter. Until Sadeed
decides what his sister is
telling Abby isn’t what he’d
like Abby to know.
As letters flow back and forth
between Illinois and
Afghanistan, Abby and
Sadeed discover that their
letter are crossing more than
an ocean. They are crossing
a huge cultural divide and a
minefield of different
lifestyles and traditions.
Their growing friendship is also
becoming a growing problem for
both communities, and some
people are not happy. Suddenly,
things are not so simple. (from the
cover) Realistic Fiction.
Andrew Clements is the author of
more than 60 books for children.
Including, the enormously popular,
Frindle, 1996, about a 5th grader
that decides to invent a new word.
He renames the pen, frindle and it’s
contagious- spreading from his
school to his community and
beyond!
He won the 2006 Grades 3-5 KBA for
The Report Card, about a 5th grader
that creates a plan to prove grades
are not important!
Andrew Clements is the author of
more than 60 books for children.
In 2007, he published No Talking, a
Grades 3-5 KBA Nominee for 2009.
It is about a boy and a girl and their
whole 5th grade class having a
contest of “no talking”.
Lunch Money was published in 2005,
and a Grades 3-5 KBA Nominee for
2008. It is about a boy selling
comic books at school to make a
fortune!
We the Children (2010) is the first in
the new series, Benjamin Pratt and
the Keepers of the School. In
which, Ben and Jill try to save their
school from amusement park
developers.
Find out more at
www.andrewclements.net.
3
Frankie Pickle and
the Closet of Doom
by Eric Wight
When Frankie’s mom says he
never has to clean his room
again, he goes hog wild.
The more he plays, the
bigger the mess grows, until
it tumbles out of control!
Now Frankie must clean up
his act, but will his
imagination be enough to
conquer the “Closet of
Doom”? (from the cover)
Eric Wight is an author,
illustrator, and animation
director. His earlier books
have mostly been graphic
novels (comic books).
The sequel, Frankie Pickle and
the Pine Run 3000 has been
published in 2010.
Book 3, Frankie Pickle and the
Mathematical Menace is
scheduled to be published
later in 2010 (cover art not
available). Find out more
at
http://authors.simonandsc
huster.com.
4
The Magic Half
by Annie Barrows
On the afternoon that Miri
spots a piece of glass taped
to the wall of her attic
room, her world changes
into something she never
dreamed was possible.
Undaunted by the barest of
clues, the meanest of
cousins, and the mystery of
time itself, Miri finds that
magic is really just a way of
setting things right.
When Miri looks through the
piece of glass, she finds
herself face-to-face with
Molly, a girl who insists that
the room is hers, that the
year is 1935, and that Miri
has come to save her.
Annie Barrows always hoped
that she would travel to the
past and that she would get
an attic bedroom, but she
didn’t have luck with either
wish, so she decided to write
about them instead.
(from the cover) Fantasy.
She has great website at
www.anniebarrows.com.
5
She is probably most wellknown for the “Ivy and
Bean” books.
Book 1, Ivy + Bean, 2006,
was a Grades 3-5 KBA
Nominee in 2008. It is
about two friends that
never meant to like one
another, but when Bean
plays a mean trick on her
sister and has to hide, Ivy
comes to her rescue with
her wand, some face
paint, and a bucket of
worms. They might end
up in trouble- but they
will have fun!
(from the cover)
A multi-volume series.
Nubs: the True Story of a Mutt, a Marine,
and a Miracle
by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson,
and Mary Nethery
Nubs, an Iraqi dog of
war, never had a
home or a person
of his own. He
was the leader of
a pack of wild
dogs living off the
land and barely
surviving. But
Nubs’ life changed
when he met
Marine Major
Brian Dennis.
The two formed a fast
friendship, made
stronger by
Dennis’s
willingness to give
Nubs the kind of
care and attention
he needed. Nubs
became a part of
Dennis’s human
“pack” until duty
required the
Marines to relocate
a full 70 miles away
without him.
A lonely Nubs had no way of knowing that Marines weren’t allowed to
have pets. So began an incredible journey that would take Nubs on a
dangerous desert trek to find his friend and would lead Dennis on a
mission that would touch the hearts of people all over the world.
(from the cover) Non-Fiction (true story).
Brian Dennis was assisted in writing
Nubs by authors, Kirby Larson and
Mary Nethery. He and Nubs now live
in San Diego, California. Find out
more about Nubs and Brian at
www.thestoryofnubs.com.
6
Odd and the Frost
Giants
by Neil Gaiman
In a village in ancient Norway
lives a boy named Odd, and
he’s had some very bad luck:
his father perished in a Viking
expedition; a tree fell on and
shattered his leg; the endless
freezing winter is making
villagers dangerously grumpy.
Out in the forest Odd encounters
a bear, a fox, and an eagle –
three creatures with a strange
story to tell.
Now Odd is forced on a stranger
journey that he had imagined –
a journey to save Asgard, city of
the gods, from the Frost Giants
who have invaded it.
It’s going to take a very special
kind of twelve-year-old boy to
outwit the Frost Giants, restore
peace to the city of the gods
and end the long winter.
Someone cheerful and infuriating
and clever…
Someone just like Odd…
(from the cover)
Fantasy, inspired by Norse
mythology.
Neil Gaiman is the author of several
books for children, including
Coraline(2002), made into a
motion picture in 2008. Coraline
ventures into a world that is
similar, yet disturbingly different
from her own, where she must
challenge a gruesome entity in
order to save herself, her parents,
and the souls of three others.
In 2007, M is for Magic was
published, a collection of 11 short,
science fiction and fantasy stories.
The Graveyard Book won the 2009
Newbery Medal. It is about Bod,
short for Nobody, a orphan that is
raised by the inhabitants of the
graveyard, to keep him safe from
the murderer of his family until he
is 18 years old.
He has a great web site at
www.mousecircus.com
7
Road to Pleasant Hill
by Rebecca Mitchell
Turney and
Marie Mitchell
Ten-year-old Betsy Johnson is still
reeling from the deaths of her
parents when she and younger
brother Tad are uprooted from
their eastern Kentucky farm
and sent hundreds of miles
away to live with the Shakers at
Pleasant Hill.
Betsy is frightened by stories that
this strange group whirls and
twirls wildly in their religious
services, separates family
members, and takes all their
possessions.
Betsy’s fears mount when she
and Tad are parted the first
night in their new home ans
she is blackmailed into keeping
a roommate’s secret, one that
could be deadly for the whole
village. How can Betsy fit into
such a peculiar place, so far
from home, and keep her
promise to watch over Tad?
(from the cover)
Historical fiction. The first in a
series, upcoming titles: ‘Tis a
Gift and Tree of Life.
Rebecca Mitchell Turney and
Marie Mitchell are sisters and
both live in Kentucky. More
information can be found on
their web site,
www.kygirlsbooks.com.
8
Something to Sing
About
by C. C. Payne
“I never go outside with out
Mama. I could if I wanted to – I
am 10 years old, after all! I just
don’t want to, because I’m a
teensy, weensy, little bitty bit
afraid of bees. Okay, okay, the
truth is that I am deathly afraid
of bees.”
Jamie Jo’s fear of bees has been
not much more than an
annoyance for the Morgan
family – that is, until the
summer that their church
exploded.
While trying to make sense of this
event, Jamie Jo deals with
overcoming other struggles: she
fears befriending a new girl in
the neighborhood, worries
about taking on the
responsibility of a puppy, and
she doesn’t why her older
brother’s return has caused
such tension in the family.
And she has to deal with all of this
without going outside (where
the bees live) alone!
(from the cover) Realistic Fiction.
C.C. Payne lives in Kentucky, this is
her first published novel.
Her web site is at
www.ccpayne.net.
9
Wild River
by P. J. Petersen
When twelve-year-old Ryan
reluctantly agrees to join his
older brother, Tanner, on a
camping trip, he never
dreams that it will turn into
the most frightening day of
his life.
Ryan admits he’s no good at
sports or outdoor stuff,
especially compared to
Tanner. He’d much rather be
home playing video games.
But Tanner assures him it will
be an easy trip.
They’ll kayak down the Boulder
River to a campground, fish
all day, and toast
marshmallows at night.
But for once, Tanner is wrong.
He is badly hurt in a kayaking
accident, leaving Ryan alone
– and afraid that he’s not up
to the challenge of saving his
brother’s life. The only
danger Ryan has confronted
has been in his video games.
What good are those now,
when he’s facing a real-life
battle?
P. J. Petersen lives in California,
he has a website at
http://usaswrites4kids.drury.
edu.
10
References
•All summaries have been adapted from the cover of
each book, as noted or from www.titlewave.com
•All covers have been copied from www.titlewave.com
or from a scanned image.
1. www.harpercollins.com
2. www.jeancraigheadgeorge.com
3. www.andrewclements.net
4. http://authors.simonandschuster.com
5. www.anniebarrows.com
6. www.storyofnubs.com
7. www.mousecircus.com
8. www.kygirlsbooks.com
9. www.ccpayne.net
10. http://usaswrites4kids.drury.edu