Fantasy & Science fiction

Grades 4-6

The False Prince

By Jennifer A. Nielsen

2012- Scholastic

In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a cunning nobleman, devises a plan to find an impersonator of the king’s long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner’s motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword’s point—he must be chosen to play the prince or he will be killed. As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner’s sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies combined.

Keywords:  Action, Adventure, Competition, Fathers and Sons, Impersonators, Medieval Times, Nobles, Orphans, Plans, Princes, Schemes, Truth and lies

The Girl Who Drank The Moon

By Kelly Barnhill

2019- Algonquin Books

Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch, Xan, is kind. She rescues the children and delivers them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing the babies with starlight along the way. But one year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. Xan decides she must raise this girl, named Luna, as her own. But when Luna’s thirteenth birthday approaches, her magic begins to emerge—with dangerous consequences—while a young man sets out from the Protectorate, determined to free his people by killing the witch. 

Keywords:  Action, Adventure, Children, Dragon, Family, Fantasy, Forests, Magic, Monsters, Moon, Stars, Villages, Witch

A Wolf Called Wander

By Rosanne Parry

2019- HarperCollins

Swift, a young wolf cub, lives with his pack in the mountains learning to hunt, competing with his brothers and sisters for hierarchy, and watching over a new litter of cubs. Then a rival pack attacks, and Swift and his family scatter. Alone and scared, Swift must flee and find a new home. His quest takes him a remarkable one thousand miles across the Pacific Northwest, past forest fires, hunters, highways, and hunger. Inspired by the extraordinary true story of a wolf named OR-7 (or Journey), this gripping tale of survival invites readers to imagine what it would be like to be one of the most misunderstood animals on earth. 

Keywords:  Animals, Courage, Family, Forests, Hunt, Illustrated, Journey, Map, Mountains, Nature, Pacific Northwest, Survival, Wolf

Story Thieves

By James Riley

2015- Aladdin

This book is apart of the Story Thieves Series.

Life is boring when you live in the real world, instead of starring in your own book series. Owen knows that better than anyone. But everything changes the day Owen sees his classmate Bethany literally climb out of a book in the library! With her secret ability, Bethany has been searching every book she can find for her missing father, a fictional character. Owen makes her a deal. He’ll keep her ability secret if she takes him into a book from his favorite fantasy series: Kiel Gnomenfoot. But visiting the book comes with consequences and soon Owen must live out Kiel Gnomenfoot’s final adventure to save the real and fictional worlds alike!

Keywords: Adventure, Family, Fandom, Friendship, Magic, Magical Creatures, Missing People, Robots, Science Fiction

The Serpent's Secret

By Sayatani DasGupta

2018- Scholastic

This book is apart of the Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond Series.

Up until her twelfth birthday, Kiranmala considered herself an ordinary sixth-grader in New Jersey, but then her parents disappear and a drooling rakkhosh demon shows up in her kitchen, and soon she is swept into another dimension, full of magic, winged horses, talking birds (very annoying), and cute princes--and somehow Kiranmala needs to sort it all out, find her parents, and basically save the universe.

Note to Teachers: Great for fans of Percy Jackson and other mythological adventures

Keywords: Adventure, India, Magic, Missing Persons, Mythology, Princes and Princesses, Quests

The Wild Robot

By Peter Brown

2016- Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

This books is apart of the The Wild Robot Series.

When robot Roz opens her eyes for the first time, she discovers that she is alone on a remote, wild island. Why is she there? Where did she come from? And, most important, how will she survive in her harsh surroundings? Roz's only hope is to learn from the island's hostile animal inhabitants. When she tries to care for an orphaned gosling, the other animals finally decide to help, and the island starts to feel like home. Until one day, the robot's mysterious past comes back to haunt her....

Keywords: Adventure, Animals, Friendship, Islands, Robots, Science Fiction, Survival