This excellent collection of short stories is comprised of science fiction and dark fantasy, including horror. The stories range from an elephant tribe rescuing their keeper to a young woman executed by slowly sinking into a tar pit while her bereaved family "sings her down."

SLEEPING FRESHMAN NEVER LIVE: David Lubar. Grades 6-9.

Scott records his anxieties about high school in a journal of advice to his unborn sibling, a humorous sideline to his real life where he trys to be near a beautiful girl.

AIRBORN: Kenneth Oppel. Grades 6-10.

Cabin boy Matt Cruse loves life on an airship. He finds more adventure than he ever expected in this alternate history that introduces a mysterious creature of the air, pirates, and a beautiful heiress. In the sequel, Skybreaker, Matt encounters a new batch of bad guys and another unknown and very dangerous creature of the air.

CUBA 15: Nancy Osa. Grades 6-10.

Violet Paz is planning her quinceanera, a big party when she turns 15. She's also busy with her humor monologue for the school's speech team based on her zany family's domino tournament.

WEE FREE MEN, A HAT FULL OF SKY: Terry Pratchett. Grades 6-10.

Tiffany doesn't know she's a witch until she whacks an evil creature, and the wee free men (6-inches tall with very bad manners) send her on a rescue mission into a strange land. In A Hat Full of Sky the young witch-in-training battles an ancient but bodiless creature, again with the help of her 6-inch friends.

THE LIGHTNING THIEF: Rick Riordan. Grades 6-10.

Percy Jackson is 12 years old and used to having unusual problems, such as mysteriously vaporizing his pre-algebra teacher. Percy's problems stem from the fact (unknown to him until now) that he is a son of a Greek god and there are a number of monsters out to kill him. His sword-wielding adventures continue in The Sea of Monsters.

SMALL STEPS: Louis Sachar. Grades 7-12.

This sequel to Holes has its own set of villains and unlikely heroes. Armpit is focused on short-term goals (small steps) to stay out of trouble after his stay at Camp Green Lake. All is going according to plan until X-Ray shows up with a scheme for easy money that requires Armpit's savings.

THE SCHWA WAS HERE: Neal Shusterman. Grades 6-9.

Calvin Schwa, a Brooklyn 8th grader, is somehow unnoticeable. Antsy figures the Schwa's invisibility is marketable, but when the two are caught the real adventure begins.

THE BOOK THIEF: Markus Zusak. Illustrations by Trudy White. Grades 6 and up.