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Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in a perfect world? Imagine an ideal place where everyone has a job perfectly suited to him or herself, where the elderly are cared for, and children are loved. Crime is unheard of in this utopia– nobody falls ill either. It is a place where every family has a mother and a father, a brother and sister who laugh and enjoy life to its fullest potential.

Jonas lives in this world, and is about to receive his life’s assignment. Among all of the peers in his age group, Jonas is chosen to perform the highest task of all. He is designated the “Receiver of Memory,” which means that he must keep all of the history for his people. For, in this society, the members do not want to be burdened with the mistakes of the past. Therefore, it will be Jonas’ job to remember all of the things absent in their world, including hatred, war, and colors, trees and snow.

On one hand, the ideal society in which Jonas lives works for a lot of people. On the other hand, its members have given up on the beauty that lies within change and uncertainty. When Jonas receives the collective memory of his society, his view changes drastically. Pick up a copy of The Giver by Lois Lowry, and find out what happens!

The only rules that ten-year-old Bud has to abide are the rules that he has written for himself: “How to Have a Funner Life and Make a Better Liar Out of Yourself.” Bud thinks that if he follows this guideline that he will find a real family and a home full of love. You see, Bud’s mother died a couple of years before the novel begins, and he is living in an orphanage. The only clues that he has to help him find his relatives are a couple of rocks with labels on them, and some flyers announcing a band leader named Herman E. Calloway.

Soon, he is sent to a foster home where the people treat him very poorly. Unable to take it any longer, Bud decides to walk across the state of Michigan to one of the cities listed on the flyer. He is convinced that Herman E. Calloway is his father and has set his mind to finding him. While on the road, Bud encounters all types of characters and is put in many risky situations. Set in the 1930’s, this Newberry Award wining novel is a timeless story of searching, survival and courage. If you enjoyed Maniac Magee, you’ll really like Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis.

Rachel is given the task of taking care of her great-grandmother, Nana Sashie. Little does she know that Sashie has a story that will change her life. Often at night, Nana Sashie tells Rachel about her childhood in the Czar’s Russia, where her family lived under the constant fear of annihilation.

Compared to Rachel’s life, this distant past seems quite unreal. Until Rachel discovers the samovar, or Russian tea decanter, in the cellar. Slowly as Sashie’s story unfolds, Rachel begins to understand that Sashie was a bright and lively girl like her once upon a time. Moreover, she sees that her great-grandmother actually played a central role in the family’s escape from terror. The Night Journey by Kathryn Lasky shows that sometimes the most frail and forgotten people might have been heroes in their time.

If you have ever wondered about the gods, goddesses and heroes of ancient Greece, then Dateline: Troy by Paul Fleischman is worth checking out. The Trojan War was an event that took place during the Bronze Age; its story combines both mythological and historical components, and it is up to you to siphon through the facts to uncover the fiction.

What may surprise you about this book are the parallels that the author draws between that ancient war and the events that shape our world today. In order to illustrate these parallels, the author has used collages that contain headlines found in modern day news media. Seeing the similarities between our war-like culture and that of the ancient past makes one wonder how far we have really evolved since ancient times. Are the causes that we fight for really any different than those of our ancestors? When will humankind learn to avoid war altogether? Reading this book may give you a better idea of where we have come from, and just how far we have to go until we find peace in our time.

Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein is one of the greatest books of poetry for kids ever put together. It’s weird, funny, clever and poignant. Eye candy at its finest: this collection of limericks, rhymes and free verse is crawling with Silverstein’s creative ink drawings.

Ever wondered what would happen if you forgot to take the garbage out for a couple of years? How about the monster rumored to live up your nose? You’ll read about giants, and lonesome kids, birds with sharp beaks and a kid who can’t find his head. Your parents might think that these poems are for weirdos, but as a kid you will certainly dig every page. Don’t miss out on this book.

Ever get tormented by a bully? We all know how terrible it feels to be laughed at, teased or even pushed around by someone who is bigger and badder than we are. Well, bullies have been around for a long, long time. In this novel, which is set in 1918 Vermont, a bully named Aden makes a boy named Mason’s otherwise peaceful existence miserable. Then one night, when Mason is in trouble, the bully risks everything to help Mason out. Baffled by this display of kindness, Mason does not thank Aden, nor does he tell anybody what happened.

Not long afterwards, Aden goes to fight in the brutal war raging in Europe. When the Armistice, or peace treaty, is announced, the people of this small Vermont town rejoice by taking turns ringing the church bell. When Mason notices Aden’s mother standing alone mourning, he discovers that Aden has been killed in action. She finds deeper sorrow in the fact that no one joins her in mourning her son’s death. Mason shares with the grieving mother that Aden had once done a good thing for him, and that her son’s death will not go unnoticed.

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The Barn by Avi takes place in 1855, when the United States were not fully formed, and life enjoyed a different pace. Ben, the main character, is attending boarding school when he receives news that his father has been felled by palsy-which we now call having a stroke. Ben is only nine, but he is smarter than most kids, and possesses a good chunk of determination.

Ben quickly surmises that his father’s dream of building the barn that he had been planning before his stroke will provide his father with a reason to live. He enlists his sister Nellie-asking her to postpone her wedding and help with the building of the barn. Everything revolves around the barn for Ben. Maybe it is becoming a little too important in the scheme of things.

This short book offers an enthralling and intense look into time where building a barn with your own two hands can become almost as important as life itself. Take a look into the past-maybe you’ll discover something about yourself at the same time.

Once upon a dung-heap, a girl awoke to find herself alone, hungry, cold and homeless. The kids in her medieval village taunt her mercilessly; the adults in town don’t care enough to adopt her. In other words, life for the skinny girl known as Brat was the pits. Soon enough, she befriends a scraggly cat and finds work with the local midwife, named Jane Sharp.

A midwife in medieval society served as the person who delivered babies and concocted herbal compounds to keep people in decent health. Brat, who eventually names herself Alyce, puts in hours working in humble service for the midwife (who actually is quite an unpleasant person.) When Alyce faces a crisis and finds herself unable to successfully carry out her task, she runs away. What happens next is a surprise.

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Don’t be afraid to turn the page. Even if you wonder why Adam is biking like mad from Vermont all the way to Massachusetts. Even if the transcribed taped interviews get you wondering what is really going on in Adam’s life. Even if you are curious as to why Adam is on medication and what it has done to his memory.

You and Adam might be afraid of the same thing– all of those gaps in his memory are haunting him. Maybe you’ll be able to figure out the mystery before Adam does…. But only if you are brave enough to turn the page in I Am the Cheese by Robert Cormier.

Roald Dahl, the dazzling author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and James and the Giant Peach, has a wonderful collection of short stories that you are sure to enjoy. This book contains seven stories certain to stay with you for many years after you’ve read them.

One story tells about a boy who goes on vacation and makes a very unusual friend. You’ll feel like you are on the island looking at the turquoise blue water when you read it. Another tells a true tale about a farmer who faces the extreme cold in his fields one day, only to uncover a very valuable surprise buried in his land. Then there’s the title story which offers a peek into the life of a wealthy man who finds that–with a little faith and a lot of discipline– the hidden mysteries of life can unfold before his very eyes.

If you are searching for a top-notch read, you have got to check out this collection of stories.

In case you’ve never heard of the mythical Fountain of Youth, legend tells of a spring from which flows water that will render the drinker forever young. In Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt, Winnie discovers that this fantastic myth might actually be true when she befriends the Tuck family. The Tucks have accidentally drunk from a well whose waters freeze them in time and grant them eternal life. Sounds pretty good right?

But, if the Tucks reveal their secret to the world, it would change the face of humanity, and the natural order of things would run askew. And when Mae Tuck kills a man, their secret is in danger of being revealed. For if they attempt to execute her, they will discover that she cannot die. At the same time, if they put her in jail, they will see that she does not age. Still sound good? What should they do? What would you do?! Uncover the secret behind Tuck Everlasting — it really is a fantastic book.

Ever wonder who the heck you are? Like, “Who Am I?” You know, the big question that we all ask at one time or another while looking in the mirror. In the book I Am Regina by Sally M. Keehn, Regina Leninger asks the exact same question. Except, for one thing, her story takes place in 1755, and secondly, she happened to have been captured by Indians. This tribe had killed her father and her brother, who were Pennsylvania Dutch settlers.

As she travels north with the tribe that holds her captive, she is heard repeating the phrase, “I am Regina,” over and over, trying to hold onto one scrap of her identity. She stays with the tribe for eight years, and undergoes an enormous transformation. She learns the Native way of raising and cooking corn, gathering and refining maple syrup, taking part of sweat lodge ceremony and living off the land with the ceremonious intent of the Native people. What do you think she repeats over and over when she is reunited with her family of origin eight years later? Read this adventure story and find out.