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books suitable for AGES 10+
7 Riddles to Nowhere
A J Cattapan
by
STANDALONE
BOOK 1
A selectively mute seventh-grade boy tries to save his Catholic school from closing by winning a riddle-solving competition that leads him and his eclectic group of friends through the churches of Chicago.
Themes: bullying, friendship, sacrifice, grit and determination
Free discussion guide available on author's website.
Penny and the Stolen Chalice
Antony Kolenc
by
STANDALONE
Penny is a new sixth grader at a Catholic school, but she isn't Catholic. So when the chalice is stolen from the altar during a school Mass, she doesn't understand what the big deal is. When her friend Jayden is accused of the theft, Penny teams up with him to find the real thief and recover the chalice.
Themes: Eucharist
No discussion guide at this time.
Rosa, Sola
Carmela Martino
by
STANDALONE
BOOK 1
Ten-year-old Rosa, the only child of Italian immigrants in 1960s Chicago, is overjoyed when God answers her prayers for a little brother, but then a tragedy threatens to pull her family apart.
Themes: loss, family, faith, prayer, grief, and immigrant life
Discussion questions included in back of book and on author’s website.
Saving Mount Rushmore
Andrea Jo Rodgers
by
ST MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL ACADEMY
BOOK 1
John Jenkins is shocked when he learns he’s been accepted to a top-secret school for kids with special gifts, but then devastated when he discovers he was admitted due to a clerical error. As John and his schoolmates track down clues and solve puzzles in order to save Mount Rushmore, he discovers that everyone has special God-given gifts, including him.
Themes: faith, friendship, courage, patriotism, adventure, history, God-given gifts, good vs. evil
Discussion questions and educational resources are included in the back of the book.
Saving the Statue of Liberty
Andrea Jo Rodgers
by
ST MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL ACADEMY
BOOK 2
John Jenkins and the kids from Saint Michael the Archangel Academy are onto their next mission—to save the Statue of Liberty. Help them uncover clues and solve puzzles at Liberty State Park and Ellis Island as they race to preserve the universal symbol of freedom.
Themes: faith, friendship, courage, patriotism, adventure, history, good vs. evil
​Discussion questions and educational resources are included in the back of the book.
8 Notes to a Nobody
Cynthia T Toney
by
BIRD FACE SERIES
BOOK 1
Wendy Robichaud finds mysterious sticky notes all over school, but that's nothing compared to bullying from a classmate and a secret her best friend seems to be keeping. At the end of eighth grade, summer break looks hopeless, but it just might be the best summer of her life.
Themes: bullying, shyness and making friends, coping with divorced parents, blaming God, self-reliance, inter-generational friendships
Discussion questions and resources are located at the back of the book, and a free downloadable Teacher’s Guide is found on the author’s website.
Destiny of Sunshine Ranch
T M Gaouette
by
STANDALONE
BOOK 1
Relays the personal journeys of the Credence foster children and their struggles to overcome past and present pain and adversity. In this novel, the confidence of the devoted is challenged, but an even deeper understanding of God and His love are revealed.
Themes: includes overcoming past adversity, grief, loss, foster care, the power of prayer, friendship, faith, forgiveness, courage. Appropriate for students studying Christian morality.
Free book study questions on author’s website.
Fire of Eden
Antony Kolenc
by
HARWOOD MYSTERIES SERIES
BOOK 3
When a priceless ruby, known as "Eden's Fire," is stolen from a monk on the eve of his ordination, Xan and Lucy race against time and a dark magician to catch the thief.
Themes: humility, redemption, vocation. Free discussion and curriculum guides available on Loyola's website.
​Free discussion and curriculum guides available on the publisher's website.
Haunted Cathedral
Antony Kolenc
by
HARWOOD MYSTERIES SERIES
BOOK 2
The continued adventures of Xan and Lucy in twelfth century England. Xan and Lucy travel to a far-off city and investigate rumors of a haunted cathedral while searching for Xan's uncle.
Themes: forgiveness, saints, vocation. Free discussion and curriculum guides available on Loyola's website.
​Free discussion and curriculum guides available on the publisher's website.
Mandy Lamb and the Full Moon
Corinna Turner
by
MANDY LAMB SERIES
BOOK 1
Mandy Lamb is the world's only half-sheep girl, thanks to a spot of well-meant but ill-advised genetic tinkering. Starting senior school, she meets James, a rather strange orphan who smells, to Mandy, distinctly like a dog, and who has a bad habit of running off at the full moon. With danger on the way, will James prove friend or foe?
Themes: Bullying, grief, loss, friendship, faith, forgiveness, courage.Â
No discussion guide at this time.
Merchant's Curse
Antony Kolenc
by
HARWOOD MYSTERIES SERIES
BOOK 4
When a merchant appears to be cursed by a witch, Xan and Christina must save the man's life while avoiding capture as suspected traitors to King Henry II.
Themes include redemption, world’s vanity, and vocation.
Discussion guide is available on the publisher's website.
Murder at Penwood Manor
Antony Kolenc
by
HARWOOD MYSTERIES SERIES
BOOK 5
When a brutal murder occurs at a medieval English manor, and a haunted Crusader is accused, a group of teens must solve the crime before an innocent man is executed.
Themes: Envy, faith, love
Discussion guide available on publisher's website.
Other Side of Freedom
Cynthia T Toney
by
STANDALONE
BOOK 1
In a southern farming community in 1925, thirteen-year-old Salvatore and his Italian immigrant father become involved against their will in a crime that results in the murder of an innocent man and family friend. Will Sal keep the secrets about that night as his father asks, or risk everything he and his family cherish in their new homeland, including their lives?
Themes: This coming-of-age novel demonstrates a Catholic boy’s faith, courage, and desire to do right in the eyes of God, his family, his community, and his country.
Discussion questions and resources are located at the back of the book, and visit the author’s website.
Shadow in the Dark
Antony Kolenc
by
HARWOOD MYSTERIES SERIES
BOOK 1
When a boy in twelfth century England loses his memory after an attack on his village by bandits, he is nursed back to health at a Benedictine abbey, where he must solve the mystery of the shadowy figure creeping around the grounds in the dead of night.
Themes: friendship, suffering, forgiveness, vocation.
​Free discussion and curriculum guides available on the publisher's website.
Single Bead
Stephanie Engelman
by
STANDALONE
BOOK 1
After discovering a bead to her grandmother's rosary a year after her grandmother's death in a plane crash, sixteen-year-old Katelyn sets off on a quest to find the remaining beads and discovers a series of miracles.
Themes: rosary, loss, depression, prayer, Blessed Mother, death, Heaven, Purgatory
Discussion questions included in back of book.
Wolf, the Lamb, and the Air Balloon
Corinna Turner
by
MANDY LAMB SERIES
BOOK 2
Mandy Lamb is the world’s only half-sheep girl, due to a spot of well-meant but ill advised genetic tinkering. Her friend James is a were-wolf! But when James agrees to attend the school fete posing as a dog, threats soon emerge from quite unexpected directions.
Themes: Bullying, grief, loss, friendship, faith, forgiveness, courage.Â
No discussion guide at this time.
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