Fresh Fare for Tweens and Teens

by Joy Bean -- Publishers Weekly, 4/9/2007

Publishers are serving up something for everyone, from new fairy worlds to superheroes to comics for middle-graders. Check out some of the bigger titles due out from April through September.

Atherton: The House of Power by Patrick Carman (Little, Brown, Apr.), the launch of a series by the author of the Dark Hills Divide series.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book Three: The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan (Hyperion, May), the highly anticipated third book in this Greek mythology series.

Maximum Ride #3: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports by James Patterson (Little, Brown, May), the final volume in the Maximum Ride trilogy.

Alfred Kropp: The Seal of Solomon by Rick Yancey (Bloomsbury, June), the follow-up to The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (Abrams/Amulet, Apr.), a novel in cartoons about a middle-grade boy dealing with school and life. Waves by Sharon Dogar (Scholastic/ Chicken House, Apr.), about a family drowning in sorrow and the son who tries to save them.

Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah (Scholastic/Orchard, May), in which a 16-year-old girl decides to wear her hijab full time.

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (HarperTeen, June), about a modern teen who sees faeries and is drawn into their world.

Lizard People by Charlie Price (Roaring Brook, Aug.), about a boy coping with his mother's mental illness.

Hero by Perry Moore (Hyperion, Aug.), about a superhero who is coming to terms with not only his superpowers, but his sexuality as well.

If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko (Harcourt, Sept.), in which two students' lives collide when they make a momentous discovery.

The Fairy Chronicles: Marigold and the Feather of Hope, the Journey Begins and Dragonfly and the Web of Dreams by J.H. Sweet (Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky, May), first in a new series about fairies.

The Misadventures of Benjamin Bartholomew Piff: You Wish by Jason Lethcoe (Grosset & Dunlap, Apr.), kicking off a fantasy series in which a boy wishes for unlimited wishes on his birthday, and sets off a chain of events.

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy (HarperCollins, Apr.), a humorous thriller starring a skeleton detective who comes back from the grave to fight evil.

Jack Plank Tells Tales by Natalie Babbitt (Scholastic/diCapua, May), about a retired pirate who leaves his shipmates to search for a new career.

The Neddiad by Daniel Pinkwater (Houghton, Apr.), a humorous road trip for a man and his family in the 1940s.

Marley: A Dog Like No Other by John Grogan (HarperCollins, May), adapted from Grogan's bestselling adult memoir, Marley and Me.

Main Street: Welcome to Camden Falls and Needle and Thread by Ann Martin (Scholastic, May) is the first series launch for Martin since her Baby-sitters Club.

The Off Season by Catherine Gilbert (Houghton, June), the sequel to Dairy Queen.