Front Page Face Off

Twelve-year-old Delilah James is one of the top reporters at Brighton Junior Academy and dreams of becoming a Junior Global Journalist. But when an international rival named Ava invades her newsroom and takes over her crush, Delilah finds an unlikely ally in the Debutantes - a.k.a. the Little Debbies.

Twelve-year-old Alexis "Alex" Evins is a loner, a tomboy and a first-class prankster, following in the not-so-glorious footsteps of her older twin brothers, Parker and Nick. When the Evins siblings play a prank that goes just a tad too far (resulting in setting a neighbor's sofa--and hair--on fire), their dad decides it's time for some tough love. He signs them up for an after-school program called Champs!, which guarantees that it will turn any kid into a well-rounded success. Alex, Parker and Nick all must pass the course together, or else it's off to St. Ignacius private school (aka St. Ignasty). At Champs!, Alex encounters more than a few nemeses, including the Champs! coach, Sharon Success, mom of Alex's classmate, the totally perfect and totally annoying Emily Gold, and the ultra-competitive Chloe Stroupe. After weeks of intense classes, the Evins sibilings are soon faced with the Champs! Championship, a test of teamwork, leadership, and responsibility. Alex and her brothers are determined to win. But when an earlier misstep threatens all their hard work, Alex finds herself scrambling to make things right. Can the "evil Evins" actually pass this course in one piece? Or are they destined for an epic fail?

A lead role means lots of drama in this sparkling story of one tween’s efforts to shine in the spotlight. Sunny Kim is done with one-line roles at Carnegie Arts Academy—she’s ready for the lead. But even after a summer of studying with an acting coach, Sunny doesn’t snag the role of Mary Poppins in her school’s upcoming production. Unfortunately, her entire family mistakenly thinks otherwise, including her former-actress mother. Desperate for a solution, Sunny convinces her theater adviser to let her produce a one-woman show. But when the rest of her friends find out—the friends that never seem to make the playbill either—they all want to join in. Before long, Sunny is knee-deep in curtains, catfights, and chorus lines as her one-woman work turns into a staging of the hit musical Wicked. And when a terrible misunderstanding pits the entire cast against Sunny, can the show—and Sunny’s future acting career—be saved in time for opening night?

Formerly titled Colonial Madness, a mother-daughter duo take part in a bizarre family challenge in hopes of winning a fortune in this “light, fun read” (Booklist) that’s Gilmore Girls meets The Westing Game! Tori Porter is best friends with her mom, and most of the time it’s awesome. Not many girls have a mom who’d take them to a graveyard for hide-and-seek or fill the bathtub with ice cream for the world’s biggest sundae. But as much as Tori loves having fun, she sometimes wishes her mom would act a little more her age. Like now. Thanks to her mom’s poor financial planning, they are in danger of losing their business and their home. But an unusual opportunity arises in the form of a bizarre contest run by an eccentric relative: Whoever can survive two weeks in the Archibald Family’s colonial manor will inherit the property. The catch? Contestants have to live as in colonial times: no modern conveniences, no outside help, and daily tests of their abilities to survive challenges of the time period. Tori thinks it’s the perfect answer to their debt problems, but she and her mom aren’t the only ones interested. The other family members seem to be much more prepared for the two weeks on the manor—and it doesn’t help that Mom doesn’t seem to be taking the contest seriously. Do they stand a chance?

This book provides a varied, thorough and informative analysis of how newspapers covered the 2014 Scottish independence referendum in its critical final months. Providing a wealth of new empirical findings, the book engages with the key themes and issues presented by a variety of newspaper outlets. These main observations include: a major focus on the economic aspects of the debate; persistent concerns regarding an independent Scotland’s prospects on the world stage, both militarily and strategically; the re-emergence of Gordon Brown as a political heavyweight; and a myopic focus on Alex Salmond, who would come to be framed as personally synonymous with the abstract concept of Scottish independence. The book will be the first point of contact for readers interested in the subject, providing an overview which is meticulously researched, authoritative and engaging, and offering broader insights in the areas of journalism, political communication and media studies.

In the spring of 1938 Inspector Max Hamilton leaves the village of St. Basil in the Midlands of England for a holiday in London. He soon meets Sir John Cross, the head of the Special Operations section of Scotland Yard. At the urging of his friend, Cameron Philby, Max accepts a position and the country policeman soon finds himself in the center of London's upper class social milieu. The murder of a beautiful adventuress sets in motion a tale of murder, intrigue and treachery. Inspector Hamilton is charged with uncovering those who have been corrupted by the shimmering face of evil.

World War II was won by brave fighting men in the Pacific, Africa, Europe, on the land, on the seas and in the air. They were able to accomplish those great victories because of the fierce, fighting men and women on the home front who provided the guns, ammunition, tanks, planes, ships, food, medical and all other supplies necessary to keep a fighting force with what they needed to beat the enemy. This is a novel about how some of that could have come about.

Julie Downs is about to write a story that could make her career, unless she lets matters of the heart get in the way.