Itch

                      Now Available as an audiobook from Recorded Books!   


                                 "The dramatic ending is emotionally satisfying, the story is layered with insight . . . and the 
                                      author's pleasure in language is contagious, but this novel's greatest strength is its indelible
                                      characters . . . Itch herself is a quirky and endearing heroine . . . (her) coming-of-age is 
                                      a rich and satisfying journey." ~ School Library Journal
                          
                           A "moving, believable story. Sympathetic, well-drawn characters . . ."  ~Booklist

                                 "Kwasney's characters are . . . fully fleshed and memorable." ~ Kirkus 
                                 
                                  "The story is so well written that 12-year-old girls won't be able to stop turning the
                                        pages." ~ Childrens Literature


                    

Delores Colchester, nicknamed Itch, hasn’t been on her Thinking Swing since the day her beloved Gramps died. There’s a darn good reason for that. Thinking will only make Itch miss Gramps more. Plus it’ll make her miss the house they shared back in Beaver Creek, and her best friend Bailey—both of which she lost when stubborn Gram got the notion of pulling up roots and moving north to Ohio. Starting over is hard. And so is making new friends. When Itch befriends an almost-famous baton twirler named Gwendolyn, she’s tickled—until she discovers the dark secret Gwendolyn is hiding. “Speaking up takes courage,” Gramps had always told Itch. And she’s about to discover how much. 





 

   Henry Holt and Company
   April 2008 / 256 pages
   ISBN 0-8050-8083-X
   16.95 US / 21.00 CAN
   Ages 10 & up
 

Read an Itch excerpt.

Order Itch on amazon.com  or barnesandnoble.com or locate an independent bookseller near you.
 
 Order Itch as an audiobook through Recorded Books.

Baby Blue

Blue’s family is coming apart at the seams. After Pa drowned in the river, Mama up and married Jinx, who Blue and Star know is big trouble. And now Star has run away, leaving Blue behind. It was hard enough to watch Mama get knocked around when Jinx was in one of his “moods,” but now, with Star gone, Jinx has spun out of control. It’s up to Blue to find Star and get help for Mama, to piece her family back together again. But Blue is running out of time. With biting realism and poignancy, this compelling young-adult novel explores Blue’s struggle to protect her family and stand up against what she knows is wrong.

-Henry Holt Books for Young Readers







Henry Holt and Company
April 2004 / 208 pages
ISBN 0-8050-7050-8
16.95 US / 23.95 CAN
Ages 12 & up
Jacket illustration: Terri Gold


Read a Baby Blue excerpt.

Read Baby Blue reviews.

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or locate an independent bookseller near you.

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