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Todd Strasser

    Todd Strasser masterfully explores the complexities of adolescence and the search for identity. His narratives frequently capture pivotal moments in young lives, delving into their internal struggles and external pressures. He paints vivid portraits of his settings and eras, from the tumultuous sixties to contemporary challenges. Strasser's writing is incisive, prompting readers to contemplate their own place in the world and the forces that shape them.

    Todd Strasser
    Richie Rich
    Peter Pan
    Jumanji
    Is that an Angry Penguin in Your Gym Bag?
    Can't Get There from Here
    If I Grow Up
    • In the Frederick Douglass Project where DeShawn lives, daily life is ruled by drugs and gang violence. Dropping out of school and joining a gang is the norm and every kid knows someone who's died. Gunshots ring out on a regular basis. DeShawn is smart enough to know he should stay in school and keep away from the gangs. But while his friends have drug money to buy anything they want, DeShawn's family can barely afford food for the month. How can he stick to his principles when his family is hungry? In this gritty novel about growing up in the inner-city projects, award-winning author Todd Strasser opens a window into the life of a teenager struggling with right and wrong under the ever-present shadow of gangs.

      If I Grow Up
      4.2
    • Her street name is Maybe. She lives with a tribe of homeless teens -- runaways and throwaways, kids who have no place to go other than the cold city streets, and no family except for one another. Abused, abandoned, and forgotten, they struggle against the cold, hunger, and constant danger. With the frigid winds of January comes a new girl: Tears, a twelve-year-old whose mother doesn't believe Tears's stepfather abuses her. As the other kids start to disappear -- victims of violence, addiction, and exposure -- Maybe tries to help Tears get off the streets...if it's not already too late.

      Can't Get There from Here
      4.1
    • The Tardy Boys show up at school on a warm winter morning to get ready for hockey practice, discover that the rink has been taken over by penguins and realize that it is up to them to keep the creatures from becoming extinct.

      Is that an Angry Penguin in Your Gym Bag?
      4.0
    • Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle now Sony's highest grossing film of all time Over thirty years ago, Peter and Judy first found the game--Jumanji--with the instructions that once the game is started, it must be finished or it will go on forever--and it was then, with this same wonderment, readers found Jumanji, too. Since its original publication, Jumanji has been honored with many awards, including the Caldecott Medal, and in 1996, the surreal story was adapted to fit the big screen for the first time. This special edition of Jumanji contains a downloadable audiobook of the renowned actor Robin Williams reading the timeless tale.

      Jumanji
      4.1
    • The adventures of Peter Pan, the boy who would not grow up.

      Peter Pan
      4.0
    • Richie Rich

      A Novelization Based on the Screenplay Written by Tom S. Parker & Jim Jennewein. Based on a Story by Neil Tolkin. Based on Characters Appearing in Harvey Comics

      • 144 pages
      • 6 hours of reading

      Richie Rich, the son of the world's wealthiest man, must stop a dishonest employee's attempt to take over Rich Enterprises

      Richie Rich
      3.8
    • “[H]aunting and harrowing.” —Booklist (starred review) “Vivid, distressing, and all too real.” —Kirkus Reviews In this 20th anniversary edition of Todd Strasser’s gut-wrenching and critically acclaimed Give a Boy a Gun, two boys bring guns to school in search of revenge against their classmates. For as long as they can remember, Brendan and Gary have been mercilessly teased and harassed by the jocks who rule Middletown High. But not anymore. Stealing a small arsenal of guns from a neighbor, they take their classmates hostage at a school dance. In the panic of this desperate situation, it soon becomes clear that only one thing matters to Brendan and Gary: revenge. This special 20th anniversary edition includes updated backmatter and statistics on school shootings—a topic that is now more relevant than ever.

      Give a Boy a Gun: 20th Anniversary Edition
      3.9
    • Jake Sherman has switched bodies - again. And this time with an alien. A funny-looking alien. From a planet where aliens sit around and watching TV and eating junk food all day long. Sounds good to Jake but the alien has run off with Jake's body. Does Jake really want to be a couch potato ... forever?

      Help! I'm Trapped in an Alien's Body
      3.4
    • The Pagemaster

      • 133 pages
      • 5 hours of reading

      A young boy who is afraid of everything gets trapped in the local library, where he befriends three strange characters, Adventure, Fantasy, and Horror, and must overcome his fears while journeying through Storyland towards the Exit Sign. Movie tie-in. https://openlibrary.org/books/OL78851...

      The Pagemaster
      3.5
    • The Beast of Cretacea

      • 414 pages
      • 15 hours of reading

      A futuristic reimagining of "Moby Dick" finds young Ishmael awakening aboard a ship on an unpolluted faraway planet where he harvests resources for a depleted Earth before witnessing his captain's growing obsession with a great sea creature.

      The Beast of Cretacea
      4.0