We’ve all selected books that hook us from the first sentence. Who could put down a book that begins, “It looked like an ordinary package.” ? With a little danger, some suspense, and maybe a dose of the supernatural, these titles will have your patrons wishing they had finished their chores before reading the first page. The following novels selected by the editors at Junior Library Guild will have readers checking the bulb in their nightlights too. AUXIER, Jonathan. The Night Gardener. Abrams/ Amulet. 2014. ISBN 9781419711442. JLG Level: B+ : Upper Elementary & Junior High (Grades 5–7). The girl was named Molly, and the boy, her brother, was Kip. And they were riding to their deaths. With no other options than to fend for themselves, the two siblings get jobs outside town in a creepy mansion. When Molly decides to investigate the strange wet footprints that appear in the night, she discovers that something evil is among them. How can they fight a battle that devours your soul while giving you what you want most? What inspires an author to write? Everyone’s answer is different, but Auxier’s response is music. He compiles a soundtrack for his books to help him create the intended feeling of the story. Listen to examples on his website. Visit the publisher for reviews and other tales of interest. In his author’s note, he mentions Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) as his greatest inspiration. Another influential literary work for the author was The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon by Washington Irving. Read those stories in their entirety on Project Guttenberg or download the audiobook from LibriVox. For readers interested in the history that appears in the novel, point them to BBC History to read about The Great Famine. Like fictional Dr. Crouch, English scientists were interested in science of the paranormal, founding The Society for Psychical Research in 1882. Perfect as a companion to ghost stories, the Wonderopolis lesson “What’s Your Favorite Ghost Story?” includes references to Irving’s works. BLACKWOOD, Gary. Curiosity. Dial. 2014. ISBN 9780803739246. JLG Level: B : Upper Elementary & Junior High (Grades 5–7). Rufus Goodspeed did what he was told. If he was a good boy, he might earn his supper, but what he really wanted was to feed his imprisoned father. To do that, he must follow his master by keeping his chess playing secret. If the tale were told, it could be his ruination. Unfortunately for him, the determined reporter Edgar Allan Poe also played chess. And he played to win as well. Interestingly enough, automatons did exist. Known as The Turk, the machine was designed by Hungarian engineer and inventor Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen in 1769. It performed intermittently for the next 84 years. At Chessgames.com you can see the moves that were made in some of the chess-playing automaton’s games. For videos and more info on the mechanical chess player, visit BBC.com. For lessons on chess, try two Wonderopolis lessons, “Which Came First: Checkers or Chess?” and “What is Checkmate?” On CBS Sunday Morning, today’s youth can learn more about automatons. Johann Maelzel was a real person. Michael Jackson once owned one of his metronome creations. William Schlumberger (Mulhouse) was indeed the last operator of the Turk. Since Edgar Allan Poe makes a grand appearance in the novel, send readers to the official museum where they will learn about his life and works. Teachers can also fill out a form to download an activity kit. More biographical information and supporting videos can be found at Biography.com.  P. T. Barnum also makes a cameo appearance in this tale. Read about him at the Ringling Brothers site. RINGWALD, Whitaker. The Secret Box. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Bks. 2014. ISBN 9780062216144. JLG Level: ME : Mystery/Adventure Elementary (Grades 2–6). “It looked like an ordinary package.” Obviously it was not. What’s the most famous box you know? (Pause.) Yes! Pandora’s box. And what happens when you open it? (Pause.) Not what you’d think. At least not anymore. That’s exactly what Jax Malone and her cousins discover when they go on a mission to recover her birthday present. Who knew it would be far more than just an ordinary package. The first in a middle-grade series, this novel will engulf readers with its page-turning events. A trio of male and female characters allows for a larger audience. Read about the book and the author on the publisher’s website, where you can also read several chapters. Scholastic has online worksheets for studying Greek mythology. During your Greek myths unit, students can complete an alphabet book: A is for Apollo, for example. As an elementary librarian, I found this to be a great thinking-motivator for my students. Use technology to retell Pandora’s story such as this example I found on Pinterest. WHITE, J. A. The Thickety: A Path Begins. illus. by Andrea Offermann. HarperCollins/ Katherine Tegen Bks. 2014. ISBN 9780062257246. JLG Level: FM : Fantasy/Science Fiction Middle (Grades 5–8). There are two rules in Kara Westfall’s village: don’t do magic and stay out of the Thickety. She broke both. Already known as the witch’s child, it’s no surprise that Kara also has magical gifts. Just like the days of Salem, she must keep them secret or risk being hanged as was her mother. Used to getting her way, classmate Grace is determined to discover what the protagonist is hiding. Between the evil in the Thickety and the darkness within it, no one can be exactly sure of the price for rule breaking. Debut author  White still has a “day job.” He’s an elementary school teacher in New Jersey. He also works with a video production company called Escape Goat Pictures. Watch the book trailer of this first book in the fantasy series. If you show it to your kids, you’ll need to have multiple copies ready for circulation. Stay tuned for volume 2, set for release in March 2015. Additional Resources Check out our award-winning LiveBinder which organizes all of the above resources. All websites are posted within the LiveBinder, along with the accompanying booktalk. As I write more columns, more books and their resources are added. Simply go to JLG Booktalks to Go where you will see the LiveBinder main tabs. Each tab is a book title. Under each color-coded tab are gray subtabs with links to media, websites, and other related documents. Everything you need to teach or share brand new, hot-off-the-press books is now all in one place. Booktalks and resources are also included on JLG’s BTG Pinterest board. For library resources, tips, and ideas, please visit JLG’s Shelf Life Blog. Junior Library Guild (JLG) is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com. (NOTE: JLG is owned by Media Source, Inc., SLJ’s parent company.)