Super Special Top 5 for Friday Part 2

Here's part two of the Super Special Top 5 for Friday. This week we are covering off the other two sections in the New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2011.

Introducing Young Adult Fiction

Ebony Hill Anna Mackenzie. Publisher Random House New Zealand Target age 12+. Sequel to The Sea-wreck stranger. Vidya - a city in ruins - and Ebony Hill: two halves of a community trying to find a way forward from the tragedy of the past. But theirs is not the only way. In a battle for survival, is endurance enough? Is there more than one kind of courage? As conflict rages, Ness and her fellow islander Ronan must come to terms with themselves, with each other and with their attitudes towards violence and belonging. Will they be strong enough to survive the decisions they must make?.

Fierce September Fleur Beale. Publisher Random House New Zealand. Target age 12+. Book 2 in the Juno of Taris series. Juno and the Taris inhabitants must leave their dying island to live on the Outside, a seemingly hostile place. Juno enjoys the new freedoms and choices now available to her. But Taris doesn't give up its hold so easily, and she is shocked to find the island held more secrets than any of them knew.

Guardian of the Dead Karen Healey. Publisher Allen & Unwin Target age 14+. At her boarding school in New Zealand, Ellie Spencer is like any ordinary teen: she hangs out with her best friend, Kevin; obsesses over her crush on a mysterious boy; and her biggest worry is her essay deadline. Until everything changes... In the foggy woods near the school, something ancient and deadly is waiting.

The Limping Man Maurice Gee. Publisher Penguin Group (NZ) Target age 10+. Book 3 in the Salt series. When Hana's mam chooses to swallow frogweed poison rather than die in the great witch-burning in People's Square, Hana flees the burrows before she too is taken. Deep in the forest she meets Ben, son of Lo, and the two journey back to the burrows to find a way to destroy the Limping Man before his evil consumes the world. But first they must discover the secret of his strength.

Smiling Jack Ken Catran. Publisher HarperCollins Publishers. Target age 12+. Robert lives in a small, prosperous rural town where his father is a respected and trusted pillar of the local community. When Robert's father and uncle are killed in road accident his comfortable world rapidly begins to unravel. With so much to deal with, he barely thinks about the evil grin on the playing card Jack found at the site of the accident. Until the second death, and the third, when once again Jack's leering malicious grin is found nearby. As Robert realises he never knew his father, those people his father betrayed turn against him, and he is forced to look deep into the shadows that are closing in if he is to get out alive.

Introducing Non-Fiction
The Kiwi Fossil Hunter's Handbook James Crampton & Marianna Terezow. Publisher Random House New Zealand Target age 8+. Kids are fascinated by dinosaurs, and love the idea of the fossils they have left behind. New Zealand has a rich fossil record which is accessible to the amateur fossil-hunter in locations around New Zealand, including shells and plant remains as well as the bones, teeth and other remnants of ancient reptiles, birds and fish. This book features locations throughout New Zealand where fossils can be found, and includes lots of photos

The life cycle of the Pukeko Betty Brownlie. Publisher Scholastic New Zealand Target age 6+. Uses images and educational text to describe the life cycle of the pūkeko.

Sensational Survivors Sandra Morris. Publisher Walker Books Australia. Target age 6+. An ancient land isolated by vast oceans, New Zealand is home to many fascinating creatures. From a prehistoric reptile to one of the world's largest insects, you'll discover some of the most unusual and impressive species on our planet

Who's Cooking Tonight? Claire Gourley & Glenda Gourley. Publisher Penguin Group (NZ) Target age 12+. Based on a popular website, www.itsmyturntocooktonight.com, Who's Cooking Tonight? is a one-of-a kind cookbook, written by a teenager especially for other teenagers.

Zero Hour: The Anzacs on the Western Front Leon Davidson. Text Publishing Company. Target age 13+. The First World War was only meant to last six months. When the Australians and New Zealanders arrived at the Western Front in 1916, the fighting had been going for a year and a half and there was no end in sight. The men took their place in a line of trenches that spread through Belgium and France from the North Sea to the Swiss Alps.

Don't forget there is also a People's Choice Award which gives you the chance to win as well. Call into the Library to check out the books and pick up your voting card. Or go online to the NZ Post Book Awards website.