Recommendations based on "Elixir"

Lora wants to stay a kid forever, and she'll do anything to make that happen . . . including befriending Alexa, the ghost who haunts her house. A middle-grade graphic novel about growing up that's perfect for fans of Ghosts and Making Friends.Growing up sounds terrible.No one has time to do anything fun, or play outside, or use their imagination. Everything is suddenly so serious. People are more interested in their looks and what others think about them than having fun adventures. Who wants that?Not Lora.After watching her circle of friends seemingly fade away, Lora is determined to still have fun on her own. A tea party with a twist leaves Lora to re-discovering Alexa, the ghost that haunts her house -- and Lora's old imaginary friend! Lora and Alexa are thrilled to meet kindred spirits and they become best friends . . . but unfortunately, not everything can last forever.Reimena Yee brings to life a story about growing up, childhood, and what it means to let go. A fantastical story following lovable characters as they each realize what it means to be who you are.

A heartfelt middle grade from Jeanne Zulick Ferruolo about two girls who go on an adventure to the top of a mountain, and learn about each other, themselves, and the magic friendship can bring, perfect for fans of Katherine Applegate and Barbara O'Connor.What do you do when you’re facing the impossible?Ever since the day when everything changed, Cal Scott’s answer has been to run―run from her mother who’s fighting cancer, run from her father whom she can’t forgive, and run from classmates who’ve never seemed to “get” her anyway. The only thing Cal runs toward is nearby Mt. Meteorite, named for the magical meteorite some say crashed there fifty years ago. Cal spends her afternoons plotting to summit the mountain, so she can find the magic she believes will make the impossible possible and heal her mother. But no one has successfully reached its peak―no one who’s lived to tell about it, anyway.Then Cal meets Rosine Kanambe, a girl who’s faced more impossibles than anyone should have to. Rosine has her own secret plan for the mountain and its magic, and convinces Cal they can summit its peak if they work together. As the girls climb high and dig deep to face the mountain’s challenges, Cal learns from Rosine what real courage looks like, and begins to wonder if the magic she’s been looking for is really the kind she needs.Each of Us a Universe by Jeanne Zulick Ferruolo is a glowing story of friendship, inner strength, and what happens when the impossible becomes possible.

A young girl triumphs over the Queen of Faeries to reclaim her ancestral home and free her true love in this haunting retelling of an old Scottish ballad. “Mikolaycak’s illustrations...attract attention yet do not overpower the story, making the book one that could be easily used as a picture story book presentation for middle- and upper-grade or even adult audiences.”-The Horn Book

June views the world differently than others. A keen horticulturist, she can name every flower species in the alphabet (J begins with the Jamaica Plum). Yet, when it comes to people and relationships, she's still cultivating an understanding. After her mother's unexpected death, June must vacate her home. But when the social worker urges her to move into a flat with no garden—clearly, that won’t work. With no other options, she embarks on her first solo trip in search of a father she’s only seen in a single old photograph. When June unexpectedly shows up at her father’s door, he panics and turns her away, unwilling to jeopardize his idyllic life and new family. On her way out, June spies an unruly backyard and with nowhere else to go, quietly moves into her father’s yellow garden shed. Once again, she can spend her days surrounded by her beloved flowers. But when her father’s 12-year-old son—her half-brother—discovers June, she must choose between being seen for the first time or running away yet again. A beautiful and heartwarming portrait of a young woman who looks at the world differently, June in the Garden encourages others to do the same. Because thinking unconventionally is not a flaw, it’s often the key to appreciating the wonder and bloom that surrounds us.

She has always known the rules – never resurrect anything larger than the palm of her hand, but that was before her sister died. A chilling, compulsive exploration of sisterhood, loss, and revenge.The stunning hardcover of And the River Drags Her Down features gorgeous stenciled edges and a matching case stamp!"Yun beautifully captures the haunting of family myths in this slow-burn horror. Eerie and poignant, And The River Drags Her Down will sweep readers into its relentless current."- Trang Thanh Tran, New York Times bestselling author of She Is a HauntingWhen her older sister is found mysteriously drowned in the river that cuts through their small coastal town, Soojin Han disregards every rule and uses her ancestral magic to bring Mirae back from the dead. At first, the sisters are overjoyed, reveling in late-night escapades and the miracle of being together again, but Mirae grows tired of hiding from the world. She becomes restless and hungry . . .Driven by an insatiable desire to finish what she started in life, to unravel the truth that crushed her family so many years ago, Mirae is out for revenge.When their town is engulfed by increasingly destructive rain and a series of harrowing, unusual deaths, Soojin is forced to reckon with the fact that perhaps the sister she brought back isn’t the one she knew.

Setting out on a journey with a rare and magical stone, Listener searches for his grandfather, the legendary Gentle Fluter, from whom he will inherit a magical instrument and for the woman whose eyes match the colors of the stone

Four best friends, one lucky bracelet, and an utterly charming new middle-grade series!Mia has always loved living in southern California, where she takes every chance she gets to surf. But when she breaks her foot, Mia can't believe how bored she is! Bored enough that she's caught bird-watching -- by a famous young actress! Turns out, the other girl likes birds, too, and when she invites Mia to come with her to take photos, Mia jumps at the chance. Something to do AND the money she needs to pay for camp for next year! There's just one more problem: How will she keep her weird new job a secret from her BFFs?

Winner of the Blue Peter Book Award and the Waterstones Children's Book Prize, and shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal.Already being proclaimed a classic in children's literature and compared to the likes of Roald Dahl and Eva Ibbotson, Katherine Rundell's Rooftoppers merges fantasy and historical fiction with sophisticated lyrical prose and vivid imagery that will delight middle grade readers, tweens, teens, and parents and teachers alike.Join plucky heroine Sophie, her eccentric guardian Charles, and her intrepid orphan allies on the rooftops of Victorian Paris, as they encounter suspense and adventure that will keep kids of all ages on the edge of their seats right to the heartwarming end.My mother is still alive, and she is going to come for me one day.Everyone thinks that Sophie is an orphan. Found floating in a cello case and swaddled in a Beethoven score, she is the only recorded female survivor of a shipwreck on the English Channel. But Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help...Charles, a fellow survivor and an eccentric scholar, finds Sophie and brings her home to his London bachelor flat. Raised in a quirky home filled with music, words and love (though questionable diet), Sophie grows into a free-spirited tomboy with a taste for Shakespeare and the unshakeable belief that anything is possible. And you should never ignore a possible.So when the child welfare agency in its bureaucratic wisdom threatens to send Sophie to an orphanage, the optimistic girl and her odd guardian flee to Paris on a quest to find her mother, starting with the only clue she has - the address of the cello maker.Secured in an attic to evade the French authorities, Sophie escapes through the skylight and meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers - homeless urchins who tightrope walk above the busy streets below, dining on pigeons and snails alongside the gargoyles and bell tower of Notre Dame. Together they set out on an unimaginable adventure, scouring the city for Sophie's mother before she is caught and sent back to London - and most importantly, before she loses hope.Readers who enjoyed the Lemony Snicket books, Ellen Potter's The Kneebone Boy, Cornelia Funke's The Thief Lord, and Sally Gardner's I, Coriander will want to put Rooftoppers on their "Must Read" list.

Georgia loves horse and hates her step-brother Russell. So when Georgia saves up enough money to buy a little winged horse she knows she has to keep it out of his way. But what Georgia doesn't know is that the horse offers her and escape to another world and another time.

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by the New York Public Library • Kirkus Reviews • Booklist • Publishers WeeklyTiến loves his family and his friends…but Tiến has a secret he's been keeping from them, and it might change everything. An amazing YA graphic novel that deals with the complexity of family and how stories can bring us together.Real life isn't a fairytale.But Tiến still enjoys reading his favorite stories with his parents from the books he borrows from the local library. It's hard enough trying to communicate with your parents as a kid, but for Tiến, he doesn't even have the right words because his parents are struggling with their English. Is there a Vietnamese word for what he's going through?Is there a way to tell them he's gay?A beautifully illustrated story by Trung Le Nguyen that follows a young boy as he tries to navigate life through fairytales, an instant classic that shows us how we are all connected. The Magic Fish tackles tough subjects in a way that accessible with readers of all ages, and teaches us that no matter what—we can all have our own happy endings.