Welcome to the Bank Street Children's Book Committee's (CBC) Searchable Best Books List, a tool designed to help educators, families, librarians, and others access developmentally appropriate and engaging books for young readers (ages birth - 18).
Our online Searchable Best Books List draws from the committee's annual Best Children's Books of the Year-beginning with the list of books published in 2000-with each featuring more than 600 high-quality titles for young readers.
To share feedback about the tool, please feel free to email bookcom@bankstreet.edu. To learn more about the CBC, visit https://www.bankstreet.edu/cbc/.
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Steampunk!
edited by Kelly Link
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Wondrous machines, natural disasters, witches, and outlaws fill fourteen superbly written stories combining the scientific and the magical.
edited by Kelly Link
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Wondrous machines, natural disasters, witches, and outlaws fill fourteen superbly written stories combining the scientific and the magical.
Texas Gothic
by Rosemary Clement-Moore
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Ranch-sitting with her sister, seventeen-year-old Amy finds a corpse, a ghost, and romance. Convincing details of Texas farm life.
by Rosemary Clement-Moore
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Ranch-sitting with her sister, seventeen-year-old Amy finds a corpse, a ghost, and romance. Convincing details of Texas farm life.
The Absolute Value of Mike
by Kathryn Erskine
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
uncorrected galley Can a 14-year-old help a town full of loving but dysfunctional adults raise $40,000 in three weeks to adopt a Romanian child? Just maybe.
by Kathryn Erskine
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
uncorrected galley Can a 14-year-old help a town full of loving but dysfunctional adults raise $40,000 in three weeks to adopt a Romanian child? Just maybe.
The Beginning of After
by Jennifer Castle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Sixteen-year-old Laurel's life changes in a single moment when her entire family is killed in a car accident. How does she cope?
by Jennifer Castle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Sixteen-year-old Laurel's life changes in a single moment when her entire family is killed in a car accident. How does she cope?
The Berlin Boxing Club
by Robert Sharenow
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Boxing lessons from the international hero, Max Schmeling, allow Karl to escape bullying, but not the horrors of the Nazi regime as it engulfs his artistic Jewish family.
by Robert Sharenow
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Boxing lessons from the international hero, Max Schmeling, allow Karl to escape bullying, but not the horrors of the Nazi regime as it engulfs his artistic Jewish family.
The Bill of Rights
by Stephen Krensky
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
What is the story behind the creation of America's most important documents? The history and repercussions of the United States government is revealed.
by Stephen Krensky
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
What is the story behind the creation of America's most important documents? The history and repercussions of the United States government is revealed.
The Black
by D. J. MacHale
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Cooper, a headstrong boy in life, carries that stubbornness into his afterlife and finds himself fighting real evil to protect the living.
by D. J. MacHale
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Cooper, a headstrong boy in life, carries that stubbornness into his afterlife and finds himself fighting real evil to protect the living.
The Blackhope Enigma
by Teresa Flavin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Walking a labyrinth in Blackhope Castle leads artistically talented teens into an enchanted sixteenth century painting--but can they get out?
by Teresa Flavin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Walking a labyrinth in Blackhope Castle leads artistically talented teens into an enchanted sixteenth century painting--but can they get out?
The Declaration of Independence
by Stephen Krensky
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
See: The Bill of Rights
by Stephen Krensky
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
See: The Bill of Rights
The Door in the Forest
by Roderick Townley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Fourteen-year-old Daniel, his younger brother, Wes, and their enigmatic new friend, Emily, are drawn to a mysterious, inaccessible island in hopes that it will somehow lead to saving their village from ruin. Will the soldiers who are hunting Emily prevent them from succeeding?
by Roderick Townley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Fourteen-year-old Daniel, his younger brother, Wes, and their enigmatic new friend, Emily, are drawn to a mysterious, inaccessible island in hopes that it will somehow lead to saving their village from ruin. Will the soldiers who are hunting Emily prevent them from succeeding?
The Dragon's Tooth
by N. D. Wilson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
A world of mystery and unimaginable strangeness unfolds after a creepy stranger shows up at the seedy motel run by the Smith siblings.
by N. D. Wilson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
A world of mystery and unimaginable strangeness unfolds after a creepy stranger shows up at the seedy motel run by the Smith siblings.
The Fox Inheritance
by Mary E Pearson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Their bodies were destroyed 260 years ago, but their minds were preserved. Now Locke and Kara are alive in bioengineered bodies--with profound, dire consequences.
by Mary E Pearson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Their bodies were destroyed 260 years ago, but their minds were preserved. Now Locke and Kara are alive in bioengineered bodies--with profound, dire consequences.
The Gathering
by Kelley Armstrong
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Were Maya and other children genetically altered? Is the medical corporation responsible for her friend's death? First of a trilogy.
by Kelley Armstrong
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Were Maya and other children genetically altered? Is the medical corporation responsible for her friend's death? First of a trilogy.
The Girl Behind the Glass
by Jane Kelley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Eleven-year-old twins are haunted by a ghost who struggles to share her story of an injustice eighty years before.
by Jane Kelley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Eleven-year-old twins are haunted by a ghost who struggles to share her story of an injustice eighty years before.
The girl of Fire and Thorns
by Rae Carson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
A newly-married princess learns to value her wisdom and problem-solving abilities when she battles to save her kingdom through magic and faith.
by Rae Carson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
A newly-married princess learns to value her wisdom and problem-solving abilities when she battles to save her kingdom through magic and faith.
The Girl Who Became a Beatle
by Greg Taylor
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Sixteen-year-old Regina, an aspiring rock star, gets everything she wishes for--and then has to decide whether she wants to keep it.
by Greg Taylor
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Sixteen-year-old Regina, an aspiring rock star, gets everything she wishes for--and then has to decide whether she wants to keep it.
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making
by Catherynne M. Valente
Illustrator: Ana Juan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Whisked away from her dull life, September arrives in Fairyland, where things are not perfect either. Whimsically illustrated in black-and-white.
by Catherynne M. Valente
Illustrator: Ana Juan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Whisked away from her dull life, September arrives in Fairyland, where things are not perfect either. Whimsically illustrated in black-and-white.
The Lost Crown
by Sarah Miller
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
With extensive research, the author pieces together the last few years in the lives of Tzar Nicholas II's children.
by Sarah Miller
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
With extensive research, the author pieces together the last few years in the lives of Tzar Nicholas II's children.
The Midnight Zoo
by Sonya Hartnett
Illustrator: Andrea Offermann
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Two Romany brothers, struggling to survive in their war-torn country, find themselves in a small zoo populated by talking animals. Gentle black-and-white illustrations.
by Sonya Hartnett
Illustrator: Andrea Offermann
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Two Romany brothers, struggling to survive in their war-torn country, find themselves in a small zoo populated by talking animals. Gentle black-and-white illustrations.
The Other Countess
by Eve Edwards
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Titled, but without a fortune, can Lady Eleanor survive the embarrassment of her alchemist father and will the Earl of Dorset gain Queen Elizabeth's permission to marry her?
by Eve Edwards
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Titled, but without a fortune, can Lady Eleanor survive the embarrassment of her alchemist father and will the Earl of Dorset gain Queen Elizabeth's permission to marry her?
The Pull of Gravity
written by Gse Polisner
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When their friend dies of a rare disease, two teenagers search for the father who abandoned him.
written by Gse Polisner
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When their friend dies of a rare disease, two teenagers search for the father who abandoned him.
The Queen of Water
by Laura Resau
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
As a seven-year-old, a Quechua Indian Ecuadorian girl becomes an indentured servant and struggles to find her identity. Based on a true story.
by Laura Resau
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
As a seven-year-old, a Quechua Indian Ecuadorian girl becomes an indentured servant and struggles to find her identity. Based on a true story.
The Rites & Wrongs of Janice Wills
by Joanna Pearson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Janice, a high school anthropologist-in-training, provides a tongue in cheek look at teenage stereotypes, beauty pageants, and small town life.
by Joanna Pearson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Janice, a high school anthropologist-in-training, provides a tongue in cheek look at teenage stereotypes, beauty pageants, and small town life.