The Line by Teri Hall

From the Publisher: "An invisible, uncrossable physical barrier encloses the Unified States. The Line is the part of the border that lopped off part of the country, dooming the inhabitants to an unknown fate when the enemy used a banned weapon. It's said that bizarre creatures and superhumans live on the other side, in Away. Nobody except tough old Ms. Moore would ever live next to the Line. Nobody but Rachel and her mother, who went to live there after Rachel's dad died in the last war. It's a safe, quiet life. Until Rachel finds a mysterious recorded message that can only have come from Away. The voice is asking for help." Publisher: Penguin, 2010, 224 pp.

A Million Shades of Gray by Cynthia Kadohata

From the Publisher: "A boy and his elephant escape into the jungle when the Viet Cong attack his village immediately after the Vietnam war." Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2010, 216 pp.

Escaping the Tiger by Laura Manivong

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From the Publisher: "Twelve-year-old Vonlai knows that soldiers who guard the Mekong River shoot at anything that moves, but in oppressive Communist Laos, there's nothing left for him, his spirited sister, Dalah, and his desperate parents. Their only hope is a refugee camp in Thailand�on the other side of the river." 
Publisher: Harper, 2010, 216 pp

Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse by Marilyn Singer

A collection of reversible verses based on classic fairy tales. Beautifully illustrated.
Publisher: Dutton Children's Books, 2010,

Palace Beautiful by Sarah deFord Williams

From the Publisher: "When sisters Sadie and Zuzu Brooks move to Salt Lake City, they discover a secret room in the attic of their new house, with a sign that reads "Palace Beautiful" and containing an old journal. Along with their neighbor, dramatic Belladonna Desolation (real name: Kristin Smith), they take turns reading the story of a girl named Helen living during the flu epidemic of 1918. The journal ends with a tragedy that has a scary parallel to Sadie and Zuzu's lives, and the girls become obsessed with finding out what happened to Helen after the journal ends. Did she survive the flu? Is she still alive somewhere? Or could her ghost be lurking in the nearby graveyard?"

Publisher: Putnam, 2010, 240 pp.

Smells Like Dog by Suzanne Selfors

From the Publisher: "Meet Homer Pudding, an ordinary farm boy who's got big dreams-to follow in the footsteps of his famous treasure-hunting uncle. But when Uncle Drake mysteriously disappears, Homer inherits two things: a lazy, droopy dog with no sense of smell, and a mystery."
Publisher: Little Brown, 2010, 368 pp.

The Mysterious Howling by MaryRose Wood

15-year-old Penelope Lumley, educated at Swanborne Academy, accepts her  first position as governess at Aston Place.  Mysteries abound when Penelope discovers that the children she is suppose to care for have been raised by wolves!  The first in a proposed series, The Mysterious Howling is a great book.
Publisher: Harper Collins, 2010, 267 pp.