Great Stone Face Book
2025-2026 Nominees
by: Scott Kurtz
Valeria loves fantasy, especially Valkyries. Unfortunately, her own warrior ways have gotten her in trouble, and she's worried her new school won't change that. Enter: The Table Titans, the school's D&D group, and Val's chance to fit in. So when the club's future is at risk, she'll do anything to save the day!
Graphic
Novel Gr. 5
by: Gennifer Choldenko
When Hank's mom doesn't come home, he takes care of his toddler sister, Boo, like always, but after a week, he knows he needs help. But help means social workers, a new school, and maybe being separated from Boo. Will help mean Hank actually loses everything?
Realistic
Gr. 6
by Gillian McDunn
Simon is sick of "The Hydes Go Seek," his family's social media channel about life on the road. He hopes their newest apartment can be forever, but a theft in their building might cause them to up and leave again! Simon vows to solve the mystery and finally put down roots.
Mystery
Gr. 4
by: Hena Khan
Aliya has just moved from Florida to Wisconsin, and everything is different - the weather is colder, her Islamic school is bigger, and her new basketball team is... well, awful! But with Aliya's skills, and a - new coach, maybe this is the year Peace Academy will go all the way!
Graphic Novel
Gr. 6
by: Rodman Philbrick
When a massive tidal wave hits their town, Nick and Jess barely survive by running uphill into the woods. The wave flattens the massive forest, and washes the two kids far inland. Now, to get help, they must work together to escape the maze of smashed trees before hunger, thirst, or desperate wildlife take them down.
Survival
Gr. 4+
by Pete Hautman
Evan keeps his head down and stays out of things, until a skinny border collie begins following him. If he wants to truly help this dog, Evan will need to finally speak up and reach out.
Realistic
Gr. 5 & 6
By Ruth Sepetys & Steve Sheinkin
With her mother missing, Lizzie is being sent off to her American grandmother to avoid the bombing of London. Instead, she runs, and soon finds herself staying with her brother - at Britain's top-secret codebreaking headquarters, Bletchley Park!
Historical
Gr. 6
by: Ann Clare LeZotte
Effie's family won't learn sign language, so she can't really talk at home, especially about the abuse and violence there. Fortunately, her school interpreter, Miss Kathy, is willing to fight for Effie's voice and her safety.
Verse
Gr. 4
by Gordon Korman
Trey is very good at making new friends - after all, that's his job in the family business. Trey makes wealthy friends at each new private school, introduces his dad to their parents, his dad scams them out of some money, then they run before they can be caught. I mean, nobody's actually getting hurt... Right?
Mystery/Realistic
Gr. 4+
by Ryan Graudin
"Wizard West was dead for nearly an entire day before he noticed."
Now if his ghost doesn't pick a successor, his enchanted castle - and the only home young Faye has ever known- will crumble. But not all the candidates are who they seem...
Fantasy
Gr. 5
by PJ Gardner
The Great Zoodini, (aka Radar, the fennec fox), has never had a true home, or a true friend, except for his stuffed rabbit. But when his new sanctuary full of fellow quirky animals might be sold, it's up to him to save his newfound family.
Mystery
Gr. 4
by: Katherine Rundell
The day that Christopher saved a baby griffin from a hidden lake would change his life forever. It's the day he learned about the Archipelago-a cluster of unmapped islands where magical creatures have thrived for thousands of years- until now. And it's the day he met Mal-a girl on the run, in desperate need of his help.
Fantasy
Gr. 5+
by: Nicki Pau Preto
Vin Lucas has powerful magic. So powerful, her outbursts have gotten her kicked out of every magic school across the globe. She has one chance left to learn control. Is Last Hope the key to her future, or the end of her road?
Fantasy
Gr. 5
by: Alyson Gerber
Weatherby has never met her dad, but she's thrilled when her sailing skills earn her a scholarship to his alma mater. But below the gilded surface, the school hides a deadly secret...
Mystery
Gr. 5+
by: Katherine Marsh
When Ava loses her temper and accidentally turns a classmate into a statue (temporarily, anyway), she is whisked off to The Accademia del Forte - a school for the descendants of mythological MONSTERS!
Fantasy
Gr. 4
by: Bob Scott & Vicky Scott
When Molly meets Bear, it's BFFs at first sight! Only, it turns out Bear is scared of EVERYTHING, and everyone else is scared of Bear! Can Molly convince her friends (and her parents!) that Bear should stay?
Graphic Novel/Humor
Gr. 4
by: Cassandra Calin
Lia's family moving from Romania to Canada is NOT her idea. To add insult to injury, she gets her first period at the airport! Now she's facing new friend drama and monthly cramps in a new school, where she doesn't even speak the language!
Graphic Novel
Gr. 5
by: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
When a Nazi roundup takes her entire Jewish neighborhood in Paris, Miri is hidden away at a Catholic school in the countryside. One night, Miri is tasked with a deadly errand. The person she meets that night will save her life, but the person Miri becomes that night could save the lives of many more.
Historical
Gr. 5
by Gayle Forman
Alex is a boy on court-ordered community service. Josey is a 107-year old man who won't speak and just wants to die already. When they meet, something makes Josey start telling Alex about his life, a conversation that will change both of them forever.
Realistic
Gr. 6
by: James Ponti
When your last name is Sherlock, what else are you gonna do but start solving mysteries? But what do you do when a decades-old cold case unveils an ongoing crime?
Mystery
Gr. 5