Praying at the Sweetwater Motel by April Young Fritz, Hyperion, $15.99. Ages 10 to 14. Following up her excellent debut novel "Waiting to Disappear," the author offers a heartfelt story of Sarah Jane ...

City of Names by Kevin Brockmeier; Viking, $15.99. There's a mistake in his book order when Howie Quackenbush's books arrive from the school book club. Instead of "101 Pickle Jokes," he gets a ...