The Trials of Apollo Book 2 Cover Revealed in USA Today!

Since The Trials of Apollo Book 1: The Hidden Oracle took fans back to Camp Half-Blood this past summer we’ve all been waiting for word on what’s next from Rick Riordan. Well the wait is officially over as of this morning as USA TODAY gave us the first look at the jacketed cover to  The Trials of Apollo Book 2: The Dark Prophecy along with an exclusive excerpt of the upcoming book. Click through below for a sneak peek at what lies in wait fromt world of Percy Jackson.

Lester Papadopoulos is a typical teenage boy in many ways, but he’s no ordinary 16-year-old.

In fact, his Greek surname hints at his true identity: he’s Apollo, son of the Greek god Zeus, cast down to Earth as a mere mortal as punishment by his really annoyed dad.

Now Lester/Apollo is back in The Dark Prophecy, The Trials of Apollo, the second book about Roman demigods in a five-book series for young readers by best-selling author Rick Riordan. It will be published on May 2 by Disney-Hyperion, and USA TODAY has a first look at the jacket and an exclusive excerpt.

Read The First Three Chapters of THE PRINCESS, THE SCOUNDREL, AND THE FARM BOY For Free Right Now!

ROGUE ONE debuted in theaters this weekend to thrilling applause from STARS WARS fans new and old. The film is the first ever stand-alone entry in the series, and takes place right before the iconic opening of the original STAR WARS : A NEW HOPE movie that kicked off the global phenomenon in 1977. Without spoiling anything, there is no question now that the events of ROGUE ONE will have fans thinking about Episode IV: A New Hope in a different way.

Recently DBG got the chance to adapt the original STAR WARS trilogy into a series of young adult novels from some of the today’s best-selling authors including Adam Gidwitz, Tom Angleberger, and Alexandra Bracken, whose adaption of A NEW HOPE entitled THE PRINCESS, THE SCOUNDREL, AND THE FARM BOY actually begins in the few short moments between the end of ROGUE ONE, and the beginning of A NEW HOPE!

The force is strong with this one. So go ahead and click here to read the first three chapters of THE PRINCESS, THE SCOUNDREL, AND THE FARM BOY now. Then make sure you have plenty of these titles in stock at your School & Library for all the eager fans looking for more stories from a galaxy far, far, away.

The galaxy is at war. Although the Rebel Alliance has won a few battles against the Empire, hope is fading. The Empire is about to finish building the greatest weapon the galaxy has ever seen—the Death Star. The rebels’ only chance to defeat it now lies in the unlikely hands of a princess, a scoundrel, and a farm boy. . . . Acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author Alexandra Bracken delivers a captivating retelling of Star Wars: A New Hope like you’ve never experienced before. Since the premier of the original film, Princess Leia, Han Solo, and Luke Skywalker have become iconic, larger-than-life characters. The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy takes a deeper look at these three heroes as they join forces to defeat the evil that threatens their entire galaxy.

FREE Educator Guides For Your Winter Break

With the upcoming Winter Break looming closer make sure you load up on a few DBG educator guides to help make some of the catch-up lesson planning a little easier over your time away from the classroom. Many of DBG’s books include unique supplemental material available absolutely FREE to you teachers and librarians. To make things even easier we’ve highlighted a few of our recent releases with easy to download links you can access right from this post!

The Trials of Apollo

 

How do you punish an immortal? By making him human. After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disoriented, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus’s favor. The Trials of Apollo Book 1: The Hidden Oracle is packed with all the modern myth-making Rick Riordan fans have come to expect from anything Camp Half-Blood related and our FREE educators guide is loaded with great activities and talking points to pull off a mythology lesson of EPIC proportions.

Elizabeth Started All The Trouble

She couldn’t go to college. She couldn’t become a politician. She couldn’t even vote. But Elizabeth Cady Stanton didn’t let that stop her. She called on women across the nation to stand together and demand to be treated as equal to men-and that included the right to vote. It took nearly seventy-five years and generations of women fighting for their rights through words, through action, and through pure determination . . . for things to slowly begin to change. With the help of these trailblazers’ own words, Doreen Rappaport’s engaging text, brought to life by Matt Faulkner’s vibrant illustrations, shows readers just how far this revolution has come, and inspires them to keep it going! Elizabeth Started All The Trouble is the perfect tool for active student engagement and text interaction. The Latest from Doreen Rappaport aligns with Common Core standards and could not be more timely as we prepare to close out 2016.

The Bone Sparrow

Subhi is a refugee. He was born in an Australian permanent detention center after his mother and sister fled the violence of a distant homeland, and the center is the only world he knows. But every night, the faraway whales sing to him, the birds tell him their stories, and the magical Night Sea from his mother’s stories brings him gifts. As Subhi grows, his imagination threatens to burst beyond the limits of the fences that contain him. Until one night, it seems to do just that. Another timely discussion topic for the new school year The Bone Sparrow by Zana Fraillon provides a unique outlet for discussion on the topics of immigration and what it means to be a refugee. Make sure you read the author’s Q&A as well.

Magnus Chase And The Gods of Asgard

Thor’s hammer is missing again. But this time the hammer isn’t just lost, it has fallen into enemy hands. If Magnus Chase and his friends can’t retrieve the hammer quickly, the mortal worlds will be defenseless against an onslaught of giants. Ragnarok will begin. The Nine Worlds will burn. Unfortunately, the only person who can broker a deal for the hammer’s return is the gods’ worst enemy, Loki–and the price he wants is very high. Once again Rick Riordan has provided a fantastic resource for teacher’s and librarians looking to introduce students to the culture’s of the ancient world both The Sword of Summer and this year’s Hammer of Thor have all the makings of a thrilling historical read. Check out the teachers guide and make history come to life for your students in 2017.

Of course, these are just a few of the FREE resources Disney Publishing Worldwide offers for educators. Click here for dozens of other guides just like the ones we’ve listed above, and if you have an idea for something you don’t see on our site we’d love to hear about it. Get in touch with us using the contact button over on the right and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

Set Sail With The Friend Ship This Week

THE FRIEND SHIP by Kat Yeh and illustrator Chuck Groenink sets sail for story times everywhere this week, and in honor of this brand new release we wanted to throw the spotlight on some of our favorite Friendships in other DBG books perfect for reading with a buddy, or two, or three. Check out the list below and gather up a group of your pals for a few friendly stories.

 

Boy and Bear from EXPLORERS OF THE WILD by Cale Atkinson. When Bear and Boy meet in the woods, they’re scared at first. Really scared. But soon these kings of the wild realize that no mountain is too big to conquer if you have a friend to climb it by your side.

Moana and the Ocean in MOANA AND THE OCEAN by Heather Knowles and illustrator Annette Marnat. This beautiful jacketed picture book based on this season’s hit Disney Animation Studios’ film, Moana, features an engaging story about Moana’s unique relationship with the Ocean that playfully interacts with stylized artwork.

Bruce and…all the wonderful woodland creatures author Ryan T. Higgins packed into HOTEL BRUCE and MOTHER BRUCE respectively. When a very grumpy Bruce returns home after a trip south with his Goslings he is greeted by a possum pillow fight wreaking havoc in one room of his once peaceful den, a fox luring guests into a stew in the kitchen, and a snuggly crew of critters hogging the bed. Perfect for when you have a friend who just can’t “take a hint”.

Owl and one tiny, squeaky, mouse-shaped detail in Greg Pizzoli’s GOOD NIGHT OWL. Owl is ready for bed. But as soon as he settles in, he hears a strange noise. He’ll never get to sleep unless he can figure out what’s going on! He looks everywhere—in his cupboard, underneath the floorboards—even in his walls… Will Owl ever get a good night’s sleep?

And of course… Elephant and Piggie from Mo Williems’ award-winning ELEPHANT AND PIGGIE series of books. No list about friendships would be complete without Gerald the Elephant and his faithful pal Piggie. 25 books later and these two friends are better than ever as they continue to delight fans of all ages, and while this year’s THE THANK YOU BOOK may have marked the end of their own series of early readers, the new ELEPHANT AND PIGGIE LIKE READING series has already introduced a few new friends of theirs to readers around the world.

Bob, Not Bob and Soldier Song Earn Stars in November

Two upcoming titles from Disney-Hyperion earned stars last month from Publishers Weekly. BOB, NOT BOB by Liz Garton Scanlon and Audrey Vernick with illustrations by Matthew Cordell, and SOLIDER SONG by Debbie Levy and illustrated by Gilbert Ford. Take a look below for the full reviews and keep an eye out for both books early next year.

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BOB, NOT BOB!

Authors: Liz Garton Scanlon and Audrey Vernick

Illustrator: Matthew Cordell

ISBN: 978-1-4847-2302-9

Scanlon and Vernick’s opening description of their young hero, Louie, creates instant intimacy: “Little Louie wasn’t all that little. It wasn’t like he needed his mom every minute of the day.” But after Louie gets a terrible cold, his calls for “Mom” come out sounding like “Bob” (the family dog), and the big, lolloping hound “came running. And slobbering.” Cordell (The Knowing Book) is wonderful at capturing the chaos of the sickroom: Bob drooling on the bed, tissue that didn’t make it into the wastebasket, overturned baskets of laundry. Scanlon (In the Canyon) and Vernick (Unlike Other Monsters) understand the way that being sick makes kids need comfort that they don’t usually need, how it makes them unrecognizable even to themselves, and the comfort a mother’s presence brings. Every page offers a giggle: “His lips chapped and his eyes gunked. As for his nose, you can’t even imagine.” With its funny, congested language (“I doan wan by bedicine”) and problems every reader will understand this is read-aloud gold. Ages 3–5.

 

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Solider Song

Author: Debbie Levy

Illustrator: Gilbert Ford

ISBN: 978-1-4847-2598-6

Through insightful narration and vibrant silhouettes and cartooning, Levy (I Dissent) and Ford (The Marvelous Thing That Came from a Spring) vividly bring to life a chapter in the U.S. Civil War and the integral role music played during the conflict. Levy sets the stage two years into the war, just before the Union defeat at the Battle of Fredericksburg; excerpts from soldiers’ letters are incorporated throughout, giving the account striking immediacy. When opposing troops became entrenched for the winter, music created a temporary connection: “Across the river the melodies floated. Sometimes the soldiers fired tunes back and forth, like musical cannonballs.” Ford depicts this volley with swirling music staffs that rise like orange smoke from the encampments. The motif crescendos at the story’s climax, when one song, “Home, Sweet Home,” unites both sides one winter night. A timeline, bibliographies, and history of the battle, as well as of the poem and song that uplifted homesick soldiers, conclude a bittersweet account of a sharply divided America. Ages 8–10.