Who knew librarians could be so rotten?

There's no way I could resist a title like Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson! Alcatraz Smedley just turned 13, and for his birthday he received an apparently unremarkable...bag of sand? But the action gets fast and furious when his grandfather shows up and tells him the present was the Sands of Rashid, which the evil Librarians quickly steal to smelt into new lenses of power. Alcatraz learns that all Smedleys have special Talents - how can you not like a kid who's good at breaking things (and his grandfather, who's always late)? - and these talents are put to good use when they infiltrate the library (oh, no!) to track down the bad guys. The story is chaotic and fun; Alcatraz tells it with loads of snarky humor. And if you like it, you're in luck - there are currently three more in the series.