Synopsis: “Just the sort of book that saves lives by igniting a passion for reading.” —James Patterson   “Reminiscent of Huckleberry Finn.” —The Wall Street Journal   A Michael L. Printz Honor Winner   From the author of Newbery Medal winner Moon Over Manifest comes the odyssey-like adventure of two boys’ incredible quest on the Appalachian Trail.   When Jack Baker’s father sends him from his home in Kansas to attend a boys’ boarding school in Maine, Jack…

Synopsis: This treasure of a book, for people of all faiths, is a starting point for parents who must talk about the difficult topic of death with their children.What should parents say when a loved one dies? Heaven is a difficult subject that always comes up at tough times, and Maria Shriver has written a very special book precisely for these stressful moments. What's Heaven? is the story of Kate, a little girl whose great-grandma has just died. She…

Synopsis: Those wacky scrambled states are at it again. This time they've come together for a spectacular show featuring their many goofball talents. But just when the director, Indiana, is about to call SHOWTIME!, Georgia gets a bad case of stage fright and can't perform in her juggling act. Will the show go on, or will it be curtains for Georgia and the Jolly Jugglers? This title has Common Core connections.The Scrambled States of America Talent Show is…

Synopsis: Bone is a stray dog, all alone in the world, looking for a safe place to call home. Charlie is devastated by the death of his older brother, but at least he has his brother's dog to comfort him. All Henry wants is a dog of his own, and even when his best friend moves away, his parents still won't let him have one. Bone, Charlie, and Henry don't know each other, but their lives are about to connect in a very surprising way. Because dogs, and dog…

Synopsis: After his grandmother passes away, thirteen-year-old Jason is sent to Florida to join his father and help him clean out her house. Although he never knew his grandmother, Jason becomes curious about her past. He discovers a mysterious postcard containing clues and embarks on a strange and thrilling adventure through balmy Florida.Jason also finds an old pulp fiction magazine with a story that details one man's love of a woman who may just be…

Synopsis: The only illustrated version of the classic Woody Guthrie folk song, perfect for family singalongs! Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land" is one of the best-loved folk songs in America, inspiring activism and patriotism for all. This classic ballad is now brought to life in a richly illustrated edition for the whole family to share. Kathy Jakobsen's dazzlingly detailed paintings invite readers on a journey across the country, creating an…

Synopsis: As heard by kids everywhere on the Echo Dot Kids Edition, the Classroom 13 books are a hilarious new chapter book series-perfect for reluctant readers and fans of Roald Dahl, Captain Underpants, and Sideways Stories from Wayside School.The Disastrous Magical Wishes of Classroom 13 is the second title in a series about the students of a very unlucky classroom. The easy-to-read chapters are full of humor, action, secret codes, and fun-and will…

Synopsis: As heard by kids everywhere on the Echo Dot Kids Edition, the Classroom 13 books are a hilarious new chapter book series-perfect for reluctant readers and fans of Roald Dahl, Captain Underpants, and Sideways Stories from Wayside School.Nominated for the Texas Library Association's 2018 Texas Bluebonnet Award! The Unlucky Lottery Winners of Classroom 13 is the first title in a series about the students of a very unlucky classroom. The easy-to-…

Synopsis: You're in the middle of the Gold Rush, pioneer--and you are headed west on the Oregon Trail with hopes to strike it rich in this choose-your-own-trail experience. Travel in your large wagon train and decide whether you'll stay the course to Oregon or take the California Trail toward Sacramento. Do your choices lead to a fortune-filled future, or will they lead you straight into danger? Westward ho!

Synopsis: In this choose-your-own-trail experience, you're traveling all the way from Florida, heading west to the Oregon Trail. See if you can make it to Oregon City It's 1845 and your family is fleeing Florida with hopes of starting fresh out west. You'll encounter sudden snowstorms that will overwhelm your wagon train en route to the Oregon Trail. Food will become scarce--and you'll get lost. Can you survive the unseasonably cold climates? If you make…

Synopsis: Limpy’s family reckons humans don’t hate cane toads, but Limpy knows otherwise. He’s spotted the signs: the cross looks, the unkind comments, the way they squash cane toads with their cars. Limpy is desperate to save his species from ending up as pancakes. Somehow he must make humans see how fabulous cane toads really are. Risking everything, he sets off on a wart-tinglingly dangerous and daring journey to . . . the Olympics?This is the epic…

Synopsis: Limpy is on a quest to find toad heaven. A place where cane toads won’t be blown up with bike pumps or bashed over the head with folding chairs. Limpy’s determined to find this place if it takes him the rest of his life, but his plans are waylaid when he’s kidnapped by some sinister-looking humans and tossed into a bucket. Will Limpy be able to save cane toads? Will he be able to find toad heaven? First he has to get out of the bucket . . . in…

Synopsis: Newbery Honor–winning, New York Times–bestselling, and as full of fun and adventure as it is of deeper family issues--now with striking new cover art!School’s out for summer, and Penny and her cousin Frankie have big plans to eat lots of butter pecan ice cream, swim at the local pool, and cheer on their favorite baseball team—the Brooklyn Dodgers! But sometimes things don’t go according to plan. Penny’s mom doesn’t want her to swim because she’s…

Synopsis: The instant New York Times bestseller from the author of the Newbery Medal winner When You Reach Me: a story about spies, games, and friendship. The first day Georges (the S is silent) moves into a new Brooklyn apartment, he sees a sign taped to a door in the basement: SPY CLUB MEETING—TODAY!  That’s how he meets his twelve-year-old neigh­bor Safer. He and Georges quickly become allies—and fellow spies. Their assignment? Tracking the mysterious…

Synopsis: THE WINNER OF a National Book Award, a Newbery Honor, and countless other awards has written her richest, most spirited book yet, filled with characters that readers will love, and never forget. Jane is 12 years old, and she is ready for adventures, to move beyond the world of her siblings and single mother and their house by the sea, and step into the “know-not what.” And, over the summer, adventures do seem to find Jane, whether it’s a…

Synopsis: They were watching...and waitingAt twelve, Maggie had been thrown out of more boarding schools than she cared to remember. "Impossible to handle," they said -- nasty, mean, disobedient, rebellious, thieving -- anything they could say to explain why she must be removed from the school.Maggie was thin and pale, with shabby clothes and stringy hair, when she arrived at her new home. "It was a mistake to bring her here," said Maggie's great-aunts,…

Synopsis: Aiming to illuminate the difference between a sentence that's merely correct and one that's dramatic, evocative, memorable or funny, this is an introduction to the figure of speech - a means of putting words together to create a vivid picture in the reader's or listener's mind. The American author explains the simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, alliteration, hyperbole and personification, and provides examples from the work of great writers,…

Synopsis: Seems like Richie’s entire goal in life is to make Trisha’s impossible. Especially when he takes to teasing her about her beloved ballet class. Trisha knows how much work it takes to be good at ballet—much more than the stupid hockey Richie plays! So she challenges Richie to perform in her ballet recital, and Richie agrees, under one condition: Trisha has to join his hockey team for the big game!

Synopsis: Ready to laugh until you're horse ? Brian P. Cleary, author of the best-selling Words Are CATegorical(tm) series and the poetry collection Rainbow Soup, is off on a gnu hilarious adventure in language--PUNS! This imaginative collection of silly and sophisticated puns uncovers double meanings that are kind dove hiding in everyday phrases. A helpful pun-unciation guide is included on porpoise to help ewe give it a try!

Synopsis: In a unique mix of fact and fiction, this is the dramatic story of the Underground Railroad as seen through the eyes of two young girls--Eliza, a runaway slave, and Johanna, whose family gives her refuge. Kids will learn about life on a cotton plantation and about abolitionists who fought to have slavery made illegal. Activities include making a tin can lantern and locating the North Star, which guided many slaves to freedom. Beautifully…