Synopsis: Following the success of 100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know, the editors of the American Heritage® Dictionaries have developed this new book of 100 words tailored especially to high school freshmen. This second book in the 100 Words series focuses on the kinds of words that a successful middle school graduate can learn from rigorous coursework in a variety of subjects and that nearly every freshman will encounter over the course of…

Synopsis: This series features classic Shakespeare retold with graphic color illustrations. Educators using the Dale-Chall vocabulary system adapted each title. Each 64-page, softcover book retains key phrases and quotations from the original play. Research shows that the more students read, the better their vocabulary, their ability to read, and their knowledge of the world. Hamlet takes place in the early seventeenth century, at he royal castle in…

Synopsis: Focusing on themes of nature versus culture, of instinct versus education, raw courage, natural dignity, and willpower, The Call of the Wild explores the effects of contact with human beings on the primitive but noble spirit of the dog Buck. A sourcebook of activities and related readings accompanies this novel questioning what it means to be a human being, to be brave, to be civilized.

Synopsis: During World War II in occupied France, a young Jewish girl returns from an overnight visit with a friend to find her family has disappeared.

Synopsis: A PAINLESS WAY TO LEARN SAT WORDS 17-year-old Will Lassiter has lived his entire life in the peaceful comfort of Red Fork. When his new neighbor, Dr. Octavio Perez, suddenly disappears, Will uncovers a mystery that merges the present with the past -- a deadly secret that's been locked away for nearly a century. That's when things start to get really strange. Unlike other SAT preparation books, "The Ring of McAllister" incorporates key SAT…

Synopsis: Step into the Dark Realm--but beware Tusk's razor sharp namesakes! Tusk the Mighty Mammoth rules the rotting forests of Gorgonia with razor sharp tusks. She terrorizes the rebels at war with the evil wizard Malvel and is holding Ferno the Fire Dragon captive. Can Tom and Elenna defeat Tusk before Malvel's guards track them down?

Synopsis: Escaping ITEX in Florida, the Flock head west, with Max more burdened than ever by the knowledge that she's meant to save the world. But while their leader is keen to stay on the path leading to her destiny, Fang and the others are more interested in settling down and letting the chips fall where they may. With the Erasers eerily absent from their lives of late, has the Flock finally earned a bit of peace...or is this all just the calm before…

Synopsis: 2013 Laura Ingalls Wilder AwardMeli Lleshi is positive that her drawing of her teacher with his pelican nose started it all. The Lleshis are Albanians living in Kosovo, a country trying to fight off Serbian oppressors, and suddenly they are homeless refugees. Old and young alike, they find their courage tested by hunger, illness, the long, arduous journey, and danger on every side. Then, unexpectedly, they are brought to America by a church…

Synopsis: As a young boy growing up in the hills of central Vietnam, Nhuong's companion was Tank, the family water buffalo. Here Nhuong gives readers a glimpse of himself when he was their age, and tells a thrilling story of how he and Tank together faced the dangers of life in the Vietnamese jungle that was their home.

Synopsis: For readers of Unbroken and Flags of Our Fathers, The Mailbox is a sympathetic portrayal of veterans and the burdens they carry throughout their lives.   Vernon Culligan had been dead to the town of Draydon, Virginia, so long that when the crusty Vietnam vet finally died, only one person noticed. Twelve-year-old Gabe grew up in the foster care system until a social worker located his Uncle Vernon two years before. When he comes home to discover…

Synopsis: A Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Honor WinnerAt the outset of World War II, Denmark did not resist German occupation. Deeply ashamed of his nation's leaders, fifteen-year-old Knud Pedersen resolved with his brother and a handful of schoolmates to take action against the Nazis if the adults would not. Naming their secret club after the fiery British leader, the young patriots in the Churchill Club committed countless acts of sabotage,…

Synopsis: An epic new fantasy series inspired by Chinese mythology that #1 New York Times bestselling author Kwame Mbalia calls "a hilarious tussle between homework, family, and heroism." When a girl awakens the stuff of legends from an old family recipe, she must embrace her extraordinary heritage to save the world.Winnie Zeng has two goals: survive her first year of middle school and outdo her stuck-up archnemesis, David Zuo. It won’t be easy, since,…

Synopsis: A biography of the Scottish immigrant barrel-maker whose side line detective work developed into the oldest and most famous detective agency in the United States.

Synopsis: A troubled Indian boy goes to live with an elderly rancher whose caring ways help the boy become a man.

Synopsis: Dylan Barstow has finally crossed the line. After getting caught on a late-night joyride in a stolen car, Dylan is shipped off to live with his ex-Marine uncle for the summer. But Uncle Todd has bigger plans for Dylan than push-ups and early-morning jogs. Deep in the steamy jungles of Papua New Guinea, there's a WWII fighter plane named Second Ace that's been lost for years, a plane that Dylan's own grandfather barely escaped from with his…

Synopsis: Fourteen-year-old Rick Walker is alone, on the run, and desperate. Stowing away in the back of a pickup truck, he suddenly finds himself at a dead end in a surreal landscape of redrock spires and deep canyons called the Maze. In this heart-stopping adventure, master storyteller Will Hobbs brings readers a unique tale of identity, personal growth, and friendship. 01 Blue Spruce Award Masterlist (YA Cat.), 01 AZ Young Reader Award Masterlist (Teen…

Synopsis: For the first time in the history of the Little House books, this new edition features Garth Williams' interior art in vibrant, full color, as well as beautifully redesigned covers. While Laura Ingalls grows up in a little house on the western prairie, Almanzo Wilder is living on a big farm in New York State. Here Almanzo and his brother and sisters help with the summer planting and fall harvest. In winter there is wood to be chopped and great…

Synopsis: At age twenty-one, partially-blind, lonely but spirited Annie Sullivan travels from Massachusetts to Alabama to try and teach six-year-old Helen Keller, deaf and blind since age two, self-discipline and communication skills. Includes historical notes and timeline.