These traditional reads are brimming with spirited characters and positive values--but with a little extra excitement and bite, so hold on to your hats! In fact, family is the main theme of these titles. And one particular Latino family is the focus with their uncanny knack for finding humor, hope, and colorful personalities--even in unusual circumstances.
The pitching machine hurled the first pitch. It was just like at the cages. Carlos was comfortable. He lifted his left leg slightly. Then he turned his hips to the ball. He swung the bat. Crack!
Terrance thought about football. He was sore from practice. That was good. Coach Fisher said his blocks were better. He'd get to play in the game! Coach was right about football. You've got to have something to work for. It makes you work at everything.
Octavia Octopus and her sea-animal friends love playing camouflage games to practice how they would hide from a "big, hungry creature." Octavia, however, just cannot seem to get her colors right when she tries to shoot her purple ink cloud. What happens when the big, hungry shark shows up looking for his dinner? This creative book introduces basic colors along with the camouflage techniques of various sea animals - a great introduction to marine biology! The "For Creative Minds" educational section includes fun facts about octopuses and animal camouflage and protection. The craft uses primary colors (paint or tissue paper) to help children learn about blending colors.
Imagine walking home from school one day and seeing a brain on the side of the road, a brain that, it turns out, is looking for a new home. Or instead of paying attention to the teacher, you shoot a paper airplane across the room and accidentally rip a hole in the fabric of the universe. And what would you do if you discovered that your class reading group was actually recruiting kids with telekinetic powers? Tales from Beyond the Brain is a collection of thirteen spooky stories that are as outrageous as they are terrifying. It's a throwback to the weird tales of yesteryear, in the vein of Tales from the Crypt and The Twilight Zone, but with contemporary characters and settings. Getting an education has never been more dangerous.
What was supposed to be a relaxing ocean crossing for Billy Stuart and his friends after their adventures on the island of Crete quickly transforms into a veritable odyssey. A violent storm throws them off their maritime course and leads to a downpour of events with potentially tragic consequences: mutiny, vicious monster attacks, siren songs and more. The dire situation doesn't get any better when they finally make it to shore. A thousand dangers make the Zintrepids' every waking moment seem like a nightmare. And is Billy Stuart still on the trail of his grandfather, the explorer Virgil Stuart who has traveled through time? Or are the Zintrepids forever lost in an unknown age and strange place? Brightly illustrated and enhanced with games and puzzles throughout, Billy Stuart and the Sea of One Thousand Dangers is the third title in the Billy Stuart Adventures series, following Billy Stuart and the Zintrepids and Billy Stuart in the Minotaur's Lair.
Reece's new dog, Ruckus, tears through life like a Tyrannosaurus rex. He bites everything that moves and drives Reece's mom nuts. The puppy was Dad's idea, to make things easier for Reece after his parents' separation, but Ruckus is not easy at all and Mom is getting fed up. When her diamond earrings go missing, it sends the family into a tailspin. What happens when a dog swallows something precious? Reece is about to find out. But they can't give up on this little Jack Russell terror, can they? He's family, after all. We first met Reece and his family in the Orca Echoes title Where's Burgess? by Laurie Elmquist.
After a hang glider crashes into the pool of the house where Dinah and Madge are house-sitting, the hapless pilot creates more than a splash of suspicion in Dinah's mind. Why does this itchy intruder make off with Dinah's inflatable turtle? Why is someone trying to drive their cat-mad neighbor away? And what is the connection with the balding stranger seen lurking behind the hedge? And when Madge's boyfriend starts a campaign to save the endangered spotted owl, it seems that a crooked politician may be out to destroy the habitat of the near-extinct animal. While Madge paints, Dinah brushes aside suggestions that she be a quiet, well-behaved guest in this posh North Vancouver neighborhood. There's just too much for Dinah and her friends—tree-fanatic Pantelli and irritatingly conscientious Talbot—to investigate in this hilariously suspenseful adventure. Along with learning about endangered animals and fragile ecosystems, Dinah runs across clueless reporters and greedy developers, all the while continuing to belt out her favorite songs and satisfy her healthy appetite.
Confronting a prowler in the backyard, Dinah is determined to find out why someone has taken an interest in her older sister and herself. Who is the buck-tooth burglar? Why are the Rinaldi's tomatoes always involved? And what is the connection between Madge's boyfriend and GASP, a group of well-intentioned anti-smoking activists? When it becomes apparent that Wellman Talent, the modeling agency Madge works for, is making deals with an unscrupulous tobacco company, and that the spy is out to sabotage GASP’s plans to expose the connection, Dinah has to call on all her talents, both sleuthing and singing, to solve the case. In the spirit of Sammy Keyes, Dinah gets by on pluck, courage and an irrepressible sense of humor as she is catapulted into a mystery that twists and turns from the blackberry patch to the corporate boardroom.
Lizzie Lane a l'habitude de vivre au sommet de la chaîne alimentaire. Sa vie presque parfaite bascule lorsque Rachel, une victime sociale de Lizzie, réussit à lui attirer des ennuis à l'école. La vengeance de Rachel détourne de Lizzie même ses amies les plus proches. Lorsque l'étrange nouvelle voisine de Lizzie lui enseigne quelques notions de magie, Lizzie ne peut s'empêcher de jeter un sort à Rachel. Mais elle oublie la « Loi de trois », selon laquelle tout sort que l'on jette revient vers soi multiplié par trois, et elle devient la victime de son propre complot de revanche. Lizzie Lane is used to life at the top of the food chain. Her near-perfect life is ruined when Rachel, a girl she socially destroyed, exacts her revenge by getting Lizzie in trouble for cheating on a test. Friendless and facing detention, Lizzie obsesses over finding the perfect revenge. When Stella, Lizzie's strange new neighbor, teaches Lizzie about magick, Lizzie can't resist creating a revenge spell. But she forgets the "rule of three," that whatever spell you cast comes back on you three-fold, and her zit spell backfires with dramatic results. When she asks for help from Stella's Baba, the only advice she gets is to "write the lesson of the zit on her heart." Can Lizzie find a way to teach Rachel a lesson without causing permanent disfigurement to herself?
When Colin accepts the job to clean up the graffiti in an upscale neighborhood he worries that he might be targeted by gangs. But he didn't expect to become a suspect in a series of robberies. Every time he is sent to clean up graffiti, the police are nearby investigating a crime. Colin knows he's done nothing wrong, but even he acknowledges his presence at the crime scenes looks suspicious. The only way he can clear his name is to figure out what is really going on.
Mr. Flinn's best students go to the space museum a few hours away from Tellis, their planet. But Mr. Flinn is fed up with them. They argue. And they don't get along. They certainly aren't setting an example for the best and brightest Tellis has to offer. But on the way home, Mr. Flinn is knocked out when their self-driving space bus is hit by a space rock, which knocks out the engine. The eight sixth graders have to figure out how to work together, especially when they learn something more sinister than a rock disabled their bus.
Destiny has wanted a dog for a very long time, but her mom always sends her to her dad, who says no every time. Why does he say no? She can't figure it out, and he won't give a reason. After her uncle Jake helps her with a school report, she decides to ask for his help again. Can her father's brother convince him to let her have a dog, or will he come up with a game plan?
Ben's ordinary big box enables him and Wags, his dog, to take off on some extraordinary, imaginary adventures. Ben's imagination turns his box into a variety of vehicles for great adventures where he discovers the sky's the limit...and young readers will be encouraged to do the same.
From waking up to eating up and washing up to dressing up, the fun never stops for babies and toddlers in this photo-filled adventure of exciting day-long activities. Descriptive words will help build vocabulary and language skills while young children discover all the "ups" their day can hold.
The rich Native American tradition of carrying babies safely, comfortably and close to their mothers in cradle boards endures to this day. Cradle Me celebrates Native American families and shows how they carry their babies and, with a fill-in-the-line feature, enbables readers to translate the words to write their own language.
Backpack Baby shares a secret with his neighbors - he has a new sibling!
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Close Encounters eShort is a single chapter from the full Close Encounters title, packaged as a mini eBook. Close Encounters eShorts include Ancient Aliens, Abductions, Crop Circles, and UFOs.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Close Encounters eShort is a single chapter from the full Close Encounters title, packaged as a mini eBook. Close Encounters eShorts include Ancient Aliens, Abductions, Crop Circles, and UFOs.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Superstitions eShort is a single chapter from the full Superstitions title, packaged as a mini eBook. Superstitions eShorts include Black Cats, Broken Mirrors, Knock on Wood, and Friday the 13th.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Superstitions eShort is a single chapter from the full Superstitions title, packaged as a mini eBook. Superstitions eShorts include Black Cats, Broken Mirrors, Knock on Wood, and Friday the 13th.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Creatures eShort is a single chapter from the full Creatures title, packaged as a mini eBook. Creatures eShorts include Sasquatch, Snallygaster, Ogopogo, and Jersey Devil.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Hauntings eShort is a single chapter from the full Hauntings title, packaged as a mini eBook. Hauntings eShorts include Fort Mifflin, Possessions & Exorcisms, Sammie Dean, and Poltergeists.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Hauntings eShort is a single chapter from the full Hauntings title, packaged as a mini eBook. Hauntings eShorts include Fort Mifflin, Possessions & Exorcisms, Sammie Dean, and Poltergeists.
Each Origins: Urban Legends: Hauntings eShort is a single chapter from the full Hauntings title, packaged as a mini eBook. Hauntings eShorts include Fort Mifflin, Possessions & Exorcisms, Sammie Dean, and Poltergeists.
