Linda is shy and avoids getting involved at school. But when her high school sets up online chat rooms she can't resist the urge to visit them. Fuelled by interest in a student with the nickname Cyrano, Linda participates in online conversations using the nickname Roxane and gains a reputation as the queen of one-liners. Soon Linda starts receiving gifts from a secret admirer who signs his gifts, "C." She is certain that her life has taken a turn for the better until "C" reveals his true identity.
Claire's life is a mess. She's failing math, her depressed mother won't get off the couch, Eric, the boy of her dreams, is dating her nemesis Lucy. While Claire is wishing her life were better, lightning strikes. Soon afterward, everything changes. With Lucy in the hospital and out of the way, Claire attracts Eric's attention and gets the starring role in the school play. But good fortune has a cost: her newly energized mother reconciles with her deadbeat dad, the dream boy turns out to be a dud and Claire feels terrible guilt about gaining everything Lucy has lost. But how can Claire turn it around when lightning only strikes once?
When Cody and his friends accept a challenge from a local gang to steal a park bench, their main concern is keeping themselves on the gang's good side. Cody learns that the stolen bench had been dedicated to the father of the English teacher who sponsors the school newspaper; the paper that Cody has just started writing for - and he's worried about the consequences. As the gang applies pressure for more from Cody and his friends, he realizes they've crossed a line, and now he has to figure out how to make it right.
When Charlie Sykes wakes up in hospital in St. John's, he learns that he and his father have been in a car accident and that his father is dying. Charlie inherits little more than the brass key that his father pressed into his hand before he passed away. As far as Charlie knows, he has no family in Newfoundland. But then Uncle Nick shows up and is keen to meet his nephew-not because of who Charlie is, but rather because of what Charlie has: the key. That key will unlock a treasure Uncle Nick began searching for more than thirty years earlier. And he would have found it all those years ago if he hadn't been arrested and sent away for murder. But Charlie isn't convinced he should give up the key. He leads Uncle Nick on a wild chase through old St. John's, across Signal Hill and out to the coast. There, high above the rugged Atlantic, Charlie finally comes face-to-face with Uncle Nick, the treasure, and a family history that will leave him with a new understanding of where he comes from and where he's going.
Sam, a seven-year-old boy, is devastated when his mother leaves him for two weeks on his grandfather's ranch. Grandpa has a lot of rules, and Sam isn't happy about having to stay with him. But Sam's time on the ranch isn't all bad. He learns to ride a horse and also discovers some surprising things about his father, who died when Sam was a baby. When Sam is forced to overcome his fear of riding in order to help rescue Grandpa, Sam grows to appreciate both his grandpa and life on the ranch.
Kip's only friends are the members of the Daredevil Club, a club whose mission is to complete seven dangerous dares before their rivals, the Wildmen, complete their list of dares. Before the cliff diving accident in which he lost the use of his leg, Kip had been the leader of the Daredevil club. Now he has difficulty completing the dares and suspects that his membership is threatened. As the daredevils plan their final stunt, a dangerous climb along a narrow steel shelf beneath a bridge, they try to convince Kip that he may not be up to the task. Kip refuses to back down even though he suspects his friends might be right.
Keegan and Alex are the only kids in Leamington who haven't volunteered to help out with the town's annual tomato festival. In an attempt to teach them a sense of responsibility, their fathers put them in charge of the tomato toss. The boys decide it's their responsibility to add a little excitement to the event. They exchange the traditional wooden targets for human targets and, before they know it, they are running the most popular event at the fair. The excitement may be too much for the sleepy town and soon the tomato toss is taken to the streets.
Twelve-year-old Astrid has come to Ghana with her family in 1979 so that her father can help oversee Ghanas first democratic election. Astrid and her brother, Gordo, were told it would be a great family adventure, but they soon find out that everything about Ghana is difficult; the heat, the food, the threat of disease, the soldiers on the roads, the schools. Gordo fits in more easily than Astrid, who is often left to look after her baby sister, Piper, as their mother begins to fall apart under the strain of living in Ghana. When the government is overthrown, Gordo comes down with malaria and a soldier threatens her family, Astrid is surprised to discover how protective she has become of her new home.
When grade-eight science-project time rolls around, J.J. Murphy skips the beakers and the papier mâché and dives into research about jerks. And idiots. But mostly jerks. By his own estimation, his science project, On a Scale from Idiot to Complete Jerk, is groundbreaking, exhaustive, highly scientific and seriously worthy of bonus marks. Beginning with the dawn of humankind and concluding conclusively with a very cool pie chart, the project dissects the elements of jerkosity through extensive case studies and scientific illustrations. It explores the who, what, when, why and how of jerks and, more important, peppers the lively research with sciencey-looking graphs and charts that reveal a lot about J.J., his family and friends, and the jerks of this world.
Life is hard for ten-year-old Safiyah in the Kibera slum outside Nairobi. Too poor to go to school, she makes a meager living for herself and her grandmother Cucu by selling things she finds at the garbage dump. After using scavenged paper to fix up the inside of the hut, Safiyah starts a mural on the outside. As word of the paper house spreads, Safiyah begins to take pride in her creation. When Cucu collapses after a fire, Safiyah stays at the hospital to help care for her grandmother. While Safiyah is away, her friend Pendo works on the mural, which upsets Safiyah. But when Pendo attracts media attention to the paper house, Safiyah and her grandmother are given a chance of a better life.
This introduction to Australia explores the geography and culture of this country.
What happens when Sleeping Beauty really does sleep for a hundred years? She finds the world a very different place when she finally wakes up!
A princess is horrified when a cranky, old king arrives at the palace intending to marry her. She must first pass the frozen peas test to prove she is a real princess. But does she want to?
A fabulous retelling of the Ugly Duckling in which a family of ducklings are all born a little bit strange, except for one called Beauty!
The Three Little Pigs are terrified when they find out who their new neighbor is! They have met his kind before. Will they all get eaten up by the Big Bad Wolf?
Hansel and Gretel went out to collect wood for their father, but they got lost in the forest. Then a wicked old lady trapped them in her cottage! The Ugly Duckling followed a trail of bread that the children left behind them. Would the Ugly Duckling be able to rescue Hansel and Gretel?
Cinderella meets Jack and the Beanstalk in this fun rhyming text. Jack and Cinderella climb the beanstalk and find a giant fairy godmother. Can she help them get to the prince's ball?
Cinderella's fairy godmother grants her wish to go to the ball. She meets the prince, but Cinderella does not behave like a princess at all! The fairy godmother must teach her a lesson.
Little Bad Riding Hood is off to see Granny carrying a very tasty basket of cakes. She escapes from the Wolf, but the cakes look very tempting. Can she get to Granny's house without eating them herself?
The beast of Pea Castle was sad and lonely. He needed a kiss from a princess to turn him back into a handsome prince. One day, Beauty arrived at the castle. The beast put a pea under her mattress, and she could not sleep a wink. Was Beauty the princess that could break the spell?
Jack is very poor but an expert at making bean pies. One day he meets a very hungry giant, who luckily does not like the taste of people.
Rhymes talk about water and the many forms it takes in oceans, rivers, lakes, ponds, wetlandseven in the bodies of living things! Children will love the pictures that accompany the fun rhyming verses! Rivers flow from high ground to low. They carry fresh water as they go. The source of a river is where it begins. The mouth of a river is where it ends. Rivers meander in curves and bends.
Children will love the wonderful pictures in this fun introduction to the kinds of homes animals make in various habitats: Homes are in habitats, on the ground or in trees. Some are in water, in lakes, rivers, or seas. A home can be a cave, a burrow, or nest. It is a safe place for animals to rest.
This book introduces young readers to their roles within a family. From brother and sister to granddaughter and friend, this title uses a child-centered approach to explain who children are to the people around them. An activity asks the readers to close their eyes and think about which role they love the best.
This upbeat book describes the things we do when we are happy. Positive statements such as "I like to smile," and "I like you," help reinforce in children the joyful feeling of being happy. An activity asks children questions about what makes them happy.
