For years, 10-year-old Zelly Fried has tried to convince her parents to let her have a dog. After all, practically everyone in Vermont owns a dog, and it sure could go a long way helping Zelly fit in since moving there from Brooklyn. But when her eccentric grandfather Ace hatches a ridiculous plan involving a "practice dog" named OJ, Zelly's not so sure how far she's willing to go to win a dog of her own. Is Ace's plan so crazy it just might work . . . or is it just plain crazy?
Erica S. Perl weaves an affectionate and hilarious tale that captures the enduring bond between grandparents and grandchildren. Even when they're driving each other nuts.
A boy's chance encounter with a scruffy dog leads to an unforgettable friendship in this deeply moving story about life, loss, and the meaning of family
Ben Coffin has never felt like he fits in. A former foster kid, he keeps his head down at school to avoid bullies and spends his afternoons reading sci-fi books at the library. But that all changes when he finds a scruffy abandoned dog named Flip and befriends the librarian's daughter, Halley. For the first time, Ben starts to feel like he belongs in his own life. Then, everything changes, and suddenly, Ben is more alone than ever. But with a little help from Halley's magician father, Ben discovers his place in the world and learns to see his own magic through others' eyes.
Equal parts heartbreaking and heartwarming, this audiobook is a must-listen for dog lovers and fans of emotionally resonant middle grade novels like One for the Murphys and Okay for Now.
"Full of pace and laughter, bruises and heart. Paul Griffin is the sort of writer you're torn between telling the whole world about and keeping all to yourself."-Markus Zusak, author of Printz Honor Winner The Book Thief
"'Friendship' is an absolutely beautiful, heart-expanding book. I cried, but more than that I felt this giant balloon of love for everyone. This story convinced me all over again that love and imagination are life's biggest magic. It'll make you want to grab hold of everyone important to you and lick them on the nose." -Rebecca Stead, author of Newbery Award winner When You Reach Me
"Some books change the way you see the world. Some change the way you breathe. This book will leave you breathless.This is Paul Griffin's best book yet-and that's really saying something." -Patricia McCormick, author of National Book Award Finalist Sold
Barbara O' Connor's How to Steal a Dog blew critics away and quickly became a fan-favorite. After being abandoned by her father, Georgina Hayes is forced to spend much of her time watching her younger brother, while their mother works two jobs to make ends meet. When she sees a missing-dog poster offering a $500 reward, Georgina cooks up a scheme to steal a look-a-like dog and claim the reward. But things don' t quite go as planned.
When Ike Larue is "imprisoned" at the Igor Brotweiler Canine Academy, he tries everything to get sent homeweepy letters to his owner, even illness. In reality, Brotweiler is more like camp than prison, but still, Ike's not cut out for life without Mrs. Larue & his creature comforts. Finally, he runs away only to find himself back in Snort Cityjust in time to save Mrs. Larue's life.
A rodential war is about to erupt below the streets of Brooklyn…
Hopper is just an ordinary pet shop mouse before he escapes the confines of his cage. Soon he finds himself below the bustling streets of Brooklyn, deep within the untamed tangles of transit tunnels, and in Atlantia, a glorious utopian rat civilization.
But all is not what it seems. Though Hopper is treated as a royal guest, he misses Pinkie and Pup, his siblings that he lost in the escape attempt. That, and Atlantia is constantly threatened by the roving rebels who wish to bring the city to its knees for no good reason. And there are cats everywhere in Atlantia, cats that would normally eat a rodent in a second, but leave the citizens unharmed… and no one can seem to answer why.
Soon, Hopper is caught in the crosshairs of an epic battle, one that crosses generations and species. As the clashes rage, Hopper learns terrible, extraordinary secrets: Deadly secrets about Atlantia. Painful secrets about his friends.
And one powerful secret about his destiny.
Bravery isn’t measured by size. It’s measured by heart.
In the tradition of E. B. White and Kate DiCamillo comes the magical and moving story of a bird-like boy who longs to fly
Ten-year-old Nashville doesn't feel like he belongs with his family, in his town, or even in this world. He was hatched from an egg his father found on the sidewalk and has grown into something not quite boy and not quite bird. Despite the support of his loving parents and his adoring sister, Junebug, Nashville wishes more than anything that he could join his fellow birds up in the sky. After all, what's the point of being part bird if you can't even touch the clouds?
With an ear for language and a gift for storytelling, Michelle Cuevas will remind fans of Stuart Little and Where the Mountain Meets the Moon that anything is possible. Even flying.
Abby Lovitt doesn't realize how unprepared she is when she takes her beloved horse, True Blue, to a clinic led by the most famous equestrian anyone knows. The biggest surprise, though, is that Sophia, the girl who never makes a mistake, suddenly makes so many that she stops riding. Who will ride her horse? Abby's dad seems to think it will be Abby. Pie in the Sky is the most expensive horse Abby has ever ridden. But he is proud and irritable, and he takes Abby's attention away from the continuing mystery that is True Blue.
And then there's high school--Abby finds new friends, but also new challenges, and a larger world that sometimes seems strange and intimidating. She begins to wonder if there is another way to look at horses, people, and life itself.
Accompanied by the beautiful imagery of 1960s Northern California, Abby's charming mix of innocence and wisdom guide us through Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley's latest middle-grade horse novel.
Hunting-the predator, and its prey-is at the heart of this riveting and suspenseful novel from Newbery Medalist Avi with illustrations from Caldecott Medalist Brian Floca.In the computer game world of Bow Hunter-Casey's world-there are no deaths, just kills. In the wolf world-Nashoba's world-there have been no kills. For this is March, the Starving Time in the Iron Mountain region of Colorado, when wolves and ravens alike are desperate for food. With the help of a raven, the miraculous Merla, Nashoba must lead his pack of eight to a next meal. The wolf hates being dependent on a mere bird, but Merla is a bird wise beyond her years. And when thirteen-year-old Casey crosses their path, two very different approaches to hunting collide.
There is no animal in the world that can run faster than a cheetah. Yet no matter how quickly they run from trouble, cheetahs may not roam the African plains forever. They have lost much of their habitat to farmland, and some are killed by farmers who worry about their livestock. But cheetahs have important friends-like Dr. Laurie Marker and the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia. The CCF saves injured and orphaned cheetahs that would die if they were left in the wild. They even have a tame cheetah named Chewbaaka! With the CCF helping to preserve these amazing cats, the 12,000 or so left in the world have a fighting chance to survive. Veteran publisher, author, and editor Rosanna Hansen-who spent time working at the CCF-shares the fascinating story of cheetah preservation in this book young readers will find irresistible.
"A positive message to students about unique ways to care for the environment and the creatures who inhabit it."-Children's Literature
Katie is an ordinary third-grader–except for one very extraordinary problem! She accidentally wished on a shooting star to be anyone but herself. But what Katie soon learns is that wishes really do come true–and in the strangest ways . . . Doggone It! When Katie’s teacher, Mrs. Derkman, moves in next door, Katie can’t believe her bad luck! Mrs. Derkman hates dogs, and she wants the dogs on their street to be kept on leashes at all times! When the magic wind blows and turns Katie into her own dog, Pepper, will Katie convince her teacher that dogs are not all bad?
"Billie Wind lives with her Seminole tribe. She follows their customs, but the dangers of pollution and nuclear war she's learned about in school seem much more real to her. How can she believe the Seminole legends about talking animals and earth spirits? She wants answers, not legends. "You are a doubter,"say the men of the Seminole Council and so Billie goes out into the Everglades alone, to stay until she can believe. In the wilderness, she discovers that she must listen to the land and animals in order to survive. With an otter, a panther cub, and a turtle as companions and guides, she begins to understand that the world of her people can give her the answers she seeks.
Did you know there are over 400 different species of sharks? Did you know they have been on Earth much longer than humans, and even lived before the dinosaurs? Here you'll learn all about these fearsome kings of the ocean, including their eating habits and the basics of their anatomy. Sharks come in many sizes, from under a foot long to over 40 feet-and that's not even counting the long-extinct, 60-foot-long Megalodon shark. And while some have been known to bite people, they are usually quite content to hunt other sea creatures. There are many things we still don't know about sharks, but this is an excellent jumping-off point to discover more! Winner of the Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Nonfiction Award, author Laurence Pringle presents this masterful introduction to one of nature's most misunderstood, yet exciting, animals.
