Summer camp means lots of things: new friends, roommates, bug bites, bathroom duty...But it's also a chance to be on your own and to reinvent yourself. A shy girl can become the belle of the ball, and ajock might find new competition. Natalie, Jenna, Grace, and Alex have all found themselves at Camp Lakeview for different reasons. And each is keeping a secret. But if everyone is hiding something, how will they ever become friends?
Jenna Bloom is a Lakeview legacy. She's been coming to camp for three years and so have her brothers. All of her brothers. Jenna used to think that was cool, but lately she's been dying for some independence. Bubbly, outgoing Jenna has always been known for her pranks. But now her jokes are less and less funny. Are the family ties pulled too tightly-or is there something else going on?
Henk was hidden on the farm when he was young and the Nazi soldiers came. But the war is over now, and Henk finds out that the people he lives with, the people he loves, are not his real family. He doesn't remember his real parents, and now a new life in the city lies ahead of him. Will things ever be the same?
When Natalie's dad is nominated for a Best Actor Oscar, she flies to L.A. for the week, where she plans on hanging out with Tori and also taking her to the Oscars. But when Natalie hits it off with Tori's friend Reed, Tori feels left out and picks a giant fight, which culminates in Natalie rescinding Tori's invitation to the Oscars and giving it to Reed instead. Cut to: Natalie and Tori and their tearful reconciliation. Unfortunately the only way for Natalie to really enjoy this happilyever- after ending is to find a replacement ticket to the Oscars!
Brynn's just transferred to a brand-new school in a town close by. A town in Bizarro World, that is, where academic excellence is the fast track to popularity and Candace-yes, quiet, seemingly insecure Candace-is the reigning queen bee. Brynn's not sure how she'll ever fit in to this parallel universe, until one day she notices Candace crumbling under the weight of some serious self-imposed stress. So Brynn takes Candace under her wing and teaches her the fine art of chilling out before she turns into a complete basket case at the tender age of thirteen.
Alyssa finds an amethyst, a stone believed to aid in psychic awareness. Suddenly she's interpreting dreams and making predictions, all with 100 percent accuracy. While half the camp girls are believers, the other half are skeptics, attributing the gem's track record to coincidence. Not that Alyssa cares what anyone thinks. In fact, she's so attached to the amethyst, she names it Amy. But when a prediction causes the bunk to miss a Phillies game-where Justin Timberlake sings-even the believers cross over to the dark side. Still, Alyssa proclaims that the chances of her giving up the amethyst are 'as likely as a snowstorm in July.' And lo and behold, the next morning the campus is carpeted in snow. Coincidence? Only Amy knows for sure . . .
A young family must leave their comfortable London life for a house in the country when their father is taken away unexpectedly. Roberta, Peter, and Phyllis spend their days at the nearby train station, befriending the station master and porter and many of the passengers. Waving goodbye to the departing London train each day and sending their love to their father who is detained there, they strike up a friendship with a kindly old man who may be able to help them get their father back.
'Believe in the unexpected' with this hilarious, heartwarming, and much-anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestseller The Fourteenth Goldfish!
Ellie's grandpa Melvin is a world-renowned scientist . . . in the body of a fourteen-year-old boy. His feet stink, and he eats everything in the refrigerator--and Ellie is so happy to have him around. Grandpa may not exactly fit in at middle school, but he certainly keeps things interesting. When he and Ellie team up for the county science fair, no one realizes just how groundbreaking their experiment will be. The formula for eternal youth may be within their reach! And when Ellie's cat, Jonas Salk, gets sick, the stakes become even higher. But is the key to eternal life really the key to happiness? Sometimes even the most careful experiments yield unexpected--and wonderful--results.
From Australia's favourite storyteller comes a story, within a story, that shows us the extraordinary power of true love and solves a decades-old mystery."Once upon a time, in a dark city far away, there lived a boy called Walter, who had nothing but his name to call his own ..."The handwritten book, with its strangely vivid illustrations, has been hidden in the old house for a long, long time. Tonight, four kids and their teacher will find it. Tonight, at last, the haunting story of Walter and the mysterious, tragic girl called Sparrow will be read - right to the very end ...From one of Australia's most renowned children's authors, comes an extraordinary story within a story - a mystery, a prophecy, a long-buried secret. And five people who will remember this night as long as they live.
Grandpa says circles are all around us. He points to the rainbow that rises high in the sky after a thundercloud has come. Can you see? That's only half of the circle. That rest of it is down below, in the earth. He and his granddaughter meditate on gardens and seeds, on circles seen and unseen, inside and outside us, on where our bodies come from and where they return to. They share and create family traditions in this stunning video adaptation of the Pura Belpre award-winning exploration of the cycles of life and nature.
Sixth grade is coming to an end, and so is life as Macy McMillan knows it. Already a For Sale sign mars the front lawn of her beloved house. Soon, her mother will upend their perfect little family, adding a stepfather and six-year-old twin stepsisters. To add insult to injury, what is Macy's final sixth-grade assignment? A genealogy project. Well, she'll put it off-just like those wedding centerpieces she's supposed to be making. Just when Macy's mother ought to be understanding, she sends Macy next door to help eighty-six-year-old Iris Gillan, who is also getting ready to move-in her case into an assisted-living facility. Iris can't pack a single box on her own and, worse, she doesn't know sign language. How is Macy supposed to understand her? But Iris has stories to tell, and she isn't going to let Macy's deafness stop her. Soon, through notes and books and cookies, a bond grows between them, and this friendship, odd and unexpected, may be just what Macy needs to face the changes in her life.
Life is hard for 12-year-old Lucas. First Uncle Asa dies of consumption, then Lizy and Pa. Now Mama is sick. And Lucas is the only one left to take care of her and their Connecticut farm. By the time his neighbor tells him of a strange, new cure, it is too late-Mama has just died. Reeling with sorrow, Lucas wanders until he sees a "help wanted" sign for a doctor's apprentice. He feels better while he is helping to pull teeth, visit the sick, and bury the dead. When he discovers townspeople are dying of consumption here, too, he wants to help them. Should he try the macabre cure? Novelist for young readers, Cynthia DeFelice bases her gripping tale on actual practices of the mid-1800s to cure victims of the disease we now call tuberculosis. Narrator John McDonough will hold listeners spellbound as Lucas heroically attacks a mystery that even the adults can't solve.
We all know and love Ramona, Matilda, and Harriet the Spy. Now meet Ernestine.Ernestine Montgomery is the kind of kid who gets things done. She's smart, prepared, and always knows just what to do. But there's big trouble brewing inside the walls of the rambling old mansion where she lives... and only Ernestine can decipher the clues that point in one direction-murder! Can Ernestine solve the mystery before catastrophe strikes?
