Dear Gram and Grampop,
Please do not address yours truly as California anymore, California Morning Whipple being a foolish name for a duck much less a girl. I call myself Lucy now. I cannot hate California and be California. I know you will understand.
California doesn't suit Lucy Whipple -- not the name, not the place. But moving out West to Lucky Diggins, California, was her mama's dream-come-true. And now her brother, Butte, and sisters, Prairie and Sierra, seem to be Westerners at heart, too. For Lucy, Lucky Diggins is hardly a town at all -- just a bunch of ramshackle tents and tobacco-spitting miners. Even the gold her mama claimed was just lying around in the fields isn't panning out. Worst of all, there's no lending library! Dag diggety!
So Lucy vows to be plain miserable until she can hightail it back East where she belongs. But Lucy California Morning Whipple may be in for a surprise -- because home is a lot closer than she thinks...
When California Morning Whipple's widowed mother uproots her family from their comfortable Massachusetts environs and moves them to a rough mining camp called Lucky Diggins in the Sierras, California Morning resents the upheaval. Desperately wanting to control something in her own life, she decides to be called Lucy, and as Lucy she grows and changes in her strange and challenging new environment. Here Karen Cushman helps the American Gold Rush spring to colorful life, just as she did for medieval England in her previous two books, Catherine, Called Birdy and The Midwife's Apprentice, which won Newbery Honor status and a Newbery Medal respectively. Views: 1 026
The third volume of the My Father's Dragon trilogy, this adventure may be enjoyed on its own. Here, the baby dragon summons Elmer to help save his family from hunters. "Elmer's plan is ingenious and plausible, the fantasy well-sustained."--(starred) Library Journal. Views: 1 026
Everyone’s favorite time-travelers are changing their styles! The Time Warp Trio series now features a brand-new, eye-catching design, sure to appeal to longtime fans, and those new to Jon Scieszka’s wacky brand of humor. Views: 1 025
Have you ever wondered just what was going on when that odd little man with the long name stepped up and volunteered to spin straw into gold for the miller’s daughter? If you stop and think about it, there are some very peculiar and rather hard-to-explain components to the story.
Vivian Vande Velde has wondered too, and she’s come up with these six alternative versions of the old legend. A bevy of miller’s daughters confront their perilous situation in very different ways — sometimes comic, sometimes scary. Most of the time, it’s the daughter who gets off safely, but sometimes, amazingly, Rumpelstiltskin himself wins the day. And in one tale, it is the king who cleverly escapes a quite unexpected fate. Views: 1 025
Jane's son David is eight years old and Jane is filled with doubts as he grows up without a father. Toby, her first love, has gone to Israel after the collapse of his marriage to Melissa. Then there is Andy, close at hand, a complex personality with his own problem son. In the background is Terry, David's father, an amorphous shadow hanging over them.
This intense, compassionate novel completes the the trilogy which began with The L-Shaped Room Views: 1 024
Julianna Elizabeth Waters promises her dying father to save the family estate at all costs, even if it means marrying for money, and not love. After years of taking care of her sick parents, she's become afraid to push past the walls of her Newport mansion and live.
Jack Woodward has it all - wealth, power, and prestige, but discovers a contract stating he must marry within three months or his legacy will go to his cousin, a man he loathes. He leaves England and disguises himself a gardener, intent on finding a woman who loves him for himself, and not his money and title.
When he spots Julianna on the cliffs, he vows to claim her at any cost, but she is intent on marrying a wealthy husband. He may be disgusted with her values, but he craves to initiate the spinster into the dark world of pleasure. They strike a bargain: she will belong to him every night and do anything he commands. Lust turns to love as the nights unfold, and suddenly the terms change.
But when his cousin comes to town, disguising himself as the perfect husband with a plan to steal Jack's legacy, Jack forces her to choose: love or money. A wrong choice throws a startling chain of events in action. Can love and truth triumph or will it be too late?
Reader Alert!: Julianna Elizabeth Waters is an old fashioned spinster desperate to break out of her sexual constraints. When her sexy gardener offers her a naughty bargain to belong to him, body and soul, she does things she always imagined of. Being dominated, controlled and spanked have never felt so good... Views: 1 024
The fourth book in the series that began with the Newbery Medal–winning Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan.
I am a watcher. I am a listener, too. I am invisible. I can make myself so small and quiet and hidden that sometimes no one knows I am there to watch and listen.
Cassie spends her days watching Grandfather and Caleb in the barn, looking out at Papa working the fields, spying on her mother, Sarah, feeding the goslings. She's an observer, a writer, a storyteller. Everything is as it should be.
But change is inevitable, even on the prairie. Something new is expected, and Sarah says it will be the perfect gift. Cassie isn't so sure. But just as life changes, people change too. And Cassie learns that unexpected surprises can bring great joy. Views: 1 024
Raffa Santana has spent all winter hiding in the cold wilderness of the Sudden Mountains, and now it’s time to return home. Home, where his parents will help him fight back against the vile Chancellor, who has captured and altered the wild creatures of the Forest of Wonders. Home, where Raffa’s beloved companion, Echo the bat, will recover from his mysterious sickness.
To get there, Raffa must make a treacherous journey across all of Obsidia. He’ll rely on his powerful intuition as an apothecary, and on his loyal friends—both human and animal—to keep him safe. Views: 1 024
Benjamin Pratt’s school is about to become the site of a new amusement park. It sounds like a dream come true! But lately, Ben has been wonder if he’s going to like an amusement park in the middle of his town—with all the buses and traffic and eight dollar slices of pizza. It’s going to change everything. And, Ben is not so big on all the new changes in his life, like how his dad has moved out and started living in the marina on what used to be the "family” sailboat. Maybe it would be nice if the school just stayed as it is. He likes the school. Loves it, actually. It’s over 200 years old and sits right on the harbor. The playground has ocean breezes and the classrooms have million dollar views…MILLION DOLLAR views. And after a chance—and final—run-in with the school janitor, Ben starts to discover that these MILLION DOLLAR views have a lot to do with the deal to sell the school property. But, as much as the town wants to believe it, the school does not belong to the local government. It belongs to the CHILDREN and these children have the right to defend it! Don’t think Ben, his friend Jill (and the tag-along Robert) can ruin a multimillion dollar real estate deal? Then you don’t know the history and the power of the Keepers of the School. A suspenseful six book series, book one, We the Children, starts the battle on land and on sea. It’s a race to keep the school from turning into a ticket booth and these kids are about to discover just how threatening a little knowledge can be. Views: 1 023
Before Larten Crepsley was a vampire general...
Before he was Darren Shan's master...
Before the War of Scars...
Larten Crepsley was a teenager. And he was sick of the pomp and circumstance of fusty old vampires telling him what to do. Taking off on his own with his blood brother, Wester, Larten takes off into the world to see what his newly blooded vampire status can get him in the human world. Sucking all he can out of humanity, Larten stumbles into a violent, hedonistic lifestyle, where cheats beckon, power corrupts, and enemies are waiting.
This is his story. Views: 1 023
Join Tik-Tok, the Shaggy Man, and a host of other friends--both old and new--on an exciting, imaginative journey through the world of Oz. The fun begins in an isolated corner of Oz, in the small country of Oogaboo. There Queen Ann Soforth musters an unlikely army and sets off to conquer the rest of Oz. Meanwhile, a girl from Oklahoma named Betsy Bobbin and her companion, Hank the mule, are shipwrecked and washed ashore in the Rose Kingdom, a magical land of talking roses. There they meet the Shaggy Man, who is on a quest to rescue his brother from the clutches of the wicked Nome King. Betsy, Hank, and the Rose Princess join the Shaggy Man on his journey, and before long they meet up with Polychrome, the Rainbow's Daughter; Tik-Tok; and Queen Ann with her army. The rest of Baum's tale is filled with hairbreadth escapes, wild puns, and mystifying magic. Capturing all the fun are twelve color plates and nearly eighty black-and-white drawings by Oz artist John R. Neill, as well as a facsimile of Neill's full-color map endpapers of Oz and the enchanted realms that surround it--the first maps of Oz ever published! Tik-Tok of Oz is the eighth Oz novel and the first to bring a girl other than Dorothy to Oz. Now, in this beautiful reproduction of the rare first edition, a whole new generation can discover the enchantment and joy that have made the Oz series such an enduring favorite. "Join Tik-Tok and friends on an exciting, imaginative journey through the thrilling world of Oz, complete with hairbreadth escapes, wild puns, and mystifying magic....An enduring favorite."--School Library Journal. This lavish reproduction of Oz. Views: 1 023
Colin. May. Frank. Berenice. The Prime children grew up in a bleak country farm house called The Beacon. Colin and Berenice married locally. May went to university in London, but came home within a year and never left again. Only Frank, quiet, watchful Frank, got away. He left for Fleet Street and a career in journalism but its the publication of a book about his childhood that brings the fame and money he craves - and tears his family apart. Views: 1 023
*Before there was a Mysterious Benedict Society, there was simply a boy named Nicholas Benedict. Meet the boy who started it all....
*Nine-year-old Nicholas Benedict has more problems than most children his age. Not only is he an orphan with an unfortunate nose, but also he has narcolepsy, a condition that gives him terrible nightmares and makes him fall asleep at the worst possible moments. Now he's sent to a new orphanage, where he encounters vicious bullies, selfish adults, strange circumstances -- and a mystery that could change his life forever. Luckily, he has one important thing in his favor: He's a genius.
On his quest to solve the mystery, Nicholas finds enemies around every corner, but also friends in unexpected places -- and discovers along the way that the greatest puzzle of all is himself. Views: 1 023
Princess Emeralda a.ka. Emma isn't exactly an ideal princess. Her laugh is more like a donkey's bray than tinkling bells, she trips over her own feet and she does not like Prince Jorge, whom her mother hopes she will marry. But if Emma ever thought to escape her troubles, she never expected it to happen by turning into a frog! When convinced to kiss a frog so he might return to being a prince, somehow the spell is reversed and Emma turns into a frog herself! Thus begins their adventure--a quest to return to human form.
Fascinating and hilarious characters ranging from a self-conscious but friendly bat to a surprisingly loyal snake and a wise green witch confirm that readers won't soon forget this madcap story. A fantastic debut from the talented E.D. Baker. Views: 1 022
"There is a strangeness about Christabel Alderton. Elias Newman can see it right away, as well he might.
"When Christabel was 13 she was walking by the River Lea and some people in a cabin cruiser waved to her. The scene before her seemed to freeze like a photograph and she felt weird. A little later the boat blew up and killed everyone on board. Since then she's been troubled by a sort of second sight that works sometimes, but not always. Now, years later, she sings with a band called Mobile Mortuary who make their onstage entrance climbing out of body drawers. Death is much on her mind because the men in her life tend to die before their time and she's come to think she's bad luck. Elias Newman is a diabetologist who meets Christabel at a Royal Academy of Arts exhibition. Fascinated, he's keen to know her better. She's attracted to him but afraid of what might happen if she lets herself fall in love. Christabel and Elias are complicated people. Via Symbolist paintings and German ballads the narrative flows from the River Lea via a haunted woodland bog out to the crash of the Pacific surf on Kahakuloa Head in the Hawaiian Islands. And only in a Hoban novel could such an intensely involving love story embrace the redemptive power of ketchup bottles. Views: 1 022
