Being Here

The bittersweet story of a girl and a boy, and a secret that was too real to hide. From the bestselling author of The Whole Business with Kiffo and the Pitbull.The boy sat in the branches of the fifth tree on the left, his scuffed boots dangling. Leah turned her eyes up. His face was heavily freckled, his eyes large, brown and almond-shaped. His hair stuck out at wild angles. 'Hello,' she said.Sixteen-year-old Carly is interviewing Leah Cartwright for her local history project. But Leah resists, determined instead to tell her own story: that of a lonely child on an isolated farm, a girl whose only escape is into the world of books. And when Adam appears in the orchard Leah discovers a friend. A secret friend.Leah draws Carly in with the magic of story - to her present, her past, her secrets, and her unique friendship with Adam.Being Here is a beautifully told story about a girl whose rich imagination rescues her from a grim reality, and an...
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The Parker Inheritance

Three starred reviews! "A clever puzzle, a hidden treasure, and a couple of kids you'll wish were your friends...Dive in!" - Sara Pennypacker, author of Pax When Candice finds a letter in an old attic in Lambert, South Carolina, she isn't sure she should read it. It's addressed to her grandmother, who left the town in shame. But the letter describes a young woman. An injustice that happened decades ago. A mystery enfolding the letter-writer. And the fortune that awaits the person who solves the puzzle. So with the help of Brandon Jones, the quiet boy across the street, she begins to decipher the clues. The challenge will lead them deep into Lambert's history, full of ugly deeds, forgotten heroes, and one great love; and deeper into their own families, with their own unspoken secrets. Can they find the fortune and fulfill the letter's promise before the answers slip into the past yet again?
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Friends for Life

A timeless and uplifting book about friendship, filled with humor and heart. When Jessica sits next to Francis on a bench during recess, he's surprised to learn that she isn't actually alive—she's a ghost. And she's surprised, too, because Francis is the first person who has been able to see her since she died. Before long, Francis and Jessica are best friends, enjoying life more than they ever have. When they meet two more friends who can also see Jessica, the question arises: What is it that they have in common? And does it have something to do with Jessica being a ghost?
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From Ant to Eagle

My name is Calvin Sinclair, I’m eleven years old and I have a confession… I killed my brother. It’s the summer before grade six and Calvin Sinclair is bored to tears. He’s recently moved from a big city to a small town and there’s nothing to do. It’s hot, he has no friends and the only kid around is his six-year-old brother, Sammy, who can barely throw a basketball as high as the hoop. So Cal occupies his time by getting his brother to do almost anything: from collecting ants to doing Calvin’s chores. And Sammy is all too eager - as long as it means getting a “Level” and moving one step closer to his brother’s Eagle status. When Calvin meets Aleta Alvarado, a new girl who shares his love for Goosebumps books and adventure, Sammy is pushed aside. Cal feels guilty but not enough to change. At least not until a diagnosis causes things at home to fall apart and he’s left wondering whether Sammy will ever complete his own journey… From Ant to Eagle.
Views: 13

Twelve Nights

Kay and her little sister, Eloise, never imagined that their standard icy Christmas Eve in Cambridge would be the start of a twelve-night odyssey . . .Kay's father is working late - as usual. Fed up, her mother bundles her daughters into the car and drives to her husband's Cambridge college to collect him herself. But when they arrive, the staff claim that nobody by his name has ever worked there . . .Kay is puzzled by her mother's reaction - silent tears, not anger and confusion. And what is even more puzzling is the card on her pillow when they return home:Will O. de Wisp, Gent. F.H.S.P. and Phillip R. T. Gibbet, Gent. F.H.S.P. K.Bith. REMOVALS. That night, Kay is woken by voices at her window: the voices of Will and Phillip, the Removers. But they are not human. And Kay shouldn't be able to see them. Except she can . . .
Views: 12

The Serpent of Eridor

Attacked by an assassin, and positive that the next attempt will be fatal, 14-year-old Alex Weston seizes the slim chance of survival, choosing to abandon ship in a tropical typhoon. Subsequently shipwrecked onto the island of Eridor with his hamster Skoodle, Alex unwittingly crosses the barrier into a world of enchantment. He soon discovers that his beloved pet is not just a hamster, but rather a funny, opinionated, reluctant hero who regularly takes advice from his dead uncle. While on the island, they befriend a brilliant, ebullient monkey, a warrior bear and a sarcastic snake. Possessing no magic abilities himself, Alex is armed only with bravery, loyalty, sheer cussedness and wit as he fights to save his life and his friends. He must also wrestle with the suspicion that a few ounces of added rodent doesn't make him the strongest fighting unit on the island. On his journey, Alex is pursued by murderous crocodiles, engulfed by a man-eating mud swamp and attacked by vengeful...
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Skin

You don't have to be thin to feel small. Donnie's life is unraveling. His parents' marriage is falling apart, and his sister is slowly slipping away in the grip of her illness. To top it all off, he accidentally starts a rumor at school that hurts someone he cares about and leaves him an outcast. So Donnie does the only thing he knows how to do: He tries to fix things, to make everything the way it was before. Before his parents stopped loving each other, before his sister disappeared, before he was alone. But some things are beyond repair, and it will take all Donnie's strength to stop looking back and start moving forward again.
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Dallas Noir

Featuring brand-new stories by: Kathleen Kent, Ben Fountain, James Hime, Harry Hunsicker, Matt Bondurant, Merritt Tierce, Daniel J. Hale, Emma Rathbone, Jonathan Woods, Oscar C. Peña, Clay Reynolds, Lauren Davis, Fran Hillyer, Catherine Cuellar, David Haynes, and J. Suzanne Frank.From the introduction by David Hale Smith:My favorite line in my favorite song about Dallas goes like this: Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes / A steel and concrete soul in a warm heart and love disguise . . . The narrator of Jimmie Dale Gilmore’s perfect tune “Dallas” is coming to town as a broke dreamer with the bright lights of the big city on his mind. He’s just seen the Dallas cityscape through the window of his seat on a DC-9 at night. Is he just beginning his quest? Or is he on his way home, flying out of Love Field, reminiscing after seeing the woman who stepped on him when he was down?In a country with so many interesting cities, Dallas is often overlooked—except on November 22 every year. The heartbreaking anniversary keeps coming back around in a nightmare loop, for all of us. On that day in 1963, Dallas became American noir. A permanent black scar on its history that will never be erased, no matter how many happy business stories and hit television shows arise from here. In a stark ongoing counterweight to the JFK tragedy are those two iterations of the TV show. Dallas is not a TV show. It’s a real city . . . For the past forty years, my capacity to be surprised by it has not diminished one bit. I hope the stories in this collection will surprise you too.
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Strangers in Atlantis (Seaborne)

ISBN 9781512413755 (th : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781512426915 (eb pdf)After breaking ties with the deadly Pirate King, Dean Seaborne thought he had left his life of spying and pirating behind. But when the merciless thief Captain Skinner threatens Dean's allies, Dean agrees to one last job. Along with his trusted friends Ronan and Waverly, he agrees to help rob a sea-based resort for the richest of nobles. They'll pose as a band of traveling performers and then lead Skinner to the loot.It's a cunning plan. But the moment Dean reaches the resort, the plan changes. The getaway is actually a gateway—to the undersea kingdom of Atlantis. And a civil war is brewing in the depths, with Dean soon to be caught in the middle of it. As his enemies multiply, above and below the waves, Dean finds himself in over his head like never before.
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Spy School Goes South

Ben is taken to Mexico by his nemesis in the hopes that he'll finally be able to take down SPYDER in this latest addition to the New York Times bestselling Spy School series.Thirteen-year-old Ben Ripley has been caught in the snares of SPYDER more than once and knows well enough to be suspicious of anything that seems too good to be true—despite needing special tutoring in advanced survival techniques. So when Murray Hill finally breaks his silence with an offer to hand over the SPYDER elite, Ben knows that there must be something going on. But his hesitation doesn't stop the assignment. The Mission: Follow Murray Hill to an undisclosed location with no one else but Erica Hale to identify SPYDER leadership. Once found, contact the CIA to sweep in and finish the job. DO NOT CONTACT SPYDER DIRECTLY. However, as Ben suspected, nothing goes as planned, and what should be an easy mission quickly turns deadly. Now, Ben and Erica will have to face...
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The City of Fear

The third book in The Battles of Ben Kingdom trilogy. Victorian London is ruled by fear. The bloodthirsty Legion have captured the Queen and walled off the city, ushering in a reign of terror. Only Ben Kingdom and his motley band of rebels can stop them, but in the darkest pit of hell, evil creatures are stirring, ready to be called forth..."An ambitious and far-sighted series, ideal for both boys and girls." - The Lancashire Evening Post
Views: 10

Zoe is on the Air

Zoe knows best! But can she convince Emma — and the rest of the school? When Zoe and Emma start giving out advice on a school-wide TV show, the response is more than Zoe ever expected. Kids Zoe's never even talked to before seek her out for help with their problems. Zoe's riding high on her success . . . until her classmates start actually following her advice! Soon there's a romance on the rocks, and Zoe's sister Natalia has stopped talking to her BFF Caitlin. Zoe thought she had all the answers — why is everything going so wrong?
Views: 8

George

BE WHO YOU ARE. When people look at George, they think they see a boy. But she knows she's not a boy. She knows she's a girl. George thinks she'll have to keep this a secret forever. Then her teacher announces that their class play is going to be Charlotte's Web. George really, really, REALLY wants to play Charlotte. But the teacher says she can't even try out for the part . . . because she's a boy.   With the help of her best friend, Kelly, George comes up with a plan. Not just so she can be Charlotte — but so everyone can know who she is, once and for all.
Views: 8