Growing Library

Zach, Poppy, and Alice have been friends forever. And for almost as long, they’ve been playing one continuous, ever-changing game of pirates and thieves, mermaids and warriors. Ruling over all is the Great Queen, a bone-china doll cursing those who displease her. But they are in middle school now. Zach’s father pushes him to give up make-believe, and Zach quits the game. Their friendship might be over, until Poppy declares she’s been having dreams about the Queen - and the ghost of a girl who will not rest until the bone-china doll is buried in her empty grave.

This collection of wonderful stories read by John Lavelle and penned by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat will find a place on any Nate the Great fan's bookshelf.

For seventh-grader Mila, it starts with some boys giving her an unwanted hug on the school blacktop. A few days later, at recess, one of the boys (and fellow trumpet player), Callum, tells Mila it's his birthday, and asks her for a "birthday hug." He's just being friendly, isn't he? And how can she say no? But Callum's hug lasts a few seconds too long, and feels...weird. According to her friend, Zara, Mila is being immature and overreacting. Doesn't she know what flirting looks like? But the boys don't leave Mila alone.

Gather ‘round the fire to hear a Christmas legend that has never been told before...until now. Each year a mysterious figure sweeps into town, leaving behind strange gifts in the night. No, not Santa Claus, but his sister…

Suddenly orphaned and alone, Rosie Frost is sent to the mysterious Bloodstone Island—home not only to a school for extraordinary teens, but also a sanctuary for endangered species. There, Rosie confronts a menacing deputy headmaster, a group of mean kids intent on destroying her, and shocking family secrets. She also discovers that history can come to life in ways she never could have imagined. When the island itself comes under threat, Rosie knows she must enter and win the Falcon Queen Games in a desperate bid to save it.

Lewis "Shoe" Blake is used to the joys and difficulties of life on the Tuscarora Indian reservation in 1975: the joking, the Fireball games, the snow blowing through his roof. What he's not used to is white people being nice to him - people like George Haddonfield, whose family recently moved to town with the Air Force. As the boys connect through their mutual passion for music, especially the Beatles, Lewis has to lie more and more to hide the reality of his family's poverty from George.

Welcome to Centerburg! Where you can win a hundred dollars by eating all the doughnuts you want; where houses are built in a day; and where a boy named Homer Price can foil four slick bandits using nothing but his wits and pet skunk. The comic genius of Robert McCloskey and his wry look at small-town America has kept readers and listeners in stitches for generations!

He was named "Sham" for the sun, this golden red stallion born in the Sultan of Morocco's stone stables. Upon his heel was a small white spot, the symbol of speed. But on his chest was the symbol of misfortune. Although he was as swift as the desert winds, Sham's proud pedigree would be scorned all his life by cruel masters and owners.

After the holidays, Humphrey is shocked by a big surprise in Room 26—a new class pet! Humphrey tries to be welcoming, but Og the frog doesn't respond to any of his friendly squeaks or visits (remember, he has a lock-that-doesn't-lock). Plus, the students are so interested in Og, they almost stop paying attention to Humphrey altogether. Humphrey doesn't like the mad-bad-sad feelings he's had since Og came, but luckily he still gets to have adventures with different kids on the weekends. Friendship can be tricky, but Humphrey is an intrepid problem-solver.

In a partnership with We Need Diverse Books, industry giants Kwame Alexander, Soman Chainani, Matt de la Peña, Tim Federle, Grace Lin, Meg Medina, Walter Dean Myers, Tim Tingle, and Jacqueline Woodson join newcomer Kelly J. Baptist in a story collection that is as humorous as it is heartfelt. This impressive group of authors has earned among them every major award in children's publishing and popularity as New York Times best sellers.

Spring is in the air, and lots of things are growing - including the Room 26 family! Signs of spring are very exciting to everyone at Longfellow School. Mrs. Brisbane's class has seen flowers poking out of snow and baby birds hatching, and Just-Joey even brought in tadpoles that are growing into frogs. It also means Family Fun Night is coming up, and all of the students' families are involved in making amazing activities. Humphrey helps in many ways, of course, but he can't stop wondering about his own family.

Essie has grown up in the public library, raised in secret by the four librarians who found her abandoned as a baby in the children's department. With four mothers and miles of books to read, Essie has always been very happy living there. But now that she is eleven, Essie longs for a little more freedom . . . and maybe a friend her own age.

Brady loves life on the Chesapeake Bay with his friends J. T. and Digger. But developers and rich families are moving into the area, and while Brady befriends some of them, like the DiAngelos, his parents and friends are bitter about the changes. Tragedy strikes when the DiAngelos' kayak overturns in the bay, and Brady wonders if it was more than an accident. Soon, Brady discovers the terrible truth behind the kayak's sinking, and it will change the lives of those he loves forever.

With a bit of last summer's sand in the pockets, the Traveling Pants and the Sisterhood that wears them embark on their 16th summer.

Shay Remby arrives in Hollywood with $58 and a handmade knife, searching for her brother, Odin. Odin’s a brilliant hacker but a bit of a loose cannon. He and a group of radical animal-rights activists hit a Singular Corp. research lab in Eugene, Oregon. The raid was a disaster, but Odin escaped with a set of highly encrypted flash drives and a post-surgical dog. When Shay gets a frantic 3 a.m. phone call from Odin - talking about evidence of unspeakable experiments, and a ruthless corporation, and how he must hide - she’s concerned.

Lavinia “Vin” Lucas is out of control and out of options. Stranded by parents who would rather use their average magical abilities to study dung beetles than raise her, Vin's been on her own for years. But she’s never been able to corral her own powerful, unpredictable magic. After years of detention, suspension, and expulsion from magic schools far and wide, she’s now being sent to the Last Hope School for Magical Delinquents. If she gets expelled, it’s the end of the line. Now, Vin is determined to behave. Except no one at Last Hope seems to want her to.

This is a story about love. It's also a story about hate, which is why I left New York in the first place. You don't fly halfway across the world to live with a bunch of people you never met, just for a laugh.

Barbara Gordon has always been an off-the-charts, just-forget-about-the-test supergenius and tech whiz, and then she gets the offer of a lifetime when Supergirl recognizes that Barbara's talents make her an ideal candidate for Super Hero High. Donning the cape and cowl, Barbara Gordon becomes Batgirl, ready to train at the most elite school on the planet, next to some of the most powerful teenagers in the galaxy.

A triumphant victory over the witches has proven that Princess Cadet Evie really does belong at Pennyroyal Academy. News of her heroism has traveled far and wide - inspiring a kingdom of grateful citizens and, when the new term starts, a wave of fresh Academy recruits. While it's good to be returning to the academy as a second-class cadet, things are not as they should be. Evie witnesses the vicious attack of an innocent woman - by a trio of princesses.

Soon to be a Netflix animated film starring Will Forte, Maya Rudolph, Alessia Cara, Terry Crews, Martin Short, Jane Krakowski, Séan Cullen, and Ricky Gervais! Convinced they'd be better off raising themselves, the Willoughby children hatch a sneaky plan to send their selfish parents on vacation. The siblings then embark on their own high-flying adventure to find the true meaning of family. The Willoughbys is a turn to the hilarious from the award-winning author of The Giver and Number the Stars that will have children and parents laughing.