Magical Child

Maddy yearns for her life to be mystifying, to be as magical as a fairy story. And then one day, on the beach, she meets the strangest young man she has ever seen.

Through the long years of the Great Depression, Harper Flute watches with a child's clear eyes her family's struggle to survive in a hot and impoverished landscape. As life on the surface grows harsher, her brother Tin escapes ever deeper into a subterranean world of darkness and troubling secrets, until his memory becomes a myth barely whispered around the countryside.

Anna didn't even know she had an aunt. Aunt Moira had appeared the day after Anna's parents died in a car crash: a tall grey figure through the screen door, silhouetted against the bright sun. The neighbors welcomed her - they were relieved to get Anna off their hands and into the custody of a relative. But Anna hadn't warmed to her aunt or her pug, whose eyes eerily tracked Anna's every move.

Justin hates his new home, his new school, and his new life. Staying with his Mom after his parents divorced, Justin tries to make the best of things, dodging the bullies and exploring the woods near his home. When he finds a rusty sword and a ruby pendant, Justin doesn't immediately make the connection between them and the crazy dreams he's been having. But soon he realizes that the new world he travels to when he's asleep is more than just a dream - its reality, and he's got a mission he needs to complete.

Sixteen-year-old Boy’s never left home. When you’re the son of Frankenstein’s monster and the Bride, it’s tough to go out in public, unless you want to draw the attention of a torch-wielding mob. Boy’s only interactions with the world are through the Internet, where he’s a hacker extraordinaire who can hide his hulking body and stitched-together face behind a layer of code. When conflict erupts at home, Boy runs away and embarks on a cross-country road trip with the granddaughters of Jekyll and Hyde, who introduce him to malls and diners, love and heartbreak.

Pen's life is about secrets: the secret of the city's spirits, deities and monsters, living just beyond the notice of modern Londoners; the secret of Pen's intricate scars that disfigure her so cruelly; and the most closely guarded secret of all: Parva, her mirror-sister, forged from her reflections in a school bathroom mirror.

Mirabelle and the Magical Mayhem: Mirabelle doesn't mean to cause trouble, it just seems to follow her round. But when she and her brother go to stay at their fairy grandparents, she is determined that nothing will go wrong, and she is going to be on her very best, most fairy-like, behaviour. Mirabelle Takes Charge: Mirabelle is desperate for a brand-new pair of magical roller skates, but Mum and Dad say she's got to earn the money to pay for them herself. Earning money sounds tricky-how's she going to do it?

"Tabitha didn’t like her voice. In fact, she more than didn’t like it. She hated it with a passion." But when 11-year-old Tabitha runs off into the woods behind her house during her little sister's birthday party, she meets up with a village of little people who call themselves Grenigots and discovers that her voice just might be magical. But will she sing to save the Grenigots from danger?

Spring had sprung, as this adventure had begun. One day in May, Gracie, her dog, Sniggles, Bob the crow, Lucy the cat and Ziggy the squirrel, met a caterpillar named Mo. He wasn’t like the other insects, he felt different. He had feelings deep down inside that sometimes made him cry. All he could do was crawl, but that wasn’t all; he wanted to fly, but he didn’t know why.

Greta Goodwin’s life is changing. On top of moving to a new neighborhood far away from her best friend, Lotti, she’s also starting middle school. Greta isn’t totally ready for boys, bras, and the chaotic cafeteria. She still feels like a little kid compared to those female classmates who have suddenly matured over the summer. Girls who are now the talk of the school—unlike Greta, who would rather fly under the radar, especially after a bad haircut that makes her look less “effortlessly beautiful” and more “triangle with legs.”

In the wake of a devastating earthquake and tsunami, Yui, fleeing her violent husband, and Hiyori, a young orphan, are taken in by a strange but kind old lady named Kiwa in the small town of Kitsunezaki​​. The newly formed family finds refuge in a mayoiga, a lost house, perched atop a beautiful cape overlooking the sea. While helping to rebuild Kitsunezaki, the three adapt to their new lives and supernatural new home, slowly healing from their troubled pasts.

No matter how much Olive longs for a pet rabbit, it's never going to happen. Not when she lives in an Australian country town where most people think they're a pest. So imagine Olive's shock when she unexpectedly finds not one, but one hundred and one rabbits. And one of them can talk! How Olive will ever be able to hide and protect the rabbits is going to be her greatest challenge, and all while preparing for the Year 5 play. At least she has her costume ready, although the old top hat she found in the local op-shop seems very odd.

Outside of Russia, Leo Tolstoy is known mostly as the author of the Napoleonic War epic War and Peace. Therefore, this collection is bound to be a new experience for most, since it includes a set of Tolstoy's stories intended for children.

With a body made of wax, seaweed for hair and polished abalone shells for eyes, Corpse is bound to haunt the Witches' sea shack forever. She has no memory of the kid she was before she was snatched and ended up on the rock that doesn't exist. But the delivery of an unexpected message sets Corpse off on a surprising quest, searching for answers to the old and familiar questions that have filled her not-brain since the day she first woke up a ghost. Questions about her name. Questions about her family.

The sea has always called to Sofia, even when she and her mom lived in a big city nowhere near its shore. That's how Sofia always knew she was a mermaid--that, and the fact that the sea and its creatures are much easier to understand than people. Like her mother, who is sending Sofia away instead of her barracuda of a boyfriend; that's a flying fish if Sofia's ever seen one, spending so much time reaching for the sky she can't see what's going on below the surface. When Sofia meets her abuela, she knows she's up against a sea dragon.

For as long as she can remember, Yomi has heard stories about Nkara – magnificent creatures that roam the African continent. Now she’s about to meet them for real! Yomi and her brother Kayode are on a trip to The Gambia when they witness the Dragon King Ninki Nanka being kidnapped from the sky. Determined to save him, Yomi and Kay uncover secrets and meet magnificent beasts – but will it be enough to save Ninki Nanka?

Once, there was a girl named Kiki, who found a fish on the asphalt. The fish was very hot and very dry. But when Kiki put it in the bathtub, it started swimming, and growing, and . . . speaking? "I want to grant you a wish for saving me," it said. A wish-granting fish! Alas, this fish was only a fish of small wishes, and Kiki’s wish was too big. Unless . . . there was a way for both their dreams to come true.

Sage Sassafras’ life is cursed! No, really. Since birth, Sage has been plagued by the Contrarium Curse that’s set her at odds with classmate Priscilla Petty. Every time something goes right for Priscilla, it goes terribly, horribly wrong for Sage. And things always go well for Priscilla. Sage blames the curse for all her middle school misery - from losing a friend to failing gym to gaining a reputation as the girl whose daddy’s in trouble.

Mere mortal. Fae hunter. Oh, and the apocalypse? Yeah, that happened! She's an unstoppable human. He's an immovable beast. But the fae have scorched the earth and humans are next.... Chloe Etain, stumbled into an ancient war between the light and dark that has culminated in her world being thrown into darkness and pre-industrial chaos. Vampire-like creatures roam free, feeding on unsuspecting humans. Chloe knows the truth though and, possibly, how to stop it. But as a mere mortal, what can she do? That's when the fates step in.

Simon Trekker has been raised by his aunt and uncle, as his parents went on a trip when he was a baby and never returned. While walking to his first day of middle school, Simon starts to notice various messages written on street signs and graffiti telling him to follow them. He does and finds out that there are shortcuts to anywhere in the world, and only he seems to know about them.