Nature Mysteries

An American classic with a refrain that millions of kids love to chant: Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats. Wanda Gág's enchanting tale of the very old man who went off in search of the prettiest cat in the world for his wife and returned instead with millions to choose from has become an American classic, widely recognized as the first modern picture book. First published in 1928, it was a recipient of the 1929 Newbery Honor Award and has gone on to sell over a million copies.

Chet Gecko loves a good mystery. Almost more than he loves his fee: Stinkbug pie. So when fellow fourth grader Shirley Chameleon asks him to find her missing brother, Billy, Chet expects the case to be as easy as pie. But Billy's disappearance is part of a larger plot, one that involves the Rat Sisters, a riddling junkyard dog, and a vicious Gila monster named Herman. If Chet doesn't solve the case fast, the entire school could be humiliated. Worst of all, Chet might not get his fee. And Chet's hungry...

A girl emerges from the woods, starved, ill, and alone...and collapses. Suzanne Blakemore hurtles along the Blue Ridge Parkway, away from her overscheduled and completely normal life, and encounters the girl. As Suzanne rushes her to the hospital, she never imagines how the encounter will change her - a change she both fears and desperately needs. Suzanne has the perfect house, a successful husband, and a thriving family.

Horace is flying high after solving the pet-tectives' first mystery. But Bunwinkle just hasn’t been herself - she’s scared all the time and is too embarrassed to tell anyone. Before they can work on getting Bunwinkle’s confidence back, a new case lands in their laps - well, actually their trash cans - when Shoo the raccoon asks for help. The neighborhood humans think he’s behind a series of garbage upheavals and home break-ins - but he swears he’s innocent. Just because people call him a trash bandit doesn’t mean he is one.

Ra the Mighty is Pharaoh's Cat, Lord of the Powerful Paw. He is not Ra the Royal Babysitter. How's a cat supposed to fit in all his snacks and naps when his charges keep getting into mischief? Ra's new job only gets harder on a voyage up the Nile, leading to a fearsome palace where crocodiles swarm the waters. Then Pharaoh's son disappears. Has he run away? Has he been eaten by crocodiles? Has he been kidnapped, or worse? Ra and his fellow Great Detectives, Khepri and Miu, set out to discover the truth, but the palace is home to many secrets.

Eleven-year-old Rocco is an Italian immigrant who finds himself alone in New York City after he's sold to a padrone by his poverty-stricken parents. While working as a street musician, he meets the boys of the infamous Bandits' Roost, who teach him the art of pickpocketing. Rocco embraces his new life of crime - he's good at it, and it's more lucrative than banging a triangle on the street corner. But when he meets Meddlin' Mary, a stronghearted Irish girl who's determined to help the horses of New York City, things begin to change.

Welcome to the bone chilling, pulse-pounding world of PIGGY, the survival-horror game that will keep you up at night. With the Infected hot on their heels and growing in number, a small band of survivors must come together and try to stop their island from being overrun. But is there really a cure for whatever is turning people into mindless monsters? Or are they too late to save anyone at all?

The Aldens must find a way to solve many mysteries, and all before 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday! Strange things are happening in Greenfield where the Boxcar Children live. Stray cats and dogs appear on doorsteps, but the animal shelter is forced to close, and a nice old woman disappears. Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny are very worried about Mrs. Newcombe. Is she in danger? Who are the strange men lurking around her house?

When Taddy the Tadpole goes missing, Detective Duck and her friends in the Pond Squad are on the case. What first seemed like a simple search and rescue mission gets more complicated when her friends find a pipe leaking a strange brown liquid along with a cluster of peculiar blue-green plants that make it difficult for the pond creatures to breathe.

A local schoolteacher is missing, and the only thing fishier than the circumstances surrounding his disappearance is the smell coming from the bag he left behind. All clues point to billionaire businessman Frank Pandini Jr. - but why would Pandini get his paws into the illegal fish trade?

The Aldens are helping out at a rescue ranch, taking care of horses that need extra attention. Jessie’s favorite is a beautiful horse named Dragon. But when Dragon and some of the other horses disappear from the pasture, the Boxcar Children must saddle up for a mystery. What’s happening to the horses at the Dare to Dream Ranch?

Rex Dexter is cursed...with brains...and daring...and more than his fair share of devilish good looks. But also with an actual curse: dead animals keep showing up in his bedroom, wanting him to solve their murders. After successfully sleuthing a series of endangered animal assassinations, Rex is pretty sure he's home free, spiritually speaking. But that's when he finds a 2,000-pound narwhal in his beanbag chair. And this tough guy is dead. And super crabby about it.

Elsa is finding it difficult to make new friends after her family moves house. Then she hears strange, scratching noises at night and discovers a kitten living in the attic! The little cat has gorgeous black fur and so Elsa names him Pepper. Elsa is desperate to keep her lovely new kitten friend. Dad thinks Pepper belonged to the previous owner, but who would leave behind such a beautiful kitten?

Get ready for laughs when you listen to these excerpts from ten of Hank's stories. Performed in the style of an old-time radio show, complete with sound effects and a unique voice for each character! You will hear Hank as he bargains for a priceless corncob, learns about manners from Wallace the Buzzard, runs into Rip and Snort the coyote brothers, taunts a raging rottweiler, gets into trouble with Sally May the rancher's wife, and more!

When a dog training school opens in Greenfield, the Boxcar Children bring Watch in to learn some new tricks! But at the very first class, a Dalmatian goes missing - did the dog run away, or was he stolen? And when a second dog vanishes at the next class, it’s clear that the Aldens have a dog-gone mystery to solve!

In 1913 all the musk plants in the world stopped smelling. Unable to resist the lure of this mystery, Bob Gilbert turns detective, determined to find the truth in the tale. Mixing history, memoir, science and nature writing, The Missing Musk takes the listener on a journey of discovery, uncovering the truth behind six mysteries and myths from across the natural world.

Fairies abound in the realms of myth and folklore. They have enchanted humans for centuries—but are these mischievous, ethereal creatures more than just myth? One could ask for no better guide to the fairy realm than Ralph Harvey, one of England's foremost modern-day witches. In Fairy Lore he intersperses his own intriguing fairy encounters (among them, a mysterious musical interlude in an Irish valley) with succinct yet interesting introductions to the folktales of the fae.

Lara Williams is desperate to get away. When she gets a job working aboard the luxury train The Banebury for her gap year, she knows: this is her chance to reinvent herself, after the incident that wrecked her relationships and her college prospects several months ago. At first, the train is everything Lara expected—a five-star escape from her past, demanding customers and all. Even after she learns that her ex-friend, Rhys, who she definitely did not have feelings for before their relationship imploded, is one of her new coworkers, she's determined to make things work.

When Ace is wearing his magical yellow wellies, he’s able to talk to animals. So when the weather starts acting up, he knows the farm squad aren’t happy. There’s snow, hail, rain and sun – and that’s just in one day! Now Ace and his best friend Bear need to come up with a plan to solve the mystery of the wacky weather. But will they be able to fix it in time for the farm’s first festival?

Fascinated by the stunning Appalachian Trail landscapes? Craving a challenging adventure? Longing to disconnect from life's stress? If you answered "Yes," discover one of America's most beautiful, varied, and culturally significant landscapes.