Primary For Children

I always thought that the biggest trial in my life was my name, Naomi Guadalupe Zamora Outlaw, but little did I know that it was the least of my problems, or that someday I would live up to it.

A boy searches for his archaeologist father, who has gone missing. With the help of some unusual family friends, Matt Stribling discovers that his father had been searching for an ancient code, one rumored to have brought down the Mayans, and maybe even the fabled civilization of Atlantis. Now in the hands of a madman using high-tech computers to decipher it, the code is being readied for new and sinister uses.

GRIMPOW HAD NO idea who the dead man was, but hidden in his leather bag was a treasure that would change his life forever. Ruby and emerald encrusted daggers, silver coins, jewels, and a letter with a golden seal depicting a snake swallowing its own tail. And clutched in the man's firm grip—a stone. A stone that will shape Grimpow's destiny. For when he holds it, strange things begin to happen. Visions of places he's never been fill his mind and he's able to read the strange language in the letter, a message meant for someone else entirely.

Merilee leads a Very Ordered Existence: V.O.E. for short. She does not have time for Biswick O'Connor. She does not have time for Miss Veraleen Holliday. He with his annoying factoids and runny nose; she with her shining white shoes as big as sailboats. Both of them strangers who, like the hot desert wind that brings only bad news, blow into town and change everything.

This is the story of Mary and her friends and a garden which had been locked away for 10 years.

Ten-year-old Comfort Snowberger has attended 247 funerals. But that's not surprising, considering that her family runs the town funeral home. And even though Great-uncle Edisto keeled over with a heart attack and Great-great-aunt Florentine dropped dead, just like that, six months later, Comfort knows how to deal with loss, or so she thinks.

Twelve-year-old Joan is sure that she is going to hate her new home - but almost right away she finds a kindred spirit. “You’re lucky I didn’t just start throwing rocks at you. I can hide in the trees and nail a kid with a rock from 30 feet away”. That’s Sarah, who prefers to be called “Fox”, who lives with her writer father in a rundown house in the middle of the woods - near Joan’s suburb, but it feels like a totally different world. Joan and Sarah - Newt and Fox - spend all their spare time outside, and soon start writing stories together.

Twelve-year-old cousins Phoebe, Hillary, Neeve, and Kate are spending the summer at their grandmother's beach house. They have heard stories about the Callahan-Bicket family rivalry. Now it's up to them to prove that the Callahans are the best family on the island! Fans of the American Girl books will love these spunky girls.

A stable full of dragons to groom, train, and ride! That's Dragonsdale, a riding school run by Cara's dad. All Cara's friends are busy people preparing their dragons for the Island Championships; even spoiled Hortense, who dumps her hard work on guess who? But Cara doesn't mind. She loves every minute she can spend with the beautiful beasts. Because ever since her mom's terrible accident, Cara herself is forbidden to ride.

There are two files on Sahara Jones. The one the school counselor keeps is evidence that she is a fifth grader who needs special education. The other is the book Sahara is secretly writing, her Heart-Wrenching Life Story and Amazing Adventures.

In An American Plague, Jim Murphy tells the story of the 1793 yellow fever epidemic. Bizarre medical practices of the time are discussed, as well as popular historical figures, such as George Washington and Benjamin Rush, who were involved in finding a cure for this horrific outbreak. Pat Bottino's captivating narration adds appeal to this interesting historical tale.

In this, the third and final Unlikely Exploit, the reader is taken on a journey through time in all directions, even revisiting some events from the previous Exploits and traveling back further still to a time before the McNally family's extraordinary adventures began. And as if that wasn't ridiculous enough, there's also a glimpse of the shape of things to come.

In this, the second Unlikely Exploit, Fergal McNally's brain, last seen in a pickling jar in the basement of the Sacred Heart Hospital, is stolen, and the remaining McNally children are mysteriously drawn to Fishbone Forest and the forgotten crumbling mansion which lies at its heart.

Specky comes face to face with a tough, talented player by the name of Derek "Screamer" Johnson. He was responsible for having Specky sent off during a game last season. The two boys become bitter rivals, and when a popular TV show runs a nationwide football contest, Specky is relieved when everyone except Screamer decides to enter.

Bobby Burns knows he's a lucky lad. Growing up in sleepy Keely Bay, Bobby is exposed to all manner of wondrous things: stars reflecting off the icy sea, a friend that can heal injured fawns with her dreams, a man who can eat fire. But darkness seems to be approaching Bobby's life from all sides.

Leo's papa stood in the doorway, gazing down at him. "Leo, you make gold from pebbles," and the way he said it, Leo could tell that this was a good thing. He may have been given a bit part in the school play, but Leo dreams he is the biggest star on Broadway.

Mordicai Gerstein's portrayal of Philippe Petit's high-wire walk between the towers of the World Trade Center, The Man Who Walked Between the Towers, won the 2004 Caldecott Medal and was among the most admired books of the year. Now comes a memorable new work, a novel of singular insight and imagination that transports readers to the Old Country.

In the old days, when Kate had no interest in romance, she never cared what other people thought. Now, it appeared, love was turning her into a rotten human being.

The blue jays and cardinals of Stone-Run Forest have always lived harmoniously, side by side. But the fate of the forest and all its inhabitants is in jeopardy when the sinister hawk Turnatt turns the two bird tribes against each other.

In his first book for young adults, best-selling author Walter Mosley deftly weaves historical and speculative fiction into a powerful narrative about the nature of freedom.