DarkIsle

IT’S A MAGICAL world if you know where to look. . . .For 10-year-old Morag, that magical world is no farther than the cellar of her cruel foster parents’ home. That’s where she’s shocked to meet Aldiss, a talking rat, and his resourceful companion, Bertie the dodo bird. Morag jumps at the chance to escape a life of drudgery and join them on their quest to save their homeland from an evil warlock named Devlish, who is intent on destroying it. But first, Bertie and Aldiss will need to stop bickering long enough to free the only guide who knows where to find Devlish: Shona, a dragon who’s been turned to stone. Together, these four friends begin their journey to a mysterious island beyond the horizon, where danger and glory await—along with clues to the disappearance of Morag’s parents, whose destiny seems somehow linked to her own.

Panda Kindergarten

School is in session! But this is no ordinary kindergarten class. Meet sixteen young giant panda cubs at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda at the Wolong Nature Preserve. The cubs are raised together from infancy in a protected setting, where they grow strong. Under the watchful eyes of the scientists and workers, the cubs learn skills that will help prepare them to be released into the wild.

Fly By Night

Twelve-year-old Mosca Mye hasn’t got much. Her cruel uncle keeps her locked up in his mill, and her only friend is her pet goose, Saracen, who’ll bite anything that crosses his path. But she does have one small, rare thing: the ability to read. She doesn’t know it yet, but in a world where books are dangerous things, this gift will change her life. Enter Eponymous Clent, a smooth-talking con man who seems to love words nearly as much as Mosca herself. Soon Mosca and Clent are living a life of deceit and danger — discovering secret societies, following shady characters onto floating coffeehouses, and entangling themselves with crazed dukes and double-crossing racketeers. It would be exactly the kind of tale Mosca has always longed to take part in, until she learns that her one true love — words — may be the death of her.Fly by Night is astonishingly original, a grand feat of the imagination from a masterful new storyteller.

Millie in the Snow

Millie’s new job as a mail cow keeps her very busy. Christmastime is especially hectic, and she can barely wait for the milking to be done before she’s out delivering presents. On Christmas Eve, at the end of a long day, the mail carrier sends Millie home with all the presents she’s made for the farmer and the other animals. Only, Millie gets a bit confused by the snow-covered landscape. Suddenly everything looks the same, and the farm is nowhere in sight.

Wild Boars Cook

THE BOARS ARE BACK! But watch out, because this time they’re not only bossy, selfish, and stinky, they’re hungry, too! If you thought Boris, Morris, Horace, and Doris already had bad manners, wait until you see them concoct a Massive Pudding. And if this pudding sounds horrible, the ingredients will leave you speechless! Meg Rosoff and Sophie Blackall team up again to delightful results in this companion book about the beloved disgusting wild boars. The wild boars have established themselves as forces to be reckoned with, and this second installment will not disappoint—it’s laugh-out-loud funny!

My Ocean: A Novel of Cuba

After his grandparents emigrate, 12-year-old Enrique heads for the ocean, a source of comfort and solace. Why did they flee Cuba, leaving Enrique and his mother behind? Should they go, too? If not, will they, like so many others, be seen as disloyal? The sea has no answers for the boy. As the years pass, Enrique is invited to become a Pioneer, a special honor that bodes well for his future, but it means he’s forbidden from reading the letters his grandparents send home. Enrique wants to belong, to show that he’s deserving of the honor, and once again, he seeks the ocean’s solace. Once again, the ocean has no easy answers. Still, life goes on. There are games with his friends, swimming expeditions, girls to hang out with. And always, there’s the ocean, a place he can go in good times and bad as he tries to make sense of what the future holds for him, his family, and many other Cubans.

Stravaganza: City of Secrets

Set in Talia, a parallel-world version of Italy, the Stravaganza series combines Renaissance court intrigue with time travel, subterfuge, romance, and revenge.  In this new story arc, we meet Matt, a painfully dyslexic and insecure boy (despite a beautiful and clever girlfriend!). Matt has just discovered that he is a Stravagante – someone capable of traveling between two worlds. A leather-bound book transports Matt from our world to Talia, where he meets Luciano.  Luciano has killed the head of the powerful di Chimici family in a duel, and has gone into hiding. The di Chimici are on the verge of making a terrifying breakthrough into our world, and it will fall to Matt, Luciano, and the other Stravaganti to stop them.

Wanda’s Freckles

Wanda has freckles. Lots and lots of freckles. They make her feel special, until the day in the park when a group of boys point, laugh, and tease her for having spots. All of a sudden, the freckles she’d liked become a problem. Wanda decides to make her freckles disappear altogether! At a time when there’s pressure to conform to someone else’s idea of perfection, this playful story has an important message: individuality and self-acceptance are to be celebrated. The ever-resourceful Wanda puts her imagination to work to try to come to peace with those troublesome freckles once and for all. The critically acclaimed author/illustrator team of Barbara Azore and Georgia Graham bring another Wanda adventure to life with humor and wisdom.

Madame Pamplemousse And Her Incredible Edibles

Madeleine must work in her horrible Uncle Lard’s restaurant, The Squealing Pig, every summer. Though a fairly good cook herself, Madeleine is only allowed to wash dishes and stay out of the way. But one evening while on an errand for the chef, her luck changes. As she wanders through the streets of Paris, she happens upon a tiny shop. Not just any shop, but Edibles owned by Madame Pamplemousse.  When Uncle Lard learns of the extraordinary and delicious ingredients brewing in Madame Pamplemousse’s kitchen, he decides to steal her recipes and he’ll use his niece to do it. Lucky for Madeleine, Madame Pamplemousse may not be the only chef capable of culinary magic….