B Is For Bagpipes

This newest entry in our Discover the World series reveals the treasures of Scotland– from Edinburgh’s castles to the stories of Robert Louis Stevenson to the gloomy waters of Loch Ness and its fabled Nessie. Learn about haggis, tatties and neeps and other great traditions from the country that invented golf.

Clarice Bean, Guess Who’s Babysitting

Lauren Child’s spunky character returns and—as if things could get any livelier in Clarice Bean’s household—Uncle Ted is babysitting! Who can Mom and Dad get to babysit the feisty Clarice, her pesky brother Minal Cricket, and the school’s guinea pig, Albert, who’s visiting for spring break? (Not to mention teenage brother Kurt, who abhors daylight; big sis Marcie, who chats on the phone all day; and Granddad, who tends to wander off.) Only Uncle Ted, firefighter and movie addict, can be persuaded. Will he survive the week?

Manfred the Baddie

Manfred and his henchmen spend their lives up to no good, kidnapping inventors, forcing them to make elaborate devices to rob and raid, and conducting acts of piracy on the high seas. But one day, Manfred decides that using his talents for good might be a better idea.

Young Zeus

This is the story of how young Zeus, with a little help from six monsters, five Greek gods, an enchanted she-goat, and his mother, became god of gods, master of lightning and thunder, and ruler over all. in doing so, he learned a lot about family. Who knew that having relatives could be so complicated, even for a god? Brian Karas says about his inspiration for this book, “I’ve been interested in working with myths, but I felt as though I needed a personal connection. I am of Italian and Greek descent so I started to think of my Greek heritage. But the world of Greek mythology was unknown to me and in a way felt inaccessible, until I learned more. The Greek believed their gods and goddesses to be, among other things, very human-like in their emotions and behavior. They had complicated family relations. They were flawed on many levels – they could be petty, impulsive and unreasonable. I started to recognize them. Then I travelled to Greece, I knew this place! This personal connection gave me what I felt I needed to work with a Greek myth. But which? “I am also interested in the beginnings of things. When I started researching I kept looking for the ultimate source, the very first account, and largely drew from Hesiod’s Thegony. Being interested in origins, I was also drawn to the Greek’s version of the very beginning of things and it was here that I settled on the story of Zeus. There is much written about his reign as ruler of heaven and earth but very little about his youth and rise to power. The story of how his mother hid him on the island of Crete is a familiar one but there was a big gap in everything I read of what happened in between his life as an infant and his glory days. Young Zeus is my account of how things might have gone for young Zeus and what led him to become the omnipotent almighty god that he was believed to be.”

Leprechaun in Late Winter (Magic Tree House #43)

Set in Ireland, Jack and Annie meet an Irish girl and go on an adventure that changes the girl’s life—she grows up to be Lady Gregory, who helped bring back the Irish legends, started a theater, and helped the Irish people regain both their heritage and their pride.

Mongolia (Culture of the World)

This book provides comprehensive information on the geography, history, wildlife, governmental structure, economy, cultural diversity, peoples, religion, and culture of Mongolia.