Mum and Dad have gone out for the night, leaving Maureen McNally to look after Alfie and Annie Rose. When disaster strikes and a water pipe starts leaking, Alfie helps Maureen halt the flood and also helps Annie Rose with some waterwork problems of her own.
Picture Book
Who’s Whose?
Three very busy families engage in such activities as school, soccer, piano playing, and cooking.
Charlie’s Checklist
A dog thinks he wants to leave the farm for the big city, but he finds out happiness is right next door.
Alfie And The Birthday Surprise
The death of Bob’s cat prompts his friends and family to give him a surprise birthday party and a very special present.
The Serpent Came To Gloucester
Drawing on a true story, an award-winning author and illustrator present a picture-book tribute to the beauty and mystery of the ocean, and to the mesmerizing creatures that may frolic there.It came from the sea, from the lonely sea,It came from the glittering sea.In a small Massachusetts fishing village in August of 1817, dozens of citizens claimed to have seen an enormous sea serpent swimming off the coast. Terrified at first, the people of Gloucester eventually became quite accustomed to their new neighbor. Adventure seekers came from miles around to study the serpent and aggressively hunt it down, but the creature eluded capture. The Gloucester sea serpent was then, and remains now, a complete mystery. Reviving the rhythms and tone of a traditional sea chanty, M.T. Anderson recounts this exhilarating sea adventure through the eyes of a little boy who secretly hopes for the serpent’s survival. The author’s captivating verse is paired with Bagram Ibatoulline’s luminous paintings, created in the spirit of nineteenth-century New England maritime artists.
The Shopping Basket
While walking home from the store, a young boy is faced with menacing creatures, such as a scary bear and an unpleasant kangaroo, all attempting to get what is in his basket, but he keeps his wits about him and manages to get himself and his items home safely.
The Lion Is No Longer King
The King of Beasts loses his crown. This African folktale begins a long time ago, when the lion declares himself king of beasts. The entire animal population of the savanna pays daily respects to a roaring tyrant who works them ragged and allows them no rest.His Majesty’s fearless bodyguard, the mongoose, protects the king from snakes, until one day the mongoose decides instead to play in the babbling stream. Outraged, the king sends two birds, a buffalo and a turtle to fetch him for the purpose of sever punishment. The mongoose explains that all of the animals would be happier if they could play and swim as they wish. The king grows weak from nightmares and finally scurries across the savanna to see the mongoose. The lion arrives just in time to witness the coronation of the new king, the mongoose, who plans to share the pleasures of the savanna with all of the celebrating animals.
Trouble
A retelling of a traditional Eritrean tale in which a young goatherd disobeys his father by inadvertently trading away the board game that was supposed to keep him out of trouble.
Uncommon Traveler: Mary Kingsley In Africa
In 1870, an eight-year-old girl named Mary Kingsley lived in a small house on a lonely lane outside London, England. Her mother was bedridden and her father was rarely home. Mary did not go to school. She served as housekeeper, handyman, nursemaid, and servant, for years. In 1893 Mary traveled to West Africa and proceeded to embark on an astonishing journey of discovery. In her high-necked blouse, long skirt, and Victorian boots, she endured the brutal heat and hardships of Africa, and thrived
Be Patient, Abdul
With the help of his younger sister, 7-year-old Abdul raises money to go to school by selling oranges in the marketplace in Sierra Leone.