Americas

Materials from the Americas

Jacob Two-Two And The Dinosaur

When his parents bring a little green lizard home from their vacation in Kenya, Jacob Two-Two is thrilled. But as the days pass, he realizes that Dippy isn’t just an ordinary lizard at all. In fact, it becomes obvious to Jacob that Dippy’s not so little either. As Dippy grows bigger and bigger, he begins to attract some very big attention from some very important people. Before Jacob realizes, he is on the run from the entire government of Canada – and with a full-grown dinosaur!

Jacob Two-Two on the High Seas

He’s back! The late Mordecai Richler had planned more adventures for his small hero and now, with the full support of the Richler family, award-winning author Cary Fagan carries on the tradition in a hilarious story for a whole new generation of Jacob fans. After Jacob Two-Two’s father writes a very important novel, the family makes plans to move to Canada. They board the SS Spring-a-Leak for a journey across the ocean. Jacob Two-Two makes some new acquaintances — the unbelievably handsome Captain Sparkletooth, the acrobatic Bubov Brothers, the failed toy inventor Mr. Peabody, and the giant but gentle Morgenbesser. Most important, he makes friends with young Cindy Snootcastle, who keeps a secret treasure in her pocket. But something is wrong on the SS Spring-a-Leak. A series of clues — a black eye patch; a parrot who squawks “Apple sauce in your underpants!”; and a sailing ship flying the Jolly Roger — can only mean trouble. Will the intrepid Shapiro and the fearless O’Toole really be left on a desert island? Will Jacob Two-Two be made to walk the plank? Jacob Two-Two on the High Seas is a treat for those who know Jacob and for those who are about to meet one of the most endearing characters in children’s literature.

Jacob Two-Two’s First Spy Case

Just as Jacob Two-Two settles into his new life in Canada, things are turned upside down! First, Jacob gets a new neighbor, who does double duty as a spy; then he gets a new principal, who turns out to be mean and nasty; and then, unknowingly, he makes an enemy – but who could it be? Jacob Two-Two returns in this new adventure that takes him into the fascinating world of spycraft!

The Ask And The Answer: Chaos Walking: Book Two

Part two of the literary sci-fi thriller follows a boy and a girl who are caught in a warring town where thoughts can be heard — and secrets are never safe.Reaching the end of their tense and desperate flight in THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO, Todd and Viola did not find healing and hope in Haven. They found instead their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss, waiting to welcome them to New Prentisstown. There they are forced into separate lives: Todd to prison, and Viola to a house of healing where her wounds are treated. Soon Viola is swept into the ruthless activities of the Answer, aimed at overthrowing the tyrannical government. Todd, meanwhile, faces impossible choices when forced to join the mayor’s oppressive new regime. In alternating narratives — Todd’s gritty and volatile; Viola’s calmer but equally stubborn — the two struggle to reconcile their own dubious actions with their deepest beliefs. Torn by confusion and compromise, suspicion and betrayal, can their trust in each other possibly survive?

Last December

A teenager, struggling with depression and contemplating suicide, tries to sort out his emotions in a letter to his unborn sister. Fifteen-year-old Steven is struggling with depression and contemplating suicide. He decides to write a letter to his unborn sister explaining why he is wants to end his life. She needs to know about the girl from his new high school and how the freckles on her arm make him go crazy. She needs to know about the Toronto Maple Leafs and trying out for the school hockey team. She needs to know about Byron, all his ideas about chaos and coolness and trying to keep it together. Steven doesn’t know why his mother’s having a baby in the first place … and if the baby is actually a she. Whatever happens, though, Steven knows one thing: he needs to get this all down, so that someday his baby sister will know what happened to him – to all of them – last December.

Miss Lady Bird’s Wildflowers: How a First Lady Changed America

Bluebonnets and lady’s slippers, larkspurs and blazing stars, black-eyed Susans and Granny’s nightcaps. From a lonely childhood in the Piney Woods of East Texas to an exciting life in the White House, Lady Bird Johnson loved these wildflowers with all her heart. They were her companions in her youth, greeting her everywhere as she explored wild forests, bayous, and hills. Later, as First Lady, she sought to bring the beauty of wildflowers to America’s cities and highways. She wanted to make sure every child could enjoy the splendor of wildflowers. In this warm, engaging look at the life of a great First Lady, Kathi Appelt tells the story behind Lady Bird Johnson’s environmental vision. Joy Fisher Hein’s colorful wildflowers burst from every page, inviting us to share in Lady Bird’s love for natural beauty.

The Lake Atitlan Reference Guide

The Lake Atitlan Reference Guide is an eco-cultural guide to the lake identified by Aldous Huxley (Brave New World) as “the most beautiful lake in the world.” Atitlan is a volcanic caldera, located at 5,000 ft above sea level in the Mayan highlands of Guatemala. Atitlan means “at the water.” It is a fusion of simple Nahuatl words that belies the complexity of the entity it identifies. Lake Atitlan is both a place and an event in motion. Its life incorporates the visually stunning character of one of nature’s most ambitious creations and the extraordinarily diverse cultural character of the human life that the Lake has drawn to its shores. Atitlan was born violently, long ago, probably before the emergence of man here. Scientists still debate the exact nature of its birth, an event which created a nearly circular depression of 11 miles in diameter, 95 square miles of area, and over 1,000 feet deep. The cause of this huge cavity, a chain of events which began with an immense eruption, produced a unique microenvironment that has been drawing wanderers to the Lake’s shores for at least thousands of years. Cultures have clashed to control it. Vagabonds have been absorbed by it, laid down roots, and quit “moving on.” Traveling notables have been overwhelmed by its beauty and written about it in the loftiest of terms. Any effort to empirically order the kaleidoscope of its elements is ultimately challenged by the spiritual and physical immensity of the subject. This work makes no such attempt. What is offered here instead is a summary of the Lake environment in terms of its physical location and nature, its cultural history, and its contemporary political and socioeconomic life. The text is supported by more than 100 quality fotos (most in color) and a variety of other illustrations.

Animal Poems of the Iguazu/Animalario Del Iguazu

In the lush rainforest of the Iguazú National Park, toucans and butterflies flit through the trees while sleek jaguars prowl the jungle floor. Dazzling waterfalls provide a thunderous backdrop while great dusky swifts keep watch overhead. In this magical journey through one of the wonders of the natural world, renowned poet Francisco X. Alarcón follows the Amerindian oral tradition, allowing the animals to speak for themselves in their own roaring, soaring, fluttering voices. Maya Christina Gonzalez’s glorious mixed media illustrations bring the vibrant colors and textures of the rainforest to life.