Tyrone, Li L T Roberts Meets Buddy When His Family S Car Accidentally Hits the Stray Dog
Tyrone, “Li’l T” Roberts meets Buddy when his family’s car accidentally hits the stray dog on their way to church. Buddy turns out to be the dog Li’l T always wished for- until Hurricane Katrina comes to New Orleans and he must leave Buddy behind. After the storm, Li’l T and his father return home to find a community struggling to rebuild their lives- and Buddy gone. But Li’l T refuses to give up his quest to find his best friend.
Kyle Keeley is the class clown, popular with most kids (if not the teachers), and an ardent fan of all games: board games, word games, and particularly video games. His hero, Luigi Lemoncello, the most notorious and creative game maker in the world, just so happens to be the genius behind building the new town library. Lucky Kyle wins a coveted spot to be one of the first 12 kids in the library for an overnight of fun, food, and lots and lots of games. But when morning comes, the doors remain locked. Kyle and the other winners must solve every clue and every secret puzzle to find the hidden escape route. And the stakes are very high…
One should be able to say of a princess “She was as good as she was beautiful,” according to The Art of Being a Princess (third revised edition), which the almost thirteen year old Princess Imogene is supposed to be reading. Not feeling particularly good, or all that beautiful, she heads for a nearby pond, where, unfortunately, a talking frog tricks her into kissing him! No prince appears, as one might expect. Instead the princess turns into a frog herself! Thus launches a funny, wonderfully spun fractured fairy tale in which Imogene wonders if she will be forever frogified.
Jamie Grimm is a middle schooler on a mission: he wants to become the world’s greatest stand-up comedian- even if he doesn’t have a lot to laugh about these days. He’s new in town and stuck living with his aunt, uncle and their evil son Stevie, a bully who doesn’t let Jamie’s wheelchair stop him from messing with Jamie as much as possible. But Jamie doesn’t let his situation get him down. When Uncle Frankie mentions a contest called The Planet’s Funniest Kid Comic, Jamie knows he has to enter. But are the judges only rewarding him out of pity because of his wheelchair, like Stevie suggests? Will Jamie ever share the secret of his troubled past instead of hiding behind his comedy act?
Taking things in stride is not easy for Kizzy Ann, but with her border collie, Shag, stalwart at her side, she sets out to live a life as sweet as syrup on cornbread. In 1963, as Kizzy Ann prepares for her first year at an integrated school, she worries about the color of her skin, the scar running from the corner of her right eye to the tip of her smile, and whether anyone at the white school will like her. She writes letters to her new teacher in a clear insistent voice, stating her troubles, and asking questions with startling honesty. The new teacher is supportive, but not everyone feels the same, so there is a lot to write about. Her brother, James, is having a far less positive school experience than she is, and the annoying white neighbor boy won’t leave her alone. But Shag, her border collie, is her refuge. Even so, opportunity clashes with obstacle. Kizzy Ann knows she and Shag could compete well in the dog trials, but will she be able to enter?
Nick and Tesla are bright 11-year-old siblings with a knack for science, electronics, and getting into trouble. When their parents mysteriously vanish, they’re sent to live with their Uncle Newt, a brilliant inventor who engineers top-secret gadgets for a classified government agency. It’s not long before Nick and Tesla are embarking on adventures of their own- engineering all kinds of outrageous MacGyverish contraptions to save their skin: 9-volt burglar alarms, electromagnets, mobile tracking devices, and more! Readers are invited to join in the fun as each story contains instructions and blueprints for five different projects.
The next middle grade rhyming novel from the award-winning author of Zorgamazoo! Prince Puggly of the muddy, terminally unfashionable Kingdom of Spud is surprised when he receives an invitation to a lavish ball in the far more chic Kingdom of Spiff. Puggly is sure that the Spiffs will take one look at him and laugh him out of their kingdom. And that’s exactly what they do….But then Puggly meets Francesca, the bookish Princess of Spiff, and together the two set out to teacher Francesca’s Spiffian countrymen an absurd lesson in style.
Ten-year-old Sugar lives on the River Road sugar plantation along the banks of the Mississippi. Slavery is over, but laboring in the fields all day doesn’t make her feel very free. Thankfully, Sugar has a knack for finding her own fun, especially when she joins forces with forbidden friend Billy, the white plantation owner’s son. Sugar has always yearned to learn more about the world, and she sees her chance when Chinese workers are brought in to help harvest the cane. The older River Road folks feel threatened, but Sugar is fascinated. As she befriends young Beau and elder Master Liu, they introduce her to the traditions of their culture, and she in turn, shares the ways of plantation life. Sugar soon realizes that she must be the one to bridge the cultural gap and bring the community together. Here is a story of unlikely friendships and how they can change our lives forever.
If only getting a new life were as easy as getting a new notebook. But it’s not. It’s the first day of school for all the kids in the neighborhood. But not for me. I’m homeschooled. That means nothing new. No new bookbag, no new clothes, and no friends- old or new. The nest I’ve got is this notebook. I’m supposed to use it for my writing assignments, but my dad never checks. Here’s what I’m really going to use it for: Ratchet’s Top Secret Plan Project Goal: turn my old recycled, freakish, friendless, motherless life into something shiny and new. This year, I’m going to make something change.
The adventure of a lifetime begins between two sofa cushions….When River, Freak and Fiona discover a mysterious sofa sitting at their bus stop, their search for loose change produces a rare, zucchini-colored crayon. Little do they know this peculiar treasure is about to launch them into the middle of a plot to conquer the world! The kids’ only hope is to trap the plot’s mastermind when he comes to steal the crayon. But how can three kids from the middle of nowhere stop an evil billionaire? With the help of an eccentric neighbor, an artificially intelligent domino, a DNA-analyzing tray, two hot air balloons, and a cat named Mucus, they just might be able to save the planet.