But their good intentions are misunderstood, until they discover just the right way to pay for the hat that Eula's had her eye on. A loving family story woven from the author's childhood.

    If no one notices her, then no one willnotice her uncle Punky either. Punky is a grown man with a child's mind. Delrita loves him dearly and can't stand people making fun of his Down Syndrome. But when tragedy strikes, Delrita's quiet life— and Punky's— are disrupted forever. Can she finally learn to trust others, for her own sake and Punky's? This story captures the joy and sorrow that come when we open our hearts to love. Author Biography: June Rae Wood lives near Windsor, Missouri.

    I can't make you live longer, I can stop you form hurting. But I can give you one wish, as someone did for me.Three letters. Three last wishes.In Mother, Help Me Live, Sarah discovers that her birth mother, whom she's never known, is the one person who may have the bone marrow she needs to survive. When Sarah journeys to find her mother, she learns the real meaning of family.Let Him Live tells the story of Megan's friendship with Donovan, who is hoping to receive a liver transplant. Megan helps make Donovan's wish for his mother and little brother come true, along the way, Megan comes to understand true giving.In Sixteen and Dying, when Anne finds out that a blood transfusion she had seven years ago has made her future uncertain, being given one wish helps her face her pain. She chooses to spend the summer with her father on a ranch out west—and there she meets someone who will change her life.

    Curious about death, three sixth-grade boys decide to spy on an old man waiting for him to die, but they end up becoming his friends.

    One night his solitary wanderings take him into a restaurant where he reads these words on the menu: ''The Westway Cafe -- where all your dreams come true. '' A soft-voiced waiter (metaphorically named Angel) welcomes him and invites him back. Each night Singer returns, ordering food and, silently, ordering his wishes for the things he remembers from an Indiana boyhood.

    She doesn’t understand why she was born with cystic fibrosis. Each day she faces an uncertain future. But the close-knit bond she develops with Eric and Vince gives her the hope to live one day at a time.When an anonymous benefactor promises to grant a single wish with no strings attached, Kara can’t help but wonder if miracles might really happen. Will Kara live to see her dying wish fulfilled?

    Reprint.

    Six thousand sheep. John will be alone, except for two horses, four dogs, and all those sheep.John doesn't feel up to the task, but he hopes that if he can accomplish it, he will finally please his father. But John finds that the adage "things just happen to sheep" is true when the river floods, coyotes attack, and one dog's feet get cut. Through it all he must rely on his own resourcefulness, ingenuity, and talents to survive this summer in the haymeadow.

    Barbara Park makes reading fun." --Dav Pilkey, author of Dog ManBarbara Park's #1 New York Times bestselling chapter book series, Junie B. Jones, has been keeping kids laughing--and reading--for more than twenty-five years. Over 65 million copies sold!Meet the World's Funniest Kindergartner--Junie B. Jones! Remember when it was scary to go to school? In the first Junie B. Jones book, it's Junie B.'s first day and she doesn't know anything. She's so scared of the school bus and the meanies on it that when it's time to go home, she doesn't. USA Today "Junie B. is the darling of the young-reader set." Publishers Weekly "Park convinces beginning readers that Junie B.--and reading--are lots of fun." Kirkus Reviews "Junie's swarms of young fans will continue to delight in her unique take on the world. . . . A hilarious, first-rate read-aloud." Time "Junie B. Jones is a feisty six-year-old with an endearing penchant for honesty."

    The coast seems clear...This companion to Bigmama's will enthrall young readers at home or in the classroom. An exciting story with a clear implicit lesson and a happy ending, children will be on the edge of their seats as they follow along. A fun read-aloud, it also helps children ages 3 to 6 learn about how to share details of place in storytelling. Celebrate the bonds of family over generations with Donald Crews's evocative picture books Shortcut and Bigmama's.

    Together they struggle to create an "absolutely perfect family."

    Twelve-year-old Clare flees an unhappy home life and tries to survive on the streets of Atlantic City with a small gang of homeless kids, each of whom has his own secret reason for distrusting society.

    The story teaches us once again that the pain of coming of age is the purchase price of mature joy.

    The four Conroy sisters spend a wild summer at the seaside with Big Grandma, who tries to break them of their reading habit by substituting fresh air and hard work for books and gets unexpected results.

    Eleven-year-old Clara's life is enriched by her friendship with the vibrant Nettie, whose family is so different from her own, but then a serious brain condition threatens to change Nettie forever.

    “With its restrained poetic text and impressionist paintings, this is a picture book for older readers, too.”--Booklist

    They go on fishing expeditions, to basketball games, and even to his one-room schoolhouse, much to the dismay of some adults around him. The antics and mishaps of boy and beast will keep readers laughing and sometimes crying until the last page is turned. Even Howard's nickname, "Monk," handed him because of his monkey-like ability to skinny up a tree, connotes his identity with the animal world as he grows up in Newton County, Arkansas. Among his stories, include, wedging himself in a hollow tree and almost getting eaten alive by black ants, only to be rescued by mean 'ole Hobert Criner, on whom he has just played a horrendously dirty trick. He tells of stuffing a skunk in the principal's desk, stinking up the school and of the time when pint-sized Curly becomes a champion squirrel hunter, and much, much more. Tagged the "Huck Finn of the Ozarks," Monk teams up with his brother James Carl, author of Way Back in the Hills and Way Back When, in this hilarious, heartwarming story of a boy, his 'coon, and his dog.

    Contains the following short stories:Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.I Just Kept On Smiling by Simon BurtAt Her Father's and Her Mother's Place by Natalya BaranskayaThe White Circle by John Bell ClaytonThe Zodiacs by Jay NeugeborenEnd of the Game by Julio CortázarThe Cat and the Coffee Drinkers by Max SteeleAnne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl (selection)The Secret Lion by Alberto Alvaro RiosDay of the Butterfly by Alice MunroA Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

    Long Spikes, a deer who is orphaned as a yearling, grows to maturity and displaces the old one-eyed buck from his dominant position.

    After her teacher assigns sloppy, talkative, annoying Lydia Jane to share perfect, straight-A student Juliet Fisher's double desk, Juliet formulates a plan to make things right again.

    The minute Mom leaves, Yvette asks, "Is it time yet, Dad?" Dad answers, "Not yet, Yvette." Then Yvette and her dad get busy beacause there's a lot to do before Mom comes home, like clean the house and bake a birthday cake.