He has his dog, Tangle, to rescue, and he must raise the alarm and make sure his aunts and their gang of criminal mates are safe. It's only after the fire is out that they start to think - who was it who wanted them dead?

    Loosely based on Stratton-Porter's own childhood, Laddie is a double tale—the classic poor-boy/rich-girl romance and the story of a child of nature and her idyllic childhood.

    Last year he had a tumor removed from his leg. Though it's a struggle, Cody tries out for the Lions and makes the team as a "super sub" -- one of eleven players who jokingly named themselves that because they're never allowed to play. Secretly Cody is relieved, since he hasn't told anyone on the team that he had cancer. But then there's a shakeup in team management and suddenly Cody and the super subs are the only players left. Cody has no choice now but to play, even if his leg does begin to hurt. At an end-of-season tournament it becomes clear that he and another player, Paulo, are close to being the perfect scoring duo. Without being aware of it, Cody has been holding himself back, striking with his left leg instead of his right. When he finally comes clean to his teammates about his disease and injury from the year before, they encourage him to trust his leg and his skill.

    Ricky's an eighth grader with an amazing menagerie of animals that includes dogs, cats, rats, squirrels, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, grouse, groundhogs, iguanas, budgies, and a three-foot-long alligator called Ollie. It's no wonder, then, that he's a big fan of his science teacher, Mr. Johnston, who has even more animals in his classroom, including Bogart, a pet boa constrictor. When vandals wreck Mr. Johnston's classroom, leading to Bogart's death, Ricky and his best friend Augie decide that it's up to them to put things right. Their plan is to surprise Mr. Johnston with a new snake with the financial help of every kid in the school. But keeping the plan a secret isn't easy when you're dealing with a six-foot boa! Ricky is a thoroughly engaging contemporary novel that will have particular resonance with boys. Walters looks at some pretty serious issues--including how to cope with the death of a parent, the nature of friendship, learning disabilities, and teen violence--but, as always, he has a light, quirky touch and a strong sense of plot. In an afterword, Walters explains his part in his latest fiction, which will delight readers interested in what inspires their favourite writers. (Ages 8 to 12) --Jeffrey Canton

    A sleepover is the perfect opportunity to plan Operation Blind Date, but playing cupid is not as easy as the girls think.

    The niece of Syvia Perlmutter, one of only twelve child survivors of the Lodz ghetto in Poland, shares her aunt's experiences of the Holocaust in free verse that relates the courage and heartbreak she lived during a time of terrible circumstances.

    After her uncle Edward and his awful wife, Adeline, move into the Pringle family's home--making life for her and her younger brother, Gideon, unbearable--Pringle runs away with Gideon to Chicago, seeking refuge from the tragedy, and hoping to start a new life. She becomes a nanny for the children of a labor activist, and quickly finds herself caught up in a web of intrigue and lies. Then, when a familiar figure from home arrives, Pringle begins to piece together the devastating mystery of what happened to her parents, and realizes just how deadly the truth might be. But soon, one of the greatest disasters this country has ever known--the Great Fire of Chicago--flares up, and Pringle is on the run for her life.

    . . Hachiko Waits shows us the very best in life; loyalty, devotion, our ability to love-all taught by a beloved, intelligent, and heroic dog. I love it." -Patricia MacLachlan, Newbery Award-winning author of Sarah Plain and TallThe loyalty and devotion of a dog has no boundsWhat a good dog you are. What a fine dog you are. Hachi, you are the best dog in all of Japan." Professor Ueno speaks these words to his faithful dog before boarding the train to work every morning. And every afternoon just before three o'clock, Hachi is at the train station to greet his beloved master.One day, the train arrives at the station without the professor. Hachi waits.For ten years Hachi waits for his master to return. Not even Yasuo, the young boy who takes care of Hachi, can persuade him to leave his post.Hachiko Waits is a novel inspired by a true story. Readers will be touched by the story of Hachiko and his impact on the people of Japan.Hachiko Waits is a 2005 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

    From the time they first sighted the behemoth they spent every day and many nights in the creeks, rivers and off the beaches of Beaufort County trying to catch a beast that dwarfed their leaky wooden skiff. It is a story of a simpler time. The boys’ boat had no depth meter and no compass. There were no cell phones, yet parents routinely allowed their children to vanish “down the river” for days on end to fish and explore and socialize, an easy parental willingness that ended when townspeople began being killed by a shark bigger than anyone had ever seen. It is a story of adventure, and of a summer that began in innocence, but ended in a tragedy that forced the boys toward manhood.

    With influences from Shakespeare and William Blake, Sendak pays homage to his late brother, Jack, whom he credited for his passion for writing and drawing. Pairing Sendak's poignant poetry with his exquisite and dramatic artwork, this book redefines what mature readers expect from Maurice Sendak while continuing the lasting legacy he created over his long, illustrious career. Sendak's tribute to his brother is an expression of both grief and love and will resonate with his lifelong fans who may have read his children's books and will be ecstatic to discover something for them now. Pulitzer Prize–winning literary critic and Shakespearean scholar Stephen Greenblatt contributes a moving introduction.

    There, in the face of discrimination from the foremen, who accept bribes for the prime mining spots, Otto and his father take part in the beginnings of the labor unionization.

    When it flew overhead, it left in its wake desolate cold and frozen land. But Adara was not afraid. For Adara was a winter child, born during the worst freeze that anyone, even the Old Ones, could remember. Adara could not remember the first time she had seen the ice dragon. It seemed that it had always been in her life, glimpsed from afar as she played in the frigid snow long after the other children had fled the cold. In her fourth year she touched it, and in her fifth year she rode upon its broad, chilled back for the first time. Then, in her seventh year, on a calm summer day, fiery dragons from the North swooped down upon the peaceful farm that was Adara's home. And only a winter child--and the ice dragon who loved her--could save her world from utter destruction. "The Ice Dragon" marks the highly anticipated children's book debut of George R.R. Martin, the award-winning author of the "New York Times" best-selling series A Song of Ice and Fire and is set in the same world. Illustrated with lush, exquisitely detailed pencil drawings by acclaimed artist Yvonne Gilbert, "The Ice Dragon" is an unforgettable tale of courage, love, and sacrifice by one of the most honored fantasists of all time.

    Based on London's experiences as a gold prospector in the Canadian wilderness and his ideas about nature and the struggle for existence, The Call of the Wild is a tale about unbreakable spirit and the fight for survival in the frozen Alaskan Klondike.

    Together they break headlines on the food bowl, new plants, mysterious red dots, strange cats in the yard, and all the daily happenings in their home.

    I live with my dad who has a big tattoo that says Live to Ride. He is so strong he can lift up a car, but he can't tell me what he's thinking. Maybe he's thinking about my mother who shot through.Sugar Boy is my best friend. We hang around down at the river, in the bush tunnel, or beside the railway tracks riding our bikes fast enough to beat the train. There's only two of us, but we're the whole team.I don't know what would happen if I didn't have Sugar Boy . . .