Growing up under the watchful eye of the hateful Matrons is hard for spirited, feisty Hetty, but she lives in hope that she'll find her real family one day, and have a real home.These three inventive, gripping and moving tales from one of our most beloved storytellers have captured the hearts of thousands of young readers. Follow Hetty as she leaves the Hospital, seeks work as a servant girl, searches for her mother and father, and finally decides where her future lies . . .

    Funny by Name. Funny by Nature. Jasper Spam is mad about science, the problem is that all of his experiments tend to end in a BANG, until one day quite accidentally Jasper manages to invent something that will change the world forever ...One crazy experiment involving a shed, a mallet, and a poorly aimed laser beam results in Jasper's cat Rover, becoming the world's first talking cat. Finally an invention that works - the Cat Chat 2000! Soon people are handing over all of their cash to get a talking cat. With his new found wealth Jasper can finally live the life he's always dreamed of - buying a mansion, sports team, and producing a Hollywood blockbuster. But is there a huge price to pay for bringing talking cats to the world, and money won't be able to solve the problem that the Cat Chat 2000 has caused.

    The peace is fractured by the brewing storms, and hot days end with lightning in the distance as the monsoonal band heads their way, bringing record floods. There are personal storms, as well, with Dane struggling with depression as his family and friends seek to help, and Amy desperate to discover if her father is still alive. When the record rains arrive, their part of the outback becomes an inland sea, and a neighbor's horses and cattle are doomed to drown unless the outback riders saddle up and risk their lives to save them. Horses of the Rain is the fourth in The Outback Riders series, and the teens are a bit older and facing problems that many teens need to overcome. They are falling in love, making plans for the future, and finding their way through life. Polo, the rock star, returns to ride with them, and the Min Min lights continue to watch over them. Leanne Owens lived in the outback for many years and saw the Min Min lights, she teaches high school students, and has won dozens of national titles with her horses - so The Outback Riders is the perfect 'write what you know' series as she knows the outback, teenagers, and horses. This version has U.S. spelling.

    Since the end of the war, when Bob Brown had taken over the car workshop in London, Frank Bennett had been trying to get his hands on it. An East Ender made good, Frank was determined to get the prime site - whatever the cost.As children, Bob's daughter Bella and Frank's son Dezi became unlikely friends, though both families disapproved. Years later, their love blossomed, and it seemed that nothing, not even the feud between their fathers, could prevent their marriage. Until Bob's tragic death and his dying request to Bella . . .

    Each prize reacts in one of the four typical responses most people have to facing uncertainty. And it is through those reactions, and subsequent actions, that they—and we—learn how our own response to uncertainty can either help or harm ourselves, those around us, and society as a whole.An urgently needed instrument for managing the anxiety and ambiguity we all face in our daily lives, this book will help readers thrive in challenging situations. Through this memorable story, you’ll learn:-How to embrace the uncertainty all around us-Why no one response works in every single uncertain situation-Why various personality types require different responses -How to identify the types of people who do well in uncertainty-Why it’s crucial to prevent a negative response-Why those who are hyper-aware of uncertainty thrive in it-Why it’s important to take action, no matter how uncertain you feelIn the spirit of Gibran’s The Prophet, What Happens in Tomorrow World? presents readers a modern-yet-timeless, unique, and useful toolbox on how to confront and manage the overwhelming amount of uncertainty we face every day.

    The action-packed finale to THE NEW ENEMY. Full story available in hardback on January 1st.

    The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty - A 30-minute Instaread SummaryInside this Instaread Summary: - Overview of the entire book- Introduction to the important people in the book- Summary and analysis of all the chapters in the book- Key Takeaways of the book- A Reader's PerspectivePreview of this summary: Chapter OneCecilia's husband, John-Paul, is in Chicago on business. She is a busy mother and part-time Tupperware consultant. Her twelve-year-old daughter, Esther, is currently obsessed with the Berlin Wall. Cecilia has a piece of the wall from a trip she took to Germany several years ago. While in the attic searching for it, she finds a mysterious envelope with her name on it. A note on it says that it should only be opened in the event of her husband's death. She does not open it. When she mentions the letter to John-Paul on the phone, she is troubled by his awkward silence.Chapter TwoTess and Felicity are cousins. Felicity was always overweight until recently, when she joined Weight Watchers and lost forty pounds. Tess, her husband, Will, and Felicity own a marketing business together in Melbourne. Tess is worried about her mother, who has just broken her ankle, and her six-year old son, Liam, who is being bullied at school. Will and Felicity call Tess into a meeting to tell her they have fallen in love. Furious, Tess says she will move back to Sydney with Liam to help her mother. She believes that her husband became attracted to Felicity when she lost weight. She tosses cold coffee in their faces....

    Virtually broke, they turn to embarrassing home invasions and petty hits to rebuild their nest egg. In addition to each other, Callie and Creed have dreams. Creed’s is to retire and live in a scenic lake house. Callie’s is to romance a local hot mom. The same hot mom who happens to be the target of a creepy, dangerous stalker named Walter Develin.

    Will Oakley, landlord and host, with his two daughters, beautiful Myrtle, and the repellent Harriet, waited to receive his guests. Along with the usual farmers, merchants and the "quality", there were others who fitted into none of these categories. Like the handsome foreigner with the scarred face, and the fat man who appeared to be gloating over some malicious secret of his own...

    

    James, an investment banker and the darling of Wall Street in New York meets a Guru, the Life Transformer in India. And there is a mysterious character, RK, who has a mysterious link with both these characters.What happens when the three meet after James' flight from New York? This book is about enhancing your mindfulness, wellness and inner leadership. It explains the distinction between how to make a living versus how to live. It includes 'how-to' steps, to transform your thinking - and in turn, your life.About Author:An accomplished business leader, a trusted advisor, and frequent keynote speaker at various forums, Manoj Gupta has vast International experience in multiple domains. He is working in tech sector for over 25 years. His passion to innovative has helped to turn around several businesses across the world.His approach to coalesce technology with philosophy led him towards the path of discovering intricacies of human engineering. Exploring deep into the topic by going through many books, ancient scriptures, and their interpretation by scholars and philosophers - combined with research of over 10 years, he discovered the beautiful convergence of science and metaphysics.His fascination for human psychology and subtle difference between ‘making a living’ vs ‘living a life’, inspired him to write down his idea about ‘New You’, which later became a full-fledged book. His pragmatic approach to make things simple, has motivated many people to re-evaluate their lives. Manoj enjoys helping people and businesses to realise their true potential. He is currently working as Managing Director at Qualitest Group.

    Ever since he can remember all he has loved doing is pranking other people in their Minecraft Village. There’s just a certain thrill that comes with watching a well-planned prank finally play out. There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing a water balloon splash on someone’s head, or hearing an adult sit on a whoopee cushion. With all of the fun he’s been having, and with how long his pranking streak has been going, Clyde never expected that one of his pranks would backfire. What Clyde failed to learn before now was--you need to be careful who you try to prank especially if that person happens to be a witch. This small flaw could cause Clyde’s biggest problem. Will Clyde’s joking nature be his biggest downfall, or will he be able to trick his way out of every sticky situation that comes his way? All of these details and more are only included in Clyde’s diary, Jokes on the Jokester. Author’s Note: This short story is for your reading pleasure. The characters in this "Minecraft Adventure Series" such as Steve, Endermen or Herobrine...etc are based on the Minecraft Game coming from Minecraft ®/TM & © 2009-2013 Mojang / Notch

    A story of friendship set in nineteenth-century China follows an elderly woman and her companion as they communicate their hopes dreams joys and tragedies through a unique secret language

    This winner of the Newbery Medal and the National Book Award features Stanley Yelnats, a kid who is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnats. Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys' detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the warden makes the boys "build character" by spending all day, every day, digging holes five feet wide and five feet deep. It doesn't take long for Stanley to realize there's more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake: the warden is looking for something. Stanley tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment-and redemption..

    Instead of black bag drops in Bangkok, she now spends her time leading a young Girl Scout troop. But Merry's new simple life turns not-so-simple when an enemy agent shows up dead at scout camp. Suddenly Merry is forced to deal with her former life in order to preserve her future one. It doesn't help matters that the CIA sends in her former, sexy handler to investigate…or that the hot new neighbor across the street turns out to be the local detective in charge of her case. And when Merry is forced to take on a roommate in the voluptuous form of a turned KGB agent/bimbo, things become trickier than wet work in Waukegan or cookie sales in the spring. Nothing in the CIA or Girl Scouts' training manuals has prepared her for what comes next… Mint Cookie Murder (book #2) Ex-CIA agent turned suburban scout leader, Merry Wrath, is just trying to live a normal, quiet life. But all that goes out the window when a convicted traitor (who’s inconveniently not in his prison cell) dies on her doorstep, and an obese cat, who bears a disturbing resemblance to Hitler, decides to move in. To make things worse, it’s time for the annual troop cookie sale, her new boyfriend’s old college flame shows up to win him back, and someone’s shooting at Merry in the frozen foods section of the grocery store. Is the assassin after her or the cat? Is Riley, her hot former CIA handler, hitting on her? Is Rex, her boyfriend, going to dump her? Will she sell enough cookies to take her troop to Winter Sniper Camp? If Merry doesn't find answer to these questions soon, it may be too late! Marshmallow S'More Murder (book #3) What could be better for former CIA agent turned Girl Scout leader Merry Wrath than taking twelve little girls to Washington DC for a bit of summer fun? Almost anything. Unfortunately, between her girls terrorizing the Secret Service and "accidentally" destroying the hotel pool, Merry has her hands full with this troop. And when her former handler, Riley, is kidnapped Merry has to turn to an old friend from her spy days and her parents, Senator and Mrs. Czrgy, to help her wrangle the troop and rescue the man she once briefly called her boyfriend. Armed only with a perpetually AWOL parent, stalked by a runaway King Vulture, and plagued by a mysterious death from her past, Merry's mayhem weaves a wacky trail from moonshiners in the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the bowels of the Japanese Embassy, to the ductwork of the International Spy Museum. With things heating up with current boyfriend, Detective Rex Ferguson, can Merry decipher clues from her past to find ex¬-boyfriend Riley and finally solve the murder of Yakuza boss, Midori Ito, before the target on her back is filled with lead?