He enjoys his solitude. He likes playing with his friends, who are puppets, stuffed animals, and other toys. With his rich imagination, Oliver’s day is never dull. There are bridges to cross, sharks to fight, and treasures to find! But maybe toys don’t always give a boy everything he needs. Maybe he needs another kind of companion. Will Oliver discover a way to be, well, different? When his tennis ball rolls across the lawn into the yard of the girl next door, he just might be surprised.

    For each craves a change in her life: Devera desires a break from her humdrum marital routine; BiDi longs to reconnect with her distant fourteen-year-old daughter (the only girl on the high school hockey team), not to mention jump-start a sex drive stuck in neutral. So when Devera’s husband decides to fulfill his longtime dream of opening a nightclub in his basement, Your Oasis on Flame Lake arrives not a moment too soon. Nothing fancy, it’s just a BYOB joint where you can hang out, sing, dance, tell jokes, and be yourself. But then an unexpected crisis throws both families into chaos, forcing them all to take stock of their lives—and learn the power of forgiveness.

    Porcupine hugs are done very carefully.Knee hugs are good for hugging someone tall.And piggyback hugs are the best way to see a parade.From birthday hugs to Great-Aunt Mary hugs, every hug has a purpose even a lamppost hug.You should never hug tomorrow when you can hug today.But which hug will you choose?Puppy hugsFraidycat hugs Birthday hugsI love-you-hugsIn this delightfully cuddly book, Dave Ross and Laura Rader team up to give us a warm and friendly look at some of the best kinds of hugs around. An Alternate Selection of Childrens Book-of-the-Month Club.

    She is unashamedly, irrefutably, irrepressibly wild. That is, until she is snared by some very strange animals that look oddly like her, but they don't talk right, eat right, or play correctly. She's puzzled by their behavior and their insistence on living in these strange concrete structures: there's no green here, no animals, no trees, no rivers. Now she lives in the comfort of civilization. But will civilization get comfortable with her?In her debut picture book, Hughes brings an uncanny humor to her painterly illustrations. Her work is awash with color, atmosphere, and a stunning visual splendor that will enchant children while indulging their wilder tendencies. Wild is a twenty-first-century answer to Maurice Sendak's children's classic—it has the same inventiveness, groundbreaking art, and unmissable quirkiness.Emily Hughes is a talented young illustrator. Her book Nana Shaped Like a Banana won second prize in the 2012 Macmillan Children's Book Awards.

    Sarah has married and settled contentedly into small-town life. Maggie has spent fifteen years drifting around the world with a backpack. Now Maggie has come home to a dank, dull British winter, supposedly for just a few months. The Penn children are delighted to have their exciting aunt stay with them, but fate has an unexpected adventure in store. It rocks the whole family, bringing up dark shadows from their common past, and confronts Maggie with the hardest decision of her life.

    . .Out there in the deepest sea lies the Black Rock: a huge, dark and spiky mass that is said to destroy any boats that come near it! Can Erin uncover the truth behind this mysterious legend?

    “I’ll be back soon, my darling,” her mother, Sage, said the day she left. “Don't you worry. I just need to go find myself.”Do you have to run away in order to find yourself? Maeve wondered. When, exactly, do you know when that self you were so desperately looking for is found?Now Maeve is sixteen-years-old and Sage still hasn’t returned.Fiercely independent and disillusioned, Maeve has grown up with her mother’s ex-boyfriend as her only companion. Giving up all hope of Sage’s return, she convinces herself that mothers—and people—are unnecessary. When she meets Ky and Levi, she is adamant about keeping them at arms length. But Ky, the only true friend Maeve knows, and Levi, the boy with the startling blue eyes, crash through Maeve’s walls.Then one of them is wrenched away—permanently. And Maeve is left dangling with the final words they left behind: go find Sage Parker.

    Bobo.This is the perfect gift for mothers and daughters, baby showers, and graduation.We are all here for a purpose. We are more than enough. We just need to believe it.

    However, the consequences of their love affair are terrible for Tina as she is shamed by the father she adores, and Edward is sent away. Against all the odds, Tina and Edward find each other again, and despite great hardship and tragedy, together they build a dynasty strong enough to withstand some of the worst catastrophes Britain has ever known. The Pride is a magnificent start to a stunning family saga.

    Don't you? Riley Pieterson is an adventurous girl with lots of questions. There's plenty she doesn't know yet; what a human brain looks like. All the constellations in the night sky. Why others can't see her the way she sees herself. When Riley confides in her parents - Sally and Theo - that she feels uncomfortable in her own skin, a chain of events begins that changes their lives forever. Sally wants to support her daughter by helping her be who she dreams of being. Theo resists; he thinks Riley is a seven-year-old child pushing boundaries. Both believe theirs is the only way to protect Riley and keep her safe. With the wellbeing of their child at stake, Sally and Theo's relationship is pushed to breaking point. To save their family, each of them must look deeply at who they really are. A story of a marriage in crisis and a child caught in the middle, this is a beautiful novel of parents and their children, and how far we're prepared to go in the name of love.

    One patient is so blind with illness that he can barely see the dog; it looks like a smudge.But, oh, how nice to hold the puppy. What is Cindy to do? How will she care for Smudge?How Smudge Came was made into an award winning television movie and became an international best seller.Awards and Nominations: Winner of the 1996 Mr. Christie Book Award Winner of the 1996 Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize Canadian Children's Book Centre Our Choice Citation

    This award-winning book by Janell Cannon has sold over 500,000 copies and was on the bestseller list for more than two years.

    Sure, he may have paws and whiskers. And his quacks might sound more like…well, meows, but he lives among ducks, everyone he knows is a duck, and he’s happy.Then Quackers meets another duck who looks like him (& talks like him, too!)—but he calls himself a cat. So silly!Quackers loves being among his new friends the cats, but he also misses his duck friends, and so he finds a way to combine the best of both worlds. Part cat, part duck, all Quackers!

    Now, for the first time, it is available in a larger format, full-color edition—perfect for family sharing. Readers of all ages will love to watch Grandpa Bob teach Bobby to walk, and how Bobby returns the favor when Bob has a stroke, all in beautifully rich full color.

    Every morning, the rain forest calls to Zonia, and every morning she answers. She visits the sloth family, greets the giant anteater, and runs with the speedy jaguar. But one morning, the rain forest calls to her in a troubled voice. How will Zonia answer?Acclaimed author-illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal explores the wonders of the rain forest with Zonia, an Asháninka girl, in her joyful outdoor adventures. The engaging text emphasizes Zonia’s empowering bond with her home, while the illustrations—created on paper made from banana bark—burst with luxuriant greens and delicate details. Illuminating back matter includes a translation of the story in Asháninka, information on the Asháninka community, as well as resources on the Amazon rain forest and its wildlife.