When her chic cousin Rachel from Manhattan comes to stay for a month, Kanani can't wait to get to know her cousin and help Rachel feel at home. But a clash of cultures ensures, and Kanani feels ignored. She tries to extend hospitality but everything she does seems to make Rachel unhappy. How can she find a way to connect with her cousin and make things better? "Sometimes people who want help the least need it the most," her mother tells her. After a mixup with a diary leads to a fight, Kanani reaches out to Rachel in an openhearted spirit of caring and good will, and discovers that she has misjudged her cousin. In the process, Kanani learns the true meaning of Hawaii's "aloha spirit."

    Isabelle loves ballet, but she wonders if she'll always be dancing in her sister's shadow.Isabelle's mood takes a leap when her mom asks for her help designing costumes for the Autumn Festival. Back in the dance studio, though, Isabelle still lags behind her classmates. Can she stop comparing herself to others and find a way to become her own kind of dancer?(Description taken from the back cover.)

    Knowing that the necklace was the last gift Tante Tay's husband gave her before he died, C�cile is desperate to find it. As she tracks down the people in the crowd who were near her when she fell, her search takes her into many corners of New Orleans, from a society tea party to the crowded French Market, even the dangerous cypress swamps...and deep into secrets she never imagined! An illustrated �Looking Back� essay provides facts about the 1850s.

    She believes she is in for brightly colored macaws, enormous butterflies, and "curtains of sweetly scented orchids trailing from the trees." Her British classmates warn her of man-eating alligators and wild, murderous Indians. Unfortunately, no one cautions Maia about her nasty, xenophobic cousins, who douse the house in bug spray and forbid her from venturing beyond their coiffed compound. Maia, however, is resourceful enough to find herself smack in the middle of more excitement than she ever imagined, from a mysterious "Indian" with an inheritance, to an itinerant actor dreading his impending adolescence, to a remarkable journey down the Amazon in search of the legendary giant sloth.

    She longs get out and go camping, but they all want to stay home. It wouldn't be so bad if her best friend was around, but she's halfway around the world, living out their dream of studying wildlife. Lanie feels she never gets to have any adventures-anywhere. But when her favorite aunt comes to stay, Lanie discovers that the wonders of nature are everywhere-even in her own backyard.

    But when they vow to make a name for themselves, they have no idea it's going to be such hard work! They launch themselves into the world of show business, complete with working papers, the glare of the spotlight, and practice, practice, practice! Pauline is destined for the movies. Posy is a born dancer. But practical Petrova finds she'd rather pilot a plane than perform a pirouette. Each girl must find the courage to follow her dream.

    So when a new family moves into the house across the street, Betsy hopes they will have a little girl she can play with. Sure enough, they do—a little girl named Tacy. And from the moment they meet at Betsy's fifth birthday party, Betsy and Tacy become such good friends that everyone starts to think of them as one person—Betsy-Tacy.Betsy and Tacy have lots of fun together. They make a playhouse from a piano box, have a sand store, and dress up and go calling. And one day, they come home to a wonderful surprise—a new friend named Tib.Ever since their first publication in the 1940's, the Betsy-Tacy stories have been loved by each generation of young readers.

    Actor Mona 13 recites poetry and Shakespeare at the drop of a hat. Engineer Rush 12, mischievous, builds Meccano bridges. Miranda "Randy" 10 dances and paints pictures. Oliver, 6, calm and thoughtful, is a train engineer. Father writes. Housekeeper Cuffy mothers.

    During kindergarten recess, one accidentally hitches a ride out of town on a boxcar. One winds up trapped in the breadbox outside the deli. One offers to escort a Salvation Army man to his destination - and accidentally bumps him from his horse-drawn wagon.

    Malo, Florida, a navy town where new faces are the norm. But Amedeo has a secret, a dream: More than anything in the world, he wants to discover something -- a place, a process, even a fossil -- some treasure that no one realizes is there until he finds it. And he would also like to discover a true friend to share these things with. William Wilcox seems like an unlikely candidate for friendship: an aloof boy who is all edges and who owns silence the way other people own words. When Amedeo and William find themselves working together on a house sale for Amedeo's eccentric neighbor, Mrs. Zender, Amedeo has an inkling that both his wishes may come true. For Mrs. Zender's mansion is crammed with memorabilia of her long life, and there is a story to go with every piece. Soon the boys find themselves caught up in one particular story -- a story that links a sketch, a young boy's life, an old man's reminiscence, and a painful secret dating back to the outrages of Nazi Germany. It's a story that will take them to the edge of what they know about heroism and the mystery of the human heart. Two-time Newbery winner E. L. Konigsburg spins a magnificent tale of art, discovery, friendship, history, and truth.

    She's a fourth-grader who lives with her loving parents in a busy and largely Hispanic neighborhood in the heart of Chicago. Marisol goes to school (where she is a Two-Square champion) takes care of her cat, plays with the kids in her neighborhood, and takes dance lessons. Ballet folkl--rico (Mexican folkdance) is her favorite type of dance--and where she really shines--but she's been exposed to some jazz and a little tap. She's also taking ballet, but she's new to it and a little impatient with its rigors. Her attitude towards ballet changes only slightly when she meets a wonderful new neighbor. Miss Mendoza is a former Rockette who gently reminds Marisol that ballet is worth working hard at, because it's the basis for all serious dance. The upsetting news that her family is moving out to the suburbs is made worse when Marisol learns that the dance studio in her new neighborhood has closed. No tap, no ballet folkl--rico--not even ballet. She may have to take karate lessons! Instead, with the help of new friends, resourceful Marisol finds a way to keep dancing.

    She lives on a working Colorado ranch with her parents and younger brother. She is optimistic, generous, and compassionate, and she loves skiing almost as much as she loves animals.Nicki has a hard time saying "no" to people. Whenever anyone asks for her help, she's ready to lend a hand. When Nicki says "yes" to becoming the main trainer of a service dog that she and her mother had planned to train together, Nicki ends up in over her head, and struggles to juggle multiple responsibilities: to her parents, her best friend, her teacher--and to the dog.But in the process of training the lively and spirited Sprocket, Nicki's affection for him grows--even while she keeps reminding herself that she has to give him up to someone who needs him more than she does. Equally important, Nicki learns some important lessons for herself.Book One ends with the with big test--and success!--of Sprocket's potential as a service dog, and Nicki's deep pride in their joint accomplishment.

    This edition features the classic black-and-white artwork from Garth Williams.Little House in the Big Woods takes place in 1871 and introduces us to four-year-old Laura, who lives in a log cabin on the edge of the Big Woods of Wisconsin. She shares the cabin with her Pa, her Ma, her sisters Mary and Carrie, and their lovable dog, Jack.Pioneer life isn’t easy for the Ingalls family, since they must grow or catch all their own food as they get ready for the cold winter. But they make the best of every tough situation. They celebrate Christmas with homemade toys and treats, do their spring planting, bring in the harvest in the fall, and make their first trip into town. And every night, safe and warm in their little house, the sound of Pa’s fiddle lulls Laura and her sisters into sleep.The nine books in the timeless Little House series tell the story of Laura’s real childhood as an American pioneer, and are cherished by readers of all generations. They offer a unique glimpse into life on the American frontier, and tell the heartwarming, unforgettable story of a loving family.

    But there were two years she didn't write about, two missing years that take place between On the Banks of Plum Creek and By the Shores of Silver Lake.Now, Newbery Award-winning author Cynthia Rylant has imagined what those lost Little House years were like, based on Laura's unpublished memoirs. The result is the first Little House novel about Laura as a young girl in almost 60 years, and a wonderful addition to the classic series.When the grasshopper plague returns to Plum Creek, Pa knows all the crops will be destroyed again. He decides to take the family east to Burr Oak, Iowa, where he has found work running a hotel. But Laura longs to return to the tall-grass prairie and the unsettled west, to a place where Pa can play his fiddle in the open air and where she can feel free again.Old Town in the Green Groves continues the story about Laura Ingalls -- a story whose wonder and adventure have delighted millions of readers.

    Escaping over the orphanage wall to explore the outside world, Mandy discovers a tiny deserted cottage in the woods. All through the spring, summer, and fall, Mandy works to make it truly hers. Sometimes she "borrows" things she needs from the orphanage. Sometimes, to guard her secret, she even lies. Then, one stormy night at the cottage, Mandy gets sick, and no one knows how to find her--except a special friend she didn't know she had.