He left his countryside home on the empty promise of a stranger, only to become a captive in a luxurious prison: Coudenberg Palace, the royal court of the Spanish Infanta. Nobody warned Jepp that as a court dwarf, daily injustices would become his seemingly unshakable fate. If the humiliations were his alone, perhaps he could endure them; but it breaks Jepp’s heart to see his friend Lia suffer. After Jepp and Lia attempt a daring escape from the palace, Jepp is imprisoned again, alone in a cage. Now, spirited across Europe in a kidnapper’s carriage, Jepp fears where his unfortunate stars may lead him. But he can't even begin to imagine the brilliant and eccentric new master—a man devoted to uncovering the secrets of the stars—who awaits him. Or the girl who will help him mend his heart and unearth the long-buried secrets of his past.Masterfully written, grippingly paced, and inspired by real histori­cal characters, Jepp, Who Defied the Stars is the tale of an extraordinary hero and his inspiring quest to become the master of his own destiny.New York Times Notable Children’s Books of 2012The Wall Street Journal Best Children’s Books of 2012

    From a young child up until his teenage years, Frank struggles to find love and was lucky to find it in Alexandria Ware. While the secretive Frank doesn’t make her privy to his past, he loves Alex in his own way and plans to make her part of his future. Frank is convinced that after five years of being together, Alex is the one for him, but little does he know, she has an agenda of her own. While dealing with Frank’s emotionally unavailable nature, Alex’s love for him is purely conditional and has an expiration date set on whenever her boyfriend is finished stacking his money. Despite her fleeting feelings for Frank, she has no problem using him as an ATM, but when her boyfriend comes up with a plan for the perfect payday for them, will she end up on the wrong side of Frank’s love story? 
While Frank is building with Alex, Taiwan is living in Italy with her sugar daddy of over a decade, Romero Santiago. Being the sugar baby of a well-known cartel leader has its perks, and while Taiwan is enjoying the perks of her lifestyle, she finds herself craving more. As she approaches thirty, expensive trips and shopping trips courtesy of AMEX no longer enthrall her the way they did in her younger years. What Taiwan wants is one of the few things the happily married Romero can’t buy: a family. With a desire to stop sharing someone else’s husband and have one of her own, Taiwan tenders her resignation to a less than pleased Romero. But as a man of means with an endless amount of resources, Romero is able to offer her the deal of a lifetime. The question is, will Taiwan accept?
 Former gang member Rubee Bailey changed her life for the better when she becomes a mother to her daughter, Raylee, and couldn’t have a better father in Bash James. Rubee loves Bash with all her heart, but Bash has some hidden motives of his own when it comes to being with a Bailey. A secret from his pre-Rubee life almost catches up to him, causing him to move differently. When Bash breaks one straw too many, Rubee is sent straight into the arms of another man, with no feelings of remorse. This leaves Rubee asking herself if she’s willing to leave Bash or continue fighting for a lopsided love?

    First published more than thirty years ago and translated into twenty different languages, Lloyd Alexander's beloved series has become the standard of excellence in fantasy literature for children. Among their many accolades, the award-winning Chronicles of Prydain count a Newbery Medal, a Newbery Honor, and more than two million copies in print.

    The first step? Get into a super-selective summer music camp. In order to qualify, Elsie must “expand her musical horizons” by joining her high school’s marching band. Not only does this mean wearing a plumed hat and polyester pants, but it also means she can’t play her own instrument, can’t sit down, and can’t seem to say the right thing to anyone…let alone Jake, the cute trumpet player she meets on the first day. Plus, everything she does seems to cause a disaster. Surviving marching band is going to be way harder than Elsie thought.   For fans of funny, realistic, every-girl novels like Wendy Mass’s 13 Gifts and Lisa Greenwald’s My Life in Pink & Green.

    For as a noblewoman in the late 800s, she will be expected to be meek and unlearned-and Flæd is anything but meek and unlearned. Her marriage will bring peace to her land, but while her royal blood makes her a valuable asset, she is also a vulnerable target. And when enemies attack, Flæd must draw upon her skills and fight to lead her people to safety and prove her worth as a princess-and as a warrior.

    (See extended summary.)

    Seventeen-year-old Lily, half-mermaid and half-human, has been living on land and attending high school, where she develops a crush on a boy but is afraid to tell him of her true destiny as the ruler of the undersea kingdom of Thalassinia.

    She's invisible at high school.She's too visible at the fencing gym.Aliera's starting to wonder...where does she belong?

    Krabs is held accountable for the crime! So it's up to SpongeBob and his trusty sidekick, Patrick, to make the dangerous trip to Shell City to retrieve the crown and save Mr. Krabs's life. Meanwhile, the evil Plankton has set his plan into motion: to steal the secret Krabby Patty formula and rule the sea! Will SpongeBob and Patrick be able to save the crown "and" make it back in time to save the fate of Bikini Bottom?

    Blowing out her candles, Kayla thinks: I wish my birthday wishes actually came true. Because they never freakin' do.Kayla wakes the next day to a life-sized, bright pink My Little Pony outside her window. Then a year's supply of gumballs arrives. A boy named Ken with a disturbing resemblance to the doll of the same name stalks her. As the ghosts of Kayla's wishes-past appear, they take her on a wild ride...but they must stop. Because when she was fifteen? She wished Ben Mackenzie would kiss her. And Ben is her best friend's boyfriend.

    Original art, enlightening character interviews and profiles, puzzles, and a quiz add to the fun in this action-packed collection.

    Long ago, the hero Gammage led them in war against the horrible Hairless Ones. But now -- Bravery? Forgotten. Courage? No more. Heroes? The stuff of storybooks.Yet sometimes heroes turn up when they are least expected....Muggles, Gummy the poet, and Walter the Earl are not like the other Minnipins. They dress differently, speak their minds, and -- when Walter the Earl finds a package of old scrolls and swords -- dare to disagree with the Minnipin leaders. For their troubles, they are banished from their village.But Walter the Earl found the weapons for a reason: The Hairless Ones have returned. And this time there is no Gammage to protect the Minnipins. This time there are only Muggles and her friends, outlaws who must rescue the very people who have cast them out.

    He was born with a gift for knowing what people are thinking and an uncanny ability to throw his voice, and he has been using those skills while working for a rather foolish magician. That work will soon end, however, and on the night of the magician's final performance, Yann's life will truly begin. That's the night he meets shy Sido, an heiress with a cold-hearted father, a young girl who has only known loneliness until now. Though they have the shortest of conversations, an attachment is born that will influence both their paths. And what paths those will be! While Revolution is afoot in France, Sido is being used as the pawn of a fearful villain who goes by the name Count Kalliovski. Some have instead called him the devil, and only Yann, for Sido's sake, will dare to oppose him.

    bike accident.It is Labor Day weekend in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and boy and girl collide on a dark street at two thirty in the morning: Lesh, who wears black, listens to metal, and plays MMOs; Svetlana, who embroiders her skirts, listens to Björk and Berlioz, and dungeon masters her own RPG. They should pick themselves up, continue on their way, and never talk to each other again.But they don't.This is a story of two people who do not belong in each other's lives, who find each other at a time when they desperately need someone who doesn't belong in their lives. A story of those moments when we act like people we aren't in order to figure out who we are. A story of the roles we all play-at school, at home, with our friends, and without our friends-and the one person who might show us what lies underneath it all.

    She likes living in Massachusetts. She likes her school. And she has plenty of friends. But all that is about to change. Because Meg's mother, one of the most prestigious senators in the country, is running for President. And she's going to win.