Letters to a Young Writer


Book Description

From the author of Thirteen Ways of Looking and TransAtlantic, a compassionate series of letters to young writers embarking on their careers, which grew out of the weekly advice McCann posts on his website.




The Matchstick Castle


Book Description

"Eleven-year-old Brian's summer turns out a lot less boring than expected when he encounters a huge, wacky house in the forest and befriends the eccentric family that lives there"--




The Tiny Mansion


Book Description

In this pitch-perfect middle grade adventure, twelve-year-old Dagmar must endure a summer living off-the-grid with her family in a tiny home. The last thing Dagmar wants is to spend her summer vacation squished into a tiny house with her dad, her stepmom, and her annoying five-year-old half brother. But after a sudden financial setback, her family is evicted from their Oakland apartment, and that's just where they end up, parked among the towering redwoods of Northern California. As Dagmar explores the forest around their new and (hopefully) temporary home, she discovers they are living next door to an eccentric tech billionaire and his very unusual extended family. There's his brother, a woodsman who sets dangerous booby traps all over the place, and his sister, a New Age animal lover who meditates to whale songs in an isolation tank. And then there's the billionaire's son, Blake, who has everything he could ever wish for--except maybe a friend. But when a wildfire engulfs the forest, everyone--rich and poor, kid and adult--will have to work together to escape. And with both families at risk of losing everything, it turns out it's not the size of the home but the people you share it with that matters.




The Phantom Tower


Book Description

Twin brothers discover their new home is also a portal--for an hour a day--to a parallel dimension in this spine-chilling middle-grade adventure, perfect for fans of The Mysterious Benedict Society Twelve-year-old twins Colm and Mal might look identical, but they’re different in just about every other way. The one thing they can agree on is that neither brother wants to move to Chicago for a fresh start with their mom two years after their dad’s death. The boys soon discover that their new apartment building, Brunhild Tower, is full of strange quirks: a mysterious Princess who warns them not to wander the building at midday, eerie sounds coming from the walls, and an elevator that’s missing a button for the thirteenth floor. Then one afternoon, that button appears, catapulting the brothers and their inquisitive new neighbor, Tamika, into a parallel dimension and a twin building stuck in time, where the spirits of all the former residents of Brunhild Tower live on, trapped by an ancient curse. Now, Colm, Mal, and Tamika must race against time to solve the mystery of the phantom tower—or risk spending an eternity as ghosts themselves.




The Young Writer's Guide to Getting Published


Book Description

For years the Market Guide for Young Writers has been the perfect resource for kids who want to get published. Now, it's been revised, updated, expanded and renamed for the young writers of the 21st century! They'll find: * 45 market and 57 contest listings * profiles of professional editors and young writers, including early work from Stephen King and Jewel * directions for formatting plays and scripts * tips with important information, warnings and resource alerts In all, kids will find the kind of material each organization wants, the editor's or sponsor's remarks and suggestions, what kids can expect in the way of pay, contest rules, prizes and more. Kathy Henderson is also the author of What Would We Do Without You?, Great Lakes: A New True Book, I Can Be a Farmer, and other books for young children. She lives in Lexington, Michigan.




Big Red Tequila


Book Description

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series Everything in Texas is bigger . . . even murder. Meet Tres Navarre—tequila drinker, Tai Chi master, and unlicensed P.I., with a penchant for Texas-size trouble. Jackson “Tres” Navarre and his enchilada-eating cat, Robert Johnson, pull into San Antonio and find nothing waiting but trouble. Ten years ago Navarre left town and the memory of his father’s murder behind him. Now he’s back, looking for answers. Yet the more Tres digs, trying to put his suspicions to rest, the fresher the decade-old crime looks: Mafia connections, construction site payoffs, and slick politicians’ games all conspire to ruin his homecoming. It’s obvious Tres has stirred up a hornet’s nest of trouble. He gets attacked, shot at, run over by a big blue Thunderbird—and his old girlfriend, the one he wants back, is missing. Tres has to rescue the woman, nail his father’s murderer, and get the hell out of Dodge before mob-style Texas justice catches up to him. The chances of staying alive looked better for the defenders of the Alamo. “Riordan writes so well about the people and topography of his Texas hometown that he quickly marks the territory as his own.”—Chicago Tribune Don’t miss any of these hotter-than-Texas-chili Tres Navarre novels: BIG RED TEQUILA • THE WIDOWER’S TWO-STEP • THE LAST KING OF TEXAS • THE DEVIL WENT DOWN TO AUSTIN • SOUTHTOWN • MISSION ROAD • REBEL ISLAND




I'm Bored


Book Description

When a bored girl meets a potato who finds children tedious, she tries to prove him wrong by demonstrating all of the things they can do, from turning cartwheels to using their imaginations. Full color.




Spilling Ink: A Young Writer's Handbook


Book Description

LEARN HOW TO WRITE LIKE THE EXPERTS, FROM THE EXPERTS. In Spilling Ink: A Young Writer's Handbook, you'll find practical advice in a perfect package for young aspiring writers. After receiving letters from fans asking for writing advice,accomplished authors Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter joined together to create this guidebook for young writers. The authors mix inspirational anecdotes with practical guidance on how to find a voice, develop characters and plot, make revisions, and overcome writer's block. Fun writing prompts will help young writers jump-start their own projects, and encouragement throughout will keep them at work.




Sour Cakes


Book Description

Heavy emotions meet a deep well of understanding in this uplifting sibling story




T. Rexes Can't Tie Their Shoes


Book Description

A funny and encouraging alphabetic book about all the things animals CAN'T do but kids CAN! Every parent teaching their children new skills will be happy to have this super-positive picture book on hand. Bees can't ride bicycles, penguins can't play ping-pong, and zebras can't go zip-lining. No one is good at everything, but that shouldn't stop you from trying! Here is a funny and encouraging picture book for any child learning how to tie their shoes, ride a bike, spell their name, or do a variety of new things. Follow a hilarious alphabet of animals, and see all the things they can't do but kids can—from doing gymnastics to flipping pancakes to playing a xylophone. Along the way, young readers will learn that it's okay if they can't do everything; they can still have a LOT of fun trying.