books and reading

"Mikayla and Drew loved to read and learn new things . . . but when a new stack of books gives way to facts unlike anything they had ever heard of before, chaos ensues! Soon the children are swimming with alligators, eating candies like vitamins, and getting blasted by their neighbor. Which leads them to wonder . . . if it's in a book, is it actually true?"--Provided by publisher.

"At the far reaches of Earth, high upon a mountaintop, a bustling city is under attack by a . . . cute little furball? Wait--what?! That's not right. The author wrote this book about a 'ferocious beast,' not a cuddly critter. Turns out, the book's illustrator has other plans. Page by page, these clashing collaborators are writing (and drawing) themselves into the story for a full-on creator combat--a bookmaking BATTLE ROYALE! Can the author make a successful book with no pictures? Can the illustrator tell a tale without words? . . . Or will this dueling duo get on the same page at last to create the ultimate happy ending?"--Amazon.

"Imani's new classmate, Penelope, does not have many books, so Imani uses her hair magic to come up with the perfect present--a library box of books"--Provided by publisher.

With his Uncle Horatio trapped in an enchanted sleep by the power-hungry Alchemist, Milo sets off with Alessia to find a cure with the help of the Botanist, and in their hunt for an antidote, they must forage in the Secret Garden, challenge Robin Hood, and confront the mighty Jabberwock.

Henry is not really into books, but all that changes when he enters Griselda Snook's Halloween-themed bookstore.

"Benita loves to read in bed but keeps getting interrupted by a whistling Tunche, a scary Supay and other spooky creatures from Peruvian lore. To the creatures' disbelief, Benita is so absorbed by her book that she's not the least bit scared of them. This humorous celebration of bedtime reading puts a global twist on taking the "scary" out of monsters"--.

"A scarecrow stood in the garden. Tall, proud, and smiling. Every day a girl brought her favorite books to the garden and she read to him. He heard tales of courage and of hope. And when she said, 'The End,' the scarecrow always felt a little bit taller and braver. Year after year, she came and she read to him. Until one spring, two different hands picked him up from the garden shed and placed him in the garden. He waited, but she didn't come to read to him . . . a tender distillation of the enduring power of friendship and a . . . look at the ways stories connect us"--Provided by publisher.

"1919. Mama is ill. Father has taken a job abroad. Nanny Jane is too busy to pay any attention to Henrietta and the things she sees--or thinks she sees--in the shadows of their new home, Hope House. All alone, with only stories for company, Henry discovers that Hope House is full of strange secrets: a forgotten attic, ghostly figures, mysterious firelight that flickers in the trees beyond the garden. One night she ventures into the darkness of Nightingale Wood. What she finds there will change her whole world"--Provided by publisher.

As eleven-year-old Dawz and Mim, the terrifying but kind-hearted monster who lives in his closet, become more aware of each other, they must uncover the true nature of their mysterious connection.

The only rule in Larry's book is that the reader not push the button, but when no one is looking, it may be irresistible.