Family Reader

Louie and Ralphie Ratso's dad, Big Lou, always says that there are two kinds of people: those who are tough and those who are soft. Louie and Ralphie are tough, tough, tough, just like Big Lou, and they're going to prove it. But every time they try to show just how tough they are, the Ratso brothers end up accidentally doing good deeds instead. What'll Big Lou do when he finds out they've been acting like softies all over the Big City?

What do Indian shoes look like, anyway? Like beautiful beaded moccasins... or hightops with bright orange shoelaces? Ray Halfmoon prefers hightops, but he gladly trades them for a nice pair of moccasins for his grampa. After all, it's Grampa Halfmoon who's always there to help Ray get in and out of scrapes—like the time they teamed up to pet sit for the whole block during a holiday blizzard!

Lieutenant Ethan Hendricks’ greatest nightmare just also happened to be his grandfather’s newest business venture. Logan Hendricks is thrilled about his brand new detective agency’s first case, but things weren’t turning out the way they were supposed to, including the attempted murder of one of his brand new employees. But he figures their next case, which involves finding a missing sister, should go a lot smoother. How dangerous could it be? Ethan Hendricks wasn’t quite as confident about his grandfather’s new hobby, or that the supposedly straight-forward case of a missing ...

Amber's parents just aren't acting the way she thinks parents should. Sometimes her dad goes out on dates when he is supposed to be spending time with her. And her Mom went to Disneyland with Aunt Pam while Amber was with her dad (not fair!). Then Mom and Max decide to get married even sooner and move to a new house—maybe even a new town. Some kids seem to have no problems . . . and that makes Amber Brown green with envy.

Is Amber Brown ready for fourth grade? She has new sneakers, new notebooks and pencils, but she doesn't have what she really needs - a new best friend. How can Amber go fourth without one? Who will be Amber's best friend?

Evvie Chambers is doing her best to skate through the last month of high school to graduation. The only thing standing in her way is a biology report on foxes—and her teacher, Mrs. Audrey Dearborn. The same Mrs. Dearborn who’s been a thorn in Evvie’s side for years, refusing to acknowledge or accommodate her neurodiversity. Evvie would much rather be doing her report on Aretha, the octopus she cares for when she volunteers at the Minnesota Zoo but deviating from the exact assignment isn’t allowed—and Mrs. Dearborn isn’t going to make following the rules easy.

Whitney Wallace loves her family, but she thinks they're all soooooo boring. Then one snowy day, something happens, and Whitney is left to go off on adventures all by herself. What will she discover that wonderful snowy day combined with her active imagination?

Amber Brown is happy her dad has moved back to New Jersey, but her mom isn't. It means the beginning of shared custody, and that means more fighting. Amber feels as if half of her belongs to her mom and half of her belongs to her dad, and that doesn't feel good at all. Then her mom says she can't get her ears pierced, but her dad doesn't know that. Amber makes a decision. Something has to belong to her, so why shouldn't it be her ears?

'If only that horrible cat didn't live here!' When Beaumont Robinson, an inquisitive young mouse, is nearly killed by the cat, his family decide there is only one thing to do. They must emigrate! And so they all set out on a midnight adventure to find a new house."

A Flat Ninja? Stanley and his brother, Arthur, are such huge fans of the movie star ninja Oda Nobu that they decide to send him something even better than fan mail - Stanley himself! Soon enough, Flat Stanley is in Japan, seeing the country with his idol. But when trouble surprises them, it will take a real hero to save the day.

Sixteen-year-old Maya Krishnan is fiercely protective of her friends, immigrant community, and single mother, but she knows better than to rock the boat in her conservative Florida suburb. Her classmate Juneau Zale is the polar opposite: she’s a wealthy white heartbreaker who won’t think twice before capsizing that boat. When Juneau invites Maya to join the Pugilists—a secret society of artists, vandals, and mischief-makers who fight for justice at their school—Maya descends into the world of change-making and resistance.

Do you want to have your kids learn math in a fun way? Guaranteed to enrich a child’s arithmetic and analytical thinking, this book is simple and fun for kids to discover different ways of learning math as they solve each question. This is an excellent resource for kids who are 6-12 years old. Let your child impress teachers and classmates with sharpened math skills.

Fern and Howard are off to camp to learn the art of being Anybodies. But Camp Happy Sunshine Good Times is not what they expected: The bus driver is blind, the counselors have beaks, and a vicious mole is on the loose, attacking campers! Fern and Howard are coping as best they can — but why oh why is it that every time Fern shakes a book, a message in a bottle plops out? The messages are urgent: "Save us, Fern!" "We need you!" They are all signed by the Nobodies. But who are these mysterious Nobodies, and what do they want from Fern?

Spread some Christmas cheer with Nate the Great in this holiday adventure! Young listeners are introduced to the detective mystery genre, perfect for the Common Core. Kids can problem-solve with Nate, using logical thinking to solve mysteries! Annie's dog is unhappy. When Fang is unhappy, everyone is unhappy. Especially Nate the Great. So Nate agrees to sniff out Fang's mysteriously missing Christmas mail. It's cold and snowy. But Nate the Great and his dog, Sludge, will try to solve this holiday case in time for Fang to have a crunchy, munchy Christmas.

High school senior Autumn Reeves has been waitlisted at her dream school. Determined to move to the top of the list, she must find a way to stand out. When a promposal she planned for a friend has half the senior class asking for her help, a brilliant business idea that will look great on her application is born: Promposal Queen. Autumn has no clue how to start a business, so she joins the Young Black Entrepreneurs group and finds herself face-to-face with Mekhi Winston, the boy whose unexpected freshman-year kiss.

Spunky eight-year-old Mallory McDonald is very unhappy when her parents decide to get her older brother Max a dog. Why would her parents agree to such a thing? Dogs are smelly and bark and chew on things. Plus, they already have a perfectly good cat, Cheeseburger. When they finally get the puppy, it's worse than Mallory imagined. Everyone loves Champ, and he and Max are getting all of the attention. Poor Mallory - now everyone's mad at her. What should she do?

Juliet's a worrywart, and no wonder! Her little sister, Oaf, follows her around taking notes and singing 'The Irritating Song' all day long. Her parents are always arguing about Dad's junk. Nana's so tired of craft lessons that she starts barbecuing things in the middle of the night. And Juliet's friends, Lindsay and Gemma, are competing to see which of them is Juliet's best friend. Juliet can't fit in any more worries!

A Valentine's Day dance at Greg's middle school has turned his world upside down. As Greg scrambles to find a date, he's worried he'll be left out in the cold on the big night. His best friend, Rowley, doesn't have any prospects either, but that's a small consolation. Then an unexpected twist gives Greg a partner for the dance and leaves Rowly the odd man out. But a lot can happen in one night, and in the end, you never know who's going to be lucky in love.

Is it murder? Or something even more sinister? Nothing could have prepared the sheriff’s office in Park County, Colorado for what they saw after responding to a missing person’s call from the wife of a state brand inspector—a body with bullet wounds. Next to it, a large herd of dead cattle belonging to a member of one of the first families to settle in the county. Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Buck Taylor and his team must race against time to solve the mystery of the dead cows, the murdered brand inspector, and several other victims. Set in the picturesque terrain of Park ...

It isn't as though Moxy isn't grateful for all her Christmas presents. She's just not so thrilled that she has to write 12 thank-you notes. Not to mention that she promised her mother they'd all be done by today. And if they're not - well, there will be "consequences". Namely, Moxy won't get to leave tomorrow for the vacation of a lifetime. (A trip to California to attend a Star-Studded Hollywood Bash with the father she hasn't seen in three years.) Moxy's wild schemes to get her thank-you notes done in time are clever, poignant, and always hilarious.