In this heartwarming collection of nineteen short stories L.M. Montgomery returns to the enchanting shores of beautiful Prince Edward Island to tell about orphans much like Anne of Green Gables -- vulnerable, sensitive, and full of hope and courage. There's the lonely young girl on a quest for a real-life mother, a budding artist who dreams of fame and fortune, and old family quilt that unites two sisters with a long-lost relative, an ancient Egyptian doll that invokes an unusual spell for a little girl yearning for a special friend. L.M. Montgomery brings to life a magical place and a circle of characters who will long be treasured and remembered.

"Sixteen of Montgomery's best Christmas stories - with old traditions, family reunions, lots of presents, and plenty of good food - but emphasizing that human kindness will always be the soul of this holiday" Cf. Our choice, 1996-1997

This "soul stirring" novel by the New York Times bestselling author of Room (O Magazine) is one of the New York Post's best books of the year. Noah Selvaggio is a retired chemistry professor and widower living on the Upper West Side, but born in the South of France. He is days away from his first visit back to Nice since he was a child, bringing with him a handful of puzzling photos he's discovered from his mother's wartime years. But he receives a call from social services: Noah is the closest available relative of an eleven-year-old great-nephew he's never met, who urgently needs someone to look after him. Out of a feeling of obligation, Noah agrees to take Michael along on his trip. Much has changed in this famously charming seaside mecca, still haunted by memories of the Nazi occupation. The unlikely duo, suffering from jet lag and culture shock, bicker about everything from steak frites to screen time. But Noah gradually comes to appreciate the boy's truculent wit, and Michael's ease with tech and sharp eye help Noah unearth troubling details about their family's past. Both come to grasp the risks people in all eras have run for their loved ones, and find they are more akin than they knew. Written with all the tenderness and psychological intensity that made Room an international bestseller, Akin is a funny, heart-wrenching tale of an old man and a boy, born two generations apart, who unpick their painful story and start to write a new one together. "What begins as a larky story of unlikely male bonding turns into an off-center but far richer novel about the unheralded, imperfect heroism of two women." -- New York Times

In this memorable story, a young boy finds solace flying his kite from the rooftop after soldiers take his father and brother away. Without his father and brother, the young boy’s life is turned upside down. He and his family have to stay inside, along with everyone else in town. At suppertime, he can’t stop looking at the two empty places at the table and his sister can’t stop crying. The boy looks out the window and is chilled to see a tank’s spotlight searching the park where he plays with his friends. He hears shouts and gunshots and catches sight of someone running in the street — if only they could fly away, he thinks. Each day the curfew is lifted briefly, and the boy goes to the park to see his friends. One day, inspired by the wind in the trees, he has an idea. Back at home he makes a kite, and that night he flies it from his rooftop, imagining what it can see. In this moving story from Anne Laurel Carter, with haunting illustrations by Akin Duzakin, a young boy finds strength through his creativity and imagination. Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

Sixteen short stories, all set on Prince Edward Island, deal with the common theme of life by the sea.

Here Josephine looked straight at him with such intent and stern brown eyes that David felt she must have read his thoughts, and he colored guiltily. But Josephine did not even notice that he was blushing. She had only paused to wonder whether she would bring out cherry or strawberry preserve; and, having decided on the cherry, took her piercing gaze from David without having seen him at all.

The common thread among the 18 stories in Against the Odds is the way people can resourcefully overcome obstacles to realize their ambitions and dreams. The “odds” are varied in these skillfully written tales. An obstacle to one’s success or happiness may lie in one’s own character or the prejudice of someone else. A potential employer may cast a suspicious eye on an individual’s background. A guardian seems reluctant to sponsor any further education for his charge. Other characters here are looking as much for increased self-respect as financial reward or better training. Set in locales as varied as Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Prince Edward Island, the stories of Against the Odds are peopled with orphans, teachers, actors, struggling single-parent families, intransigent relatives. It’s a world, though distant from our own, where Montgomery’s characters have problems similar to ours, and their methods of solving them are not very different from what we would try.