Meet all kinds of puppies in this sweet illustrated series, perfect for newly independent readers! Kat, Maya, and Grace are looking after Cricket, a Yorkshire terrier puppy, when a chocolate bar disappears from Maya's backpack. Kat knows chocolate is poisonous to dogs, and the girls are worried that Cricket may have eaten the chocolate bar. But they are also afraid to tell Aunt Jenn in case they get in trouble! Can Kat, Maya, and Grace save Cricket in time?

Meet all kinds of puppies in this sweet illustrated series, perfect for newly independent readers! Kat, Maya, and Grace are looking after Cricket, a Yorkshire terrier puppy, when a chocolate bar disappears from Maya's backpack. Kat knows chocolate is poisonous to dogs, and the girls are worried that Cricket may have eaten the chocolate bar. But they are also afraid to tell Aunt Jenn in case they get in trouble! Can Kat, Maya, and Grace save Cricket in time?

Sometimes, the greatest danger comes from those who are closest of all... Jameson Hill is no stranger to a prison cell—but this one feels strangely worth it. He might have released Lily Hayes into the arms of her relieved family, but she wasn’t theirs anymore. Not really. And there’s no way she can be his, either. Not now... Yet there’s more than Stockholm Syndrome at play when Lily arrives to bail Jameson out of jail. The moment she’s back in his sights, everything changes. Jameson’s family needs him. When he drops everything to be by his brother’s side, Lily has to go, too. Jameson has to protect her. And the only way to protect her is to put a ring on her finger. But even a diamond can’t protect them from his past, and as danger looms, Jameson finds himself backed into a corner of his own creation. Until fate delivers the knockout blow...

One day, a little cricket is born and meets a big cricket who chirps his welcome. But the little cricket cannot make a sound. The cricket meets many insects, but it isn't until he meets a beautiful female cricket that he can finally chirp "hello!" Excerpt: Hello! whispered a praying mantis, scraping its huge front legs together. The little cricket wanted to answer, so he rubbed his wings together. But nothing happened. Not a sound.

Australia is a land of many unique animals, some of which are active only during the cooler evening and night-time and so are rarely seen. These are the after dark animals so widespread yet so little noticed by humans, whether in our backyards, the arid desert, woodlands or rainforest. Australian Wildlife After Dark brings this hidden fauna into the light. The after dark fauna includes a surprising diversity of familiar (and some not-so-familiar) species, from cockroaches, moths and spiders through to bandicoots, bats and birds – and then some. Each example is described in a unique, friendly style by Martyn Robinson, familiar to many Australians through his frequent media appearances on ABC Radio and in Burke’s Backyard magazine, and Bruce Thomson, an internationally renowned wildlife photographer and bat researcher. The book includes stunning photography and boxes that highlight selected topics, such as the ‘windscreen wiper’ eyelids of geckoes and the strategies used by night-time plants to attract pollinators. Also included are practical tips on finding nocturnal wildlife, a glossary of scientific terms and a short bibliography.

11 days. 13 clues. And one kid who won't give up. Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe is "part treasure hunt, part wilderness adventure, and all heart" (Alan Gratz, New York Times bestselling author of Refugee). How far would you go to find something that might not even exist? All her life, Cricket's mama has told her stories about a secret room painted by a mysterious artist. Now Mama's run off, and Cricket thinks the room might be the answer to getting her to come back. If it exists. And if she can find it. Cricket's first clue is a coin from a grown-over ghost town in the woods. So with her daddy's old guidebook and a coat full of snacks stolen from the Cash 'n' Carry, Cricket runs away to find the room. Surviving in the woods isn't easy. While Cricket camps out in an old tree house and looks for clues, she meets the last resident of the ghost town, encounters a poetry-loving dog (who just might hold a key to part of the puzzle), and discovers that sometimes you have to get a little lost . . . to really find your way. 2020 Mississippi Library Association Children's Author Award 2019 Southern Book Award Winner--Children's Category "A tale of adventure, full of mystery." --Robert Beatty, New York Times bestselling author of Serafina and the Black Cloak "An unforgettable story about a gutsy girl who will steal your heart." --Kathleen Glasgow, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces "Lyrical and endearing, this debut is a genuine adventure tale." --Kirkus Reviews, Starred

Crickets on the Moon is a story of friendship, family, and the power of determination and cooperation in overcoming obstacles. Sirius has traveled halfway across the galaxy. He's a diplomat-in-training with an unusual deformity, desperately trying to make good on his father's dying wishes. He doesn't know it, but his deformity is also the source of a potent gift he possesses. After two failed missions, time is running short, and it looks like he's going to have to return home in shame and face possible exile. Before he embarked on his journey, his uncle told him to "find the right planet, find the right contact," but he's found neither, until he comes across Earth, hoping he finally got it right. He selects Jonah, a 13 year-old boy who is dying from leukemia, for his mission. Sirius parks on the moon and sends a mysterious orb to Jonah, who must figure out how to use it and also demonstrate, along with four other boys chosen by Sirius, that people on Earth can responsibly use power for peaceful purposes. The boys form a club that meets nightly with the orb, with the directive to ask one question a day, and to choose their questions carefully. It will answer any question they ask. Besides Jonah, there's his hyperactive best friend Ricky, Steven, a socially challenged science geek, Todd, Steven's mortal enemy and a troubled, unhappy boy with dark secrets, and Joe Billy, one-quarter Arapaho who's tried to distance himself from his heritage and the teachings of his grandfather in order to better fit in with his peers. The success of Sirius' mission is constantly challenged by his own emotionality as well as by the boys' struggles in their own lives and with each other. The mission culminates in a perilous adventure in the Rocky Mountains. Sirius must decide whether to risk the boys' lives or to risk never being able to return home. Ultimately, the boys, including Sirius, learn the deeper meanings of friendship and family, and discover a greater purpose to their lives.