In this beautiful nonfiction biography, a Robert F. Sibert Medal winner, the Newbery Honor–winning author Joyce Sidman introduces readers to one of the first female entomologists and a woman who flouted convention in the pursuit of knowledge and her passion for insects. One of the first naturalists to observe live insects directly, Maria Sibylla Merian was also one of the first to document the metamorphosis of the butterfly. Richly illustrated throughout with full-color original paintings by Merian herself, The Grew Who Drew Butterflies will enthrall young scientists. Bugs, of all kinds, were considered to be “born of mud” and to be “beasts of the devil.” Why would anyone, let alone a girl, want to study and observe them? The Girl Who Drew Butterflies answers this question. Booklist Editor’s Choice Chicago Public Library Best of the Year Kirkus Best Book of the Year Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book Junior Library Guild Selection New York Public Library Top 10 Best Books of the Year

It's hard to be Velma, the littlest Gratch, entering the first grade. That's because everyone has marvelous memories of her two older sisters, who were practically perfect first graders. Poor Velma—people can barely remember her name. But all that changes on a class trip to the magnificent Butterfly Conservatory—a place neither of her sisters has ever been. When a monarch roosts on Velma's finger and won't budge for days . . . well, no one will forget Velma ever again. Acclaimed and bestselling illustrator Kevin Hawkes and author Alan Madison celebrate everything butterfly—from migration to metamorphosis. Watch as Velma Gratch metamorphosizes from a timid first grader into a confident young scientist!

Christina’s body is changing she’s growing into a woman. She’s just a girl that loves butterflies, clothes, shopping, and hanging out with her friends. Most of her day consists of finishing out her last year of high school, taking care of her little brother Gibby, painting and college searching. Christina is by most accounts a regular young woman, she just happens to be transgender. As she gets closer to completing her final year of high school, Christina attempts to cope with a flood of emotions. Her once happy family seems to be struggling to hold together. Her father has hardly come home since losing his job and her mother doesn’t seem to want to talk about her father at all. Christina’s grandmother, whom she has always admired doesn’t come to visit anymore. All while dealing with the emotional changes that come with a growing into a woman. Plagued by feelings of possibly being the cause of her family’s problems, Christina has become determined to protect her little brother Gibby as much as she can. If things weren’t complicated enough, she finds herself falling for David- a new student to the school. She wants to tell him how she feels but doesn’t know if he would be willing to date a transgender girl. What she really wants is to be her parents loving daughter, her little brother’s big sister, David’s girlfriend and to get into a good college. Christina is just a simple girl coming of age and like a butterfly she too must transform and spread her wings.

Missy is really excited to start second grade. While enjoying the first day's walk to school, a lovely butterfly suddenly swoops down and lands upon her hair-bow. She shoos him off, but he comes back to circle around several times. Every day after that, Mr. Flutterby Butterfly shows up with more and more of his friends, until Missy is fed up with all the fluttering insects pestering her. Then her mom has an idea for Missy to try which gets rid of them for the whole weekend. Now Missy is so lonely that she just wants them to come back, but she can't find them anywhere. Finally she has a brainstorm, tries it only to find it doesn't work - or so she thinks - until the schoolchildren show her otherwise.

“A heartbreaking, finger-gnawing, and yet ultimately hopeful novel by the amazing Rene Denfeld.” —Margaret Atwood, via Twitter After captivating readers in The Child Finder, Naomi—the investigator with an uncanny ability for finding missing children—returns, trading snow-covered woods for dark, gritty streets on the search for her missing sister in a city where young, homeless girls have been going missing and turning up dead. From the highly praised author of The Child Finder and The Enchanted comes The Butterfly Girl, a riveting novel that ripples with truth, exploring the depths of love and sacrifice in the face of a past that cannot be left dead and buried. A year ago, Naomi, the investigator with an uncanny ability for finding missing children, made a promise that she would not take another case until she finds the younger sister who has been missing for years. Naomi has no picture, not even a name. All she has is a vague memory of a strawberry field at night, black dirt under her bare feet as she ran for her life. The search takes her to Portland, Oregon, where scores of homeless children wander the streets like ghosts, searching for money, food, and companionship. The sharp-eyed investigator soon discovers that young girls have been going missing for months, many later found in the dirty waters of the river. Though she does not want to get involved, Naomi is unable to resist the pull of children in need—and the fear she sees in the eyes of a twelve-year old girl named Celia. Running from an abusive stepfather and an addict mother, Celia has nothing but hope in the butterflies—her guides and guardians on the dangerous streets. She sees them all around her, tiny iridescent wisps of hope that soften the edges of this hard world and illuminate a cherished memory from her childhood—the Butterfly Museum, a place where everything is safe and nothing can hurt her. As danger creeps closer, Naomi and Celia find echoes of themselves in one another, forcing them each to consider the question: Can you still be lost even when you’ve been found? But will they find the answer too late?

The closest he will ever come to happiness is when he's hurting her. Will she let him? A beautiful and twisted story of first love and innocence lost -- written when the author was just eighteen. Sphinxie and Cadence. Promised to each other in childhood. Drawn together again as teens. Sphinxie is sweet, compassionate, and plain. Cadence is brilliant, charismatic. Damaged. And diseased. When they were kids, he scarred her with a knife. Now, as his illness progresses, he becomes increasingly demanding. She wants to be loyal -- but fears for her life. Only the ultimate sacrifice will give this love an ending.