While bullies are beating up Charlie, his ex–bestfriend Jake pulls up in a bright red ’67 Mustang—the principal’s car—and tells him to get in. It’s a choice between a broken nose and the risk of a lifetime, and Charlie, a self-described straight-A student and grade-A geek, decides to take a chance. Now the two teens are on a mission to find Charlie’s absent father and avoid arrest for car theft. An eventful journey puts Charlie in the middle of a court case 1,000 miles from home. And in the courtroom, he will have to make the ultimate choice of his life.

In this “fast-paced adventure filled with thoughtful life lessons” (School Library Journal), becoming a real boy is just the beginning. Since he changed, Pino has struggled to live a quiet life with his father Gepetto. But a boy who used to be a wooden puppet doesn’t fit in well with the other villagers. When Pino creates a replica of Gepetto’s late wife and brings it to life, the two are chased out of their village by an angry mob demanding the resurrection of their own loved ones. On the run with a dying Gepetto, Pino must face a world that would seek to use—and misuse—him for his powers. And when Pino discovers that his abilities are slowly transforming him back into a puppet, he faces a choice: strike a deal with those who only want to use him, or stand up for who he really is.

This book provides a wealth of read-aloud titles and related activities that provide busy teachers with the tools to help students in grades K–12 become successful writers. Teachers can always benefit from new techniques that allow them to teach writing in a more engaging and enjoyable manner, and a resource that identifies a plethora of excellent children's books that help students become successful writers would also be helpful. Books That Teach Kids to Write introduces busy educators to the finest in children's literature in all genres, appropriate for readers in grades K through 12; and provides effective ideas for using those books to stimulate and improve student writing. This book discusses language use and other critical components of good writing, showcasing the children's books and specific activities that can help both primary and secondary school students. Included reproducibles for the writing exercises make lesson planning simple, while the sheer number of titles discussed and the extensive bibliographies provided minimize the time teachers must spend researching books to use with their students. An appendix includes more writing instruction resources, such as children's books, websites, and professional texts.

Years after his wife dies in a mafia hit gone wrong, Garrison Gage finally pieces together a life for himself in the Oregon coastal town of Barnacle Bluffs. Some days the cranky private investigator with the bum knee and the caustic wit could even call himself content. Maybe even happy. But marrying again? Never. Yet not long after quirky Rita Rodriguez enters the scene, Gage can't imagine life without her. Unfortunately, when dark secrets violently emerge—involving first loves, tragic loss, and, strangest of all, a Spanish galleon that sunk in 1642 loaded with treasure—their relationship enters turbulent waters. Worse, the same deadly undertow that drags Gage into the darkness also threatens everyone around him. His friends. His enemies. Even the town itself . . .

The dead do not dream. A week before Christmas, John and Laura Ray storm into Myron's office, desperate to find their missing daughter. Money? They don't have any. Clues? They have few. Plagued by mounting bills and a skull-crushing migraine, Portland's only ghost detective wants nothing more than to show them the door. But defying his conscience always proves tougher to Myron Vale than saying no, and he soon finds himself embroiled in one of the strangest cases of his career. The more he learns about this unique little girl and all of her extraordinary abilities, the more he feels a kinship to her. Who took Olivia Ray? And why? The answers propel him toward a tantalizing solution to all of his problems — and a violent clash with a powerful personality, one who can cause irreparable harm to not just Myron, but everyone he loves.

Gage hates birthdays. So when his daughter throws him a surprise party on the coldest night the Oregon coastal town of Barnacle Bluffs has seen in years, Gage finds himself in an equally frosty mood. And when a police cruiser stops him as he trudges along Highway 101, minding his own business, he can't imagine the night could get any worse. Oh, but it does. For the cranky private investigator with the bum knee, it can always get worse. When the cops collar one of the people closest to Gage for murder, the desperate hours ahead become a frantic push to right a presumed injustice. Add in a daughter’s secret life, a bad boy Hollywood star, and a troubled new police chief with something to prove, and the night doesn't just get worse. It forces a quickly unraveling Gage to choose between cold, uncomfortable truths—about himself, about someone he loves—and shallow but comforting deceptions.

Win the lottery? Congrats! You get to fight the dragon—to the death! Each summer, the kingdom of Dunbury holds a lottery. The prize? The right to face the Black Dragon in a fight to the death. Nobody ever returns. Widespread hunger. Banned Books. Harsh royal decrees to keep the citizens in line. After nearly fifty years, the poor, downtrodden people in the isolated country between the mountains and the sea have lost all hope. Somehow, mysteriously, the cruel King Goodheart controls the dragon. And with the dragon, no one dares defy him. Until thirteen-year-old Lucky Grayblock, the clumsy, gangly, decidedly unlucky assistant in the dusty old library, finally becomes eligible for the dragon lottery … and discovers one last chance to turn everyone’s luck around. “Scott is one of those rare writers who can and does cross genres, and do it well. You never know what kind of story you’ll get from him, but you do know that it’ll be good.” — Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Hugo Award-Winning Writer and Editor