DANCE FOR THE ALLIGATOR is a window into the minds of key characters in a grisly murder. The story is set in a small town on Floridas west coast. LOVELY KNIGHT is a bawdy but beautiful, nude, dancing girl. As ELLIE ROSSI, she goes home to a quiet, middle class, lakeside, residential development from a nights work at the local, sleazy, exotic dancing lounge known as the Death Valley Lounge and Liquor. NEIL BARNES, a senior detective in the Sheriffs office, Town of Newport, has a difficult time reconciling the story of the lovely wife and mother, with the dancer notorious for her horse and rider routine. The guys play galloping music, make neighing sounds, and paw the floor with one foot when I do the horse with my hands on my knees and my ass facing the crowd, blonde pony tail swinging. ALISON COOPER, an attractive tourist from London who is also a detective back home, arrives on the scene and is pleased to help Neil with his case. The moment he looked at her he hoped she would play and even more important part in his life. Meanwhile a cunning, sociopathic murderer, is laughing up his sleeve because his impeccable reputation and his ingenious method of getting rid of the body is shielding him from suspicion. He is depending on his friends, the alligators, but whose side are they on? The first-person presentation of DANCE FOR THE ALLIGATOR enables the reader to look into the psyche of all the characters, showing places where meanness, fear, jealousy, and aberrant sexual desire hide. What is the clue that finally makes Neil think the unthinkable? In which arena will he find the murderer? Will it be the boisterous, sweaty, smokey, lounge or the quiet, neighborhood around Orange Lake?

When an alligator shows up to class one day, Mrs. Iraina and her ballet students are very suprised. But she is able to follow along, so they decide it's okay for her to join. The class starts calling her Tanya and even creates a new dance to showcase her larger-than-life talents and big, swishy tail: "The Legend of the Swamp Queen." Tanya has the starring role.

After Tina's pet alligator Alberto accidentally goes down the toilet, she has to find a way to save him from the city's alligator hunters.

With the same piercing vision that distinguishes her novel The River Beyond The World, Janet Peery unveils a stunning collection of stories. Settled mostly in the American Southwest, her characters-men and women caught between two places, literal and figurative-try to understand the mysteries that overarch or undergird their lives.

Saving wildlife is an everyday, ever-changing challenge. Early summer is nesting time for the alligators in Florida's Manasota State Park. Head Ranger Seth Grayson takes a group of visitors to eon a two-mile hike to Gator Hollow, a gathering place for hundreds of gators. The group makes a horrible discovery. Partial remains from an alligator attack are found along with several nests empty. It's evident. Poachers have invaded the park. Grayson, a Seminole Indian, values his heritage but chooses to live in the white man's world. Alligators and all wildlife have special significance for him. He knows he will need help to catch whoever sent this young victim to his death. Officer Liz Corday of Florida's Conservation Commission arrives to help catch and prosecute the poachers. A devoted officer, her trust issues with men pose a possible relationship barrier between her and Seth. Tracking down the head of the huge interstate poaching operation, Seth and Liz risk all, even their lives, to bring these criminals to justice. Seth goes undercover at the Myakka alligator Farm, hoping to learn more about the operation and find evidence Liz can use to bring charges against the poachers. Meanwhile, Liz is harassed and threatened. A large rattlesnake is found in her vehicle, and a dead raccoon is left dripping blood on the hood a night later. Things get complicated, as they find there is more on their mind than catching the poachers but don't know how far to go with their feelings.

The nightmare's gone, but what about that alligator? You have to be so careful getting in and out of bed! Maybe a midnight snack to lure him into the garage will do the trick. In this funny and beloved follow-up, Mercer Mayer faces another nighttime fear head-on.

A wacky collection of busy creatures are described in rhyme after rhyme.