Originally published: New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, c1990.

A young hero and his professor friend set out to save a priest from a ghost, in this novel by the author of The House with a Clock in Its Walls Aside from the eccentric Professor Childermass, young sleuth Johnny Dixon’s best friend may be Father Higgins, the kindly priest at the local church. When Higgins is transferred to the congregation in the tiny town of Rocks Village, Johnny and the professor are afraid they won’t see their old friend ever again. But they’ll be reuniting with Father Higgins sooner than they think—and the thing that brings them together will be positively out of this world. No sooner has Father Higgins moved than he begins seeing a ghost lurking around the church. The apparition is a young girl who never speaks, but has a habit of leaving cryptic notes around Higgins’s house. When Higgins disappears, Johnny and the professor follow his trail, embarking on a haunting quest that will lead them all the way to England. In The Secret of the Underground Room, this multimillion-selling, Edgar Award–winning author offers a good old-fashioned ghost story packed with adventure and suspense.

Achim is eleven years old when he moves from the orphanage to the house by the sea. Here everything is strange and new. But one day he discovers an unusual door that leads to a circular room with walls made of rough stone. The light coming through the window is hazy, as if the room is under water. It is a magic room—which he calls “The Adopted Room”—belonging to another world. And on a bed in the room sits a boy who is waiting to take Achim with him into the realm of the powerful Nameless One. Achim learns that the boy, Arnim, is the long-dead son of Achim’s new parents. When he died in a car accident at the age of four, Arnim was supposed to have become a bird and flown free to the land of the dead, which can be seen through the window of The Adopted Room. But the Nameless One has somehow locked Arnim inside, so he cannot leave. Achim, however, finds he can turn into a bird, slip through the window, and fly across the strange land. And thus begins a journey in which Achim must fight the Nameless One and free Arnim so he can finally leave his parents and they can let go of their grief. Antonia Michaelis’s fresh voice helps to address the delicate issues of death, grief, and mourning, portraying them as an essential part of life. The Secret Room is full of humor and adventure, but also brings to light these difficult life issues in a way that young readers can understand. The first in a trilogy, with its sequel, The Secret of the Twelfth Continent, to follow next spring, this captivating mid-grade novel is sure to become a favorite series with young readers.

Themes: Moving, Sibling Relationships, Friendship, Fitting In, Supernatural, Mystery, Fiction, Tween, Chapter Book, Hi-Lo, Hi-Lo Books, Hi-Lo Solutions, High-Low Books, Hi-Low Books, ELL, EL, ESL, Struggling Learner, Struggling Reader, Special Education, SPED, Newcomers, Reading, Learning, Education, Educational, Educational Books. When a relative she never knew passes away, Tenleyês life gets turned upside down. Her dad inherits his auntês home and antique shop. But both are in the gloomy town of Scarecrow, California. Tenley has to leave her whole life behind and start over at a new school. Not only does her brother embarrass her on the first day, but she also becomes the target of a bully. Just when it seems like things canêt get any worse, she makes a strange discovery at her parentsê antique shop. Thereês a secret room filled with creepy objects„and one of them is up to no good. Will Tenley be able to solve the mystery of the secret room before anyone gets hurt? In the fictional town of Scarecrow, California, tweens keep discovering mysterious and sometimes magical objects at the Vintage Rose Antique Shop. When they take these objects home, strange things begin to happen. Does the family who inherited the store have an active imagination? Or is the store really haunted? Each story is a tale about a specific relic found at the store. Stories will appeal to the most reluctant reader who enjoys the mysterious and somewhat creepy.

Travel under the streets of London with this lavishly illustrated exploration of abandoned, modified, and reused Underground tunnels, stations, and architecture.

A timely and powerful time-slip story inspired by the author's family in Budapest during the Holocaust Louie lives with her brothers, Bert and Teddy, in a hotel run by their grandparents. It is one of Sydney's grand old buildings, rich in history ... and in secrets. When a rose-gold locket, once thought lost, is uncovered, it sends Louie and her brothers spinning back in time. Back to a world at war: Budapest in the winter of 1944, where their grandparents are hiding secrets of their own ... From bestselling author Susanne Gervay comes a heart-racing timeslip story inspired by her own family's escape from Budapest during the Holocaust. AWARDS Longlisted - ARA Historical Novel Prize 2021 (Children's and Young Adult Category) PRAISE 'Impossible to stop reading' -- Jackie French 'A story of light and love and exceptional courage' -- Ursula Dubosarsky 'Riveting, encouraging, and authentic, Heroes of the Secret Underground introduces the topic of World War II in a fresh and enlightening way. My heart was left racing after each page turn, and I'm sure you'll feel the same way too.' --Better Reading