"Estrild is not like the other girls in her village; she wants to be a warrior. Varick, the orphan boy who helps her train in spite of his twisted back, also stands apart. In a world where differences are poorly tolerated, just how much danger are they in?"-- Estrild is not like the other girls in her village; she wants to be a warrior. Varick, the orphan boy who helps her train in spite of his twisted back, also stands apart. In a world where differences...

Mouse Mistress Hildegarde musters all her ingenuity to keep a large colony of church mice safe from the exterminator and to see that they make it through the dangerous Blessing of the Animals.

Ready for romance, thirteen-year-old Anastasia answers an ad in the personals with an exaggerated description of herself but soon runs into trouble when the unknown man turns up at a friend's wedding.

More adventures of thirteen-year-old Anastasia Krupnick as she tries to deal with a new dog, her school values class, and a personal moral dilemma.

In this fascinating, moving autobiography, Lois Lowry explores her rich history through personal photographs, memories, and recollections of her childhood. Lowry's writing often transports readers into other worlds. Now, we have the rare opportunity to travel into a real world that is her own--her life. This new edition features a refreshed design, an introduction by New York Times best-selling author Alice Hoffman, and original material from Lois...

Gooney Bird's Great Uncle Walter lends her second grade class a skeleton while they study human anatomy, and at the end of the month the students use Gooney Bird's charm bracelet to present all they have learned.

When her father goes to fight in World War II, Elizabeth goes with her mother and sister to her grandfather's house where she learns to face up to the always puzzling and often cruel realities of the adult world.

Eleven-year-old Sophia endeavors to prevent her increasingly forgetful eighty-eight-year-old neighbor and best friend Sophie from entering assisted living, and in the process, uncovers unexpected stories of war, loss, and hope.

Schoolboys marooned on a tropical island revert to primitive savagery. ''Get ready for an adventure tale in its purest form, a thrilling and elegantly told account of a group of British schoolboys marooned on a tropical island. Alone in a world of uncharted possibilities, devoid of adult supervision or rules, the boys begin to forge their own society, their own rules, their own rituals. With this seemingly romantic premise, and through the seemingly...

A collection of previously unpublished pieces by 32 contemporary writers who share their thoughts about biblical passages they find personally meaningful. Includes contributions by Lois Lowry, Kathleen Norris, Edwidge Danticat, Tobias Wolff and Ian Frazier.