Giraffe is bored, as usual. Hed love a friend to share things with. So he writes a letter and sends it as far as possible across the other side of the horizon. There he finds a pen palPenguin. Giraffe knows nothing about penguins and his letters are full of questions. Where is a penguins neck? Can a penguin fly? Penguin answers as best he can. But no one expects what happens when the pen pals come face to face at last. Yours Sincerely, Giraffe is a funny tale of mistaken assumptions and friendship.

A comic-style chapter book about sibling rivalry and a child's impulse to run away from home-and come back again! "When my potato-faced baby brother arrived, I realized I needed a new family. No one seemed to mind when I packed my bag. I took a box and used my best handwriting to write 'FREE KID', then waited for some new parents to take me home." Waiting in a box like an abandoned pet and encountering the passersby changes the girl's perspective. At the end of the day, when her parents pretend they need an older sister for their new baby, she is ready to leave her box and go happily back home. This comical twist on sibling rivalry is translated from an enduring Japanese bestseller, now in its 31st edition and at last available in English. This accessible story is perfect for children starting on independent reading and is illustrated in a graphic comic style that captures childlike subversive humour. Ideal for fans of Charles Schulz's Peanuts comic strip. A useful book to teach young children about welcoming a new baby sibling to the family, or exploring playful sibling relationships, through funny and lighthearted storytelling.

Ten years have passed since the events of The Beast Player. Elin and Ialu are married, with a young son, living a quiet, peaceful life when one day Elin is called upon to investigate a matter of great urgency: the fearsome Toda are dying and nobody knows why. As Elin investigates, she uncovers a deadly plot and a brewing invasion. Can she protect her homeland without allowing her beloved beasts to be used as weapons of war, or will she have to compromise her principles to save her family?

A light-as-a-feather story to share with the very young, told in shapes and colours Look! A white butterfly! Flit and flutter through the blue sky. The butterfly comes to rest on a flower, and-pop-the flower opens. Pop! Pop! Pop! All the flowers open: red, blue yellow, pink, orange... Flutter flit through the sky. The butterfly lands on a cat, and ... meeeoow! Let's play! Look, a Butterfly! is a simple, appealing board book told in shapes and colours.

Erin's family have an important responsibility: caring for the Toda, fearsome water serpents who form the core of their Lord's army. So when a number of Toda mysteriously die, it is Erin's mother who takes the blame, and the punishment - she is sentenced to death. Before she dies she manages to use an ancient forbidden power to send Erin to safety - leaving her daughter alone, far from home but with the knowledge that both she and her mother are somehow different.

Soon, Erin finds she can talk to both the terrifying Toda and the majestic Royal Beasts, who protect the supreme queen of her realm. This knowledge gives her great power, but it also involves her in deadly plots and political gameplaying that she wants no part of. Can Erin save herself and prevent her beloved beasts from being used as tools of war, or is there no way of avoiding the terrible battles to come?

Kiyama and his friends Kawabe and Yamashita become fascinated and curious about death when Yamashita's grandmother dies. Hoping to see death firsthand, they spy on an old man who looks like he will die soon. But while they watch the old man, he watches them. Soon their fascination for each other turns into a friendship that will change their lives forever. An ALA Notable Children's Book. A "Boston Globe-Horn Book" Award winner.