All Curtis wants is a dog.

At the animal shelter, Curtis falls in love with Sammy, a friendly puppy with curly black fur, floppy ears, a wagging tail, and perfect white teeth. He's the best dog in the whole world.

At home, things are different-Sammy steals food and chews sneakers and toys-but Curtis loves him anyway. Then Sammy bites Curtis's mom, and Curtis has to face the fact that Sammy's not perfect after all.

Will Curtis have to give Sammy up? Or will he do whatever it takes to keep his dog?

"What is your name?"

That's what Nora asks her neighbors as she rides up and down the elevator of her apartment house. She doesn't mean to be a busybody. She just wants to be like doorman Henry and know all the people in her building--all 200 of them! And then one day Nora gets a great idea: they'll have a giant party, for everyone in the building!

When a childhood illness leaves her blind and deaf, Helen Keller's life seems hopeless indeed. But her indomitable will and the help of a devoted teacher empower Helen to triumph over incredible adversity. This amazing true story is finally brought to the beginner reader level.  

Fourth-grader Chaya Ann Tober loves cats. Even her initials, C.A.T., are perfect for her!She feels so cat-like herself that when her actual cat Ollie, a very picky eater, refuses to eat a mysterious new kind of cat food, she tries to encourage him by tasting a tiny bit of it herself (and finds it, surprisingly, not awful.) That night Chaya has the craziest dream--she dreams she really has become a cat, one with orange fur, the exact color of her own hair. Or is it a dream? Join in the adventures as C.A.T. and her annoying older brother Daniel use some magical food to become cats, prowl their neighborhood at night, prevent a cat-astrophe, and see each other in a whole new light. A purr-fect chapter book for early grade readers (ages 7-9) who like animals and fantasy adventure, even if they are pickier eaters than C.A.T.

Eight-year-old David Bernstein discovers life is much more exciting when he calls himself Ali Baba Bernstein. Only Ali Baba would have dared to grab the class snail and escape to the boys' room for his own magic experiment. David would never have invited every David Bernstein in the phone book to his birthday party -- or find himself hailed as a great detective -- or discover adventures and misadventures everywhere he went. But Ali Baba Bernstein does!

For ages 8 and up "

Anne Frank loved to play tennis and swim. She enjoyed being with her friends in school and couldn't resist chattering during class. But, tragically, Anne was growing up in Holland during the Second World War, when all European Jews lived in grave danger. When Dutch Jews were forced to leave their homes, Anne and her family found a hiding place.

Anne kept a diary in which she described the two years of their secret life. After the war ended, the diary was found and published. Her innocent account of the horrors of war was widely read, and it touched readers all over the world. This biography tells about Anne's family and their lives before the Second World War, the Nazi persecution of Jews, and Anne's years in hiding.
Johanna Hurwitz's readable, direct style enables young readers to share Anne's childhood dreams and to feel the tension of the years that followed. The realistic black-and-white drawings by Vera Rosenberry bring Anne Frank even closer to readers' hearts.

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"This unique collection of short stories celebrates the creative power of imagination. At Hurwitz's invitation 10 well-known children's authors have written pieces based on a single premise: a young person finds an empty box among his or her birthday gifts. The enormously varied responses range in tone from amusing to heartwarmingly sad; all provide food for thought....An excellent surprise package."--School Library Journal.