On their own... Frankie, Earl, and Angela aren't excited about spending the summer with Aunt Lula while their dad's away. But they have no idea just how bad it will be. When Lula disappears, the kids have no food, no money-- and no one to take care of them. Someone has to take charge. Since Earl is the oldest, he feels responsible. His older cousin, Wayne, shows him how to steal bikes. It's a great way to make money, and Earl is desperate. But stealing bikes is not all Wayne does. And when he asks Earl to join him in a new money-making scheme, Earl is torn. It feels bad, but he needs the money. And no one is watching...

Fighting off a pack of starving wolves, wrestling alligators in the swamp, romping with bear cubs, drawing off the venom of a giant rattlesnake bite with the heart of a fresh-killed deer--it's all in a day's work for the Baxter family of the Florida scrublands. But young Jody Baxter is not content with these electrifying escapades, or even with the cozy comfort of home with Pa and Ma. He wants a pet, a friend with whom he can share his quiet cogitations and his corn pone. Jody gets his pet, a frisky fawn he calls Flag, but that's not all. With Flag comes a year of life lessons, frolicking times, and achingly hard decisions. This powerful book is as compelling now as when it was written over 60 years ago. Read simply as a naturalist study of the Florida interior, it fascinates and entices. Add the heart-stopping adventure and heart-wrenching human elements, and this is a classic well worth its Pulitzer Prize. Earthy dialect and homespun wisdom season the story, giving it a unique and unforgettable flavor, and N.C. Wyeth's warm, soft illustrations capture an era of rough subsistence and sweet survival. (Ages 12 and older) --Emilie Coulter

While going through the possessions of a deceased guest who owed them money, the mistress of the inn and her son find a treasure map that leads to a pirate fortune as well as great danger.

While reluctantly attending a Vikings football game with his father, fourteen-year-old Zack Gilman finds himself transported to ninth-century Scandinavia amongst Vikings that look like people he knows and who see him as the fulfillment of a prophecy that will help them solve the riddle of Yggdrasil's chest.While attending a Vikings football game with his father, Zack finds himself transported to ninth-century Scandinavia amongst Vikings who see him as the fulfillment of a prophecy that will help them solve the riddle of Yggdrasil's chest.