Read the first book in the New York Times bestselling The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series, perfect for fans of The Maze Runner and Percy Jackson and the Olympians. He holds the secret that can end the world. The truth: Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on September 28, 1330. Nearly 700 years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. The records show that he died in 1418. But his tomb is empty. The legend: Nicholas Flamel lives. But only because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects—the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. That's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it. Sometimes legends are true. And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time. Praise for The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series: The Alchemyst [STAR] “[A] A riveting fantasy…While there is plenty here to send readers rushing to their encyclopedias…those who read the book at face value will simply be caught up in the enthralling story. A fabulous read.”—School Library Journal, Starred The Magician [STAR] “Readers will be swept up by a plot that moves smartly along, leaving a wide trailer of destruction and well-timed revelations.”—Kirkus Reveiws, Starred The Sorceress “Master yarnspinner that he is, Scott expertly cranks up the suspense while keeping his now-large cast in quick motion….This page –turner promises plenty of action to come.”— Kirkus Reviews The Necromancer “Unrelenting forward momentum….This book will thrill fans.”— School Library Journal

Once upon a time, back at Darrow-Harker School, Beatrice Hartley and her six best friends were the cool kids, the beautiful ones. Then the shocking death of Jim—their creative genius and Beatrice's boyfriend—changed everything. One year after graduation, Beatrice is returning to Wincroft—the seaside estate where they spent so many nights sharing secrets, crushes, plans to change the world—hoping she'll get to the bottom of the dark questions gnawing at her about Jim’s death. But as the night plays out in a haze of stilted jokes and unfathomable silence, Beatrice senses she’s never going to know what really happened. Then a mysterious man knocks on the door. Blithely, he announces the impossible: time for them has become stuck, snagged on a splinter that can only be removed if the former friends make the harshest of decisions. Now Beatrice has one last shot at answers... and at life. And so begins the Neverworld Wake.

Three months. Three guys. One amazing summer. Summer Smith is in for the best summer of her life. Between the cold weather and her boyfriendless existence in Minnesota, Summer is ready for sun, sand, and boys in the Florida Keys. And by the end of the first day, she has more than enough to keep her busy: Adam, the senator's son, has looks, power, and all the money in the world. Diver, the mystery man, is mellow, intriguing, and definitely unique. And Seth, the perfect guy...only he has a girlfriend. But with new friends, cute guys, and miles of hot white sand, Summer's in for more trouble than she thinks....

Freeze! This is Nancy's coldest mystery yet! It's winter break, and Nancy, George, and Bess can hardly wait for Sunday. That's the day of the big snow festival in town. This year the girls are entering the snow sculpture contest. They already know what they are making, too: They are going to build swans from the ballet Swan Lake! Nancy and her friends only have three days to make the most fantastic sculpture they can. But when someone begins wrecking their statues each night, the girls worry that they'll never finish in time. Will Nancy and her friends put the freeze on this sneak in the snow, or will their chances of winning the competition melt away?

HardPress Classic Books SeriesHardPress Classic Books Series

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A GREAT DIGGER Of course, Benny Badger had the best of reasons for living on the high, dry plains. There he had for neighbors plenty of ground squirrels and prairie dogs. And it is likely that he enjoyed their company much more than they did his. If anyone had asked them, those little wild people would no doubt have confessed that they wished Benny Badger was somewhere else. But their wishes meant nothing to Benny—if he knew anything of them. Although he couldn't help noticing that his small neighbors hurried into their homes whenever they caught sight of him, Benny never took the hint and went away. On the contrary, when he spied a prairie dog or a ground squirrel disappearing into his burrow Benny was more than ready to go right in after him. Now, the tunnels that led to the houses of those smaller folk were too small to admit anybody as bulky as Benny Badger. But that difficulty never hindered Benny. Digging was the easiest thing he did. He had a powerful body, short, stout legs, and big feet, which bore long, strong claws. And when he started to dig his way into somebody else's home he certainly did make the dirt fly. He was so fond of digging that he even dug countless holes of his own, just for the fun it gave him—so far as anybody could find out. And if he had only left other folk's holes alone some of his neighbors would not have objected to his favorite sport. For more than one fox and coyote had been known to make his home in a hole dug by Benny Badger. And, though they never took the trouble to thank him for saving them work, they often chuckled about his odd way of having fun, and remarked among themselves that Benny must be a stupid fellow. If they really thought that, they made a great mistake. To be sure, at anything except digging he was slow and awkward. He was too heavy and squat to be spry on his feet—to chase and catch his more nimble neighbors. But no one that knew much about Benny Badger would have said that his wits were dull. They were sharp. And so, too, were his teeth, which he never hesitated to use in a fight. Left alone, Benny Badger—when he wasn't too hungry—was a peaceable person. But if a dog ever tried to worry him Benny had a most unpleasant way of seizing his annoyer with his powerful jaws and holding the poor creature as if he never intended to let him go. Cornered, Benny knew no such thing as fear. He had the heart of a lion, and jaws like a steel trap. And no wise dog ever let Benny get a good, firm grip on him. Usually no one saw Benny Badger except at night. He seldom left his den in the daytime except to sun himself. And even then not many noticed him. Though he did not hide when anyone surprised him while taking a sun-bath, he had a trick of lying flat in the grass without moving. And it took a sharp eye to spy him when he lay low in that fashion. Curled up asleep, with his long fur on end, he looked too comfortable to disturb. At least, that was what the ground squirrels thought. And if one of those busy little fellows ever paused to stare curiously at Benny when he was having a nap in the warm sunshine, Benny Badger had only to awake and turn his head toward the onlooker to make him scamper for home as fast as he could go....

“A Little Maid of Old Maine” is a true story of the brave effort of two girls to bring help to a little settlement on the Maine coast at the time of the War of the Revolution. Parson Lyon, the father of Melvina, was a friend and correspondent of Washington, and the capture of the English gunboat by the Machias men is often referred to in history as “The Lexington of the Seas,” being the first naval battle after the Lexington encounter. The story is based on facts, and its readers cannot fail to be interested and touched by the courage and patriotism of Rebecca and Anna Weston as they journeyed through the forest after the powder that was to make possible the conquest of America’s foe. “A brave effort made by a little girl and her sister to bring help to a small settlement on the Maine coast at the time of the War of the Revolution. The plot is interspersed with events of historical interest, but not in the cut-and-dried textbook manner.” -Publishers Weekly “In a very pretty story for younger girls Alice Turner Curtis goes back to the days of the War of the Revolution and tells of the bravery of a small girl and her sister in those troubled times. ‘A Little Maid of Old Maine’ is the book’s title and its children bring help to a little settlement on the Maine coast. Throughout the unfolding of the plot there are bits of interesting history so that while the story is one of pure recreation it also contains things worth remembering.” -The Bookseller “A well-written story of the Revolutionary war in which the main incident is the first naval engagement of the war.” -Book Bulletin of the Chicago Public Library

‘Something from the menu?’ she asked.‘No, thank you.’ The boy held up a newspaper. He had scrawled a message on the front page: the passenger behind me has a gun.‘Something from the menu?’ Aravinya asked the pre-teen boy in seat 9A.‘No, thank you.’ The boy held up a newspaper. He had scrawled a message on the front page in thick black marker pen: the passenger behind me has a gun.This short story was written before a live audience and features characters from The Cut Out, a bestselling middle-grade action thriller which was shortlisted for multiple awards.

So I agreed to play the part of Esther Rackham in a film about the heist that gave River Heights its name, and there was all this trouble on the set, and I figured out who was behind it. Case closed, right? Wrong! Once the camera starts rolling, a huge fire breaks out on the set, setting back production again. We're running out of time and funds. At least the fire turns up a key clue about who started it, but I'll have to continue juggling acting and sleuthing. Because it might be up to me to save this film from going up in flames....

What's going on with the BSC? Meetings have never been like this before. Members are showing up late, arguing about jobs, even pushing to get rid of Friday meetings. Extra schoolwork is making everybody tense, too. Then a favorite sitting charge gets hurt, right under Kristy's nose. It feels like the last straw to Kristy. Maybe she's not such a good sitter--and maybe the Baby-sitters Club isn't such a great idea. But Kristy wouldn't disband the club. . .would she?

An exciting new series about those adorable pets that just won't behave--it's Marley & Me for middle-grade readers! Parker hadn't considered getting a dog, but when playful Merlin, the golden retriever, comes into his life, Parker is thrilled. The two are inseparable from day one--because whenever Parker tries to leave, Merlin escapes his fence or cage and follows him! Can anything make this loveable dog sit and STAY?

Noble is a knight with a heart that's true and, well, noble. With his not-so-trusty sword, Smite, he fights his way through a vicious, unfriendly landscape, sure (or at least, he thinks he's sure) that one day he'll defeat the bad guys (whoever they are) and win the heart (at least he guesses that's the idea) of a beautiful princess. Then one day Rufus comes along and turns his world upside down. Rufus has his own ideas about how to get ahead: don't fight, negotiate! Don't play by the rules! Suddenly, life is more interesting--and less painful--than ever before. But the new rules are harder to live by than the old ones, and suddenly, it appears possible that Rufus might have an ulterior motive--at the very least! With a slippery, ever twisting plot that is set inside a very confused computer, Catherine Jinks's latest novel will pull in fans of adventure, computer games, and just plain fun. Releases simultaneously in electronic book format (ISBN 978-1-60684-284-3)

Kids are disappearing at Bixby Elementary, and no one knows why. But that’s only the second strangest thing happening inside the crumbling inner city school.Kids are disappearing at Bixby Elementary, and no one knows why. But that’s only the second strangest thing happening inside the crumbling inner city school.Who’s responsible? That’s just what Drew and the rest of the Zero Avenue brats want to know, but are they ready for what they’ll find? Because finding out means unraveling the threads of a conspiracy that blurs the line between myth and science, and between friends and enemies. Because finding out draws them into an adventure that tests their character, and their loyalties to each other. Seeing Harley selected for the Vice-Principal’s Special Studies program triggers Drew’s suspicions—and his jealousy. Digging deeper, he traces the program’s tangled roots to clandestine research carried out during WWII. Driven by their sense of loyalty, Drew and the rest of the brats follow the program’s long shadow from the war’s twilight, to the present day and the abandoned amusement park where they get one last chance to right a wrong decades in the making.

A camp-out trip is almost spoiled by loud music and the disappearance of a lantern—and Grandfather.