Manukau City Council - Your Library

The city of Grimsdon is in ruins. Three years ago the sea surged toward it, bloating its river and sending waves stampeding into its grand, historic centre. While many were rescued, others disappeared in the panic and swell. The lost, the poor and the orphaned were left behind and moved into the upper floors of damp city buildings and opulent mansions - the only levels of the city's buildings which still rise above the water. One of the lost is Isabella Charm. Separated from her parents when the floods struck, she is the reluctant 12-year-old leader of a group of children who hide out in a lavish top-floor mansion. Along with her friend Griffin, a brilliantly intelligent boy who desperately hides his crush on Isabella, and Xavier, a plucky, thrill-seeking newcomer, Isabella and her gang scavenge for food and supplies, avoid the bounty hunters, and deal with Byron P. Sneddon, the self-appointed protector of the flooded harbour. Will the fabled Kraken, monster of the deep, come to Grimsdon? And what is Xavier's secret that will put them all in danger?

For upper primary school age.

When Shrek does a deal with the dastardly Rumpelstiltskin, he gets more than he bargains for. All he wanted was to be a feared ogre again, just for a day, but instead he gets to experience a world where no one knows his name and it's like he never even existed ...Can Shrek save the day and rid Far Far Away from the tiny tyrant? Maybe with a little help from his friends --Publisher's description.

The Marvelous Land of Oz is the story of the wonderful adventures of a young boy named Tip as he travels throughout its many lands and meets old friends and new.

Seventh-graders Sophie, Margaret, Rebecca, and Leigh Ann follow a trail of cryptic clues to locate a rare violin, catch the person sneaking into St. Veronica's School for late-night cleaning and redecorating, and outsmart a conniving classmate.

For a town in the middle of the desert, Kanigher Falls has been awfully cold lately. Sixth grader Nate Banks knows something odd is going on, especially when it starts to snow, and the snow smells like rotten cabbage! It's clear that the supervillian Coldsnap is on the loose. Nate thinks he knows how to defeat him, but superhero Ultraviolet thinks the case is too dangerous. When Coldsnap goes after an American treasure and Ultraviolet can't go it alone, it's up to Nate and his friends to save the day! --Publisher's description.

008-012.

Adorable silver-blue bunny Arrow is the keeper of the magic key that keeps Moonglow Meadow lush and beautiful so that many bunnies can live there happily. But the key is under threat and so Arrow must flee the meadow to keep it safe and hide in our world. Can Arrow find a little girl to look after him and be a special friend.

Ages 8+

Adorable black and white spotted bunny Arrow is the keeper of the magic key that keeps Moonglow Meadow lush and beautiful so that many bunnies can live there happily. But the key is under threat and so Arrow must flee the meadow to keep it safe and hide in our world. Can Arrow find a little girl to look after him and be a special friend?

Ages 8+

The Five Find-Outers are on the trail again in the mystery of Banshee Towers. Fatty, Pip, Larry, Daisy and Bets are kept busy as is Mr Goon, the policeman.

The five Find-Outers become involved in another mystery when an elderly man's savings are stolen - and then his furniture is taken.

Ages 8+

The five Find-Outers and Dog set out to find who stole Lady Candling's valuable cat.

Ages 9+

The Five Find-Outers, Larry, Daisy, Fatty, Pip, Bets and Buster the dog are immediately on the trail when two robberies take place in the village.

Ages 8+

A children's whodunnit featuring the five Find-Outers, who think they are in for a boring time in the village - that is until a convict escapes and a mystery that needs solving presents itself, thanks to a travelling fair and a conference of beetle lovers.

When the Five Find-Outers start to investigate a series of clever burglaries, they tumble into three other mysteries as well! Who is the old man on the seat? Who is Number Three? Where is the missing necklace?

The theatre safe has been broken into and boysie. The pantomime cat, is top of the list of suspects. But could his friend and fellow actor, Zoe, be the real thief?

9+

Fatty astonishes Mr Goon with his wonderful disguises, while he tries to discover who is using Miss Grump's old house and why.

Someone is sending nasty letters. The five Find-Outers and Dog will find the culprit.

Ages 8+

A mystery involving the Five Find-Outers, Larry, Daisy, Pip, Bets and Fatty together with their dog Buster.

Who is responsible for the strange messages that keep turning up for Mr Goon?

A prince has disappeared and it seems that twin babies are the only clue! Is the prince being held against his will?

Twelve-and-a-half-year-old Henry Hoey Hobson is drowning in the dangerous waters of Year Seven. He arrives at his sixth school in as many years, Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, to discover that he is the only boy in the grade.

For primary school age.

One morning after a thunderstorm, the Lambchop family is surprised to discover that Stanley is suddenly invisible.

After finding a genie in a teapot, Stanley and his family make a series of wishes.

The President of the United States chooses Stanley Lambchop and his family to become the first humans to explore in Star Scout, the new top-secret spaceship.

When Teddy's chihuahua Phantom goes missing, he and Addie May join forces to try to figure out what happened to the dog.

008-012.

When the mysterious Glyphmaster tricks Adam into solving a puzzle and then hacks his computers, Adam, Finn, Lewis, and Emily are pulled into a mystery that is more trouble than they ever imagined.

Ages 10+

This touching verse novel for middle to upper primary readers is told from the perspective of Chris, who has recently lost his best friend Dave. With only his love of cars for company, Chris is lost and alone, until the cool new kid in town shows up.

Ages 8+

Attending the National Ballet School is every aspiring dancer's dream. It's been Brynna's for as long as she can remember.

Twelve-year-old villain, Artemis Fowl, is the most ingenious criminal mastermind in history. His bold and daring plan is to hold a leprechaun to ransom but he's taking on more than a bunch of fairies when he kidnaps Captain Holly Short of the Lep-Recon (lower elements police reconnaissance unit).

Ages 14+

Seeking to unravel the secret of the long enmity between unicorns and delvers, Cara travels through a strange underground world to the court of the centaur king, while on Earth, Beloved and her hunters make final plans to jump to the fantasy land of Luster and drive the unicorns to extinction.

Ages 9-12.

There's no harmony among the fifth form! Music-mad Millicent organises school orchestra rehearsals for the same time as June's tennis matches. But then belongings start disappearing. Will the thief face the music and confess?

Ages 9+

Darrell has left, and Felicity is head of the third form. And what a lot she has to deal with — June and new girl Freddie playing tricks continually, the sickly Bonnie shadowing her, and the stuck-up Amy, who has a strange family secret. --Publisher.

Ages 9+

There's a mystery at the nearby stables — someone has stolen money and then poor Julie's horse. Can the third form help old girls Bill and Clarissa discover who is behind it? --Publisher.

Ages 9+

Susan is excited to be in charge of the winter concert, but Miss Tallant, a new teacher, has very strong ideas about it. And when she interferes in a midnight feast, they realise there's a spy in their midst. But who could it be/ --Global Books in print.

Ages 9+

When the princess is kidnapped by a dragon queen, thirteen-year-old Thomas, a new--and very small--squire-in-training boldly sets out on a quest to rescue her.

When Skoz wakes up and finds himself in the middle of the ocean in a boat, he has no idea how he got there. More importantly, how is he going to get back to dry land? And what about the shark. --Publisher's description.

6+

The problem with being a sleepwalking dog is you don't have a clue where you are when you wake up! When Skoz finds himself falling from a great height -- with no parachute -- he has no idea how he got there. Lucky he has those floppy ears ... how is our sleepwalking dog going to get himself out of this one?

Ages 7+

Sam Fox is in India to see his big brother Nathan play cricket for Australia. At the end of the big match, Sam's bag is stolen - with his autographed cricket ball inside! A chase through the streets of New Delhi leads him to Rani and Raju - a pair of baby tigers who are about to be illegally smuggled out of the country. Sam is determined to rescue them, but he soon discovers that a sack full of tigers can be a whole lot of trouble. -- Back cover.

For primary school age.

Now that Luke, Resus and Cleo have worked out how to rid Scream Street of invading normals, they're keen to begin their new quest right away. First stop Count Negatov's castle! As the trio make their way through the bleak, murky wilds of Transylvania they're kidnapped by trolls --BAck cover.

Ages 9+

Bryce is fed up with tests. So far this week he's had a spelling test, a swimming test, and even a test on his bike. So, on Friday, Bryce decides to surprise the adults with his own test.

Marcus Atkinson is a Soccer Star (not!). But his Dad is convinced that Marcus has magic in his feet.

Twin daughters of interracial parents, eleven-year-olds Keira and Minna have very different skin tones and personalities, but it is not until their African American grandmother enters them in the Miss Black Pearl Pre-Teen competition in North Carolina that red-haired and pale-skinned Minna realizes what life in their small town in the Pacific Northwest has been like for her more outgoing, darker-skinned sister.

009-012.

The Tinytoreum takes you to the world of Shaggy Gully where bush-genius George Gunna Goanna began his career as an inventor. Using just his imagination and whatever bits and pieces he could find, Gunna created many fabulous things for his friends and family. This book showcases just a few of them.

The tenth exciting adventure in the 'Pony Club Secrets' series sees Issie travel back to Spain to reclaim her beloved colt, Storm! and learn to ride haute ecole on flying stallion, Angel! Issie returns to El Caballo Danza Magnifico, this time determined to bring her colt Storm back home. But first she must master haut ecole moves on stallion Angel to prove herself to the best riders in Spain. Meanwhile, devious Miguel Vega is involved when mares go missing. And is love in the air at the El Caballo stables?

Ages 9+

A girl in a large family is looking forward to her first double digit birthday, but soon discovers that growing up brings some unwanted changes.

Includes a terrible agonising death by flesh-eating zombies, a battle with brussel sprouts (the sprouts win) and the disgusting fact that cockroaches can live for nine days without their heads (they only die because they starve to death).

Andy's life is a series of disasters. He tries and fails to get expelled from school, he swallows a spider when he hides under his sister's bed, and he sets a famous film star's hair on fire.

Ages 8+

Dodging government spies and three-horned beasties, Fitz the cat and his human friends, Stephanie, Zeke, and Hector, venture once more into the mysterious land of Underwhere to recover the magical scepter, which looks suspiciously like a bejewelled toilet plunger. --Publisher's description.

Ages 9+

Twins Stephanie and Zeke, their friend Hector, and cats Fitz and Meathead once again venture into the world of Underwhere, this time looking for the missing Brush of Wisdom, a magical item that looks suspiciously like a jewelled toilet brush.

Ages 9+

It's tough to be Zeke. He's got his hands full with his prissy, know-it-all sister his mean cousin Caitlyn, who's house-sitting for his missing parents and a bully making life tough at school. And now, thanks to a stinky, scruffy, good-for-nothing talking cat, he's also got to cope with zombies, midget freedom fighters, devious spies, superstar rappers, and a whole weird world beneath our own where people wear their underwear on the outside of their clothes -- Global Books In Print.

Ages 9+

Hannah Montana is used to hard work, but Miley Stewart could use a break. Lucky for her, summer is here and she and the family are heading to Nantucket for some serious rest and relaxation. Soon, the Stewarts and company are settling into life on the Atlantic, with sailing lessons, bike rides, lazy days on the beach--oh, and a small, little Hannah photo shoot that turns out to be a big headache.

Oscar is not looking forward to Grandad coming to look after him at the weekend - it means he'll have to play endless rounds of chess or Monopoly, instead of war games on his computer. But when he finds Dad's ancient laptop in the study, he can't resist logging on to something called Project X - and all too soon Oscar creates a real live warrior, who is programmed to obey his every command. However Monstroso's wires are more than a little crossed, and Oscar finds himself in all sorts of trouble... --Publisher.

Ages 9+

In this book, Mr Badger and Miss Pims are preparing the hotel for Sylvia Smother-Carruthers' birthday. Hilarity follows, but this story has a very touching ending, as it is also Mr Badger's birthday the very same day. Ages 6-11 years.

The Boubles Grand Hotel mascot, Algernon the ape, mysteriously disappears. Luckily Mr Badger knows just what to do to put things right. Ages 6-11 years.

For primary school age.

Leafstar struggles to maintain control of her Clan as she figures out how Skyclan can survive in the gorge.

Ages 9+

It all began with a hot day in June, and a volcano dropping black ash on Moominmamma's washing. Then a crack appeared in the ground, and Moomintroll's toothbrush slipped straight down into the dark and yawning earth. Then a great flood wave came crashing through Moomin Valley.

Ages 9+

Someone made a bad smell. But who? Like a bloodhound on a case, Rascal puts his nose to the task of finding the culprit.

Ages 6+

Philippa is spending New Year with her new best friend, Robyn. The last person she expects to see is her fairy godsister, Daisy. But Daisy, assigned to a new job Above The Clouds, has discovered something terrible is going to happen, and she needs to warn Philippa - fast. -- Front flap.

The hedgehog family of Number 5A long to reach the park across the road, but the traffic is so busy it is impossible to cross in safety. Young Max had noticed that humans are able to cross the road quite easily so, as he points out to his Pa one evening, why couldn't they?

Events conspire to turn Janie's imaginary harlequin Great Dane into a real dog.

It's springtime, and little sister Ivy wants to prove she can keep a secret, but there are some secrets that are too good to keep. Big sister Zelda longs to play the perfect April Fool's Day prank, but can she outsmart the clever Ivy? And will opera star hopeful Zelda be upstaged by a butterfly in the final act? Fresh and funny, full of sugar and sass, this trio of tales about everyday life with siblings and friends is sure to strike a chord with young readers everywhere.;"The fox sisters are back with springtime adventures."

Zac is off on spy camp for survival training. Can he get across the desert in time?

Ages 6+

Zac is off on spy camp - this time it's secret tunnels. Will he find a way out before his maze floods?

Ages 6+

Zac is off on spy camp for rescue training. Can he save his buddy from red-hot lava?

Ages 6+

Guided by the Knower, Otulissa has studied long in the libraries of the Others she has probed the ancient lore of the strange and powerful dire wolves of the Beyond. And at the Great Ga'Hoole tree itself she has uncovered secret histories of Guardians she thought she knew well! Attention Dear Reader! Great mysteries will be revealed to the attuned mind in these last Lost Tales of the Great Tree! --Publisher.

A mysterious bird-girl on her quest for freedom teaches four strangers the true meaning of family. --Publisher's description.

Ages 9+

Ling and Ting are identical twins that people think are exactly the same, but time and again they prove to be different.

005-009.

Stu is a wuss. A weakling. A soft city kid. A chicken. His cousins are tough. Daredevils. Farm kids who look like they sprinkle steroids on their Weet-Bix. When Stu is packed off to the country for the summer, he has to face the dangers that lurk behink every tree: demonic lambs, yabby-infested tanks, raging creeks and, worst of all, his cousins. --Publisher's description.

Ages 9+

Best friends Ant and Honey Bee, who think of themselves as quite a pair, become matching home appliances on Halloween.

SHINE's solar energy station is under threat from the evil agency SHADOW. Special Agent EJ12 needs to lighten up. She must crack SHADOW's codes and overcome her fears to stop them before they turn the lights out on the SHINE network. That's the easy part. As EJ12, Emma Jacks can do anything. So why is she worried about going to her best friend's slumber party? -- Back cover.

Ages 8+ years.

When a puppy who is being trained as a police dog goes missing, third-grader Judy forms a detective agency to solve the mystery, imitating her literary heroine, Nancy Drew.

Ages 8+

A visiting author teaches five friends about the power of words and writing.

Tikki Flicker is stuck in Pisky Marsh, and she is fed up. The hags of Hag's Academy have offered her a place at the School for Bad Fairies, but Uncle Sedge won't let her go. So when the hags ask Tikki to try out for a Badge of Badness, Nanda hopes that her bad deeds will convince Sedge that she really is a bad fairy.

Ages 7+

Now that schoolboy Jack has embraced his doggy alter ego - Anubis, jackal-headed god of the dead - he must travel to the Afterlife and join his dead grandparents in a fight against evil that could affect the whole of history.

After her twelfth birthday, Rory checks off a list of things she is finally allowed to do, but unexpected consequences interfere with her involvement in the movie being shot at her school, while a weird prediction starts to make sense.

On a cold, dark winter's evening Sheep thinks he has found a friend in Wolf. But can a wolf be anything other than a wolf? Can Sheep escape Wolf's hungry plan?

Suggested level: junior, primary.;"Ages 8+"

Kirsty and Rachel are thrilled to be at Camp Stargaze. But Jack Frost has stolen the Twilight Fairies magical bags, causing night-time chaos! Can the girls help Ava the Sunset Fairy find her bag of sunbeam dust, so the sun can finally set?

Ages 5+

Mean Jack Frost has kidnapped all the fireflies, leaving Fairyland in darkness! Kirsty and Rachel must help Lexi the Firefly Fairy find her magical bag of fire dust. But first the fireflies need rescuing.

Ages 5+

The moon is shining at Camp Stargaze, and Kirsty and Rachel are enjoying some night-time games. But when a strange light appears nearby, Kirsty and Rachel suspect that the pesky goblins are up to no good with Maisie s precious moon dust!

Ages 5+

Kirsty and Rachel are preparing for a midnight feast at Camp Stargaze, but everything s going wrong! Morgan the Midnight Fairy has lost her bag of magical night dust.The girls must find it before the midnight feast turns into a midnight flop!

Ages 5+

It s Kirsty and Rachel s last night at Camp Stargaze, but horrible dreams are keeping them awake! The girls know they must find Sabrina the Sweet Dreams Fairy s bag of dream dust. It s time to pay a visit to mean Jack Frost s Ice Castle.

Ages 5+

Yasmin the Night Owl Fairy has lost her magical sleep dust which means nobody knows when to be asleep or when to be awake! Can Kirsty and Rachel catch the thieves before they become too sleepy...?

Ages 5+

Strange things are happening to the stars at Camp Stargaze, and without Zara the Starlight Fairy s bag of star dust, the night sky will be ruined forever. But can Kirsty and Rachel help her to find it before the goblins do? The race is on!

Ages 5+

Marco and his friends live in Australia, but they come from countries all over the world. And when they play soccer, they play for the World Cup!

For primary school aged children.

Ever since Jake's dad got a new job, and his family moved to the city, Jake's been feeling like a country bumpkin. He's having trouble making friends and wishes he could get to know Denny, a boy who lives in his apartment block and owns a parrot. So when Pop Hooper offers Jake the chance to have his own perfect pet, Jake is delighted. He's sure he'll make friends with Denny if he has a pet parrot for Pet Day at school. But then Pop asks Jake to look after a pony called Popcorn for the night whilst he finds Jake a parrot. Can Jake cope with a stubborn little pony in the city? Or will he look even more of a country bumpkin? And is there any way Popcorn can bring Jake and Denny together?

Ages 8+

In the mountains of Wales, something strange is happening. It should be the middle of summer, but Snowdonia has been besieged by blizzards and ice storms. The Arctic-trained soldiers sent to investigate have disappeared and the hopes of the nation now rest on three pairs of gigantic hairy shoulders... -- Back cover.

Many sea creatures have suddenly gone missing from the oceans and Molly the Secret Mermaid is determined to help her friends, the Animal-Keeper mermaids, find them all. The seals have reported strange, distant dolphin noises, so Molly and Aisha, the dolphin mermaid, go to investigate.

Ages 8+

The penguins have mysteriously disappeared from the icy seas and the mermaids are worried – where can they be? Molly and her mermaid friend, Phoebe, search everywhere. Could the Dark Queen be behind the trouble? --Publisher.

Molly is called back to the ocean by the Mermaid Queen because the mermaids desperately need her help. All the whales, penguins, turtles, seahorses, dolphins and octopi have completely vanished from the seas and no one knows why - but they suspect dark magic is at work.

Ages 8+

Bertie rescues an orphaned white lion cub from the African veld. They are inseperable until Bertie is sent to boarding school and the lion sold to a circus.

Ages 9-11.

Never destined to be a boring bunny, Harriet Houdini is just settling into life with her new family, the Wilsons, when she is spotted by the producer of hit TV show Superpets and begins her showbiz career. From daring backflips to thrilling escape attempts, Harriet is a true stunt bunny - but does she have what it takes to become a Superpet? -- Back cover.

When Lucy accidentally scratches Dad's brand new car, one small mistake turns into an enormous fib involving Lucy's best friend, Harriet, Lucy's worst enemy, Jacinta, a telepathic camel and a guinea pig with an escape plan.

Ages 9+

Albert (Lengy) Lengviriyakul, is fed up with being Thai. His parents own a Thai restaurant with the cheesy name of Thai-riffic! and Lengy is sick of being his father's curry guinea pig. But when his best friend decides to become Thai for a day for a school project, Lenny realises that there are some cool things about his culture.

For primary school age (10+)

Nika Kozak is playing in a special tournament to celebrate the World Cup, and each team is to be given a country to represent. Nika is delighted when her team is selected as the Ukraine, the country where she was born and brought up. Then Uncle Bohdan tells her about a match in Kiev during the Second World War. --Global Books in print.

Ages 7+

It's almost the end of the first season and Holly Woolcock's team are holding a special presentation evening to celebrate. Who will win the prizes, especially the coveted Player's Player of the Season Award? Holly knows one thing - it won't be her. Nobody's going to choose the chubby girl, are they? --Global Books in Print.

Ages 7+

Principal Krupp once again turns into the superhero Captain Underpants in order to save the world, and Jerome Horwitz Elementary School, from the evil talking toilets and the Turbo Toilet 2000.

Ages 7+

George, Harold, Captain Underpants, and Sulu the Bionic Hamster battle the three Ridiculous Robo-Boogers in an attempt to turn the Bionic Booger Boy back into Melvin Sneedly.

When Professor Pippy P. Poopypants comes to Jerome Horwitz Elementary School to teach science, and he goes off the deep end because students make fun of his name, only Captain Underpants can save the school from the professor's perilous plot.

George and Harold hypnotize their principal who, believing he is the superhero Captain Underpants, leads them to the lair of the nefarious Dr. Diaper. They must then defeat his evil robot henchmen.

When Dav Pilkey began drawing pictures of an underwear-clad, wedgie-giving superhero as a second grader, his teacher said, You'd better start taking life more seriously, because you can't spend the rest of your days making silly books! Luckily for us, Dav didn't listen, and Captain Underpants was born. Now, kids everywhere can enjoy this special edition of the book that started it all--with an awesome lenticular cover and a super-cool value-added component that's so amazing, so fun, and so top-secret that you'll just have to buy it to find out!

The Miniver sisters have been separated again. While Rosamund takes refuge with allies, Emily is a prisoner of Madame and in grave danger. The Minivers must join forces with Madame's enemies to find the location of the Most Secret Room. If they can unlock its secrets, they might just be one step closer to Madame's defeat.

Ages 9+

A collection of 19 five-minute stories. This anthology contains a mixture of old and new, including Perrault's Little Red Riding Hood , Mahy's Horrendous Hullabaloo and King-Smith's Blessu .

Ages 6+

When a family is struck by tragedy a little hope is all that is needed. When Kate and Madeline's father goes missing on a routine local flight, family life is thrown into chaos. While the close rural community help the family deal with their grief, Kate lights a lamp every night in the window of the old tin hut on the hill in the hope that it will help her father find his way home. Madeline invests her hope in building a replica of the fabled stone man. But it is the appearance of the troubled Troy that brings comfort to Kate in the most unexpected way. To Kate, Troy seems nearly as lost as her father and the mystery surrounding him and also the stone man leads Kate into dangerous territory.

Ages 12+

Mission alert! Mino the minotaur is missing! Connor must investigate, which means going into the dark, terrifying maze where the monster was last seen. Has Connor met his match? -- Back cover.

Mission alert! The Forest Mountain Bike Championship is today! Connor must make sure nothing goes wrong. But some monsters are causing trouble already... -- Back cover.

Long ago the Romans conquered Brtain. But not everyone like the Romans. Lots of people fought back. No one more subbornly than Queen Goodica's youngest daughter Roodica the Rude! The rotten Romans have dammed Roodica's river - and that means no more swimming! But she's thought up a great way for getting the river back - and getting revenge!

Escaping from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan in the summer of 2001, eleven-year-old Fadi and his family immigrate to the San Francisco Bay Area, where Fadi schemes to return to the Pakistani refugee camp where his little sister was accidentally left behind.

Ages 8-12.

Chaos ensues when Keisha's father brings an escaped alligator home to Carter's Urban Rescue, but it gets out of the bathroom while Grandma is guarding it.

9+

Ten-year-old Keisha and her family's animal rescue center face more challenges involving a baby crow in a mailbox and a skunk found in the nearby community garden.

An exciting adventure set in the rugged Kimberley region, Dead Mans Gold draws on the legends of the Australian outback, featuring treasure hunting, droving, gold prospecting and ghosts.

Ages 9+

The golden scarab takes Hannah and Jake back to ancient Egypt where they must fight once again to complete their task. Ages 9+.

Danny Dragonbreath and his friend Wendell get an up-close underwater tour of the Sargasso Sea from Danny's sea-serpent cousin, encountering giant squid and mako sharks--and learn about standing up to bullies in the process.

008-012.

When Suki the salamander--the new foreign exchange student--is being stalked by ninja frogs, Danny, Wendell the iguana, and Suki travel to Great-grandfather Dragonbreath's home in mythical Japan to find a solution for the problem. --Publisher's description.

Abel Jackson's boyhood belongs to a vanishing world. On an idyllic stretch of coast whose waters teem with fish, he lives a simple, tough existence. It's just him and his mother in the house at Longboat Bay, but Abel has friends in the sea, particularly the magnificent old groper he meets when diving.

Ages 9+

Six classmates are on a hiking trip to study the geological features of the vast and wild Bellevue Forest when the mighty Mount Darius erupts. The group are swept into a violent landslide of soil and rock. Josh and Greer find themselves alone in a dramatically changed landscape. Lost, they stumble upon an eerie, abandoned town and its long-forgotten secrets. And they discover why the lake that surrounds the town was once given the name Lago da Morte , Lake of the Dead --Back cover.

Ages 10+

... Join Eddie the ragdoll as he adventures across New Zealand in search of the mystical Taniwha! Meeting all kinds of animals on the way, Eddie learns new things which will aid him in his quest to free the great creature. With his compass, notebook, pen and of course, his special travelling jandals, you can journey with everyone's favourite ragdoll and experience the wonders of Aotearoa on the way! -- p. [4] of cover.

Imagine you wake up one morning and discover that a pandemic is sweeping the country and you can't leave your house for weeks, or even months. Pretty soon you'll run out of food, there'll be no electricity, no telephone, no internet and the only people you can count on are your family and closest neighbours. For 12-year-old Zac Flint and his family this is the reality they face and they must use all their resourcefulness to survive.

Ages 10+