A collection of short fiction explores the complexities of human relationships and emotions in stories about a housekeeper entering old-maidhood whose life is transformed by a practical joke and a lifelong philanderer who finds the tables turned. "A superb new collection from one of our best and best-loved writers. Nine stories draw us immediately into the special place known as Alice Munro territory--a place where an unexpected twist of events or...

Louis, who loves baseball despite being the worst stickball player in White Plains, New York, sees his opportunity to be bat boy for the 1961 Yankees team as the perfect way to escape the problems of his father's remarriage and moving to the suburbs.

Seventeen-year-old Becca auditions for a new, non-lethal reality show featuring Painiacs, hoping to prove that her deceased mother was not Alcatraz 2.0 executioner, Molly Mauler. Who Wants to Be a Paniac?, the latest reality TV show, on the hunt for the next big-hit serial killer. No one is actually going to murder anyone, as real as the fake gore and pretend murder may appear-- right? When Becca Martinello's perfectly normal soccer mom dies in a...

In the Lower East Side of Manhattan during the early 1900s, third-grader Rachel's mother boldly starts her own dressmaking business and Rachel discovers the perfect way to set herself apart from tagalong little sister Hannah on Rosh Hashanah.

"1935. Twelve-year-old Cato wants nothing more than to play baseball, perfect his pitch, and meet Mr. Satchel Paige––the best pitcher in Negro League baseball. But when he and his teammates “trespass” on their town’s whites-only baseball field for a practice, the resulting racial outrage burns like a brushfire through the entire community, threatening Cato, his family, and every one of his friends. There’s only one way this can end without...

"Tony Stark is known throughout the world as many things: Corporate tycoon. Billionaire. Inventor. Genius. But first and foremost, he is famous for being the red-and-gold -armored Super Hero, the invincible Iron Man. What Tony's fans don't know is what happened in his childhood that led him to put away his toys and replace them with weapons designed to maintain peace and order. They don't realize how much pain he is hiding under his suit's shiny exterior....

Vienna. 1936. Three young friends--Leo, Elsa, and Max--spend a perfect day together, unaware that around them Europe is descending into a growing darkness and that events will soon mean that they are ripped apart from each other as their lives take very different directions... Inspired by a true story, this is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking and shows the bonds of love, family and friendship allow glimmers of hope...

Young Truman Capote thought life in New York City was going to be perfect, but things didn't work out as planned. In fact, Tru is downright miserable. So he decides to run away to Monroeville, Alabama, and the only friend he's ever had, Nelle Harper Lee. But things don't go well there, either. Bad things seem to happen wherever he goes. The only explanation: he must be cursed. Christmas is coming, and Tru's only wish is to be happy. But it'll take...

Everyone has to make decisions about love. Wilfred Price, overcome with emotion on a sunny spring day, proposes to a girl he barely knows at a picnic. The girl, Grace, joyfully accepts and rushes to tell her family of Wilfred's intentions. But by this time Wilfred has realised his mistake. He does not love Grace. On the verge of extricating himself, Wilfred's situation suddenly becomes more serious when Grace's father steps in. Up until this point...

With super-simple explanations about rain, wind, humidity, storms, the seasons, and more, Little Genius: Weather presents just the right amount of information for little learners. Children will love following along as a cute, smiling cloud guides them through simple weather events and explains what causes them using simple, rhyming text. Each spread also features a fun fact for kids who are ready to learn even more! It's the perfect gift for budding...