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Something is haunting the Laingford Pioneer Village Park, a mysterious presence that seems determined to get Alan and his two friends in trouble. They are spending the tail-end of the summer working as costumed helpers at the historical site, and when things get weird, the Alan Nearing detective agency starts investigating. Is the poltergeist just a prankster, or are there sinister forces at work?

Candy, Josie and Buddy are three canine friends whose days are filled with fun and friendship at the local park. But their happy days are threatened when two bullies named Riff and Raff drive them from their park, perhaps for good. When the three timid friends return, unable to keep themselves away from their favourite spot, the bullies are determined to do them serious harm. This book teaches a valuable lesson that every child should learn, that if good friends stand together, bullies soon find out that they’re not as tough as they thought.

Thirteen-year-old Norah Bingham and her mother plan to spend Christmas in the country with Caroline Stoppard, Norah’s great-aunt. When her mother is called away on business, Norah goes on her own to stay with the aunt, someone she has never even met. From the start, the woman makes it plain that she does not welcome Norahs company, nor that of Norah’s cousins, Andrew and Becca, who arrive two days later. The isolated Stoppard mansion is as dismal as the Ontario winter. But the cousins soon discover there are puzzles to solve. Great-aunt Caroline has many secrets.

Muslim Child is a collection of short stories, poems and prose that examines the world through the eyes of Muslim children. Each story represents a tenet of Islam in a way which is both entertaining and enlightening. Non-fiction sidebars help to explain and amplify the Islamic references. Some stories are centred around the major Muslim celebrations such as Eid and Ramadan, clarifying the customs and traditions. Another story is about a child getting separated from his parents while on the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.

Commended for the 2011 Best Books for Kids and Teens When doing the right thing turns all wrong Sometimes a guy just cant mind his own business, no matter how hard he tries, and sometimes that guy gets mired in predicaments which are not of his making. Thats what happens to Jas, a Grade Seven boy who is putting all his energy into completing the artwork for an adventure comic he hopes will be his ticket into an elite summer art program. But when he meets Wren, an eccentric, crusading classmate, his efforts are derailed.

It’s not easy having your own father for a teacher, but that’s only one of twelve-year-old Nikki’s problems. Her beloved dog has died, leaving a gaping hole in her life, which is thrown into further turmoil by the arrival of her long-lost eccentric grandmother from Australia. Life is pretty tense around Nikki’s house, but Nikki relaxes by taking long rides on her horse and visiting a nearby secluded pond inhabited by a rare species of turtle. Things do begin to get brighter when she receives an unwanted, runt puppy as a birthday present.

Thirteen-year-old Mark Rogers knew that his Grandpa Luigi had Alzheimer’s but he hadn’t counted on it turning his life upside-down. When his mother suggests that the two of them move in with Grandpa and help care for him, Mark reluctantly agrees because his grandfather has always been something of a hero to him. He doesn’t know, however, how strange Grandpa’s behaviour has become or that the kids in his new school have a nickname for him: Crazy Luigi.

The Lawrence family (three children, one dog, one cat and two parents) has a crisis on its hands - too much laundry and no place to put it. Are the thirteen baskets they buy in the mysterious shop in the market the end of their problems? Or is it just the beginning of a grand and maybe dangerous adventure for Abigail, Jacob and Ernest? When the baskets become the gateway to another time, the children encounter mysteries which they must solve…before their parents disappear altogether.

In The Golden Grasshopper, ten-year-old Lisa’s and her cousin Paul’s lives were changed forever when they met Gagar, from the planet Ylepithon. In Galena’s Gift, Gagar returns with his precocious young daughter, asking Lisa, now a twelve-year-old grade sixer, to babysit her and teach her about life on Earth. How will Lisa and Paul accomplish this without arousing the suspicion of their fellow earthlings? Using her remarkable abilities, Galena is able to save a young alpaca close to Lisa’s heart from a serious medical emergency.

Jade is a curious nine-year-old who likes to help out at her family’s Chinese restaurant, The Fragrant Garden, after school. Though she is often allowed to help set tables or clean up, she longs to be part of the more exciting tasks such as helping in the kitchen or using the cash register. Her father thinks she is too young for these responsibilities - until a fire breaks out in the kitchen. Jade’s quick-thinking response wins her praise and her father reconsiders her request for more responsibility at the Fragrant Garden.