Flicker and the Special Guests

Famous singers Itsy and Bitsy Longlegs are coming to stay at The Grand Bug Hotel! Flicker and her friends try to get their room just right by opening the curtains, turning on the lights, and sweeping up the cobwebs. But when the special guests arrive, Flicker finds out that everyone has a different idea of what makes a space feel like home.

Dump Truck Duel

Dump trucks Bruno and Juno are best pals. They’re always together, hauling and dumping, sharing and laughing. Then one day Bruno declares that he can hold more weight than Juno can. The trucks decide to have a competition to see who’s the strongest, but when the contest is over, will they still be friends?

Climate

From the smallest piece of plastic in the oceans to the largest glacier at the north or south pole, scientists can see the effects of climate change. And it is all caused by burning fossil fuels—coal, oil, and natural gas—that release carbon dioxide into our atmosphere. But there is still time to protect what we have if we work together.

Cicada Symphony

There are about three thousand different kinds of cicadas on earth. Some species emerge from the ground every year, while others only come up every thirteen or seventeen years. But no matter how much time passes before they dig their way to the surface, the result is the same: up to trillions of clumsy (but harmless!) insects flying, clicking, and buzzing all around us. Using a combination of rhythmic, rhyming verse and fun facts, this story describes the life cycle of the cicada and helps readers better understand this fascinating insect.

Call Me Calvin

Ever since Calvin was born, he’s been Dad’s “Little Man.” At first Calvin liked the special nickname the two of them shared. But now that he’s getting older, Calvin doesn’t feel big and strong like Dad. One afternoon playing in the yard, Calvin discovers that maybe that’s okay. He’s Calvin, and that’s exactly who he should be.

Anzu and the Art of Friendship

Starting a new school, Anzu struggles to find her place. Starting a new art unit, her class struggles to learn origami. It’s not easy to make friends or to fold tiny paper figures, but with her grandfather’s encouragement, Anzu finds a way to try again even when she doesn’t succeed the first time—and helps her classmates do the same.

All Systems Whoa

On Career Day, Abby Baxter’s classmates are excited to learn about all the jobs adults do on the space station. But Abby has no idea what her career should be—next to her brilliant doctor parents, she always feels like a Bad Baxter. Even worse, she makes a few mistakes that cause systems on the space station to start going haywire. Can Abby untangle the mess and find her own strengths?

La historia de William Hoy

William Ellsworth Hoy amaba el beisbol sobre todo lo demás. Cuando le dijeron que era muy pequeño para el equipo de su escuela, no dejó que nada lo detuviera, ¡ practicó hasta ser lo suficientemente bueno como para jugar en las grandes ligas! Ser sordo en las grandes ligas no fue fácil, ya que poca gente usaba el lenguaje de señas en la década de 1880. A William se le dificultaba leer los labios en el campo de juego y algunos jugadores lo intentaban confundir. Pero tampoco dejó que eso lo detuviera. ¡William les enseñó a los ampáyeres  a hacer señas de mano para que pudiera ver todas las decisiones, y entonces realmente comenzó a anotar! Descubre como Dummy Hoy se convirtió en uno de los más grandes y amados jugadores de su época al hacer del beisbol un mejor juego.

William Ellsworth Hoy loved baseball more than anything. When he was told he was too short for his school team, he wouldn’t let that stop him— he practiced and became good enough to play in the major leagues! Being deaf in the major leagues wasn’t easy, since few people used sign language in the 1880s. William had a hard time reading lips on the field and some players tried to trick him. But he wouldn’t let that stop him either. William taught the umpires hand signals so he could see the calls, and then he really started to score! Discover how Dummy Hoy became one of the greatest and most beloved players of his time as he made baseball a better game.

Water

Water. It is crucial for life on Earth, and it is everywhere. It is also the only substance on Earth that naturally has three forms: it can be a liquid, a solid, or a gas. Why is water so important for life?

Vaccines Change the World

Unlike other science books for middle grade readers, this definitive guide to vaccines is told in an approachable, compelling narrative style. Fascinating stories, combined with fresh design elements, will help kids make connections to current events and get them thinking about where human ingenuity will take us next.