New Releases by Linda Urban

Meet the kids in Mrs. Z’s wacky and wonderful third-grade class! Olive Little thinks a crafting club would be the perfect way to connect with her classmates—but when her club plans keep falling short, can she still find a way to make a place for herself in Mrs. Z''s class? Olive Little loves making things ... but she’s still working out how to make friends. After she spies some other kids checking out crafting books from the school library, Olive gets a brilliant idea: She’ll start a crafting club! With a super-extraordinarily crafty invitation, everyone will surely want to join Olive''s new club. And she knows just the invitation to make. All she needs is a perfect poem, some colorful confetti, a dozen eggshells, and some crafty know-how. Easy peasy! Until Olive discovers a local skunk has made its home in her family’s backyard henhouse! Can she craft a solution to the stinky situation in time to save her club? Both sweetly poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, with black-and-white illustrations by Pura Belpré Honor artist Kat Fajardo, Olive’s story invites readers into Mrs. Z’s class where friendship and fun rule the school, from acclaimed author Linda Urban. Perfect for! ★ My Weirdtastic School fans ★ Reluctant readers ★ Classroom read-alouds ★ Andrew Clements fans ★ Young artists ★ Crafting enthusiasts Read them all! The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class have plenty of stories to share! Emma McKenna, Full out (#1) Rohan Murthy Has a Plan (#2) Poppy Song Bakes a Way (#3) The Legend of Memo Castillo (#4) Wyatt Hill Brings a Lizard to School (#5) — available for preorder now! Ayana Ndoum Takes the Stage (#6) — available for preorder now! Synclaire Fields Knows the Score (#8) — coming soon! Theo Chang: Boy or Cat (#9) — coming soon! Thunder Nelson and the Impossumble Dream (#10) — coming soon! *The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class is an innovative series where every book is written by a different all-star author and features a different kid in the same third-grade class. They can be read in any order!

Fifteen-year-old Frankincense (Frankie) Wood tries to pull off the Christmas of her dreams as she juggles trying to keep in touch with her best friend, family dynamics at the family''s Holiday shop, and recovering from world''s worst first kiss.

From acclaimed author Linda Urban comes the funny, bittersweet story of a girl and her ghosts—and the welcoming home they find where they least expect it. California Poppy has been dropped off, yet again, with an unsuspecting relative. This time it’s her eccentric Great-Aunt Monica, a woman she’s never even met. Aunt Monica has no idea what to do with an eleven-year-old, so she puts California to work researching their ancestor, the once-famous etiquette expert Eleanor Fontaine. California soon discovers that Great-Great-Great Aunt Eleanor is...not exactly alive and well, but a ghost—and a super sensitive one at that. The grand dame bursts into clouds of dust whenever she loses her composure, which happens quite often. Still, an unexpected four-legged friend and some old-fashioned letter writing make this decidedly strange situation one that California can handle. Just as California’s starting to feel like she’s found a place for herself, life turns upside-down yet again. Thankfully, this time she has some friends almost by her side...

At the new house, there were movers and shouting and boxes and blankets. There were many places a girl like Mabel and a boy like Sam could be tripped over or smooshed or trod upon. There was one safe place where they would not. And that is how Mabel became a Sea Captain. In this three-part picture book of moving house and imaginative play, Mabel and Sam sail the high seas of their new home; tour the intriguing museum of their living room; journey through outer space to the safety of their own beds; and discover how far afield—and how close to home—imagination can take them.

From acclaimed author Linda Urban comes a sweet and funny illustrated novel about third-grader Max, who pursues neighborhood adventures with his dad as they both adjust to recent changes in their family.

Milo had read about magic before. He knew that kids in stories sometimes found magic in secret drawers or hidden away in attics, and he had always hoped that if he were to find magic, it would appear in the form of a mysterious silver coin or a doorway to an enchanted world. But when magic came to Milo Speck, it came in the form of a sock. "Figures," said Milo. So begins Milo''s adventure through a clothes dryer into Ogregon, a land populated with hungry ogres, dino-sized turkeys, kids needing rescue, and--Milo''s dad? What''s his regular-old salesman father doing in Ogregon? In fact, what''s Milo doing there? But the answers must wait--because the top priority for all non-ogres is escape. Well, after Milo thwarts the dastardly plot that threatens to make kids everywhere into ogre snack food. But how can a small boy in the very big world of Ogregon possibly do that?

Twelve-year-old Ruby finds her life spinning out of control in the wake of questionable choices and dreads an upcoming reading of her award-wining essay.

The author of the acclaimed "A Crooked Kind of Perfect" comes the story of a fifth-grade girl who begins to see how one small, brave act can lead to a friend who is hound dog true.

Ten-year-old Zoe Elias has perfect piano dreams. She can practically feel the keys under her flying fingers; she can hear the audience''s applause. All she needs is a baby grand so she can start her lessons, and then she''ll be well on her way to Carnegie Hall. But when Dad ventures to the music store and ends up with a wheezy organ instead of a piano, Zoe''s dreams hit a sour note. Learning the organ versions of old TV theme songs just isn''t the same as mastering Beethoven on the piano. And the organ isn''t the only part of Zoe''s life in Michigan that''s off-kilter, what with Mom constantly at work, Dad afraid to leave the house, and that odd boy, Wheeler Diggs, following her home from school every day. Yet when Zoe enters the annual Perform-O-Rama organ competition, she finds that life is full of surprises—and that perfection may be even better when it''s just a little off center. This ebook includes a sample chapter of Hound Dog True.

Who knows the best way to be mad? Bear stomps. Hare hops. Bobcat screams. Mouse? He just can''t get it right. But when he finds the way that works for him--still and quiet--he discovers that his own way might be the best of all. Linda Urban''s story about self-expression is both sweet and sly, and Henry Cole''s cast of animal friends is simply irresistible.