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!

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 and managing anger is both sweet and sly, and Henry Cole's cast of animal friends is simply irresistible.

A teen girl gets the perfect second try at a first kiss in this hilarious, romp-filled young adult romantic comedy perfect for fans of Jenna Evans Welch and Hallmark Christmas movies. Francie was born in a stable. Really. Granted, it was the deluxe model with the light-up star on the roof, one of the many Christmas items for sale at her family’s Hollydale Holiday Shop. Their holiday gift empire also includes the Santa School, which was founded by Francie’s beloved grandpa, who recently passed away. Francie’s always loved working in the shop, but lately Aunt Carole has been changing everything with her ideas for too-slick, Hollywood-inspired Santas and horrible holiday-themed employee uniforms. Aunt Carole’s vision will ruin all the charm and nostalgia Francie loves about her family’s business…unless she does something about it. But this winter is about more than preserving the magic of Christmas. Francie is saving up for a car and angling to kiss the cute boy who works at the tree lot next door—hopefully it will be good enough to wipe her fiasco of a first kiss from her memory. As the weather outside gets more and more frightful, can Francie pull off the holiday of her dreams?

When her father goes away, eleven-year-old California "Callie" Poppy winds up with her eccentric Great-Aunt Monica and their ancestor, the once-famous etiquette expert Eleanor Fontaine, now a hypersensitive ghost.

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.

“Fans of Clementine and Ramona have a reason to rejoice: there’s a new kid on the block . . . Bighearted, hilarious, and tender.” —Katherine Applegate, Newbery medalist Max and his dad love their weekends together. Weekends mean pancakes, pizza, spy games, dog-walking, school projects, and surprising neighbors! Every weekend presents a small adventure as Max gets to know his dad’s new neighborhood—and learns some new ways of thinking about home. Acclaimed author Linda Urban deftly portrays a third-grader’s inner world during a time of transition in this sweet and funny illustrated story that bridges the early reader and middle-grade novel. “Urban’s subtle and perceptive take on divorce will resonate with children facing similar predicaments as she blends Max’s worries and ‘someone-sitting-on-his-chest’ feelings with a vivid imagination and good intentions that take father and son on some very entertaining adventures—with future ones planned.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) “Urban excels at credibly presenting this situation from Max’s third-grade point of view . . . Urban’s writing is both crisply specific (a basset hound ‘sniffed as she walked through puddles, dragging her ears like flat-bottomed boats’) and simple enough to be accessible.” —The Bulletin (starred review) “A sweet, empathetic look at a common situation.” —Kirkus Reviews “Urban’s touch is light throughout . . . a story just right for budding chapter-book readers.” —The Horn Book “The cast of characters grows throughout, but at the heart of the story is Max’s warm, easygoing relationship with his father.” —Booklist

Well, there’s overprotective—and then there’s Little Red Henry’s family! A hilarious tale about what happens when a coddled kid asserts his independence. Little redheaded Henry’s family treats him like a baby. They dress him. They feed him. They brush his “widdle toofers.” But he’s not a baby anymore. He’s a little boy who wants to do things for himself. So with his family watching anxiously from the wings, Henry sets out on a glorious day of independence. But will things swing too far in the other direction? In this charming reworking of the classic tale of the Little Red Hen, author Linda Urban and illustrator Madeline Valentine gently and humorously depict a family trying to find a middle ground between hovering over their youngest member and giving him room to grow.

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.

Se faire des amis quand on est timide. Elle est timide, Mattie, et elle a un peu peur. Elle n’a qu’une semaine pour s’habituer à sa nouvelle école. Parce que dans une semaine, elle entrera en CM2. Heureusement, son oncle Popote est le gardien de l’école. L’oncle Popote raconte beaucoup d’histoires. Et elle aime ça, Mattie, les histoires. Elle en écrit plein dans son carnet, au milieu des "Règles d’or du nettoyage". Mais à qui pourrait-elle les montrer ? À une amie, certainement. À une vraie amie. Mais, pour commencer, comment se fait-on des amis ?

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.

Muis is zo boos dat hij zou willen springen, stampen, schreeuwen en over de grond rollen van woede. Maar zelfs dat gaat mis waardoor hij nog bozer wordt. Prentenboek met kleurenillustraties. Vanaf ca. 4 jaar.

A hilarious picture book about self expression, as various animal characters try to outdo each other in going hopping mad.

Qui connaît la meilleure manière de montrer qu'il est fâché ? L'ours tape du pied. Le lynx crie. Et Souriceau ? Il ne sait pas imiter le lynx et l'ours comme il faut. Mais s'il réussit à trouver sa manière, ce sera peut-être la meilleure de toutes.

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.

Zoé était censée jouer du piano. D'après ses calculs, il lui restait six ans avant d'atteindre la perfection et donner son premier concert de jeune prodige au Carnegie Hall. Elle s'imaginait déjà sur scène dans une robe époustouflante, avec un diadème posé sur ses cheveux lissés par son coiffeur personnel... Pourtant, Zoé a bien été obligée de revoir ses ambitions à la baisse. À la place d'un piano blanc plus lisse qu'une patinoire, son père lui a déniché un orgue électronique en simili-bois qui fait un bruit de soufflerie. Le Perfectone D-60. En guise de récital au Carnegie Hall, elle se voit préparer le Concert-O-rama annuel de Perfectone en jouant les génériques de vieilles séries télé et le thème de Scoubidou. Mais au fur et à mesure que son rêve s'éloigne, Zoé va découvrir que la musique, même sur un orgue électronique, peut avoir des effets singuliers sur sa vie et son entourage.