Best Selling Books by Mary Hoffman

The latest installment in the critically acclaimed Stravaganza series begins with Matt, the new Stravagante. Despite having a beautiful and very smart girlfriend, Matt is insecure because he is dyslexic. He discovers that he is capable of traveling between two worlds when a leather-bound book transports him from his home in England to Talia, the parallel-world version of Italy, where he meets a fellow-Stravagante named Luciano-who is hiding from the powerful di Chimici family. Luciano has just killed the head of that family in a duel, and is in grave danger. Banding together, Matt and Luciano must resist the di Chimici family, who are on the verge of making a terrifying breakthrough into our world.

While sick in bed with cancer, Lucien begins making journeys to a place in a parallel world that resembles Venice, Italy, and he becomes caught up in the political intrigues surrounding the Duchessa who rules the city. Suggested level: secondary.

Seventeen-year-old Sky joins Georgia and the other Stravagante, "who travel between worlds and do what is required," when he leaves London for Giglia, a city similar to Renaissance Florence, and becomes involved in ancient feuds and palace intrigue.

Determined to play Peter Pan in the school play, African-American Grace meets opposition in her classmates, who insist that Peter Pan is a boy and white

Collection of favorite fairy tales, retold with colorful illustrations accompanying.

Georgia is an ordinary girl, living in London with her mother, stepfather, and bully of a stepbrother, and coping with the difficulties of growing up. But her life takes a sudden change when she buys a tiny figurine of a winged horse, and suddenly finds herself swept up into the world of the Stravagante. The tiny horse becomes her magical time-travel talisman and transports her to Remora, the Talian parallel to the city of Siena, Italy. There she meets Lucien, the Stravagante we first met in City of Masks, and many other fascinating people who are in the midst of preparing for the Stellata, the annual horse race run each year in the city. Intrigue, romance, and the rare appearance of a true winged horse ensure an exciting adventure to rival the first in this captivating series.

A glorious, diverse celebration of human life, from birth to death, by Mary Hoffman and Ros Asquith. The sixth title in the Great Big Book series explores every stage of human life. From birth to starting nursery, being a teenager to becoming an adult, from work to relationships, homes and jobs, to aging illness and death. A universal but challenging topic is dealt with Mary Hoffman and Ros Asquith''s trademark sensitivity and humour and inclusivity.

Michelangelo''s statue of David is renowned all over the world. Thousands flock to Florence to admire the artistry behind this Renaissance masterpiece, and to admire the beauty of the human form captured in the marble. But the identity of the model for this statue that has been so revered for over five hundred years has been lost . . . In this epic story Mary Hoffman uses her persuasive narrative skills to imagine the story of Gabriele, an eighteen-year-old who, by becoming Michelangelo''s model, finds himself drawn into a world of spies, politicking, sabotage and murder. Set against the backdrop of Florence, this is a rich, colourful and thrilling tale.

What is a family? Once, it was said to be a father, mother, boy, girl, cat and dog living in a house with a garden. But as times have changed, families have changed too, and now there are almost as many kinds of families as colours of the rainbow - from a mum and dad or single parent to two mums or two dads, from a mixed-race family to children with different mums and dads, to families with a disabled member. Mary Hoffman takes a look through children''s eyes at the wide varieties of family life: from homes, food, ways of celebrating, schools and holidays to getting around, jobs and housework, from extended families, languages and hobbies to pets and family trees - and she concludes that, for most people, their own family is the best one of all! With Ros Asquith''s delightful pictures, this book takes a fresh, optimistic look at families of today.

The beloved heroine of "Amazing Grace" is back in her first new picture book in more than a decade. Grace hopes to be selected as a princess in the town parade and asks her teacher for help in dressing the part.

Living his life as a troubadour, one who travels from land to land to warn people of the arrival of the destructive crusaders, Bertrand meets Elinor, a young girl destined to marry an older man she doesn''t love, who quickly leaves everything she has ever known to be with him and become a troubadour herself.

The award-winning author of the Stravaganza series has done it again with this atmospheric adventure set in Renaissance Italy. Sixteen-year-old Silvano da Montacuto has wealth, good looks, and a new hawk-but none of these can save him when his bloody dagger is found near a dead body. For his own protection, he is sent to a Franciscan House, where he poses as a novice, or a young monk. There, he lays eyes on Chiara, a lovely novice at a nearby abbey who is also living in secret. When they fall in love, their secret identities make it impossible to reveal their feelings to one another. Murder seems to have followed Silvano, and soon several other dead bodies turn up. Who is committing the crimes? Will a young man accused of multiple murders be able to clear himself? And what about the girl he adores? Fans of Mary Hoffman''s critically acclaimed Stravaganza series won''t be disappointed in the romance, colorful web of intrigue, and rich, marvelous setting.

Grace and her friends have all sorts of adventures during their summer vacation--going to the circus, taking an imaginary safari, making friends with an elderly neighbor, pretending to be astronauts, and calling the paramedics when her grandmother has an accident.

Introduces different types of households and discusses families with children, adoption, foster parents, same-sex parents, and fertility treatments.

Describes the life cycle and natural environment of the hippopotamus with emphasis on its struggle for survival.

Discusses the behavior patterns and habitats of various kinds of snakes.

Hassan, newly-arrived in the United States and feeling homesick, paints a picture at school that shows his old home in Somalia as well as the reason his family had to leave.

The book opens with the question: "How are you feeling today?" And this leads on to a spread by spread presentation of a wide range of feelings, including: *Happy * Sad * Excited * Bored * Interested * Angry * Upset * Calm * Silly * Lonely * Scared * Safe *Embarrassed * Shy * Confident * Worried * Jealous * Satisfied The final spread is about Feeling Better because sharing and talking about feelings helps us to feel better. The approach and design follows The Great Big Book of Families, with lots of different children in lots of different situations, brief text captions and questions and plenty of humour to make sure the book is fun.Mary Hoffman and Ros Asquith look at feelings in family life, at school and everywhere with the same warmth, wit and sensitivity that they brought to their award- winning The Great Big Book of Families.

An amazing girl...an amazing book...and now amazing paper dolls!Grace can do or be anything she wants to be! Now Grace''s aspirations come to life with paper dolls that make it possible for children -- and adults -- to dress her in many of the roles she plays in the best-selling book Amazing Grace.Amazing Grace Paper Dolls will provide children with hours of fun, while at the same time encouraging them to develop confidence and self-esteem.For optimum sales appeal, several enhancements have been included: -- A press-out theater trunk for storing the entire wardrobe-- A stage backdrop featuring a foil spotlight to show how Grace will look on stage playing any of her many roles-- A special page for designing and coloring one''s own creations

Brains are amazing! Find out how our brains work and how they control the rest of the body. From how they create our memories, to how they help us learn new things, get ready to uncover lots of fascinating facts about the brain.

Briefly describes the physical characteristics, habits and behavior of elephants.

Look through fresh eyes at the stories of some of history''s most remarkable women, in this inspiring collection of short stories by the finest female authors writing historical fiction for children today - The History Girls. Subjects include: Queen Boudicca, Aethelfled, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Julian of Norwich, Lady Jane Grey, Elizabeth Stuart, Aphra Behn, Mary Wollestonecraft, Mary Anning, Mary Seacole, Emily Davison, Amy Johnson and the Greenham Common women.

Grace is invited for a visit with her father and his new family in Africa.

As Tyler and his family decorate the Christmas tree, he begins to wonder: Why are all the Christmas tree angels blonde-haired, pink-cheeked little girls? Aren''t there any black angels? No one can answer his question - not his mom, not his dad, not even Carl, the mall Santa. As Tyler combs the stores looking for a black angel, he discovers there are none to be found. But sometimes Santa has a surprise or two in his sleigh . . . Beautifully written and illustrated, this appealing story tackles the serious issues of race and gender in a way that all children can understand.

This watercolour-illustrated collection contains seven classic nursery stories including Rumpelstiltskin, The Hare and the Tortoise and Cinderella.

FEATURES A BRAND-NEW JACK REACHER STORY: This crime fiction anthology includes 17 new short stories from bestselling authors Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, and others! “Intellectually outstanding.” —New York Journal of Books Open the files on an anthology of 17 new crime stories to probe the brutal and complex hearts of criminals—and unravel the strangest of mysteries. Watch as a secretive group of intelligence community officers trace Jack Reacher through Heathrow in Lee Child''s “Smile”. In Mary Hoffman''s “Fallen Woman”, a journalist on the trail of a secretive drug lord gets caught up in the violent suicide of a young woman in Siena. And in Jeffery Deaver’s “Connecting the Dots”, detectives follow the trail of clues in the brutal killing of a homeless man, wherever it may lead . . . Invisible Blood is a gripping collection exploring the compulsions of the criminal mind. Contributors: Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, Denise Mina, R.J. Ellory, Christopher Fowler, Stella Duffy, Ken Bruen, Lauren Henderson, James Grady, Jason Starr, Mary Hoffman, Cathi Unsworth, Bill Beverly, Lavie Tidhar, Johana Gustawsson, A K Benedict, John Harvey

Although a classmate says that she cannot play Peter Pan in the school play because she is black, Grace discovers that she can do anything she sets her mind to do. Full color.

The first of a family series. Five-year-old Sarah discovers that being the oldest child of the family can be hard work. She''s the first to brave the outside world of school, making friends and going to birthday parties, but this difficult year also brings fun and excitement - and a new sister.