Best Selling Books by Michele Torrey

All Nick ever wanted to be was a whaling captain, like his father before him. What could be more glorious than the life of a whaleman, battling mighty sperm whales and returning home rich as Midas? So when his older brother Dexter signs aboard the Sea Hawk, Nick won’t stand to be left behind. But life at sea is very different from what either Dexter or Nick expected. They are mercilessly overworked by a cruel and dangerous captain. The officers think nothing of beating the crewmen within an inch of their lives. And that’s only the beginning. When an awful turn of fate leaves them stranded in the harsh Arctic winter, they encounter the toughest battle of all—and this one is for their very survival.

Did Zoe really poison her twin sister Chloe? What’s the best way to rescue a super-sized pig trapped in a deep, deep hole? And how can you stop a chilly ghost from wrecking a tree-house sleepover? Fifth-grade supersleuths (and science whizzes) Doyle and Fossey are about to find out—and young readers will love learning the solutions!

Doyle and Fossey are on a mission—a monster mission! It seems there’s a giant bloodsucking monster gasping and gurgling in their friend Gabby’s garbage can. Can they figure out what’s up before the creature gobbles Gabby for lunch? This and four more cool cases will have kids checking out the clues—and learning great science too, including facts about the life cycle of a frog and chromatography.

ORPHANED BY THE plague and penniless, Mateo must find his way in the world. By chance he is made a cabin boy on the celebrated voyage of Captain-General Ferdinand Magellan. The destination is secret, but the crew whispers that Magellan will be the first to sail east to the Spice Islands by going west—and everyone shall return with untold riches. At sea, Mateo discovers the meaning of friendship, loyalty, and hard work, as well as the delight of first love. But when the ocean rages and brother turns against brother, both Mateo and Magellan are in danger—and it’s not clear if anyone will survive. . . . “Torrey deftly maintains the taut thread of adventure that, along with the cast of memorable characters, keep the pages turning.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred “This deserves to be in the hands of every reader who loves history and adventure.”—Kirkus Reviews

In the early nineteenth century, when his sea-captain uncle invites him to assist the ship''s surgeon on his next voyage, orphaned, fourteen-and-a-half-year-old Phillip, eager to be with family, accepts only to find out that his uncle is a slave trader.

Science super-sleuths Drake Doyle and Nell Fossey are back—this time in a never-before-published addition to the popular series! They’ve got an exciting collection of cases, too: Are ghosts and ghouls keeping Edgar Glum awake? Have aliens invaded Mossy Swamp? What’s the crooked game everyone’s losing at the carnival? And why is the town bridge going bananas? Kids will have fun following the clues—and learning about such real scientific principles as amplification, ecosystems, magnetic fields, and more. Plus, budding Doyles and Fosseys will find actual experiments to try!

Daniel Markham loved his father’s mysterious friends, visiting in the dead of night but always gone by morning. He never imagined they could be pirates. But when the Markhams’ merchant vessel is plundered by the pirate ship Tempest Galley and his father shot dead in an act of revenge, Daniel can’t deny the truth. And now, orphaned and alone, Daniel is trapped and faced with a choice: Join the crew or die. Unprepared for the temptations of pirate life and for the captain’s inexplicable kindness toward him, Daniel knows only one thing for certain: One false step on a pirate ship could be deadly, and he’ll do anything to stay alive.

Is there a creepy creature lurking in Mossy Lake? Is an evil plot stirring? Is something shocking happening to Caitlin’s cat Zappy—and can he be de-zapped? Would-be scientists and detectives will want to slip into their lab coats, dust off their test tubes, and get on the case with Drake Doyle and Nell Fossey. Hint: to find the answers, kids will have to use such scientific principles as buoyancy and static electricity.

Doyle and Fossey, science detectives, are on the case again-and this time theyre investigating werewolves on Waxberry Hill, a perilous picnic, a fiesta fiasco, and a dino-disaster…involving a T. rex! Kids will learn all about pressure on the Earths core, how pollution affects ecology, and more. Plus, budding scientists can try actual experiments!

Now in fifth grade, Drake Doyle and Nell Fossey continue to combine their detective and scientific investigation skills to solve a variety of cases, involving a noisy laundry chute, a ruined flower show, and a ghost.

Many have seen the rabbi from Nazareth. Many believe. From all over Palestine they flock to hear him speak, to be healed, to witness the miracles. But even as Jesus reaches out his hands to heal, there are those who would put a crown upon his head, who would make him their king. There are others who are outraged by his breaking of the laws, by his healings on the Sabbath, his eating with unwashed hands. They fear he is leading the masses away from the traditions of the Fathers, from the law of Moses, and the divine will of God. It is a time of turmoil, of oppression, as the Jewish nation labors under the occupation of the Roman Empire. Will they ever be free from the yoke of tyranny? Will the Messiah ever come? And is Jesus the Messiah for whom they have waited? Beloved Rabbi is the story of Jesus his ministry, his death, his resurrection, and his love as witnessed by those who were there. Relive these tumultuous times with twenty-two of Jesus'' contemporaries. Hear their stories. Rejoice with them. Weep with them. Hear the call of the shofar as Tobias of Capernaum gathers at the Temple gates in preparation for the timely sacrifice of his paschal lamb. He is a good man, a good father, recently troubled by the fanaticism of his son, Eli. Already Tobias has lost one son to the Romans, must he lose yet another? Run to the shore of the Sea of Galilee with Tobias= son, Eli, as he seeks to make Jesus king, the military leader of an army of zealots against Rome. Raise your fist with Eli and his fellow zealots, the Brothers, as they cry out, ALet everyone who is zealous for the law and supports the covenant come out with us! To Israel! To Israel!@ From Laban of the Sanhedrin, a pompous, ring-clacking Pharisee who has forgotten what it means to search for truth, to Claudia Procula, the haunted wife of the prefect of Judea, the characters in Beloved Rabbi are rich in spiritual and political insight, and historic detail. The following is an excerpt: BERNICE OF CAPERNAUM A Woman''s Faith Tirzah entered the house with a jug of water on her shoulders. "Mother, let me help you with that," said her daughter. Bernice stopped plucking the chicken and reached to take the earthenware jug from Tirzah''s shoulders. "Nonsense. My bones are not so brittle that I cannot still fetch water." "But Mother " "Hush now, there is something important that I must tell you." Tirzah lowered the jug to the floor and ignored the pain that shot through her back. "Wash your hands while I catch my breath. You cannot go into town with feathers all over your hands." "Go into town?" Tirzah gazed at her daughter, Bernice. Once so vital plain to look at, yes, but vital and strong a joy to be around. Now gray hair covered Bernice''s head, a jaundiced gray, so unlike the silver that crowned Tirzah''s head. Bernice''s hands shook as she poured water from the jug into a shallow basin. Tirzah noticed that her daughter''s hands were as gray and pasty as her face, as if she washed them with ashes instead of water. Bernice had suffered from sickness for twelve years. For twelve years Tirzah had been forced to watch her daughter deteriorate into the illness that now clutched her as surely as if a demon possessed her. Tirzah had been furious when Shobach, Bernice''s husband, had handed her daughter a bill of divorcement. "My wife never ceases to bleed," he said, too cowardly to meet Tirzah''s glare. "Always she is unclean. And a man must have children or he is nothing." And so for eleven years, Bernice had lived with Tirzah. Two women, alone, seeing one physician after another, each physician spouting promises of wellness. Money first. Wellness will follow. Tirzah sold her donkey, her wagon, her comfortable home, and took Bernice to Jerusalem, to Damascus, and finally to Egypt, where the physicians were rumored to be the best in the world. Now they lived in a one-room stone house, sharing a parched, used-up courtyard with seven other familie

They''re in business together. Serious business. No case is too difficult for Doyle and Fossey, the best science detectives in the fifth grade. Is a monster lurking in Mossy Lake? Call Doyle and Fossey. (Meanwhile, swimming is not recommended.) Is am evil plot stirring? You know the drill. Stop wasting time and pick up that phone. The four mysterious cases in this book are followed by related activities or experiments you can try at home. Put on your lab coat, dust off those test tubes, and you''re ready top go!

Relates how the Twenty-third Psalm came to be translated into the universal Indian sign language.

1904, San Francisco. Exotic Indian sisters discover that they are doomed to live as wards in a cold, Nob Hill mansion filled with prejudice and greed. A deceased young aunt''s diary clues the girls into the family''s history and hateful Aunt Mable, their guardian. To survive, they have to outsmart, outmuscle Mable at her own game of betrayal ... and worse.

Fifth-grade sleuths and science experts Drake and Nell solve four challenging cases involving a werewolf at a campsite, a faked tyrannosaurus rex skeleton, a talking oven, and a polluted stream full of dead fish. Includes section with experiments and factual information.