Books with author Audrey Penn

Set on Ocracoke Island in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, approaching Halloween festivities find Billy, Daniel, Stephanie, and Mark exhausted from their trip to sea to give their eccentric friend Mrs. Nemmish the pirate burial she insisted on. But now they are trapped in a tunnel, locked in by Zeek, local scoundrel and direct descendent of Israel Hands, who is racing against them to find the hidden treasure. Is the treasure's location on the map that Zeek took from them, or could it be in the very tunnel where they are tripping over skeletons and struggling to find another way out? Luckily, they have allies - ghostly allies of Blackbeard and Mrs. Nemmish herself, who has been taken on board the ghost ship Queen's Anne's Revenge. This rollicking tale magically combines this unruly group of youngsters, Blackbeard's ghost, secret tunnels, skeletons, hidden treasure, a very mysterious inheritance, the Bermuda Triangle, the Underground Railroad, and a hurricane hitting the Outer Banks in a page-turning delight, full of mystery, laughs, suspense, and adventure.This book also captures much of the essence and rich history of this fascinating location. After 30 years of regular visits to Ocracoke Island, the author has come to know the place and the people, and has enriched this fun tale with real characters, locations, lore, and legends passed down through the generations of residents from the days when Blackbeard had his hideout there. This book is a history lesson of the greatest kind - with the past and the present wonderfully and entertainingly intertwined.

Chester Raccoon doesn't want to go to school--he wants to stay home with his mother. She assures him that he'll love school--with its promise of new friends, new toys, and new books. Even better, she has a special secret that's been in the family for years--the Kissing Hand. This secret, she tells him, will make school seem as cozy as home. She takes her son's hand, spreads his tiny fingers into a fan and kisses his palm--smack dab in the middle: "Chester felt his mother's kiss rush from his hand, up his arm, and into his heart." Whenever he feels lonely at school, all he has to do is press his hand to his cheek to feel the warmth of his mother's kiss. Chester is so pleased with his Kissing Hand that he--in a genuinely touching moment--gives his mom a Kissing Hand, too, to comfort her when he is away. Audrey Penn's The Kissing Hand, published by the Child Welfare League of America, is just the right book for any child taking that fledgling plunge into preschool--or for any youngster who is temporarily separated from home or loved ones. The rough but endearing raccoon illustrations are as satisfying and soothing for anxious children as the simple story. (Ages 5 and older) --Karin Snelson

In this third Blackbeard book, a madcap adventure tale of four teens' journey across the Atlantic and into Westminster Abbey to return some very old pirate loot, the deeper questions surrounding the strange sandstone with mysterious powers are gradually revealed. This novel's masterful weaving of history, intrigue, adventure, the supernatural, and humor has created a book with a broad appeal to readers of many genres.