Books with author Craig Kunce

An inspiring and compassionate story about two would-be friends. Friendship finds us when we least expect it. That's what our large orange friend discovers when it crosses paths one afternoon with a persistent, blue pest. It tries and tries, but it just can't get rid of the little blue bother. Then again, maybe it doesn't want to What does that little pesky thing want anyway?

A modern day tale of devoted friendship and the things each of us has to endure to make a valued friendship last. Spring has sprung in vibrant and colorful Under Valley. The valley is alive with wonderful creatures and tales to tell. As our story unfolds, we find an unusual pair. One is a silky orange snake, the other is a bright pink square. Their new friendship will blossom, then change, and change again. Let's hope, for their sake, it gets better in the end.

modern day tale of devoted friendship and the things each of us has to endure to make a valued friendship last. Spring has sprung in vibrant and colorful Under Valley. The valley is alive with wonderful creatures and tales to tell. As our story unfolds, we find an unusual pair. One is a silky orange snake, the other is a bright pink square. Their new friendship will blossom, then change, and change again. Let’s hope, for their sake, it gets better in the end.

Ellie, Lex, and Will are back for a summer adventure and challenge. Their favorite park is run down and rusty. An accident on the last day of school proves to be the last straw. They need a new park. When City Hall says there isn’t enough money to replace the park, the three set out to raise the money themselves. Their fundraising begins with a wet dog wash, a lemonade stand, and yard work for their neighbors. Will their hard work inspire their community to come together and build a new park?

Ellie Anders has a good life. She has wonderful parents, a furry dog named Sam, and a pretty-okay little brother. She plays tennis, eats pizza, and swaps toys and games with her best friend Lex. But a new school project is threatening to disrupt it all. Her free-spirited teacher, Miss Parker, has assigned an impossible project. Ellie must choose who’s the most important person in her life.

Sadie's bedtime is full of unwanted visitors—scary monsters! They sneak around at night and hide in dark places. Tonight, Sadie is tired of being afraid. She sets out to find these monsters and confront them. Sadie is surprised when she learns the real reason these monsters are lurking and hiding in her house. And it leads to an unexpected friendship.

A light-hearted, humorous, coming-of-age story about six-year-old Sadie who is trying to find her "perfect" friend. Sadie has an idea in her head that her new best friend has to be perfect and live up to her long list of suitable traits. She will meet many interesting and quirky friends during her search. Some won't share, some stretch the truth, some want her to disappear, and some bark out loud! As she searches for her new friend she quickly discovers that no one person can come close to what she expects. Sadie discovers that maybe she is being too picky and might not have any friends at all if she doesn't change her ways. She will learn a lot about friendship along the way and even more about herself.

Meet Edrick, a boy with an oversized imagination! In his first book, Saturday is Cleaning Day, Edrick can't imagine spending all of Saturday morning cleaning his messy room. So he decides to take matter into his own hands and build a cleaning machine that will do the work for him. This way he will be done in no time at all and have the entire day to play outside. But the cleaning machines don't always work the way Edrick imagines they will. And he learns that sometimes the easiest way to get something done is to rely on those who are closest to you.

Meet Edrick and Rae, a boy and girl with oversized imaginations! In their second book Edrick and Rae don't know how they can plant their garden in early spring so their seeds will grow all summer long and turn into big, delicious fruits and vegetables. So they decide to build a seed planting machine. As their gardening adventure unfolds, Edrick and Rae learn that the best way to get something done is to share their ideas, keep trying and get help from others when needed.

Darien is a creative ten-year-old girl who wishes to escape her dull and predictable life. She loves to read, draw, and daydream, despite her parents' efforts to teach her to be practical. But when a stormy day brings Darien together with her peculiar neighbor, strange things begin to happen. Miss Mildred-or Miss Mildew, as she is called behind her back-lives across the street from Darien. Old-fashioned and stern, Miss Mildred agrees to babysit Darien for the day and shares her secret box of mysterious paints. Using the power of her imagination and her painting skills, Darien creates a doorway to another world; a world full of turmoil and unrest. She unexpectedly finds herself in the other world, caught up in a quest to find justice for dragons and humans alike. Come along with Darien on a magical adventure as she encounters bizarre creatures, confronts a bad-tempered dragon, flees from a wicked king, attempts a daring rescue, and tries to find the courage to believe in something real-herself.

In the western lands of Telinoria, there lives a tree with magical healing properties. It has stood atop Videre Hill for centuries, curing and helping those in its presence. But now a battle has begun and its very existence is in jeopardy. Darien, safely returned home, increasingly struggles to find a balance between her need to express her creativity and her parents' wishes that she work harder to fit in and grow up. As she pushes for more independence from her family, her acquaintance with Miss Mildred strengthens into friendship. For her second quest, Darien must try to find the Tree of Healing and bring back some of its magic to restore Miss Mildred's powers. Will Darien be able to use the paints once again to reach the tree before it is destroyed forever? Will the determination of one small girl be enough to overcome the greed of two warring races? Join Darien as she avoids capture by the king's men, confronts hideous enemies, meets valiant new friends, and discovers that luck is not always what it appears to be. (Jeanna Kunce)

Eight-year-old Abigail is conflicted about whether to continue public school or go to music school. While she loves singing, playing ukulele, and writing songs, she isn’t sure she is ready to make such a big change. If she chooses music school, will she make new friends? Will she be good enough? Before she can decide, she wakes to find that her favorite stuffed animal has come to life and needs to go on a quest to find his lost friends who are tied to the magic of children’s imaginations. If they don’t find the others and return them to their living state, the fate of the world’s sparkle and creativity will be undone. Can they do it in time? Ride along with Abigail as she searches for both the missing animals and who she wants to be. Features pen-and-ink illustrations with watercolor. Includes 10 bonus pages of fun activities!