Books with author Elizabeth Ocling

In gorgeous full-color photos, King takes us to a joyous, once-in-a-lifetime event -- the quinceanera. It is the celebration of a Latina's 15th birthday, a coming-of-age ritual in which a community welcomes its newest adult member with a church service, a feast, & dancing. The tradition, which is rooted in Aztec & Mexican custom, is growing in popularity in the U.S. With a lavish dress, an honor court of friends, a big cake, & a night filled with music, the quinceanera is a fairy-tale moment. But it is a solemn event, too. At a special Mass before the party, the young woman reaffirms her faith & reflects on its importance in her adult life. The history, significance, & fun of the quinceanera are warmly recounted in this lovely book. Illustrations.

Out in the Park one day, children, I met a little boy not bigger than you are, who told me that he liked stories about a boy and a dog and the things they did together. He said that it must be a real boy and a real dog, and there must be other animals in the story, not great, big, fierce ones, but just neighborly ones-animals a boy might, perhaps, meet when he went for walks in the woods-and take pictures of and get to know. So this is the story of the way a real boy and a real dog spent their first summer in the real country; and the fun they had together.

"A recipe for happiness: four women, one medieval Italian castle, plenty of wisteria, and solitude as needed. The women at the center of The Enchanted April are alike only in their dissatisfaction with their everyday lives. They find each other-and the castle of their dreams-through a classified ad in a London newspaper one rainy February afternoon. The ladies expect a pleasant holiday, but they don't anticipate that the month they spend in Portofino will reintroduce them to their true natures and reacquaint them with joy. Now, if the same transformation can be worked on their husbands and lovers, the enchantment will be complete."

Each of these libraries of six delightful titles was created especially to help children understand and appreciate the beauty of the natural world. Each book, which has been written and illustrated by award-winning authors and artists, tells the story of an animal in its natural environment. Accurate in detail and rich in storytelling tradition, these books are perfect for giving and collecting.Authenticated by the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.