Books with author Ley Roberts

Elvis Blue just turned sixteen and struggles with the challenges of becoming a man. In the small town of Hillsborough, North Carolina, there aren't a lot of opportunities for young kids who come from the wrong side of the tracks, especially kids with an alcoholic father and immigrant mother. He is also dealing with the unfamiliar emotions that go with finding his first love in neighborhood girl Maria Palmero. Together with his best friend Monk and loyal puppy Sherlock, Elvis decides to embark on a ghost-hunting career to find his fame and fortune. Elvis chooses the most haunted place in the county to start the hunt, the rickety old Simmons mansion. Rumors still swirl in town about Josiah Simmons who went on a crazy murder spree forty years ago. No one knows how many people Josiah killed or where he buried his legendary fortune, but Elvis and his friends are determined to find out. The kids hit an obstacle right off the bat. Somebody else is interested in the old Simmons mansion. Despite warnings, they pursue the investigation and stumble into the middle of another mystery. There is a new killer stalking the town now and the bodies are rapidly piling up. Elvis and his friends must learn how to deal with a lot of devious people and find more clues while handling all of their problems at home. Unseen danger threatens at every turn, but they learn to support each other and muddle through it. His courage and character are put to the test, and Elvis always comes through. In the end, they will find the ghost, discover the treasure, and then confront the killer. But in order to live through it, Elvis must face his fears and figure it all out.

“The Monster of Tomb Lake” is a hilarious novel about a small town called Tomb, Wyoming, that finds its idea for an annual summer festival in a most unexpected way. The residents eagerly compete with festival proposals that include the good, the bad, and the crazy. Adam and Ellie Green, who have newly moved from the East, join the effort. Adam, a serious professor, wants to fit into the community and he then learns a lot about dogs, rattlesnakes, gossip, and the quirky social politics of a small town. Comedy and chaos are also on his path. And then there's the monster of Tomb Lake. The memorable and amusing characters include Waldo, who runs a survivalist shop; Oscar the sheep rancher with his colorful sheep; Benny the hunky fireman; Jethro the town drunk; Betty Jean, whose name always has a way of coming up in the gossip; Mrs. Thundermug, who hates the idea of a festival and change generally; a barking dog named Gomer, and others. It is a funny comedy with laughs for readers who are adults or even young adults.

"Don't go in the house! Don't go past the door!"Halloween night; trick-or-treat over. All is dark but the house on the hill. Little Max Bruno climbs out the window for one last treat.If only he knew. If only.In verse and illustrations, richly portrayed, the Story of Little Max Bruno.Every child looks forward to Halloween and none more so than Max. When trick-or-treat is over and all is dark, he sees a light in the spooky old house at the top of the hill.The jack-o-lanterns whisper their warning—“Don’t go in the house! Don’t go in the door!”—but all Max can think of is getting that one last treat.What harm can there be, he wonders? After all, it’s only pretend.The door opens, and he is invited to come in. Of course he’s been warned not to go in strange houses, but—with every good intention of coming right back out—he goes in the door.When all have given up on ever finding him, his twin sister Jane insists he is there somewhere and sets off to bring him back. Jane follows Max’s trail and braves the unthinkable.For it is only on Halloween night that spirits may turn, and spells be unbound.The story of Little Max Bruno is about bravery, loyalty, and never giving up.

Zac is a smart, athletic, twelve-year-old who enjoys life, having fun, spending time with his friends, and especially playing baseball. His world turns topsy-turvy one spring break when his dreams begin. The dreams are so real, hes not sure if hes dreaming or actually traveling to these unusual places.After one dream, he wakes up with black-and-blue marks on his arms. Could they possibly be from the pirate he ran into during his dream? Zacs discoveries leave him knowing hes involved in a very serious fight for leadership between the aliens, the Mayans, and the current world as he knows it.Zac finds out hes a descendant of the Mayans, but theres no one to ask about how to deal with his unique capabilities. Hes on his own; he doesnt have a clue how to address the issues and save his family and his world. When his mother gives him a book, handed down through the generations and not opened for more than one hundred years, it may help him through these struggles. Or does it just make the situation more confusing?

The tree is so called because in its early days two young trees separated by about five feet somehow grew toward each other and finally intertwined leaving a large gap at their bases to form an upside down "Y." None of the locals seem to know exactly what kind of plant it is but it has always been called the "Y" tree. Teenagers Trudi Hartmann and Erik Richter began their summer vacation with the expectation of hanging with their friends and generally relaxing from the rigors of high school. Their parents, however, have different plans by using their children to complete necessary chores around their farms. To demonstrate their disappointment with their parents' decisions, the teens plan to escape for a couple of weeks. They agree to meet at the "Y" tree before striking out to the big city for fun and adventure. Fate intervenes with the "Y" tree figuring prominently and the teens discover themselves trapped in an alien parallel universe with little hope of returning home. They make their mark in this other world earning them the gratitude of the denizens of this world and eventually find that their adventure comes full circle.

Amy an extraordinary Persian cat stays with her friend Olly and Granny Huggles. They live in a cosy cottage on Puddleton High Street.Amy gets in and out of scrapes, as she solves mysteries with her friend Olly and the colourful local characters of Puddleton.This story starts one evening in early March when Amy witnesses a strange event in the town museum's library. Curious, she sets off to unravel the mystery, and in the process, witnesses a crime in action.

Sophia Jex-Blake led the campaign that won for British women the right to enter the medical profession. Before taking up this cause she had studied women's education in England, Germany and the United states, and rejected the popular contemporary view that higher education would be wasted on women. Her medical crusade in Britain resulted in women's rights to professional careers and financial independence being more widely accepted. After years of extensive lobbying, she founded the London School of Medicine for Women in 1874 and two years later, largely due to her efforts, legislation was passed enabling women to take qualifying examinations in medicine. Shirley Roberts shows Sophia Jex-Blake to have been a determined and resourceful pioneer, skilful in winning over both public and political opinion. But she was also an impetuous and at times tactless woman, who could provoke hostility, as well as loyalty. Sophia Jex-Blake is a fascinating account of one woman's struggle for equality.