Books with author Mary Hoffman

The award-winning author of the Stravaganza series has done it again with this atmospheric adventure set in Renaissance Italy. Sixteen-year-old Silvano da Montacuto has wealth, good looks, and a new hawk-but none of these can save him when his bloody dagger is found near a dead body. For his own protection, he is sent to a Franciscan House, where he poses as a novice, or a young monk. There, he lays eyes on Chiara, a lovely novice at a nearby abbey who is also living in secret. When they fall in love, their secret identities make it impossible to reveal their feelings to one another. Murder seems to have followed Silvano, and soon several other dead bodies turn up. Who is committing the crimes? Will a young man accused of multiple murders be able to clear himself? And what about the girl he adores? Fans of Mary Hoffman's critically acclaimed Stravaganza series won't be disappointed in the romance, colorful web of intrigue, and rich, marvelous setting.

To mark the 20th anniversary of the publication of Amazing Grace, the spirited little girl with a big imagination is coming back to Puffin in two fun chapter books! In Encore, Grace!, when Grace's family and group of friends change, Grace turns to her imagination to cope with things like a new girl in school and the death of a family friend. In Bravo, Grace!, Grace deals with more change. This time her mother is remarrying and they are moving to a new house, there's a bully in school, and there's a new baby on the way! But despite all the changes, Grace always has her family and friends to support her, and she always finds a way to handle new situations in positive ways."Hoffman's successful African-American protagonist provides a wonderful role model for today's multicultural school community in this second volume of short, clear, event-filled chapters." - Kirkus Reviews review for Encore, Grace!

Who belongs in the fruit bowl? Apples, check. Blueberries, check. Tomato, che-- Wait, what?! Tomato wants to join the other fruits, but does he belong? The perfect mix of botany and a bunch of bananas!All the fruit are in the bowl. There's Apple and Orange. Strawberry and Peach. Plum and Pear. And, of course, Tomato.Now wait just a minute! Tomatoes aren't fruit! Or are they?Using sly science (and some wisdom from a wise old raisin), Tomato proves all the fruit wrong and shows that he belongs in the bowl just as much as the next blueberry! And he's bringing some unexpected friends too!"A fun, brain-teasing food literacy lesson that's a cornucopia of produce and wordplay."--Publishers Weekly, starred review"An a-peel-ing addition."--School Library Journal

Look through fresh eyes at the stories of some of history's most remarkable women, in this inspiring collection of short stories by the finest female authors writing historical fiction for children today - The History Girls. Subjects include: Queen Boudicca, Aethelfled, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Julian of Norwich, Lady Jane Grey, Elizabeth Stuart, Aphra Behn, Mary Wollestonecraft, Mary Anning, Mary Seacole, Emily Davison, Amy Johnson and the Greenham Common women.

The latest story in the Stravaganza series unravels amid ever-more-dangerous politics and intrigue. Sky, a new Stravagante, is whisked away from his dreary life in London to Giglia, the Talian version of Florence. Featuring favorite characters from the first two titles in the series, including Georgia and Falco, as well as a host of exciting new characters, this breathtaking adventure will not disappoint.But beware-in the beautiful City of Flowers, much that seems beautiful is in fact poisonous...

Grace loves stories, and with a boundless imagination she acts them all out. One day, her teacher asks who would like to play the lead in the play Peter Pan. Grace eagerly raises her hand, but Raj tells her she isn't a boy, and Natalie tells her she can't because she is black. Nana sets Grace straight: she can do anything she sets her mind to! Grace's talent bursts forth, and she wins the audition hands down. Binch's radiant illustrations add to this inspiring story.

The statue of David by Michelangelo has stood in Florence for over five hundred years but until now we have known nothing about the young man it was modelled on. Now Mary Hoffman has written the life of Gabriele, the young stonecutter, son of the sculptor's wet nurse, who walks in Florence in 1501, looking like that, and is immediately plunged into adventures involving politics, spying and coping with the man woman - and men - who are attracted to him.

In the Talian town of Classe, magic and piracy come to life. Isabel, a younger twin by a matter of minutes, is transported there by her talisman-a pouch of silver mosaic tiles. Once she stravagates to Classe, she meets Flavia, a successful female merchant whose son is an outcast and a pirate. Isabel discovers that Classe is under threat of attack, but what can she do to save the city?

The award-winning author of the Stravaganza series has done it again with this atmospheric adventure set in Renaissance Italy. Sixteen-year-old Silvano da Montacuto has wealth, good looks, and a new hawk-but none of these can save him when his bloody dagger is found near a dead body. For his own protection, he is sent to a Franciscan House, where he poses as a novice, or a young monk. There, he lays eyes on Chiara, a lovely novice at a nearby abbey who is also living in secret. When they fall in love, their secret identities make it impossible to reveal their feelings to one another. Murder seems to have followed Silvano, and soon several other dead bodies turn up. Who is committing the crimes? Will a young man accused of multiple murders be able to clear himself? And what about the girl he adores? Fans of Mary Hoffman's critically acclaimed Stravaganza series won't be disappointed in the romance, colorful web of intrigue, and rich, marvelous setting.

The latest installment in the critically acclaimed Stravaganza series begins with Matt, the new Stravagante. Despite having a beautiful and very smart girlfriend, Matt is insecure because he is dyslexic. He discovers that he is capable of traveling between two worlds when a leather-bound book transports him from his home in England to Talia, the parallel-world version of Italy, where he meets a fellow-Stravagante named Luciano-who is hiding from the powerful di Chimici family. Luciano has just killed the head of that family in a duel, and is in grave danger. Banding together, Matt and Luciano must resist the di Chimici family, who are on the verge of making a terrifying breakthrough into our world.