Books with author Mary Lou Peterson

They were at the end of the continent, on a piece of land in South America so inhospitable that it once housed only prisoners or pirates on the run. Bloodthirsty pirates like Blackbeard and Captain Kidd and their frigates and schooners bulging with booty. While vacationing with their family in Chile and volunteering at a penguin reserve, Tyler and Elise make friends with a notorious local shopkeeper who has a dark, family history. Their new friend is full of fantastic stories of pirate lore and the bloody past of his family.They are shocked to witness their friend being arrested and make it their mission to clear his name. Armed only with tenacity and a sharp wit, these wise-cracking kids are knee-deep in penguins but manage to piece facts and suspects together and use a most unusual clue to solve the case.

Tyler’s strategy has gone tragically wrong. They were all supposed to meet outside the City of the Dead, but his sister never made it out. Elise sought the safety of a crypt, inches from the crazed man who threatened death by white tigers. Too weak to move, she watches as the walls slowly close in on her. Undaunted, the comedic duo make allies with a gang from the barrio and follow clues to unravel a crime that could ruin thousands.

"There’s no way Elise can get us into trouble here," Tyler thought. "We’ll be working with gauchos, riding the open range, and living on a ranch miles from civilization." He had no idea what kind of danger they would be facing in the next few days. He and his sister would be on the greatest adventure ever… but they would be running for their lives.This adventurous brother and sister embark on a yearlong trip to South America in this middle-grade chapter book. Undaunted by language barriers, new cultures or unfamiliar surroundings, the tenacious duo make allies as they work on an estancia, learn the ways of the gaucho, and use their new skills to outwit a gang of thieves and their plan to steal more than sheep.

[*Read by the author - Mary Pflum Peterson] In this riveting, poignant memoir of three generations of women and the white dresses that adorned them, Emmy Award-winning television producer Mary Pflum Peterson recounts a journey through loss, redemption, and her battle to rescue her mother from compulsive hoarding. As a successful television journalist at Good Morning America, Mary Pflum is known as a polished and highly organized producer. It's a persona at odds with her tortured childhood, where she watched her emotionally vulnerable mother fill their house with teetering piles of assorted ''treasures.'' But one thing has always united mother and daughter: their love of white dresses. From the dress worn by Mary's mother when she became a nun and married Jesus, to the wedding gown she donned years later, to the special nightshirts she gifted Mary after the birth of her children, to graduation dresses and christening gowns, these white dresses embodied hope and new beginnings. After her mother's sudden death in 2010, Mary dug deep to understand the events that led to Anne's unraveling. At twenty-one, Anne entered a convent and committed to a life of prayer and helping others. But lengthy periods of enforced fasting, isolation from her beloved students, and constant humiliation eventually drove her to flee the convent almost a decade later. Hoping to find new purpose as a wife and mother, Anne instead married an abusive, closeted gay man -- their eventual divorce another sign of her failure. Anne retreated into chaos. By the time Mary was ten, their house was cluttered with broken appliances and stacks of unopened mail. Anne promised but failed to clean up for Mary's high school graduation party, where she was being honored as her school's valedictorian, causing Anne's perfectionist daughter's fear and shame to grow in tandem with the heaps upon heaps of junk. In spite of everything, their bond endured. Through the white dresses, pivotal events in their lives were celebrated - even as Mary tried in vain to save Anne from herself. Unflinchingly honest, insightful, and compelling, White Dresses is a beautiful, powerful story -- and a reminder of the unbreakable bonds between mothers and daughters.

"There’s no way Elise can get us into trouble here," Tyler thought. "We’ll be working with gauchos, riding the open range, and living on a ranch miles from civilization." He had no idea what kind of danger they would be facing in the next few days. He and his sister would be on the greatest adventure ever… but they would be running for their lives.This adventurous brother and sister embark on a yearlong trip to South America in this middle-grade chapter book. Undaunted by language barriers, new cultures or unfamiliar surroundings, the tenacious duo make allies as they work on an estancia, learn the ways of the gaucho, and use their new skills to outwit a gang of thieves and their plan to steal more than sheep.

Tyler’s strategy has gone tragically wrong. They were all supposed to meet outside the City of the Dead, but his sister never made it out. Elise sought the safety of a crypt, inches from the crazed man who threatened death by white tigers. Too weak to move, she watches as the walls slowly close in on her. Undaunted, the comedic duo make allies with a gang from the barrio and follow clues to unravel a crime that could ruin thousands.

Undaunted by language barriers, earthquakes, or a crazed villain, tenacious siblings Tyler and Elise make allies and take on Machu Picchu lore as they unravel the legend and find the truth about the Curse of the Inca. The comedic duo use their newly acquired knowledge of Incan culture and solve clues with the aid of the Curse of the Inca and a tiny fruit bat.

Millie has a special gift - she can talk to the animals. And luckily for her she lives on a farm with a host of chatty creatures, including Mazie the pot-bellied pig and Daisy the cow, not forgetting her beloved West Highland Terrier, Lucky. But with her new pet hamster and two pygmy goats arriving, Millie has her hands full...much to Lucky's dismay! A beautifully illustrated and informative book that every child will cherish.

Recued and brought back to good health by his friend Jack the fisherman, Ollie soon realises he isn’t quite the same as the other otters on the riverbank anymore. He’s always been a bit of a loner and rather shy but will his new orange coloured coat make him stand out and be treated differently ? Find out as you turn the pages of this beautifully illustrated book which will keep your child enthralled from the very beginning.

[*Read by the author - Mary Pflum Peterson] In this riveting, poignant memoir of three generations of women and the white dresses that adorned them, Emmy Award-winning television producer Mary Pflum Peterson recounts a journey through loss, redemption, and her battle to rescue her mother from compulsive hoarding. As a successful television journalist at Good Morning America, Mary Pflum is known as a polished and highly organized producer. It's a persona at odds with her tortured childhood, where she watched her emotionally vulnerable mother fill their house with teetering piles of assorted ''treasures.'' But one thing has always united mother and daughter: their love of white dresses. From the dress worn by Mary's mother when she became a nun and married Jesus, to the wedding gown she donned years later, to the special nightshirts she gifted Mary after the birth of her children, to graduation dresses and christening gowns, these white dresses embodied hope and new beginnings. After her mother's sudden death in 2010, Mary dug deep to understand the events that led to Anne's unraveling. At twenty-one, Anne entered a convent and committed to a life of prayer and helping others. But lengthy periods of enforced fasting, isolation from her beloved students, and constant humiliation eventually drove her to flee the convent almost a decade later. Hoping to find new purpose as a wife and mother, Anne instead married an abusive, closeted gay man -- their eventual divorce another sign of her failure. Anne retreated into chaos. By the time Mary was ten, their house was cluttered with broken appliances and stacks of unopened mail. Anne promised but failed to clean up for Mary's high school graduation party, where she was being honored as her school's valedictorian, causing Anne's perfectionist daughter's fear and shame to grow in tandem with the heaps upon heaps of junk. In spite of everything, their bond endured. Through the white dresses, pivotal events in their lives were celebrated - even as Mary tried in vain to save Anne from herself. Unflinchingly honest, insightful, and compelling, White Dresses is a beautiful, powerful story -- and a reminder of the unbreakable bonds between mothers and daughters.