Books with author Sandra Dalton

A girl with Appalachian roots has plans for her Cincinnati neighborhoodEleven-year-old Mary Mae Krebs dreams of being a famous singer-songwriter someday. And it's going to be made possible by her great-granny's guitar and box of music. But as much as Mary Mae thinks about her future, she's also got a heart big enough to worry about other folks and their futures. She's organizing a carnival to benefit Little Lukey, a two-year-old boy with a heart murmur, and she's worried about the family's boarder, Annabelle. Annabelle's been like an older sister to Mary Mae, so Mary Mae hates to see her making bad choices when it comes to love. But nudging Annabelle in the right direction means opposing a mighty force: Mary Mae's mother. Mrs. Krebs is convinced that Leroy, assistant manager of the Rise'n'Shine Poultry Company, is the man for Annabelle. Mary Mae doesn't like Leroy at all, and things start looking a whole lot worse when he and Annabelle get engaged. In a laugh-out-loud story about bluegrass, love, and a carnival, Sandra Dutton introduces readers to a plucky young girl who is sure to get heartstrings thrumming.

Living in his rundown neighborhood, it's hard for him to imagine the way it must have been during Mr. Odell's younger years when people like Count Basie and Duke Ellington strolled the streets, but with the help of his friend and the planting of some new trees, Little Catfish is determined to return his community back to its glory state of yesteryear.

However beastly the problem, Miss Perfect, a correspondent for the Beastly Gazette, has the answer:Say “I’m sorry” if you accidentally crush someone.Clean your room when asked.And never chew on your sister without first asking permission.Readers will laugh at Miss Perfect’s often surprising but always on-target advice, and find a kinship with the animals, whose problems are not all that different from their own.

Life may have been hard on Addie French, but when she meets friendless Emma Roby on a train, all her protective instincts emerge. Emma's brother is seeing her off to Nalgitas to marry a man she has never met. And Emma seems like a lost soul to Addie-someone who needs Addie's savvy and wary eye. It isn't often that Addie is drawn to anyone as a friend, but Emma seems different somehow. When Emma's prospective fails to show up at the train depot, Addie breaks all her principles to shelter the girl at her brothel, The Chili Queen. But once Emma enters Addie's life, the secrets that unfold and schemes that are hatched cause both women to question everything they thought they knew. With Sandra Dallas's trademark humor, charm, and pathos, The Chili Queen will satisfy anyone who has ever longed for happiness.