Books published by publisher Orca Book Publishers (1990-10-01)

Most of the time, Silas loves having seven grandparents. Each of them has something unique and valuable to offer. They take him to amusement parks, museums, dog shows, and camping. But when Silas' parents go away on a business trip, all seven grandparents invite Silas to stay with them. One Silas can't be with seven different grandparents at the same time! How can he choose one without hurting the others' feelings? Silas' Seven Grandparents is a fun and loving story about having multiple sets of grandparents and step-grandparents as a result of divorce and remarriage. Silas' grandparents enjoy exposing him to a variety of interests, values, and cultures. But problems arise when Silas feels he can't be everywhere at once. In the end, it's Silas' sensitive, inclusive nature that brings everyone together.

From a carrier, a baby peers out at the trail. Leaves rustle overhead, and a turtle stretches toward the sun. Everything shimmers with light, including the jeweled wings of a dragonfly and the star-shaped lilies. This delightful board book takes the reader on a hike accented by the soft sound of footsteps on the trail and grounded by the rhythmic rocking of mother and baby moving through the forest. Travel along on their serene journey with Laurie Elmquist's lyrical verse and Shantala Robinson's warmly painted collages. A beautiful book that will be treasured by anyone who loves the outdoors.

Sam Campbell's school team, the Laggan Lairds, always loses. When someone suggests that their name be the Laggan Lard Butts, Sam thinks the team should change its name. What is a Laird anyway? The basketball coach agrees, and soon the whole school is involved in an election for a new team name. Sam and his friends nominate the name Lard Butts. When the basketball team starts winning games after a warm-up cheer of "Go Lard Butts!" it seems the Lard Butt campaign might actually win the election.

Every summer morning, Ellie and her Nonna go to the beach. They swim and build sandcastles, and while Nonna reads, Ellie watches the other children play. One day, Ellie builds up the courage to approach an older girl playing on her own in a beached rowboat. Piper has a gift, an imagination so great that she whisks Ellie off on grand adventures, going high in the air, deep below the ocean, and everywhere in between in their little blue boat, their magic boat. When Piper has to leave, Ellie discovers she has her own vivid imagination.

Jim Webb’s pursuit of the truth about his grandfather’s role in the Vietnam War puts him squarely in the sights of someone high up in the US military - someone who wants certain events from that war left in the past. Webb goes on the run in the American Deep South with Lee, a Vietnam vet, trying to smoke out the man they call the Bogeyman by using Webb as bait. The Bogeyman may be powerful and smart, but Webb and Lee, with the help of a few of Lee’s old army buddies (and one motorcycle-riding girl), are ready to take him down.

When Darren Dirkowitz's evil stepbrother (code name Waldo) gets hold of Darren's tippity-top-secret spy journal, he threatens to expose it to the entire Preston Middle School student body. Unless, that is, Darren starts doing his dirty work for him. Now Darren's got to use the oh-so-cloak-and-daggery skills he's honed in his secret alternate life as Dirk Daring, Secret Agent to spy on kids at school. Naturally, he also sets up a separate, sneaky surveillance program to unearth Waldo's own secrets. As more and more ugly truths are exposed, new alliances are forged and old friendships broken. Can Darren learn to be true to himself and build real friendships for the first time in his life? Or will he retreat back into his exciting but imaginary shadow world?

Night is a boy who knows it's much more fun to play than go to sleep. When the sun sets, he travels through the night sky in a spaceship with his teddy. Night's favorite game is hide-and-go-seek, which he plays each evening with his older sister, Day. But why can't he ever find her? Night Boy is a unique playful audiobook about a brother and a sister named Night and Day. The rhythmic text makes for a bedtime story that is sure to lull children who say "I can't sleep" into dreamland. Through the personas of a brother and sister, Night Boy offers a unique explanation of how night turns to day astronomically.

Elliot Moose is on the loose once more. As he jumps aboard his bright red fire truck and takes off to the next rescue, he feels courageous. All his friends want to ride on the truck and be firefighters too. Nobody wants to be rescued. One by one, Elliot's friends climb aboard until there is no more room on the truck. When suddenly they all need a rescue for real, it is his two youngest and smallest friends who save the day. This lively new addition to the Elliot Moose series is a charming tale of friendship and fair play.

There's an invisible creature in the waves around Sarichef. It is altering the lives of the Iñupiat people who call the island home. A young girl and her family are forced to move to the center of the island for refuge from the rising sea level. Soon the entire village will have to relocate to the mainland. Heartbroken, the young girl and her grandfather worry: what else will be lost when they are forced to abandon their homes and their community? Addressing the topic of climate refugees, My Wounded Island is based on the challenges faced by the Iñupiat people who live on the small islands north of the Bering Strait near the Arctic Circle.

On the Internet: Our First Talk About Online Safety introduces children to the basics of online safety in a story-based, conversational style. Using real-world examples set within the context of a child who is using the internet for the first time and watching an older sibling interact with social media, Dr. Roberts takes listeners through several common scenarios around parental supervision, online bullying, and anonymity. She also includes examples of people who use the internet to make the world a better place. On the Internet addresses common safety concerns in a child-centered way and offers easy-to-understand rationales as to why it's important to maintain boundaries online just as in real life. The World Around Us series introduces children to complex cultural, social, and environmental issues that they may encounter outside their homes, in an accessible way. Sidebars offer further resources for older children or care providers who have bigger questions. For younger children just starting to make these observations, the simple question-and-answer format of the audio will provide a foundation of knowledge on the subject matter.