Books published by publisher Cricket Books

This summer the cellist Yo-Yo Ma highlights a year devoted to his Silk Road Project at the spectacular National Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. Through exhibits, concerts, and lectures, the festival celebrates the arts, crafts, and music of the lands along the ancient trade route. Through telling interviews, lavish color photos, maps, and intriguing sidebars, this book captures all the vitality of the project, honoring cultural traditions that flourish along the Silk Road and the ways they are affirmed or altered in America. From the stories of eight artists from Silk Road lands who now live in America, young readers sample recipes with a Persian cook, dodge the moves of a Korean martial artist, and pluck the strings of a Greek oud, the ancestor of the lute and guitar.

When she's not helping her father with his bee-keeping business, 11-year-old Maddie Pruitt is on the lookout for signs. Ever since she spied a falling star the night her mother died, Maddie has relied on signs and rituals to keep herself, her father, and her grandfather safe. When Maddie finds a popped balloon with an address attached, she thinks it might be some kind of sign. She begins a correspondence with 14-year-old Pearl Paradise, becoming increasingly intrigued by the aura of mystery surrounding her new friend. In her letters Pearl often uses strange words that Maddie's never heard of, and when Pearl sends a photograph of herself, it is decades old. As baffling as they are, Pearl's letters comfort Maddie, especially when her father starts dating a woman completely unlike her mother. When Maddie's father announces his engagement, Maddie retreats deeper into her emblematic world, shutting out everyone but Pearl. But when Pearl makes a startling revelation about herself, Maddie realizes the importance of accepting change rather than fearing it.

In the latest volume of the popular Robert series, animal-lover Robert Dorfman’s research on the clouded leopard for a school report introduces him to the animal rights movement. When he organizes a peaceful protest outside a local fur salon, he’s shocked to see his beloved Grandma Judy wearing a fur coat. Can mutual understanding and trust help Robert and Grandma Judy help them find common ground in a very difficult situation?Meanwhile, Robert agrees to manage his best friend Paul’s campaign for class president, which turns out to be much more complicated than the simple protests he’s used to.

This summer the cellist Yo-Yo Ma highlights a year devoted to his Silk Road Project at the spectacular National Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. Through exhibits, concerts, and lectures, the festival celebrates the arts, crafts, and music of the lands along the ancient trade route. Through telling interviews, lavish color photos, maps, and intriguing sidebars, this book captures all the vitality of the project, honoring cultural traditions that flourish along the Silk Road and the ways they are affirmed or altered in America. From the stories of eight artists from Silk Road lands who now live in America, young readers sample recipes with a Persian cook, dodge the moves of a Korean martial artist, and pluck the strings of a Greek oud, the ancestor of the lute and guitar.

Harriet Pig is an unstoppable, unflappable force, out to right the world. In this collection of four stories, she realizes her dream to fly, helps a friend overcome a fear of heights, trains for a swim race against a boastful goose, and repays in the extreme a mouse that saves her life.This transitional book is more challenging than an early chapter book, but still accessible to beginning readers who want to laugh as they follow Harriet’s adventures. Leslie Tryon’s charming black-and-white illustrations perfectly capture the lively spirit of adventure found throughout the book. Harriet’s barge-ahead personality provides the laughs, as she does whatever it takes to accomplish her ends.

It?s 1979, and Simon?s life is unraveling before his very eyes. He doesn?t get along with his father, his girlfriend has just dumped him, he?s in trouble with the school authorities, and he?s been arrested for drinking underage and smoking pot?not to mention selling the stuff. And to top it off, he?s adopted, and his parents act like it?s something shameful. He wrestles open his parents? lockbox, finds the names and last known location of his birth parents, and decides to leave Mansfield, Iowa, and head to Texas in search of his origins. His encounters with an Elvis impersonator (who may just be the missing man himself) along with a young woman on the lam and two hapless drifters add up to a picaresque road-trip tale that is not only very funny but honest in the telling.

When a new job takes Nicky and her mom to the Scottish border lands, Nicky is concerned. She's not worried about the job -- taking care of horses -- but about where it is -- ancient Bloodybow Castle, dark, forbidding and full of sercrets.At night, when darkness falls, Bloodybow is attacked by ghosts, ancient raiders that ride out of history to exact revenge against the castle and its denizens, both horse and human.Nicky and her friend Jed are determined to protect Stealaway, the castle's prize stallion, from these phantom attackers. But how? As Nicky and Jed delve futher into the secrets of Bloodybow's past, they realize a mysterious white pony may be the key to solving the mystery and saving Stealaway.STEALAWAY is a thrilling story sure to appeal to fans of horse stories, ghost stories and histories set in the Scottish highlands.

Reading aloud to baby is one of the great joys of being a parent. And it’s more than just fun; experts say that being read to is a critical component of a child’s ability to read, learn, and create. Favorite Mother Goose Rhymes makes the process fun with bedtime classics like Jack and Jill, Little Miss Muffet, and Pop! Goes the Weasel. This collection features such irresistible characters as bubble-blowing kings, tumbling lizards, and prancing kittens who have lost their mittens. Favorite Mother Goose Rhymes gives parents a chance to rediscover old friends in a beautifully illustrated format while letting children enjoy the delights of discovery.

Robert and the Happy Endings brings Barbara Seuling’s beloved character, who first appeared in 1999’s Oh No, It’s Robert, back for new adventures. This time, Robert navigates a series of disasters in his usual upbeat, if somewhat frazzled, style. First comes his new classmate, Taylor Jerome, who’s hearing impaired. Why does her voice sound different when she speaks? Can he help her learn her lines for the class play? Meanwhile, Robert and best friend Paul go to the library to learn about pirates. When they finish, he discovers his bike has been stolen. Nothing keeps Robert down for long, and soon he's researching deafness on the Internet. True to the book’s title, one of his classmates finds his bike, and Taylor gets a hearing aid . . . but Robert's still not sure if the play will be a success. More complications arise when Robert is paired with bossy Susanne Lee for a science experiment, though he soon finds himself excited by her determination to win — an unlikely prospect when their experiment falls from the second floor window of the school! Barbara Seuling’s delightfully fast-paced writing leads her readers through every twist and turn of Robert’s tumultuous life, and Paul Brewer’s whimsical artwork brings these funny, endearing characters to life.

A year ago, Tanya Zeshonski was living in Wisconsin, interning at the public television station, and eating Polish food on the holidays. Then her mother divorced her father, reclaimed her maiden name of MacDonald, and moved to North Carolina to submerge them all in their Scottish heritage. So now, at 15, Tanya is the oldest beginning student at the Flora MacDonald School of Highland Dance. Instead of pursuing her dream of being a filmmaker, she’s learning the Highland Fling, one of the national dances of Scotland. Learning it means a lot to her mother, though, so Tanya resigns herself to practicing for the biggest event of the summer, the Cross Creek Highland Games. At the games, Tanya must face not only the intricacies of the dance, but the complications brought on by a handsome bagpiper named Miguel, a ghostly ancestor, and the arrival of her father. Tanya’s sharp, funny voice rings true as she describes the delicate steps of the dance and the beginning of her new life.

A cat might meow in English, but what does it do in Korean? Very young readers discover how animals of different cultures make their own unique sounds in this engaging picture book. They learn what sound a monkey makes in Swedish (“Twee-twee”), how a duck quacks in Japanese (“Ga-ga”), and how to croak like a frog in Filipino (“Ko-kak”). Each animal’s signature sound (“what animal says”) appears in three different languages. A whimsical cut-paper image of the animal appears when the page is turned. Oink-oink introduces children to the concept of cultural diversity while showcasing a variety of delightful sounds that they’ll relish repeating.

What could be more embarrassing for an 11-year-old than watching his mother dance the Hokey Pokey in front of his entire class? Not much, according to Brendan Breen. Having recently moved from New York City to a small town in Pennsylvania, Brendan wants to fit in at his new school. The only obstacle is his mother. Loud and outgoing, Jean Breen is the opposite of her son. When Jean offers to emcee the Walter F. Harley Elementary School Music and Munchies Night, Brendan panics and plots to keep her as far away as possible. But one by one, his well-laid plans backfire. To avoid getting a reputation as an oddball, Brendan must steer a clear path through a dangerous landscape that includes not only his wacky mother but his chatty little sister, his curious classmates, and a giant orange-feathered baseball mascot called the Goofer. Clever narration, charming characters, and humorous black-and-white illustrations mark this novel of a boy’s desperate quest to avoid humiliation.