Books published by publisher Millbrook Press

The octopus spies a nice, tasty mantis shrimp. It swims over for a closer look at the small creature. Then—WHAM!—the mantis shrimp strikes a nasty blow with its hammer-like forelimb. The octopus shrinks back, defeated. That wasn't such an easy meal after all . . . In nature, good defenses can mean the difference between surviving a predator's attack and becoming its lunch. Some animals rely on sharp teeth and claws or camouflage. But that's only the beginning. Meet creatures with some of the strangest defenses known to science. How strange? Hagfish that can instantaneously produce oodles of gooey, slippery slime; frogs that poke their own toe bones through their skin to create claws; young birds that shoot streams of stinking poop; and more.

The audience was completely silent the first time Billie Holiday performed a song called "Strange Fruit." In the 1930s, Billie was known as a performer of jazz and blues music, but this song wasn't either of those things. It was a song about injustice, and it would change her life forever. Discover how two outsiders―Billie Holiday, a young black woman raised in poverty, and Abel Meeropol, the son of Jewish immigrants―combined their talents to create a song that challenged racism and paved the way for the Civil Rights movement.

See the blue water. Hear the waves crash. Smell the suntan lotion. Touch a soft feather. Taste the salty seawater. The seashore stimulates all of our five senses in exciting ways. This book is a wonderful discussion and activity starter for children visiting the seashore, while at the same time it is ideal for classroom use in studying the five senses.

We use electricity and other types of energy every day. But did you know that some kinds of energy can make Earth dirty? Join Tyler to learn how we can use energy wisely. Do your part to be a planet protector! Discover how to reduce, reuse, recycle, and more with Tyler and Trina in the Planet Protectors series, part of the Cloverleaf Books™ collection. These nonfiction picture books feature kid-friendly text and illustrations to make learning fun!

When the clock strikes one, a fun-loving mouse runs up the clock. But what happens when the clock strikes two? A cat gets hungry for mouse-tail stew . . . and the chase is on! Hour by hour, more animals - and even a few people - join in. The crowd charges into the barnyard, dashes through the kitchen, and eventually heads right into the middle of town. Keep your eye on the many clocks in this book and follow along until this twelve-hour race comes to a surprising end!

In the early morning on April 18, 1906, a terrible earthquake struck San Francisco, California. Lizzie Newton, who had been staying with her grandmother, woke up frightened but unhurt. She helped her injured grandmother out of the apartment building. People across the city left their homes for fear that the buildings might collapse.After Lizzie’s grandmother was taken to the hospital, ten-year-old Lizzie was on her own. She had to make her way to her parents without any help. Could she find them? Would they be all right? In the back of this book, you’ll find a script and instructions for putting on a reader’s theater performance of this adventure. Download additional copies of the script plus sound effects, background images, and more ideas that will help make your reader’s theater performance a success through Lerner eSource.

What is a suffix? You'll find the answer inside this book―it's overflowing with wonderful suffixes. Brian P. Cleary's playful rhymes and Martin Goneau's humorous illustrations creatively present the concept of suffixes for young readers. For easy identification, key suffixes appear in color, and the comical cats reinforce each idea. -Ful and -Less, -Er and -Ness: What Is a Suffix? turns traditional grammar lessons on end! Read and reread this book aloud and delight in the sense―and nonsense―of words.

When is a list also a poem? When it's a list poem! List poems can be funny or serious, rhymed or unrhymed. Award-winning author Brian P. Cleary explains how these types of poems work―and shows some of the many ways they can be written. Underneath My Bed is packed with goofy poems on subjects ranging from summer camp to dinosaurs to messy bedrooms. And when you've finished reading, you can try writing your very own list poem!