Fans of Dav Pilkey's The Adventure of Ook and Gluke and Patricia Reilly Giff's ZigZag Kids series will flock to this chapter book series full of slapstick humor and silly situations by the wildly popular Tony Abbott, author of The Secrets of Droon Series. When the Goofballs--Jeff, Brian, Mara, and Kelly--hear about a house that might be haunted, where someone disappeared years before, it sounds like the perfect case for them to solve on Halloween. But they'll need their best sleuthing skills and, of course, the help of the Goofdog, because this may be their silliest--and scariest--mystery yet.

Fans of Dav Pilkey's The Adventures of Ook and Glook and Patricia Reilly Giff's ZigZag Kids will flock to this chapter-book mystery series full of slapstick humor and silly situations by the wildly popular Tony Abbott, author of the Secrets of Droon series. Jeff, Mara, Brian, and Kelly are Goofballs and proud of it. Goofball private eyes. Together, they solve mysteries. How do they discover the truth? They use funny disguises, nutty inventions, and their secret weapon: Sparky the Goofdog! Objects have been disappearing from Ms. Becker's kindergarten classroom - blocks, an easel, even the class goldfish! Luckily, the Goofballs are ready to go undercover to help their former teacher learn the truth. But posing as teachers is hard work, especially when the entire class may be as smart as Kelly, as observant as Jeff, as creative as Mara, and as goofy as Brian. Everyone's a suspect, and every time the Goofballs turn their backs, something else vanishes. Soon, the whole classroom will be gone! Have the Goofballs been out-goofed? These young sleuths have never failed so solve a case, and they don't intend to start now!

Reaching Reluctant Young Readers features 150 middle-grade books. Each profiled title has the potential to hook the reluctant reader and lure them to read the entire book. To specifically encourage elementary and middle-school-age reluctant children to read, there is first a pitch to get the reader’s attention. That is followed by a short reading passage to “set the hook” and encourage the young person to read the rest of the book on their own. Further, the book contains several hundred additional recommended titles. The books selected for this collection were chosen following the criteria of reluctant reader books created by the Quick Picks committee sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association. While these guidelines were designed for young adult books, they also work well for middle-grade books. The criteria include: clear writing (no convoluted long sentences with sophisticated vocabulary), high interest “hook” in the first few pages, well-defined characters, interesting plot, and familiar themes.

A ghost-sighting at a creepy haunted house means the Goofballs have a new silly mystery to solve

A ghost-sighting at a creepy haunted house means the Goofballs have a new silly mystery to solve

A hidden door. A magical staircase. Discover the world of Droon! There's no place like home! Eric and his friends have finally restored the Rainbow Stairs, but that was the easy part. Now Gethwing is loose in the Upper World, and the Moon Dragon is causing big trouble. Eric, Julie, and Neal have to protect their town, but they're up against mysterious creatures, strangely-behaving parents, and powerful magic. Can the kids stop Gethwing before he destroys the Upper World -- for good?

Long-time friends and fellow sleuths Jeff Bunter, Brian Rooney, Mara Lubin, and Kelly Smitts, collectively known as the Goofballs, investigate the disappearance of Thunder the pony in their town of Badger Point.

Rich kid Ryan Crandall asks the Goofballs to protect his famous collection during his superhero masquerade party, as Jeff, Mara, Brian, and Kelly get into costume and rise to the challenge

A complete collection of the British comedy show following Rowan Atkinson's hapless, rubber-faced clown. The set includes all episodes from the original series and the animated spin-off, as well as the two 'Mr Bean' movies. In 'Bean - The Ultimate Disaster Movie' (1997), Mr Bean (Atkinson) has obtained a job as an attendant at the National Gallery in London. He enjoys the protection of the chairman, but the gallery's governors are keen to be rid of him. When the Grierson Gallery in Los Angeles asks for an expert to give a speech on the recently-purchased painting of Whistler's mother, Bean is quickly despatched. On his arrival in America he begins wreaking havoc in the art world. In 'Mr Bean's Holiday' (2007), Bean has won a church fete raffle's top prize, consisting of a trip to France, where the language barrier predictably causes our hero no end of grief until he meets Emil (Karel Roden), a Russian director on his way to judge at Cannes.

"Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film" offers an extraordinary close-up of the hitherto overlooked golden age of Japanese cult, action and exploitation cinema from the early 1950s through to the late 1970s, and up to the present day. Having unique access to the top maverick filmmakers and Japanese genre film icons, Chris D. brings together interviews with, and original writings on, the lives and films of such transgressive directors as Kinji Fukasaku ("Battles Without Honour and Humanity"), Seijun Suzuki ("Branded to Kill") and Koji Wakamatsu ("Ecstasy of the Ange."