This story reflects love for and enjoyment of all living things. Mom, with her strange habits, will foster children's connections to nature.

A beating heart. A talking tree. The rain forest. Love. Mysticism. Harvest. And above all, chocolate. Dear Coco and Leo,I miss you! We all miss you! The whole forest misses you! I hear their thanks and wishes in my dreams. I hope you do, too. Prepare for a journey into a world filled with what so many crave -- the sweet savoring of a chocolate drop. A drop that can melt even the most troubled realities. But in this nuanced, heartrending story, before good can emerge, there is destruction, the bombarding of a people, their culture, heritage, sacred beliefs, and the very soul that drives their traditions. This urgent, beautiful novel takes readers into the ugly realities that surround the destruction of the Amazon rain forest and its people. Acclaimed author Laura Resau shows us that love is more powerful than hatred, and that by working together, hope can be magically restored, root and branch.

Sherra, a high school graduate, is about to give up her popularity for a life that is all about freedom. But is that really where this new life leads? After a series of ups and downs she finds herself behind bars. She loses all reason to live. Suddenly a woman shows up at Sherra's cell and hands her a Bible. Sherra soon realizes that the only freedom in life is through Christ.

For graduates, for their parents, for anyone facing change, here is a gorgeously illustrated and stunningly heartfelt ode to the challenges of growing up and letting go. A story of the seasons and stepping stones as poignant for parents as for their kids, from the creator of Otis the tractor and illustrator of Love by Matt de la Pena. "Long’s gentle but powerful story about a young tree who holds tight to his leaves, even as everyone else lets theirs drop, takes on nothing less than the pain and sorrow of growing up. . . . As in Long’s unaccountably profound books about Otis the tractor, a pure white background somehow adds to the depth."—The New York Times Book Review In the middle of a little forest, there lives a Little Tree who loves his life and the splendid leaves that keep him cool in the heat of long summer days. Life is perfect just the way it is. Autumn arrives, and with it the cool winds that ruffle Little Tree's leaves. One by one the other trees drop their leaves, facing the cold of winter head on. But not Little Tree—he hugs his leaves as tightly as he can. Year after year Little Tree remains unchanged, despite words of encouragement from a squirrel, a fawn, and a fox, his leaves having long since turned brown and withered. As Little Tree sits in the shadow of the other trees, now grown sturdy and tall as though to touch the sun, he remembers when they were all the same size. And he knows he has an important decision to make. From #1 New York Times bestselling Loren Long comes a gorgeously-illustrated story that challenges each of us to have the courage to let go and to reach for the sun. Praise for Little Tree * "The illustrations are beautifully rendered . . . Understated and inviting, young readers will be entranced by Little Tree’s difficult but ultimately rewarding journey."—Booklist, starred review "Long’s gentle but powerful story about a young tree who holds tight to his leaves, even as everyone else lets theirs drop, takes on nothing less than the pain and sorrow of growing up. Season after season, Little Tree clings to his brown-leaved self until he can take a leap and shed his protection. He feels ‘the harsh cold of winter,’ but soon grows tall and green, and it’s not bad at all. As in Long’s unaccountably profound books about Otis the tractor, a pure white background somehow adds to the depth."—The New York Times Book Review * "[Long's] willingness to take his time and even test the audience’s patience with his arboreal hero’s intransigence results in an ending that’s both a big relief and an authentic triumph. Long’s earnest-eloquent narrative voice and distilled, single-plane drawings, both reminiscent of an allegorical pageant, acknowledge the reality of the struggle while offering the promise of brighter days ahead."—Publishers Weekly, starred review "Long is sparing with the text, keeping it simple and beautifully descriptive. Brilliantly colored illustrations done in acrylic, ink, and pencil stand out on bright white pages, with Little Tree taking the center position in each double-page spread. Tender and gentle and altogether lovely."—Kirkus Reviews "Children will see the tree facing the scariness of change; adult readers may well feel wistful as the story underscores the need to let their babies grow toward independence. Beautiful. Grade: A"—Cleveland Plain Dealer

Lea and her brothers are normal teenagers living normal lives in Vancouver with their parents. (Well, except for the part where they’re quintuplets . . . and ninjas in training.) But that normalcy is turned upside down when, one day, they get home from school to find their house trashed. On top of that, their parents are missing, and all traces of their existence have been erased. As they search the house for clues, they find a message from their parents telling them they are members of the Hirawa clan and that they should travel to Japan to get help from their grandparents. The only problem? They’ve never met their grandparents. They didn’t even know they had grandparents. The Hirawa clan has historically stood against the Kaneshiro clan, who are planning to release the Yōkai, creatures of myth that were banished by a Hirawa ancestor long ago. And according to prophecy, only the quintuplets have what it takes to stop them. But to do that, they’ll need to survive life under the Hirawa clan’s roof, find their parents, and unlock their true powers. No sweat, right?

Dating the best version of your divorced parents' pack, a Gamma for a dad, and later a Luna to the biggest pack of the south. But in Susie's case, dating two Alphas to outgrow her parents' shadow wasn't the real solution, that is until she met Neo. And the blessed wolves of her mother's pack. Gamma Susie Brown. And the reason a curse was specially made for her entire family.

Reading comprehension comes as a result of learning reading skills and strategies. The activities in this series can be used to supplement any core reading program. They are flexible enough to provide opportunities for differentiated instruction.

The Hugging Tree tells the story of a little tree growing all alone on a cliff, by a vast and mighty sea. Through thundering storms and the cold of winter, the tree holds fast. Sustained by the natural world and the kindness and compassion of one little boy, eventually the tree grows until it can hold and shelter others. A Note to Parents and Caregivers by Elizabeth McCallum, PhD, provides more information about resilience, and guidelines for building resilience in children.

Teen suicide is a growing problem in the United States. Millions of people suffer from the loss of a loved one. This is just one of their tragic stories.