New Releases by Jane Buxton

From the author of Hollow Kingdom, a fantastically funny story featuring a cast of colorful characters in a dying Italian village and a giant truffle that changes their fate forever in this “deliciously absurd tale....I savored every page of this book.” (Shelby Van Pelt, author of Remarkably Bright Creatures) After nearly losing the election to a geriatric donkey, newly installed Mayor Delizia Miccuci can’t help but feel like the sun has finally set on the rural Italian village of Lazzarini Boscarino. Tourists only stop by to ask for directions, Nonna Amara’s cherished ristorante is long shuttered, and the town hall is disgustingly overrun with glis glis poo—even Postman Duccio has been disgraced. All that’s left is Bar Celebrità, a rustic establishment where weary locals gather to quibble over decades-long disputes, submit their poor stomachs to bartender Giuseppina’s volcanic espresso, and wonder what will become of the place where together they’ve spent their entire lives. Little do the villagers know that local truffle hunter Giovanni Scarpazza has just happened upon something that could change everything. A truffle—un tartufo, that is—sits beneath the soil with the power to either be the greatest gift or the foulest curse the village has ever seen. Written with the same enchanting style and raucous humor that defines Hollow Kingdom and Feral Creatures, Tartufo is a reflection on the interconnectedness of life in all its manifestations—and how holding on to harmony in the face of hardship can grow something beautiful and rare beneath the surface.

O apocalipsă zombi plină de umor negru, cu un cioroi naiv care vrea să salveze omenirea. Totodată, un avertisment ecologist și un mesaj de iubire pentru orice ființă vie. În ciuda umorului său, este o poveste remarcabil de emoționantă, despre degradarea mediului, impactul dependenței de tehnologie și bizara și brutala frumusețe a sălbăticiei renăscute. – The Nerd Daily Regatul pustiu este o hoinăreală plină de umor, bunătate și infinită frumusețe prin apocalipsă și lumea de după ea, în care până și un cioroi laș poate deveni erou. – Bookshelf Fantasies O carte surprinzătoare, nostimă, care împletește o parabolă ecologistă cu peripeții de dimensiuni epopeice. – Shelf Awareness S.T. este un produs perfect al culturii pop americane: îi plac Beyoncé, fast-foodul și competițiile de mâncat hotdogi. Doar că nu e om decât în cuget și simțiri. De fapt... e un cioroi domesticit care a învățat tot ce trebuie să știe un reprezentant al clasei de mijloc: fotbal american și show-uri TV, cum să repari orice cu bandă adezivă și cum să treci peste dezamăgirile amoroase de pe Tinder. Toate astea însă nu-l vor ajuta când va veni apocalipsa, iar oamenii se vor transforma în zombi. În schimb, va apela la (ceea ce crede el că sunt) imaginația și inventivitatea ființelor umane, pe care le consideră cele mai grozave creaturi din lume, deși n-au aripi. Împreună cu tovarășul său nu tocmai de nădejde, un câine nu foarte inteligent, S.T. pornește să salveze ce mai e de salvat – oameni încă sănătoși (dacă mai există) și animale domestice neajutorate.

MOST ANTICIPATED by Bustle • "Sci-Fi Thriller" recommendation from Buzzfeed • An Indie Next Pick In this stunning follow-up to Hollow Kingdom and Seattle Times/Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association bestseller​, the animal kingdom's "favorite apocalyptic hero"is back with a renewed sense of hope for humanity, ready to take on a world ravaged by a viral pandemic (Helen Macdonald). Once upon an apocalypse, there lived an obscenely handsome American crow named S.T. . . . When the world last checked-in with its favorite Cheeto addict, the planet had been overrun by flesh-hungry beasts, and nature had started re-claiming her territory from humankind. S.T., the intrepid crow, alongside his bloodhound-bestie Dennis, had set about saving pets that had become trapped in their homes after humanity went the way of the dodo. That is, dear reader, until S.T. stumbled upon something so rare—and so precious—that he vowed to do everything in his power to safeguard what could, quite literally, be humanity's last hope for survival. But in a wild world plagued by prejudiced animals, feather-raising environments, new threats so terrifying they make zombies look like baby bunnies, and a horrendous dearth of cheesy snacks, what's a crow to do? Why, wing it on another big-hearted, death-defying adventure, that's what! Joined by a fabulous new cast of animal characters, S.T. faces many new challenges plus his biggest one yet: parenthood. Includes a Reading Group Guide.

S.T. tiene la vida que cualquier cuervo doméstico desearía: convive con su dueño, Big Jim; disfruta del cariño de Dennis, un leal y tonto perro; ve documentales desde un cómodo sillón y, cuando se aburre, intercambia insultos con otros cuervos, pero sobre todo, disfruta de la mejor comida que la especie humana puede ofrecer: los Cheetos. Sin embargo, todo se viene abajo una apacible tarde de verano cuando el ojo de Big Jim sale rodando de su rostro. A pesar de probar todos los remedios que conoce —desde cerveza artesanal hasta un coctel de medicamentos—, S.T. no consigue que Jim se recupere. Entonces se ve obligado a abandonar el dulce hogar en compañía de su fiel amigo Dennis para hallar una cura, pero lo que encuentran es una ciudad destruida donde los hombres se devoran unos a otros. La humanidad tiene un nuevo héroe apocalíptico, un malhablado cuervo amante de la comida chatarra que emprenderá la aventura de su vida para recuperar el mundo que tanto quiere. El reino vacío es una novela llena de peligros inesperados, teléfonos inteligentes, fake news y mucho humor. Una fábula extraordinaria sobre la naturaleza y un mundo que, después de todo, vale la pena salvar

A finalist for the 2020 Thurber Prize for American Humor! "The Secret Life of Pets meets The Walking Dead" in this big-hearted, boundlessly beautiful romp through the Apocalypse, where a foul-mouthed crow is humanity's only chance to survive Seattle's zombie problem (Karen Joy Fowler, PEN/Faulkner Award-winning author). S.T., a domesticated crow, is a bird of simple pleasures: hanging out with his owner Big Jim, trading insults with Seattle's wild crows (i.e. "those idiots"), and enjoying the finest food humankind has to offer: Cheetos ®. But when Big Jim's eyeball falls out of his head, S.T. starts to think something's not quite right. His tried-and-true remedies—from beak-delivered beer to the slobbering affection of Big Jim's loyal but dim-witted dog, Dennis—fail to cure Big Jim's debilitating malady. S.T. is left with no choice but to abandon his old life and venture out into a wild and frightening new world with his trusty steed Dennis, where he suddenly discovers that the neighbors are devouring one other. Local wildlife is abuzz with rumors of Seattle's dangerous new predators. Humanity's extinction has seemingly arrived, and the only one determined to save it is a cowardly crow whose only knowledge of the world comes from TV. What could possibly go wrong? Includes a Reading Group Guide.

'That's awful!' Philip said. 'That's not the life I choose, cos I believe life should be fun, not full of wees and poos!' When Philip the luxury loo discovers what his life isn't going to be all rose-scented toilet paper, he runs away to find a new job. But thing are not easy for a lavatory on the loose. Can Phil find a future that has nothing to do with a toilet's usual business?

Fiction, Reading Recovery Level 22, F&P Level N, DRA2 Level 30, Theme, Stage Fluent, Character N/A

Fiction, Reading Recovery Level 5, F&P Level D, DRA2 Level 4, Theme, Stage Early, Character N/A

A simple discussion of different kinds of skeletons from the animal kingdom.

A girl describes how to make a sandcastle at the beach.

High in the Andes Mountains, the littlest llama wants to play but his mother, sisters, gran, and aunt are busy, and so he leaves the herd to seek a playmate and finds adventure, instead.

A yummy lunch of bugs and slugs! Whose lunch can this be? Includes teacher's notes.

Sheriff finds a hidden gift inside Billy the Bad's birthday cake. Suggested level: primary.

Photographs and text introduce horses: how they live in the wild, their physical characteristics, and the domestic purposes for which they can be used. Includes helpful hints for behaviour around horses. Suggested level: primary.

Gregory can juggle three different things at once. He juggles to entertain people. Sometimes, he even juggles to improve his spelling! Jane Buxton talks to Gregory about his circus skills.

A yellow level reader about how a burglar gets caught by tripping over the kids skateboards. Suggested level: primary.

Two children build a tower with furniture and toys, until they add one toy too many and it crashes to the floor.

A bone, a collar, a ball, and a dish are some of the things a young girl uses to take care of her dog.