Most Popular Books by Joan Holub

The Olympians must face the fierce giant Typhon in order to find magic seeds that will help grow the earth after the terrible drought brought upon the land by Hyperion.

Persephone learns that it’s ok to stand up for herself in the second book in the Goddess Girls series! Persephone usually goes along with whatever everyone else wants instead of doing what makes her happy. So when she meets Mount Olympus Academy bad-boy Hades, she finally feels like she has found someone with whom she can be herself. But her mom (Ceres) and her friends don’t exactly approve. If Hades can make her feel so special, is he really that bad, or just misunderstood?

From the authors of the Goddess Girls series comes the fourth book in a series steeped in Norse mythology, magic, adventure, and friendship. Skade, the goddess of skiing, is known as one of the best athletes—and a top student—at Asgard Academy. But lately, she’s felt like she’s been in a slump. When three giants appear and offer to mend the rift between the worlds by organizing a ski competition, Skade feels like this is her big chance to prove herself again. After all, the powerful Odin will be choosing the Asgard team based on ability, attitude, and academics! But much to Skade’s embarrassment, Odin is less than impressed with her—and names her as an alternate instead of part of the main team. Aside from Skade’s frustrations, something seems fishy about the whole competition. After one of Skade’s classmates has a strange nightmare about it, they start to wonder if the games are one big cover-up for something more sinister. And when the Asgard team finds themselves on thin ice, it’s up to Skade to overcome a big fear, save her friend—and show everyone what she’s made of!

When dawn comes and it''s time for bats to go to bed, Fink can''t sleep so the whole bat family pitches in to help by telling bedtime stories to lull him to sleep.

In this fairy tale retelling, Goldilocks hopes to prove herself a worthy friend by infiltrating an evil organization and saving the day. Once upon a time, in faraway Grimmlandia . . . Goldilocks is so eager to make friends at Grimm Academy, she''s even tempted to accept an invitation to join E.V.I.L.—it''s just nice to be included! But she doesn''t want to be a villain. Can Goldie get inside the secret society and do some good?

From the authors of the Goddess Girls series comes the second book in a brand-new series steeped in Norse mythology, magic, adventure, and friendship. Twelve-year-old Sif is goddess of the harvest, with her abilities woven into her long, blonde hair. She also has special prophetic powers—she is a seer—but is reluctant to share them after a mishap years ago caused a big rift in a friendship that meant a lot to her. And Sif is determined to not let that happen again! But when the mischievous Loki cuts her hair in a horrible prank gone wrong, Sif orders Loki to fix it. Without her hair, the crops in the land of Midgard—which supplies the wheat for food in Asgard Academy as well—are in danger of dying off. With Sif and Freya, Loki goes to ask for help from the dwarfs, specifically, the sons of Ivaldi who are all skilled blacksmiths and strikes a bargain with them. They hammer and spin gold into fine golden strands along with a spear and a ship that will grow to full size once in water. On his way back through the cave, Loki gets an idea for how to get more treasures by playing one set of dwarfs off against another. Envious of the work of the sons of Ivaldi, the dwarfs Brokk and Eitri say they can do better. Loki replies that he doesn’t think they can and that, furthermore, he’ll stake his head on it. Is that a bet that Loki will regret? And will Sif be able to restore her magical powers to prevent the drought in Midgard?

Well-researched and true to the original myths, each volume in the Goddess Girls series addresses contemporary issues like friendships and relationships from a classically accurate—and entertaining—persepective. In Aphrodite the Beauty, Aphrodite, goddessgirl of love, must deal with jealousy after giving Athena a makeover. It doesn’t seem fair that the godboys pay more attention to her friend when Aphrodite is supposed to be destined for love! She also copes with a crush from an unlikely source—the nerdy Hephaestus (god of the smith)—and learns that love comes in many forms.

In this fairy tale retelling, Gretel ventures into a forbidden forest and falls into the hands of evil villains and must foil their dastardly plans. Welcome to Grimm Academy, where beloved fairy tale characters are BFFs—and saving the world from the E.V.I.L. Society, one magical adventure at a time! Gretel joins the Grimmtastic quest for justice in a world where the E.V.I.L. Society must be stopped when she goes hiking in Nevermore Forest, against her the warnings of her teacher. When she is captured by the E.V.I.L. society, she must summon all her strength to fight back!

When the Titan Hyperion turns up the heat and starts throwing fireballs around, Olympians Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hera, and Demeter search for a mysterious Olympic torch and steal the flame to light it.

Get to know Clotho, one of the Three Fates, in this twenty-fifth Goddess Girls adventure! Eleven-year-old Clotho is always linked with her two big sisters. Together, they are all the Three Fates, with abilities to predict events in mortals’ lives. There are a few rules that the all-powerful Zeus has decreed for them, including a strict no-mingling with mortals policy. After Clotho discovers letterscrolls from unhappy mortals who don’t love their fates, she wishes there was a way to try and earn their respect. During a secret trip to the Immortal Marketplace—where there is always a chance to run into mortals, too!—Clotho finds herself in over her head as she gets swept up in a competition to celebrate the opening a new store. A competition where her identity as a fate could be revealed at any moment! If that weren’t enough, Clotho must face up to an old mistake she made several years ago that broke one of Zeus’s other rules: Never interrupt the telling of a fate. It could mess up a mortal’s whole life! Can Clotho manage to untangle the mess she has made while finding a way to bring the mortals and the Fates together?

Join little Artemis for a sweet, Wizard of Ozu00ad–inspired adventure in this fourth Little Goddess Girls story—part of the Aladdin QUIX line! All Artemis wants is the gift of courage. There are a lot of scary things out there! With the help of her new friends—Athena, Persephone, and Aphrodite—Artemis hopes she can ask the super-duper-powerful Zeus to help her be a little less afraid. But the mean green girl, Medusa, has other plans. Can Artemis dig deep, be brave, and help her friends find their way to Sparkle City? With the help of some animals who aren’t what they seem, Artemis just might end up being an unexpected hero!

"After stumbling into a pet cemetery, Hecate meets Melinoe, who calls herself a ghost herder. She is in charge of leading the ghosts of pets and other animals to the River Styx in the Underworld. But Melinoe doesn''t notice when one of her ghost animals follows Hecate home! More and more of the lost ghosts gather with Hecate, and she learns they have unfinished business left on Earth and refuse to enter the Underworld"--

From the authors of the Goddess Girls and Heroes in Training series comes the first book in the School for Magical Monsters series about Pegasus’s first day at school—part of the Aladdin QUIX line! Pegasus is very excited for his first day at the School for Magical Monsters! At his old school, he was the only creature there, but now, he won’t be alone. In fact, everyone there will find their special power—and Pegasus can’t wait to discover his! But the first few days are a little rough—poor Pegasus keeps on stumbling over his hooves! And it seems like all his new friends start to receive their power before her does. With a little help from his new friends and a little magic, can Pegasus learn to soar at his new school?

When Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon continue on a new quest in the search for the Helm of Darkness, they discover many things in the Underworld that Hades does not fear except a giant three-headed dog.

Join little Aphrodite on a sweet adventure in this seventh Little Goddess Girls story—part of the Aladdin QUIX line! After reuniting with her fellow Little Goddess Girls on the Hello Brick Road, Aphrodite hopes they are going to have another big adventure. When a talking carrot named Prometheus leads them to a mysterious magical box named Pandora, which has the words Do Not Open written across the top, the girls wonder what could be inside. It turns out that Pandora might be the key to solving the mystery of who—or what—is accidently burning a magical vegetable patch.

In 1876, France decided to give the United States a very big and very special present--the Statue of Liberty. The gift was to commemorate the 100th birthday of the United States, and just packing it was no small feat--350 pieces in 214 crates shipped across the ocean. The story of how the 111-foot-tall lady took her place in the New York Harbor will fascinate young readers.

"When Medea and Jason find the golden fleece in an oak tree guarded by a serpent, Medea concocts a sleeping potion to help them get by the snake and retrieve what is theirs."--]cProvided by publisher

Hear the stories about the gold-seeking "forty-niners!" in this addition to the #1 New York Times bestselling series. In 1848, gold was discovered in California, attracting over 300,000 people from all over the world, some who struck it rich and many more who didn''t. With black-and white illustrations and sixteen pages of photos, a nugget from history is brought to life!

Apple facts and counting combine in this fun trip to the apple orchard. Field trip today—to the apple farm! Count 20 name tags, 19 kids on the bus, and 18 miles to the farm. There are 14 cows and 13 ducks (10 white and 3 black) and 12 rows of apple trees. Count the apples in your sack, count 3 pies to eat (divided into 20 pieces), and all too soon it''s 2 p.m., time to go! But wait—Lee has a number 1 surprise. Joan Holub''s creative countdown, from 20 to 1, includes grouping and simple addition. Her multicultural students enjoy all that the apple farm has to offer, from counting the cows and ducks to picking different varieties of apples. The inside cover of this cheerful book is filled with apple facts.

A young Poseidon must triumph over aquatic terrors in this Heroes in Training adventure. The merciless Cronus and his Titan buddies are in hot pursuit of Zeus, Hera, and Poseidon, who plan to travel across the treacherous boiling sea in order to save a fellow Olympian. They have a boat, but they also have a problem: Poseidon can’t swim and is terrified of the water (well, really of the creatures that lurk in its depths). The group faces danger after danger as they battle singing sirens, a fishy and ferocious Titan named Oceanus, and people-eating monsters sent by Cronus himself. Can Poseidon overcome his fears and help his fellow heroes escape Cronus and his cronies?