New Releases by Kate DiCamillo

Yippie-i-oh! Saddle up for the first in a spin-off series starring favorite characters from Kate DiCamillo’s New York Times best-selling Mercy Watson books. Leroy Ninker has a hat, a lasso, and boots. What he doesn’t have is a horse – until he meets Maybelline, that is, and then it’s love at first sight. Maybelline loves spaghetti and sweet nothings, and she loves Leroy, too. But when Leroy forgets the third and final rule of caring for Maybelline, disaster ensues. Can Leroy wrestle fate to the ground, rescue the horse of his heart, and lasso loneliness for good? Join Leroy, Maybelline, and a cast of familiar characters – Stella, Frank, Mrs. Watson, and everyone’s favorite porcine wonder, Mercy – for some hilarious and heartfelt horsing around on Deckawoo Drive.

"Youngsters are sure to delight in the exploits of this butter-loving pig, savoring the ‘wonky in the extreme’ text and energetic, innocent art." -School Library Journal Features an audio read-along! Some may find it wonky to take a pig to the drive-in. But not the Watsons, who think the movie’s title, When Pigs Fly, is inspirational. And not their beloved Mercy, who is inspired by the scent of real butter from the theater’s Bottomless Buckets of popcorn. As they pull up in their convertible, Mercy lifts up her snout and becomes a pig on a mission, leading a delirious chase that’s trailed by hapless rescuers reunited from Mercy’s earlier adventures.

Can Mercy Watson outwit . . . Animal Control? The porcine wonder’s on the lam in her latest tongue-in-snout adventure! Features an audio read-along! Mercy''s appetite has got her into trouble again. When Eugenia Lincoln''s pansies go missing, Animal Control Officer Francine Poulet arrives on the scene. But as she soon discovers, not just anyone can think like a pig. Especially when that pig is porcine wonder Mercy Watson!

"Halloween was made for carefree Mercy Watson." – School Library Journal Features an audio read-along! When the Watsons decide to zip their porcine wonder into a formfitting princess dress for Halloween – complete with tiara – they are certain that Mercy will be beautiful beyond compare. Mercy is equally certain she likes the sound of trick-or-treating and can picture piles of buttered toast already. As for the Lincoln Sisters next door, how could they know that their cat would lead them all on a Halloween "parade" of hysterical proportions? Kate DiCamillo’s beguiling pig is back in a tale full of treats, tricky turns, hijinks, and high humor.

* "Another rollicking addition starring the porcine wonder. . . . Will keep newly independent readers turning the pages.--SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL (starred review) (ages 6-8) Features an audio read-along! Leroy Ninker is a small man with a big dream: he wants to be a cowboy, but for now he''s just a thief. In fact, Leroy is robbing the Watsons'' kitchen right this minute! As he drags the toaster across the counter – screeeeeech – and drops it into his bag – clannngggg – little does he know that a certain large pig who loves toast with a great deal of butter is stirring from sleep. Even less could he guess that comedy of errors (not to mention the buttery sweets in his pocket) will soon lead this little man on the wild and raucous rodeo ride he''s always dreamed of! Nosy neighbors, astonished firemen, a puzzled policeman, and the ever-doting Watsons return for a new tongue-in-snout adventure about Kate DiCamillo''s delightfully single-minded pig.

For both Kate DiCamillo’s staunchest fans and those just discovering this beloved author, here are five of her award-winning classics in one handsome set. Create an instant Kate DiCamillo collection with five of her New York Times best-selling novels — among them a Newbery Honor Book, a National Book Award Finalist, a Newbery Medal Winner, a Boston Globe–Horn Book Award Winner, and an American Library Association Notable Children’s Book. Included in this set are editions of: Because of Winn-Dixie The Tiger Rising The Tale of Despereaux The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane The Magician’s Elephant

The NEW YORK TIMES best-selling porcine wonder finds herself behind the wheel in this hilarious adventure now available as an e-book. (Ages 6 - 8) Features an audio read-along! Mr. and Mrs. Watson''s porcine wonder, Mercy, loves nothing more than a ride in the car. It takes a fair amount of nudging and bribing and a "You are such a good sport, darling" to get the portly pig out of the driver''s seat, but once the convertible is on the road, Mercy loves the feel of the wind tickling her ears and the sun on her snout. One day the Watsons'' motoring ritual takes an unexpected turn, however, when their elderly neighbor Baby Lincoln pops up in the backseat in hopes of some "folly and adventure" – and in the chaos that ensues, an exuberant Mercy ends up behind the wheel! Soon there''s a policeman on her tail, a struggle for the brake, and a blissfully airborne Mercy. Of course, it''s nothing that an extra helping of buttered toast can''t fix! Includes an audio read along!

The first adventure of this NEW YORK TIMES best-selling porcine wonder is now available as an e-book. (Ages 6 - 8) Features an audio read-along! To Mr. and Mrs. Watson, Mercy is not just a pig – she''s a porcine wonder. And to the portly and good-natured Mercy, the Watsons are an excellent source of buttered toast, not to mention that buttery-toasty feeling she gets when she snuggles into bed with them. This is not, however, so good for the Watsons'' bed. BOOM! CRACK! As the bed and its occupants slowly sink through the floor, Mercy escapes in a flash – "to alert the fire department," her owners assure themselves. But could Mercy possibly have another emergency in mind – like a sudden craving for their neighbors'' sugar cookies? Welcome to the wry and endearing world of Mercy Watson – an ebullient new character for early chapter-book readers in a series that''s destined to be a classic.

"Utterly chuckle-worthy, charming, and (thank goodness) still refreshing." — Kirkus Reviews The state fair is in town, and now Bink and Gollie — utter opposites and best friends extraordinaire — must use teamwork and their gray matter while navigating its many wonders. Will the energetic Bink win the world's largest donut in the Whack-a-Duck game? Will the artistic Gollie wow the crowd in the talent show? As the undaunted duo steps into the mysterious tent of fortune-teller Madame Prunely, one prediction is crystal clear: this unlikely pair will always be the closest of pals. Get ready for more laughs in this wry, warmhearted sequel to the New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book Bink and Gollie, written by the award-winning, best-selling Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee and featuring the exuberant visual humor of illustrator Tony Fucile.

Wilbur, the pig, is desolate when he discovers that he is destined to be the farmer's Christmas dinner until his spider friend, Charlotte, decides to help him.

Joe’s got a problem. He has to write to an author for a school assignment and get her to answer a bunch of questions. But the author he’s chosen, Maureen O’Toople, just doesn’t want to play along. Jon Scieszka and Kate DiCamillo collaborate on a hilarious and heartfelt short story from the acclaimed collection Guys Read: Funny Business, edited by Jon Scieszka.

Rob, who passes the time in his rural Florida community by wood carving, is drawn by his spunky but angry friend Sistine into a plan to free a caged tiger.

"Bink is tiny, Gollie is tall; Bink loves goldfish, Gollie loves long words - but even so, Bink and Gollie are the most marvellous companions!"--Book cover.

A National Book Award finalist by Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo. Walking through the misty Florida woods one morning, twelve-year-old Rob Horton is stunned to encounter a tiger—a real-life, very large tiger—pacing back and forth in a cage. What’s more, on the same extraordinary day, he meets Sistine Bailey, a girl who shows her feelings as readily as Rob hides his. As they learn to trust each other, and ultimately, to be friends, Rob and Sistine prove that some things—like memories, and heartache, and tigers—can’t be locked up forever. Featuring a new cover illustration by Stephen Walton.

When ten-year-old orphan Peter Augustus Duchene encounters a fortune teller in the marketplace one day and she tells him that his sister, who is presumed dead, is in fact alive, he embarks on a remarkable series of adventures as he desperately tries to find her.

She longed for adventure. So she left her home and ventured out into the wide world. The pleasures and perils she met proved plentiful: marauding pirates on the majestic seas, a ferocious lion under the bright lights of the big top, a mysterious stranger in an exotic and bustling bazaar. Yet in the face of such daunting danger, our heroine . . . She was brave. She was fearless. She was feathered. She was a chicken. A not-so-chicken chicken. Her name?

Mercy Watson brought home a real treat a 2007 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor! And now readers can collect a trio of her adventures in one beguiling boxed set. Pig hero. Porcine wonder. Fan of toast with a great deal of butter on it. Mercy Watson's disarming personality and hilarious hijinks are captivating early chapter-book readers everywhere. Now it's easy to jumpstart a Mercy Watson collection with this enticing boxed set combining the first three adventures of the series: MERCY WATSON TO THE RESCUE (an American Library Association Notable Children's Book), MERCY WATSON GOES FOR A RIDE (winner of a 2007 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor), and MERCY WATSON FIGHTS CRIME.

Just before Christmas, when Frances sees a sad-eyed organ grinder and his monkey performing near her apartment, she cannot stop thinking about them, wondering where they go at night, and wishing she could do something to help.

A Literature Kit. Your students will enjoy this wonderful story of loss and longing, of loneliness, friendships and the finding of contentment in a place for oneself. This is a story in which a ten-year-old girl must face the abandonment of her mother, and find the answer to the question Will she ever come back? The answer, surprisingly, is No!, but India Opal Buloni, over the course of the novel, learns to deal with this answer through her experiences and support of a growing circle of friends, all of whom have also suffered some kind of loss themselves. And finally, it is the story of the love between a girl and her dog, a pet that has an uncanny ability to bring kindred spirits together.

Sixty years ago, on October 15, 1952, E.B. White''s Charlotte''s Web was published. It''s gone on to become one of the most beloved children''s books of all time. To celebrate this milestone, the renowned Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo has written a heartfelt and poignant tribute to the book that is itself a beautiful translation of White''s own view of the world—of the joy he took in the change of seasons, in farm life, in the miracles of life and death, and, in short, the glory of everything. We are proud to include Kate DiCamillo''s foreword in the 60th anniversary editions of this cherished classic. Charlotte''s Web is the story of a little girl named Fern who loved a little pig named Wilbur—and of Wilbur''s dear friend Charlotte A. Cavatica, a beautiful large grey spider who lived with Wilbur in the barn. With the help of Templeton, the rat who never did anything for anybody unless there was something in it for him, and by a wonderfully clever plan of her own, Charlotte saved the life of Wilbur, who by this time had grown up to quite a pig. How all this comes about is Mr. White''s story. It is a story of the magic of childhood on the farm. The thousands of children who loved Stuart Little, the heroic little city mouse, will be entranced with Charlotte the spider, Wilbur the pig, and Fern, the little girl who understood their language. The forty-seven black-and-white drawings by Garth Williams have all the wonderful detail and warmhearted appeal that children love in his work. Incomparably matched to E.B. White''s marvelous story, they speak to each new generation, softly and irresistibly.

Despereaux is very different from all the other mice in the castle. He is romantic and heroic. He even falls in love with the princess and is banished to the dungeon by his father. This award-winning novel follows the mouse's adventures in his search