New Releases by Marsha Qualey

Gracie LaRoo''s synchronized swimming team trades out water for snow. But Gracie is afraid of heights and has never been on skiis. Can she overcome her fears in time to shine, or is this trip going downhill fast?

Training camp has opened, and Gracie LaRoo is excited to be back with her synchronized swimming team, the Water Sprites--but the other members of the team seem strangely uninterested in training, and it will be up to Gracie to set an example with a perfect triple spin.

Beatrice "Bumble B." Flinn loves a lot of things, but she loves drawing the most. When her friend Rosa''s cat goes missing, B. offers to make a poster for her. Mission lost cat is under way! But when no cat is found, Rosa blames B. and her poster. B. is positive her poster will work, and she does not give up! The Bumble B. early chapter book series will inspire young readers to have confidence and a positive attitude. Easy-to-read text, short chapters, fun illustrations, a glossary, discussion questions, and writing prompts complete the book.

Colorful flowers fill the farmers'' market, and Beatrice "Bumble B." Flinn is thrilled! Where there are flowers, there are bugs. And B. loves bugs! She can''t wait to help Kalia at her family''s flower stand. But when her job is to get rid of all the bugs on the flowers, B. doesn''t know what to do. Her mission of the day is clear -- she must save the bugs! Easy-to-read text, short chapters, fun illustrations, a glossary, discussion questions, and writing prompts add to the book. The Bumble B. early chapter books will inspire young readers to think outside the box.

Beatrice "Bumble B." Flinn has announced her Halloween costume, and it''s perfect for her. She is going to be a Super Bee! But when her cape causes issues, B. feels less than super. She is on a mission to find her superpower, with or without her pesky cape! The Bumble B. early chapter book series will inspire young readers to never give up. Easy-to-read text, short chapters, fun illustrations, a glossary, discussion questions, and writing prompts complete the book.

Science is fun, and Beatrice "Bumble B." Flinn and her friends want to start a science club. They quickly run into trouble when Sam and his kickball club want to meet at the same spot. There isn''t room for both clubs. B. has a new mission, and she never quits a mission! Easy-to-read text, short chapters, fun illustrations, a glossary, discussion questions, and writing prompts add to the book. The Bumble B. early chapter books will inspire young readers to keep trying.

Gracie LaRoo is a synchronized swimming pig extraordinaire! Follow Gracie as she shoots for the gold medal; uses her dazzling moves in a Piggywood movie; visits her old school and shows her former coach just how hard synchronized swimming can be; and captivates a cruise ship audience with her signature spins. This easy-to-read, beautifully illustrated chapter book by seasoned author Marsha Qualey will make new readers squeal with delight as they learn about the marvelous, the amazing, the pig-tastic Gracie LaRoo!

"Beatrice "Bumble B." Flinn is funny, smart, and creative. Beatrice is also very clumsy and tends to bumble her way through life, which is how she got the nickname Bumble B. But clumsiness doesn''t damper her confidence! Every day she tackles a self-assigned mission, and every mission is a new opportunity for success."--Copyright page.

Gracie LaRoo is famous--especially to her alma mater! But when they ask her to come speak to the students, Gracie is more than a little nervous. Sure enough, the minute she arrives she encounters the tough principal that used to be hard on her back in her schooldays and then a coach who thinks synchronized swimming is a joke. The worst, though, is finding out she has to speak in front of an entire auditorium of unruly piglets. Will Gracie be able to keep her cool, remember she''s a star, and make it through the day?

Piggywood! Gracie LaRoo had long been starstruck with the town where glamorous movie stars working on thrilling films. But now it''s her turn--a famous director asks Gracie to be a part of her next film. Gracie is thrilled! That is, until she gets there. Her part is not at all what she thought it would be and she can''t seem to find her voice to speak up. Plus, her idol, Tilda Swinetune, is unhappy with the way the movie is going, too. But Gracie figures out a way to save the day--and in the process finds her voice.

Bon Voyage! Gracie LaRoo and the Water Sprites are going on a cruise! The director is Gracie''s friend, and he has asked Gracie and her team to perform. But everything starts falling apart. No one is coming to their shows, except pesky piglets who like throwing things at them. Gracie fears she''s let her team and her friend down--until she comes up with the perfect solution and saves the day!

Gracie LaRoo is the youngest pig to make it to the Pig Jubilee in synchronized swimming. As the star of her team, the Water Sprites, the pressure is on! But Gracie can''t seem to concentrate and land her signature move--the one sure to lead them to victory. Gracie has to find a way to get her concentration back, find her confidence, and land the move to bring home the gold medal and to make her team proud.

In 1969 the Vietnam War protest movement brings together two Minnesota teenagers.

A tragic accident ending with the death of two people her own age changes life forever for an eighteen-year-old woman.

Nineteen-year-old Kelly, ex-addict niece of a nationally-renowned Minnesota talk show host, has an unexpected adventure with the visiting prince of a war-torn Eastern European country.

Seventeen-year-old Arden has been raised by her older brother, Scott, since their parents died when she was just six years old, so when Scott is presumed drowned in a snowmobile accident, Arden is convinced he''s really run away.

Two prominent city residents have been murdered, and Barrie knew both of them. But does she know their killer? The police have connected both victims to her mother''s hair salon, and the obvious focus has become Barrie''s mom and the other stylists, all of whom happen to be convicted killers who met in prison vocational school. Amidst intriguing people whom she can''t quite trust, and forced into living with the mother she can''t forgive, Barrie tries to ignore the uproar by immersing herself in her writing. But when she shares a troubling suspicion with the homicide detective, she suddenly finds herself pulled deeper into a situation that''s growing more frightening every day.

Just before the 1991 Gulf War begins, sixteen-year-old Border Baker moves to a small town with his father, a Vietnam War draft resister.

Unable to decide between two attractive boys, seventeen-year-old Beamer is forced to examine how growing up in a commune in the north woods of Minnesota has shaped her personality.

Cory''s seventeenth year is marked by her mother''s sudden death, the return of her hotheaded older brother, her romance with a Native American boy, and the eruption of bigotry in her small Wisconsin town.