"In a big abandoned house, on a barren hill, lives a skull. A brave girl named Otilla has escaped from terrible danger and run away, and when she finds herself lost in the dark forest, the lonely house beckons. Her host, the skull, is afraid of something too, something that comes every night. Can brave Otilla save them both?" --publisher's website.

"Planet Earth is in the Milky Way Galaxy, the cloudy band of light that stretches clear across the night sky. For years astronomers thought that the Milky Way was the universe. Now we know that there are probably a trillion galaxies, and we are continuing to learn about their shapes and sizes and what they consist of." --book jacket

"Become an eyewitness to the wonders of one of history’s greatest civilizations, from its vast empire to gladiator fights, this picture-led guide will take you on a visual tour through Ancient Rome like never before. Who were Rome’s most famous emperors? What was everyday life like for a soldier in the Roman army? How did the citizens of ancient Rome live? Did gladiators really fight to the death in the mighty Colosseum? If you find yourself seeking...

The Iliad is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma, for which Barry Powell, one of the twenty-first century's leading Homeric scholars, has given us a magnificent new translation. Graceful, lucid, and energetic, Powell's translation renders the Homeric Greek with a simplicity and dignity reminiscent of the original. The text immediately engrosses students with its tight and balanced rhythms, while the incantatory repetitions evoke a continuous...

"From the fireside tales in an African village, through the unspeakable passage across the Atlantic, to the backbreaking work in the fields of the South, this is a story of a people’s struggle and strength, horror and hope. This is the story of American slavery, a story that needs to be told and understood by all of us. A testament to the resilience of the African American community, this book honors what has been and envisions what is to be." --publisher's...

"From the burning surface of Venus to the freezing darkness of Neptune, Gail Gibbrons takes...readers on a tour of our planetary neighbors--which are very different from each other in size, shape, orbit, and even weather. The bodies in our solar system are named, described, and illustrated in clear, well-labeled spreads that give a strong sense of shape and scale to our skies." --book jacket

"The first in a groundbreaking new collection of fractured fairy tales, this brilliantly crafted, hilarious twist on the beloved classic finds three goats putting their horns together to cleverly outsmart a hungry troll"--Provided by publisher.

Simple text discusses how to develop the skills to make friends and play with others. Includes role-playing activities.

"The eight stories collected here are all told in the first person by a classic Murakami narrator, and display the author's reality-bending skills at their finest. From memories of youth, meditations on music, and an ardent love of baseball to dreamlike scenarios and imaginary jazz albums, together these tales challenge the boundaries between our minds and the exterior world. Here we encounter characters having a beer with a talking monkey, analyzing...

America the Beautiful, Third Series is bursting with fascinating facts, up-to-date statistics, glorious full-color photographs, and unusual lists guaranteed to elicit at least one WOW! with the turn of every page. America the Beautiful's new dynamic design and editorial approach to the geography, history, people, economy, and government of each state will continue to make this award-winning series the one that students turn to first for researching...