Mary Casanova crafts stories that matter and that young readers can't put down. Her narratives, often drawn from her experiences living on the Minnesota-Canadian border or from her extensive research abroad, delve into themes that resonate deeply with children. She views the ultimate reward as a child's declaration of love for her books, seeing writing as a vital form of communication from author to reader. Casanova describes words as her paintbrush, her tool for exploring the world, and she delights in sharing her passion for writing and reading with audiences of all ages.
After being sent to work with her father in Minnesota, young Alex gets stranded on a small island with a wounded eagle and must manage to keep the other animals at a distance while trying to find a way to get back to her own home. Reprint.
Chrissa's had a good summer, practicing for swim team tryouts. Then her world is shaken when she and her friends get mean text messages and there's an accident at the pool. Can one girl put an end to the bullying?
When ten-year-old Jess McConnell meets a new friend on her trip to the ancient Maya ruins in Belize, she is invited on an eco-adventure and makes some real discoveries--about the dangers in the Belizean jungle, about the people who have lived there since long ago, and about herself.
When Kit arrives in Kentucky to visit her aunt and brother she finds trouble brewing and locals blaming the CCC workers, leaving Kit to find the real culprit before things get worse.
Twelve-year-old Cecile Revel is given a change to leave her peasant life and serve at King Louis XIV's court. She finds life within the palace gates is not as full of ease and elegance as she had imagined. Faced with a test of conscience, Cecile shows that behaving in a noble matter has little to do with one's place at birth.
Nine-year-old Grace is always thinking up big ideas, like starting a business with her friends over the summer! When Mom announces a trip to Paris instead, Grace gets on board, but it quickly seems as if none of her plans are working out the way she'd hoped. She and her French cousin aren't getting along, and Grace's friends back home have started a business without her. Can she find the courage to stay open to new ideas and turn the summer around?
