Kara LaReau

Louie and Ralphie Ratso are no softies! Readers are sure to chuckle as the determined Ratso brothers plans to act tough go hilariously awry. Louie and Ralphie Ratso s dad, Big Lou, always says that there are two kinds of people: those who are tough and those who are soft. Louie and Ralphie are tough, tough, tough, just like Big Lou, and they re going to prove it. But every time they try to show just how tough they are, the Ratso brothers end up accidentally doing good deeds instead. What ll Big Lou do when he finds out they ve been acting like softies all over the Big City? Perfect for emerging and reluctant readers, this clever and surprisingly warmhearted chapter book shows that being tough all the time can be really tough."

The Infamous Ratsos

In the spirit of A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters stars Jaundice and Kale Bland--two sisters who avoid excitement at any cost. Instead, they eat tasteless oatmeal, rarely venture into bright sunlight, and read only Dr. Snoote's Dictionary, because storybooks are just too thrilling. Together, they await the return of their parents, who left for an errand years ago and have never come back. One day, a knock on the door leads to the Bland sisters' kidnapping by an all-female band of pirates--but this is only the beginning of their escapades. Filled with Roald Dahl-esque humor, hilarious high jinks, and swashbuckling, The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters: The Jolly Regina will appeal to middle-grade readers looking for an anything-but-bland adventure.

The Jolly Regina (the Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters Book 1)

"Meet Jaundice and Kale Bland, two sisters who avoid excitement at any cost. One day, the Bland sisters are kidnapped by an all-female band of pirates. They're unwillingly swept into a high-seas romp that might just lead to solving the mystery of what happened to their missing parents"--

The Jolly Regina

When Louie and Ralphie Ratso set out to transform a cluttered lot into an arcade, they end up conquering a few surprising fears along the way. Louie and Ralphie Ratso have a genius idea: if they clear out the lot down the street, they can use all the junk lying around to build makeshift games for a Big City FunTime Arcade! With their friends to help, they’ll be able to recycle all the old abandoned stuff into whack-a-mouse, a high-striker, a fortune-telling booth and more. Everyone says the house next to the lot is haunted, but if Louie just pretends it’s not there, he can ignore the goose bumps he gets every time he looks at it. Ralphie’s head’s not exactly in the game, either, because of some rumors that have been swirling around school. But they’re Ratsos, and like their dad Big Lou, Ratsos aren’t afraid of anything — right? Kara LaReau and Matt Myers team up for a second surprisingly touching chapter book proving that sometimes the things you fear the most aren’t at all what you thought — and might be exactly what you need to feel better.

The Infamous Ratsos Are Not Afraid

Evie and Simon always mind their manners. But sometimes, they have to mind their father's, too! In this humorous spin on manners books, two kids teach their father everything he needs to know about mealtime etiquette. Everything is going well, until a surprise visitor arrives for dinner! Will Father be able to remember all of Evie and Simon's lessons? With humor, charm, and a dash of silliness, No Slurping, No Burping! uses role reversal to show young readers how to be considerate guests at mealtime.

A Tale of Table Manners

Walt Disney Animation Studios Artist Showcase No Slurping, No Burping!

Rabbit and Squirrel are neighbors who never even say hello until someone starts damaging their gardens, and then they blame one another and start a fight that continues even after they meet the real culprit.

A Tale of War and Peas

Rabbit & Squirrel

A 2017 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book! Louie and Ralphie Ratso are no softies. Readers are sure to chuckle as the determined Ratso brothers’ plans to act tough go hilariously awry. Louie and Ralphie Ratso’s dad, Big Lou, always says that there are two kinds of people: those who are tough and those who are soft. Louie and Ralphie are tough, tough, tough, just like Big Lou, and they’re going to prove it. But every time they try to show just how tough they are, the Ratso brothers end up accidentally doing good deeds instead. What’ll Big Lou do when he finds out they’ve been acting like softies all over the Big City? Perfect for emerging and reluctant readers, this clever and surprisingly warmhearted chapter book shows that being tough all the time can be really tough.

Scott Magoon

At first Ugly Fish likes being alone in his tank so much that he eats any fish that tries to share it, but when he becomes lonely, he devises a better plan.

Ugly Fish

In the final episode of the ZomBert Chronicles, can Bert and Mellie foil a plot to turn the entire town of Lambert into ravenous zombie consumers? A thrilling finale to an arch mystery-adventure series pits Bert the cat against the infamous YummCo Labs. Bert was a bedraggled stray before nine-year-old Mellie Gore adopted him—and has already escaped from YummCo once, vowing to find a way back to free the other captives. Now the Yumms have nabbed Bert again, and he wants revenge. Mellie’s plans to rescue her pet are interrupted when the entire town, including her own parents, begin turning into YummCo-product-consuming zombies. And why is Mellie herself suddenly starved for food to fuel her buzzing brain? What exactly is happening at the YummCo Labs? With trademark wit and a taste for the playfully macabre, award-winning creators Kara LaReau and Ryan Andrews close out the ZomBert Chronicles with a funny and suspenseful flourish.

Revenge of ZomBert

Otto loves cars more than anything else in the world. He plays with cars, he dreams about cars, . . . he even eats cars (his favorite cereal is Wheelies). But that all changes when he awakes one morning to find that he has somehow turned into a car.Otto soon realizes that there is a downside to actually becoming his favorite thing. While the rest of his friends get to play and draw, Otto can only honk and sputter. Will Otto ever be able to switch gears and go back to being a boy?

The boy who loved cars

Otto

Could Bert really be a zombie cat? Two friends put their brains together to find out in a wry new mystery series. While helping her best friend, Danny, film his latest horror flick, Mellie discovers a scraggly cat behind a dumpster outside the YummCo Foods factory. Mellie names the stray Bert and hides him in her room, knowing her parents won’t let her keep him. But soon Bert has decapitated all her stuffed animals, and before long he is leaving the headless corpses of birds and mice as gifts for her. Danny is convinced the cat is a zombie, living on the brains of his victims. But is that what is really going on? Award-winning author Kara LaReau lets loose a fresh and sharply funny new mystery series, with an irresistible touch of the macabre. Fans of creepy stories and animal lovers alike will devour this fast-moving first episode in one gulp.

Rise of ZomBert

Ugly Fish is ugly and big and mean, and he won't share his driftwood tunnel or his special briny flakes with anyone. And that means the wimpy little fish who keep showing up in his tank have got to go. But then one day someone bigger and uglier and maybe even meaner arrives . . . and suddenly Ugly Fish isn't feeling quite so confident anymore. From Kara LaReau, author of the Rocko and Spanky series, here is an irreverent and terrifically funny book about a bully who at last gets his comeuppance.

Now that they've returned from the Uncanny Valley to find their home in Dullsville in absolute shambles, Jaundice and Kale are rescued by high-flying aviatrix Beatrix Airdale. This time they're jetting off (literally) to Egypt to uncover the mysteries of a magical scarab. By way of Casablanca and after foiling multiple attacks along the way (thanks to Jaundice's nautical knot-tying skills and Kale's super-sleuth powers of observation), the Bland Sisters are reunited with their parents. But it turns out that mom and dad aren't as bland--or as "Bland"--as Jaundice and Kale remember. Thanks to their mother's old archaeology notebook, the Bland Sisters uncover their parents' real identities and help them achieve victory in one final family-filled adventure.

Flight of the Bluebird (the Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters Book 3)

Rocko and Spanky have been invited to a birthday party. Before they go, they have lots to do. First they need to find a gift. Then they must find something to wear. But there's one very important detail Rocko and Spanky have forgotten . . . so when they finally get to the party, they're in for a BIG surprise! Sisters Kara and Jenna LaReau invite you to a coming-out party--the first book in a new series starring Rocko and Spanky, a crafty, spunky (and uncommonly funky) pair of sock monkeys. With complete instructions for wrapping a present the Rocko and Spanky way!

Rocko and Spanky Go to a Party

Jaundice and Kale are back from their adventure on the high seas, and they are settling back into a quiet life in Dullsville, just the way they like it. The tea is tepid, the oatmeal is tasteless, and the socks are ripe for darning . . . until Aunt Shallot shows up and reveals herself to be anything but the dull relation they were expecting. Instead, she tells her nieces she is Magique, Queen of Magic, and she’s on her way to a big show and in need of two willing assistants. As Magique and the Bland sisters board the Uncanny Express, they meet a cast of mystifying characters. And when Magique goes missing, it’s up to Jaundice and Kale to solve the mystery—with the help of famous detective Hugo Fromage. An inventive story in the tradition of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters: The Uncanny Express has all the whimsy and humor that readers who are looking for an anything-but-bland adventure will love.

Kara LaReau

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