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Amy O'Hanlon's excellent Sister Butterfly illustrations show Carla approaching a favorite corner of her garden where she feels safe and happy. Her vigilant brother knows that Carla can create beautiful fantasies as she twirls around and round to music only she can hear, engaged in quiet conversation with the small creatures such as butterflies and her favorite flowers. Mike Mirabella's children's book entitled Sister Butterfly, is a beautifully illustrated children's book based on a song from his 1998 CD entitled, Special People. Mike wrote Sister Butterfly song years ago for his daughter, Carla, when she was three years old. The theme of Sister Butterfly centers on Mike's abiding love for his daughter with Down syndrome and for self-discovery and the transformation of the hearts that surround her. Mike wrote in the song; "My sister is a butterfly who never learned to fly, ...”. Carla still wasn't walking or talking and Mike thought at the time, she would have little chance of accomplishing much of anything in her life. "How wrong I was; her life was a parade of accomplishments!” - Papa Mike. -
Does your child ever sit by themselves—alone and seemingly friendless? In I Used to Be Shy, meet Carla, our self-appointed social committee of one, who makes everyone at summer camp feel welcome. Carla spots a shy new boy who hides from others in his cabin, closing his curtain. Carla follows her heart and gathers a small group of fellow campers to coax him out to play games. With Carla’s encouragement, our new camper builds up his self-confidence, loses his fear, and learns to enjoy his new friends. The bonus song "Little Brown Pony" includes the lyrics and music notations as does "I Used to Be Shy." -
Life is lonely in Queen Victoria's London, especially for a talking vole. Chains may be the equal of any human detective, but there's one case he can't solve: where he came from and why he can speak. Luckily, he has the help of Eldridge, the retired investigator he lives with. Their latest job-a shipload of missing fish destined for experimentation-might provide some needed answers. But when Eldridge is kidnapped, Chains is left without sanctuary at a time he badly needs friends. Especially with profiteers, scientists, and pirates from London's mad scientific underbelly after his hide. The more clues Chains unearths, the more certain he is that finding Eldridge will also unlock the mystery of how Chains originally came to be, and might even offer him a place to truly belong. But someone he thought he could trust doesn't want that to happen. A talking vole may offer a significant breakthrough, but a silenced one is preferred. -
Welcome to the wonderful world of Kelly Anne Manuel’s Modern-Day Nursery Rhymes. This collection includes all the books in four magical series: The Classics, The Essentials, The Rainbow’s End, and My Name Is. This collection offers a book for each day of the month with messages about permission and encouragement. The books are designed to help children see the world in entertaining and inspiring ways. This experiential collection will become tried and true books for current and future generations. -
We'll be launching the "Spill the Tea with the TopKnotch Dogs" podcast soon! -
History of this bestselling modern day Christmas classic…
Perhaps best said by the former national director of Angel Tree: "The Special Guest is much more than just a well-written family story... it sprinkles the principles of forgiveness with the wonder that is Christmas". A family dealing with a tragedy when an unexpected guest arrives for the holidays... A stranger who seems to have mysteriously stepped out of the past... A surprising chain of events that will teach the family about the miracle of forgiveness... A special gift left behind Christmas Day that causes the family to realize there are times, when needed the most, that help can come unexpectedly and unannounced... Sometimes from a perfect stranger... This is a story befitting the most wonderous time of year. A time when we lift our heads from the day-to-day grind of life to look at humanity with our spiritual eyes. When we rejoice to hear the bells chime a message of hope for the world. When we look to believe there really is more to this world than just what we can see and hear with our natural senses... Open THE SPECIAL GUEST and enter a world we all want to believe to be true. Someone once said, "To feel the brush of the supernatural is to experience, firsthand, the heavenly messengers at work around us." This beloved story will renew your faith in miracles. Even more important, it will renew your faith in your fellowman.
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The Engine Woman's Light -
Forbidden love and fierce rivalry drive Jeff Hollister, a street-smart high school senior and gang leader of the Hurricanes, to the brink of disaster. Thinking he’s got the world in his back pocket, and the police at a safe distance, he and his scrappy gang of teenage delinquents come to discover they don’t always come out on top after all. A deadly vow by a member of the rival Tornadoes gang sets Jeff and his friends on a roller coaster of knife fray and gunplay, foot races and car chases, trust and betrayal, and murder. The death of a beloved friend serves a painful slap of reality to the Hurricanes that incites a burning desire for vengeance among the gang. With angry players going rogue, and weapons in the wrong hands, even the leaders are out of their depth. To make matters worse, Jeff is sidetracked by his budding love for Cindy, whose father just so happens to be the new police chief—the one person the Hurricane leader most wants to avoid. Yet she might also be the catalyst that can save Jeff from his own devices—if it doesn’t kill her first...
