Ten-year-old Aldo lives with his family in Colorado. He's not athletic like his older brother; he's not a rock hound like his best friend; and he is none too fond of the outdoors -- but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a passion. Aldo is passionate about bacon.

Back at school adjusting to life in the 5th grade, Aldo is embarrassed about his artistic abilities. He has always underplayed his creative talent at school; but when he is around his cute new art teacher he suddenly finds himself behaving strangely. He loses the ability to speak when she's around, volunteers to skip recess so he...

It's October, and Aldo thinks he's Einstein. Gloating over his epic first-quarter grades and test scores, he even decides to dress as the iconic scientist for Halloween.

But his bubble bursts when he realizes he's not living up to expectations in one class, Espanol, and that the consequences may be more hurtful than a bad grade on a report card. Is Aldo's friendship with his bilingual best friend, Jack, at stake?

Egghead is, in part, an homage to Madeleine L'Engle's classic children's novel A Wrinkle in Time, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2012. It was a dark...

Just how humdrum is 10-year-old Aldo Zelnick's life right now? So humdrum that he sets out to measure which January day will be the most boring. So humdrum that Jack and Bee succeed in getting him to try some weird hobbies. So humdrum that his recurring Hawaiian dream has become way more enticing than real life. So humdrum that even unathletic Aldo agrees to downhill ski with his superjock brother, Timothy -- and finds that hotdogging it on the slopes can be hazardous to your health.

The humorous plot and lively drawings in this book will captivate enthusiastic and reluctant readers...

When a warm March day beckons Aldo and his best friend, Jack, outdoors to their fort under the giant pine tree, stick-in-the-mud Aldo gets, well, stuck in the mud. As they dig Aldo's sneakers out from the embankment, they unearth a humungous bone, which rock-hound Jack believes to be a dinosaur fossil from the Jurassic period.

Their hilarious quest to figure out the bone's origin and value takes them to the nearby university, the local pawn shop, the famous dino dig site a few hours away, and finally, over spring break, to Dinosaur National Monument.

Meanwhile, Aldo discovers the...

Cue the trumpets As the legendary 5th grade medieval banquet at Dana Elementary nears, 11-year-old Aldo Zelnick and his friends Jack and Bee develop knight fever, don homemade armor, and undertake quests as simple as cleaning up trash in the neighborhood park, as chivalrous as helping a family in a financial pinch, and as heroic as confronting a new kid with knavish intentions.

Meanwhile, Easter is also coming, and Aldo keeps catching glimpses of a fluffy white tail...

This eleventh installment in an A-to-Z alphabet series also includes a glossary of fun and challenging "K words,"...