Tippy, tippy, tippy, Pat
That's the sound three hungry bunnies make when the sun goes down and the moon comes up and Mr. McGreely's garden smells yum, yum, yummy. While he's dreaming of his mouth-watering carrots, the bunnies are diving over fences and swimming trenches to get the veggies first
Hammer, hammer, hammer, Saw
That's the sound Mr. McGreely makes when the sun comes up and the moon goes down and he sees what those twitch-whiskers have done....Nibbled leaves Empty stalks Mr. McGreely will build something bigger and better, sure to keep even...

Apples, ho
When Papa decides to pull up roots and move from Iowa to Oregon, he can't bear to leave his precious apple trees behind. Or his peaches, plums, grapes, cherries, and pears. Oh, and he takes his family along too. But the trail is cruel -- first there's a river to cross that's wider than Texas...and then there are hailstones as big as plums...and there's even a drought, sure to crisp the cherries. Those poor pippins Luckily Delicious (the nonedible apple of Daddy's eye) is strong -- as young 'uns raised on apples are -- and won't let anything stop her father's...

Look out Mikey Elsinger's in love
Mikey never does anything halfway, so it's no surprise that when she develops a not-so-secret crush on Shawn Macavity, the heartstoppingly gorgeous star of the school play, she goes a bit overboard. Soon Mikey -- Mikey? -- has a stylish new wardrobe, and she's baking Shawn cookies, writing their initials on blackboards, even buying him a T-shirt emblazoned "I LOVE ME." Fellow Bad Girl Margalo tries to get Mikey to turn things down a notch, but why should Mikey listen to her? -- after all, what does Margalo know about being in love? Or is...

When Nate Chance arrives home from school, he sees two police cars and an ambulance in his yard. Before his mother can get him and his little sister, Junie, inside, Nate and Junie witness their father, blood pouring down his face, being led by two police officers into an ambulance. He has tried to kill himself.

Home quickly becomes a different place. Junie stays curled up in front of the TV; Nate's mom retreats inside herself; and the rumor of mental illness makes Nate a social pariah at school. Only the promise of winning the science fair holds any hope of happiness for Nate. He's...