FACE TO FACE WITH FEAR....

The bullies called him coward. Even his brothers thought eleven-year-old Bailey Trumbull was scared of his own shadow. Exploding firecrackers sent him jumping as high as a kite. He hated July 4th. But it was on that day at a carnival in Abilene that an old Indian medicine man made an astonishing prophecy: "Some men spend their lives searching for who they are -- searching for their courage. You will see yourself in the eye of the great bear".

What did he mean? Bailey nearly forgot the prophecy when Daddy got heatsickness and the family had to move to Montana....

Who ever heard of a cat that didn't eat birds?
The house people had picked me out of my litter to be a mouser. Callie was getting too old for the job. So it was mine. But I didn't plan on getting dive-bombed by a mockingbird building her nest...or adopting the baby who fell out. No joke I'm a cat, but I do not eat birds. Mice, yes. Birds, no. Flea -- that's what I named her -- couldn't even fly. She was so scared when she toppled onto my head that she said, "Eat me...it's quicker than starving to death."
She was pathetic. I had to help her. The first step was...

Neal Moffet had called me "Fat Pat Berry, the Twinkletoes Fairy" one time too many. ANd when he started going on about what a klutz I was just because a flying tackle got me stuck under a chain-link fence...well, something snapped.
So when he bet me I couldn't get through the summer without getting stitches or breaking any bones, I took him on. Whoever lost had to kiss Kristine Pimpton (otherwise known as "The Blimp") in front of the entire school on the first day of sixth grade.
Just the thought of having to pucker up for those pudgy lips is enough to make me want to spend the summer...

One dog too many
T.P. is Jeff's dog. Jeff is T.P.'s boy. That's the way T.P. likes it. Life is pretty good -- until a stinky, thumping, yapping box turns up at the front door. Jeff's friend Mandy has given Jeff a chocolate Lab puppy. They name her Mocha, and everything changes for T.P. Mocha drives him nuts with her endless chattering and questions. On top of all that, everyone keeps telling him to "be nice to the puppy." If only things could go back to the way they were before....
But when Mocha gets "GOOSED," will T.P. have the courage and compassion to come to her rescue?

"Don't ever run from a mountain lion."

Mother also warned me about people. But she didn't know Jane and Jussy, the children who left us hay when we were so hungry. I may be a little moose, but I'm no dummy. That hay was sooo good....
After our dangerous journey over the mountains, everything here seemed wonderful. I made friends with Raney and Sweet Pea, draft horses on the farm, and Chippy the beaver. I even found my old pal, Snow the wolf. Everything was perfect. Until we met Burly
A grizzly with insomnia, Burly was about the nastiest, scariest character I ever met....

Here I am, a self-respecting kitten just trying to survive in a rat-eat-cat world, when the humans in my life start acting crazy. Something about the kids, and grandkids, coming to visit for Christmas. I would have run away had I known what that meant Mama accusing me of tearing up the presents. Noisy voices and grabby little hands. I tell you, it's a dog's world. Bite my tongue If the grandkids are bad, they're nothing compared to the gift the kids gave Mama for Christmas...a puppy

The game of Snot Stew that Kikki the kitten's young owners play is setting a bad example for Kikki's brother, Toby. He's turning into a bully -- and that spells danger when he starts taunting Butch, the nasty dog on the other side of the fence. Can Kikki keep Toby from getting into big trouble? And will she have the courage to rescue him if he does?

Ugh

What kind of a name is Mewkiss? The kitten loves his person, Jessica, but he had hoped for a name like Fearless or Ratkiller. It's hard to be brave with such a totally disgusting name. Even Barkus, a know-nothing puppy, calls Mewkiss a coward.

Mewkiss has to be brave, because a family of rats has taken up residence in the basement where Jessica and her brother have a playhouse. And they're planning to attack Jessica How is a cat named Mewkiss going to find the courage to protect the person he loves?

Spring has sprung - and so have we... even cats and dogs get crazy in the spring. After all, what self-respecting cat (that's me, Chuck) stays somewhere he doesn't want to be? And what self-respecting dog (that's Rotten Willy, who calls me Upchuck) won't let his best friend (me) goad him into action on a fine spring day? Believe me, it's not easy getting a lumpy Rottweiler over - or under - a big wooden gate I figured it was about time I took Willy to my pal Luigi's restaurant for a great spaghetti and meatball dinner. Problem was, Luigi didn't understand that some dogs and cats,...