Lucy McGee and Phillip Lee are invited to perform a song on their school’s morning show–this is their big break! First, they agree to keep it a secret from spotlight-stealing classmate Scarlett Tandy. But what about the other members of the Songwriting Club? Lucy forgets to tell them, setting off a chain of hurt feelings, a disastrous secret party, a runaway brother, and much more. The loveable but impulsive Lucy will have to write a lot of apology letters before everything can go back to normal. LUCKY ME, LUCY MCGEE Book 3 – May 2020, Holiday House, 112 pp Fourth grader Lucy McGee’s ukulele is missing–and if she doesn’t find it soon, she’ll be kicked out of the Songwriting Club! SING WITH ME, LUCY MCGEE Book 2 – Spring 2019, Holiday House, 176 pp When a talent show brings out cutthroat tendencies in her classmates, aspiring singer, songwriter, and ukulele player Lucy has to fight for what’s fair and avoid falling for mean girl Scarlett’s ploys yet again in the second book in the generously illustrated Lucy McGee series. NEWS FROM ME, LUCY Book 1 – October 2018, Holiday House, 144 pp A heartwarming and humorous series about jealousy, music and the true meaning of friendship. When the coolest girl in the class invites you to her exclusive after-school club, how can you say no? In this new series from state-award favorite Mary Amato, a spunky heroine matches wits with a mean girl and learns that middle school can be a balancing act—so you can’t lose sight of what’s important. This heavily-illustrated chapter book series features fun bonus material: a link to hear Lucy’s songs with downloadable lyric-and-chord booklets, instructional videos, and karaoke tracks so that readers can sing their hearts out!

A hilarious series for K-4. Billy and Jillian Crook have a big problem. Their parents are crooks, but they want to do good deeds! Sniff a Skunk! brings back our favorite pair of do-gooder crooks in a hilarious adventure that brings about an odiferous encounter with a skunk. GOOD CROOKS: DOG GONE! Book 2 – Winter 2014, Darby Creek/Lerner, 128 pp When their parents steal a Hollywood star (a white poodle) to hold it for ransom, our young heroes leap into action. Too bad the spoiled star will not raise a paw to help. GOOD CROOKS: MISSING MONKEY! Book 1 – Winter 2014, Darby Creek/Lerner, 128 pp When their parents steal a monkey from the zoo to help them pick pockets, our heroes rush into action and return the wily animal using disguises, inventions, and old-fashioned shoe leather. They also learn what a monkey can do in 11 minutes: 1) Stick his fingers in your right nostril. 2) Lick your eyebrows, pick his teeth, and then wipe his finger on your shirt.

Surprising emotions emerge in this darkly hilarious literary ghost story—part stage play, part novel—about truth, forgiveness, and love. Sixteen-year-old slam-poet Lacy Brink wakes up dead—and confused—in Westminster Cemetery. It’s the job of Sam, a young Civil War soldier who died in 1865, to help her adjust to the strict rules of the afterlife and to warn her about Suppression, a punishment even worse than death. Given the task of providing entertainment, Lacy organizes an open mic. With the help of Sam and other new allies, including the cemetery’s most famous resident—Edgar Allan Poe—the open mic become a chance for cemetery residents to express sensitive and complex truths, including experiences of trauma and abuse.

It all begins when Alexander H. Gory Jr. passes around a notebook in which he reveals a tantalizing secret: he has proof that their teacher, Mrs. Penrose, is a vampire. Soon the entire class is speculating and adding their opinions to the notebook until… it lands in Mrs. Penrose s hands. It turns out that Mrs. Penrose has been keeping a secret: she is expecting a baby. But since the notebook is encouraging her students to write and improving their spelling and grammar, Mrs. Penrose allows it to continue circulating.