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Ames from A to Z by Mary Jo Mattila (Hardcover)

An alphabet book Mary Jo Mattila illustrated with photos of local landmarks.

Henry has started his own critter-sitting business, and his neighbors are his first paying customers. Watching this unruly menagerie is hardly a job for a beginner, but Henry is a true professional and never loses his cool. Still, it takes all his clever critter sitter tricks and a little luck to tame these animal antics and have all the furry, feathered, and slithery creatures back where they belong before the Mahoneys return. With a new, brighter palette and the same intricate detail and amazing perspectives, Critter Sitter will have readers poring over each page.

Chuck Richards is an associate professor of art and design at Iowa State University. His first book, Jungle Gym Jitters, received a starred review and several awards and was called “consistently engaging and madly thrilling” by The New York Times Book Review. Chuck’s own experience pet sitting a neighbor’s tree frog with his daughter inspired this story. He lives in Ames, Iowa, with his family.

Jerry’s father is a creative genius, always thinking of ways to make life more interesting. But when he starts building a jungle gym that gets taller and taller, twisting all the way up to the sky, the soaring spectacle makes Jerry seriously squeamish.

Jerry’s jungle gym jitters get worse when he sees fearless friends and acrobatic animals hanging from tires and riding through tunnels. The overgrown obstacle course is scary enough for Jerry, but when a fire traps his daredevil sister in the towering contraption, only Jerry can save her. Can he summon the courage to rise to the occasion, or will the jungle gym jitters paralyze him?

Chuck Richards is an artist who has been teaching college-level drawing to first year art and design majors for the past twenty years. One day he was riding his bike past an elementary school playground with a fantastic, large wooden play structure and thought that it would be a useful tool for teaching his students linear perspective. At the same time, his children were bringing home amazing picture books. The two events combined to spark the idea for Jungle Gym Jitters, which took five years to create. Jungle Gym Jitters marks his debut as a picture-book artist. Chuck Richards is an associate professor of art and design at Iowa State University. He lives in Ames, Iowa, with his family.

Lulu's Magic Wand by Chuck Richards (Hardcover)

Chuck Richards is back with another imaginative, visual feast that will take readers on a fantastical adventure they won’t soon forget. One day on a trip to Adventure Planet, Dad wins Lulu a special prize—a sparkly magic wand. They soon find out that this is a real magic wand and every wish is now Lulu’s command. As Lulu’s imagination runs wild, so does the amusement park. The merry-go-round comes to life, cotton candy sprouts all over, and the roller coaster turns into a giant snake! The chaos is fun at first, but when Lulu’s family gets caught in the madness, can her brother and sister help Lulu stop the magic wand and return the park to normal?

Mackenzie wants a new doll, please, please, please? "No," her mother tells her. "You already have everything you could ever want."

Mackenzie isn't sure what her mom means until she receives a mysterious box wrapped in red paper with a white bow. What could be inside? And can Mackenzie use this very special gift?

Find out what happens in Mackenzie's Gift!

24 pages, paperback.

Cari Poock is an Iowa State University graduate.