New Neighbors For Nora

Nora loves making new friends--but there aren't many kids to play with in her New York apartment building. Apart from her little brother, Teddy, there's only four-year-old Russell. The three of them have lots of fun--but what would happen if there were more kids around? More fun, that's what!

Nora has made friends with all the people in her building--almost. Cranky Mrs. Ellsworth, whom Nora has nicknamed Mrs. Mind-Your-Own-Business, just won't be friendly. Then one day Mommy needs a baby-sitter for Nora and Teddy. No one can take the job...except Mrs. Mind-Your-Own-Business! Teddy is scared, but Nora is curious. Will Mrs. Mind-Your-Own-Business become their friend at last?

Somewhere out beyond the edge of the universe there is a library that contains an infinite number of books, each one the story of another reality. One tells the story of your life as it is, along with another book for the other life you could have lived if you had made a different choice at any point in your life. While we all wonder how our lives might have been, what if you had the chance to go to the library and see for yourself? Would any of these other lives truly be better?

When Nora hears a soft "tap, tap, tap" at her bedroom window she never expects it to be the tentacle of a very large octopus, but that's exactly what it is--an octopus on her apartment building. The octopus turns out to be a very neighborly sort of octopus, helping the residents to wash their cars or weed the window boxes, and Nora makes fast friends with him. But one morning, the octopus is nowhere in sight. Has he moved on already? And just when Nora wanted to bring him for Show and Tell!

"What is your name?" That's what Nora asks her neighbors as she rides up and down the elevator of her apartment house. She doesn't mean to be a busybody. She just wants to be like doorman Henry and know all the people in her building--all 200 of them! And then one day Nora gets a great idea: they'll have a giant party, for everyone in the building!

Brooding loner Preston McQuinn's new apartment, like his life, was just the way he wanted it--dark and empty. But when sunny Cybil Campbell came barging into his well-ordered gloom, he couldn't deny a grudging fascination with his bright, bubbly neighbor. And then she tried to hire him--as her date! Preston thought he'd closed the door on love for good, so why was he suddenly longing to open up his heart to his incredibly perfect neighbor?

This heartwarming story by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock is based on a real-life event: the Vermont Flood of 1927. Watercolors by Caldecott Medal-winning artist Emily Arnold McCully capture both the sweeping drama of the flood and the comfort of a cozy kitchen filled with friends, neighbors, and good cheer

Russell's enjoying his first year in school. The trouble is his baby sister, Elisa. She's only a few months old, and she's a pest! But sometimes, as Russell is about to discover, it's not so bad to have a little sister. Because that also means he's something special: a big brother!