Chris Van Dusen

Based on a real incident that occurred in the island town of Vinalhaven, Maine, this rhyming story recounts what happens when a really big flatbed truck carrying a mysterious, covered load across a small island gets stuck on a tight curve and blocks traffic in both directions.

It's a summer day so beautiful and peaceful that Hattie, paddling in her canoe in the middle of a lake, can't help but sing. In the deep water below, a creature is lurking. He's huge and green, with a long, long neck and he rarely leaves his lair. But on this day, he hears something sweet and inviting. He hears a song. What happens when the creature rises to the surface is nothing short of magical. Can a young girl and an enormous lake monster become...

Randy Riley, a science genius who loves baseball but is not very good at it, needs to use both his interests to save his town from a giant fireball that is heading their way.

Mr. Magee and his trusty dog, Dee, are enjoying a peaceful camping trip when all of a sudden they find themselves plunging down a mountain and teetering on the edge of a huge waterfall! How will they find their way out of this slippery situation? Chris Van Dusen, the creator of Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee, has filled this new adventure with charming illustrations and a playful, rhyming text. A fun read-aloud for children (and adults!) on campouts...

When haughty King Hugo tangles with a sorceress, she causes him to see himself in a more realistic light.

After Mercy the pig snuggles to sleep with the Watsons, all three awaken with the bed teetering on the edge of a big hole in the floor. To Mr. and Mrs. Watson, Mercy is not just a pig -- she's a porcine wonder. And to the portly and good-natured Mercy, the Watsons are an excellent source of buttered toast, not to mention that buttery-toasty feeling she gets when she snuggles into bed with them. This is not, however, so good for the Watsons' bed....

Leroy Ninker has a hat, a lasso, and boots. What he doesn't have is a horse -- until he meets Maybelline, that is, and then it's love at first sight. Maybelline loves spaghetti and sweet nothings, and she loves Leroy, too. But when Leroy forgets the third and final rule of caring for Maybelline, disaster ensues. Can Leroy wrestle fate to the ground, rescue the horse of his heart, and lasso loneliness for good?

Baby Lincoln's older sister, Eugenia, is very fond of telling Baby what to do, and Baby usually responds by saying "Yes, Sister." But one day Baby has had enough. She decides to depart on a Necessary Journey, even though she has never gone anywhere without Eugenia telling her what to take and where to go. And in fact Baby doesnt know where she is headed -- only that she was entirely happy in the previous night's dream, sitting aboard a train with...

When Stella gets the sudden idea to go caroling, she has a little trouble getting someone to join her. Her brother, Frank, is not good at spontaneity. The Watsons are very involved in a precarious fruitcake attempt (but happy to send their pig, Mercy, out for the occasion). Eugenia Lincoln declines, a bit rudely, to accompany on her accordion, and Horace Broom is too busy studying planetary movement. Will Stella need to sing by herself--with enthusiastic...

Persuaded by the word "treating" to dress up as a princess for Halloween, Mercy the pig's trick-or-treat outing has some very unexpected results.