Chris

The last thing Nancy Ellis-Bell expected to descend on her life was a neglected, too-tall, smart-mouthed, one-legged, blue-and-gold rescue macaw named Peg Leg. And yet, it made perfect sense. A lifelong animal lover, Nancy could never turn away a stray cat, dog, squirrel, or raccoon from her California farm. But the macaw, quickly rechristened Sarah, was a whole new challenge, as Nancy, her husband, Kerry, and their furry menagerie would find out. Initially timid of her new surroundings, Sarah soon imposed her four-foot wingspan into the family homestead--first claiming the laundry basket, then conquering a prized dresser--and achieved complete household domination. Nancy couldn't "bird-proof" the place fast enough, and it was not long before Sarah started stealing the dogs' toys--using her enormous beak to disembowel Ben the mutt's treasured stuffed bear--and bathing her richly hued feathers in their water bowl. She also peppered Nancy's phone conversations with expletive-laden outbursts. There seemed no end to Sarah's realm, nor her destruction, and it dawned on Nancy that the entire house had slowly transformed into a birdcage. On the other side of the coin, Sarah started to abandon her own raptor instincts when she discovered that dog food was pretty tasty and that she had a knack for "barking" (and a few other sounds that alarmed the neighbors). As they all learned to live together, Nancy marveled that Sarah had truly found a place to call home, but she sensed that there was something she could give Sarah to make her feel more complete: a chance to fly again. Touching, eye-opening, and laugh-out-loud funny, "The Parrot Who Thought She Was a Dog" is a tender tale of two worlds colliding, two lives enriched, and two souls restored. It is also a rewarding reminder that love can come from the most unexpected places.

Booklist (09/01/2009): Grades 7-12 Decked out in a white, lacy wedding gown and headed for the church, Jacky is seized by the British Navy and sent on a dangerous dual mission: first, to spy on the Spanish in the Caribbean and, second, to locate the remains of a treasure ship sunk some 75 years earlier and retrieve its gold and jewels for the Crown. Meyer weaves details of 19th-century history, lore, and ballads into a fast-paced and often amusing swashbuckler. Fans of the Bloody Jack Adventure series will relish the latest escapades of this high-spirited and decidedly unconventional heroine.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)

Brutal murder embroils Scotland Yard commander Joe Sandilands in the intrigue and violence of late 1920s Paris in CWA Historical Dagger Award-winning author Barbara Cleverly's tour de force of suspense.... In a box at the famed Theatre des Champs-Elysees, an ex-soldier and knight of the realm is dead, his throat savagely cut. In a jail cell, diplomat George Jardine, his evening clothes stained with the slain man's blood, awaits the arrival of his old wartime friend, Joe Sandilands. In spite of the evidence, Sandilands believes Jardine is innocent. His search for a crucial witness--a notorious beauty who quickly vanishes--leads to the discovery of a shocking series of unsolved murders. Is Sandilands hunting a serial killer? Or has he stumbled upon something even more sinister and carefully orchestrated? As the final, chilling pieces of the puzzle fall into place, Sandilands launches his own counterattack against a killer whose sadistic agenda is about to become horrifyingly clear....

Barry Laverty, M.B., can barely find the village of Ballybucklebo on a map when he first sets out to seek gainful employment there, but already he knows that there is nowhere he would rather live than in the emerald hills and dales of Northern Ireland. The proud owner of a spanking-new medical degree and little else in the way of worldly possessions, Barry jumps at the chance to secure a position as an assistant in a small rural practice. At least until he meets Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly. The older physician, whose motto is to never let the patients get the upper hand, has his own way of doing things. At first, Barry can't decide if the pugnacious O'Reilly is the biggest charlatan he has ever met, or the best teacher he could ever hope for. Through O'Reilly Barry soon gets to know all of the village's colorful and endearing residents, including: A malingering Major and his equally hypochondriacal wife; An unwed servant girl, who refuses to divulge the father of her upcoming baby; A slightly daft old couple unable to marry for lack of a roof; And a host of other eccentric characters who make every day an education for the inexperienced young doctor. Ballybucklebo is long way from Belfast, and Barry is quick to discover that he still has a lot to learn about the quirks and traditions of country life. But with pluck and compassion and only the slightest touch of blarney, he will find out more about life--and love--than he ever imagined back in medical school. "An Irish Country Doctor" is a charming and engrossing tale that will captivate readers from the very first page--and leave them yearning to visit the Irish countryside of days gone by.