(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Greg Call. In a quaint New England village, Misty Gordon and her best friend, Yoshi, must find three magical statues before a crew of vengeful ghost pirates claims the powerful loot. An entertaining cast of kooky townspeople and relatives (both living and otherwise); a dash of local history; and a battle to protect the town keep this ghostly mystery humming with suspense.

Reviewer: Bethany Templeton Klem

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Doug Kennedy. Hee-Haw the donkey and mouse Chester yearn to be magicians, but the farm animals scoff at them. When a real magician's chest falls from a passing circus train, the pair practices all night and impresses the barnyard gang. Energetic acrylic paintings capture the friends' belief in their dream. The lighthearted story's cheeriness helps distract from the too convenient setup and ending.

Reviewer: Carrie Harasimowicz Sullivan

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Doug Kennedy. Pirate Pete's third adventure finds Pete and his parrot interviewing potential buccaneers for crew positions aboard his ship. The candidates look like pirates, but speak perfectly correct English, violating Pete's most important requirement for the job. The joke gets old, but the text is great for reading aloud, and bold full-page oil illustrations will delight all manner of pirate lovers.

Reviewer: Rebecca Reed Whidden