Polo Life

When Stewart Copeland gets dressed, he has an identity crisis. Should he put on "leather pants, hostile shirts, and pointy shoes"? Or wear something more appropriate to the "tax-paying, property-owning, investment-holding lotus eater" his success has allowed him to become? This dilemma is at the heart of Copeland's vastly entertaining memoir-in-stories, Strange Things Happen.

Marco Polo is a small felt mouse who used to be a Christmas ornament on Anne the librarian’s tree. But now he’s one of the Book Buddies, toys that can be checked out just like books. Marco Polo may be small, but he’s also a brave explorer looking for adventure - if only someone would check him out of the library. Seth is a boy who visits the library with his dad and younger brother. He wishes he could be a little more brave, especially when he goes on his first sleepover. But maybe a small explorer like Marco Polo is just the kind of friend he needs.

Marco Polo, a Venetian merchant, was a great explorer of far and unfamiliar lands. He traveled the world in order to find things that no one else had seen, but what did he really discover? The stories that he told upon his return to his homeland of the Republic of Venice were so unusual that his fellow compatriots often had a hard time believing him.

Born and raised in West Philadelphia, Kareem thought he and his siblings would always be stuck in “The Bottom”, a community and neighborhood devastated by poverty and violence. Riding their bicycles through Philly’s Fairmount Park, Kareem’s brothers discover a barn full of horses. Noticing the brothers’ fascination with her misfit animals, Lezlie Hiner, founder of The Work to Ride stables, offers them their escape: an after school job in exchange for riding lessons. What starts as an accidental discovery turns into a love for horseback riding.

Marco Polo (1254-1324) is an instantly recognizable name, and he is known for his travels, but it's safe to say that his influence and importance has been greatly overlooked in the nearly 700 years since he died. Born in Venice, Marco Polo was in a fortuitous position to participate in trade. He followed in the footsteps of his own family, setting off for Asia with his well-traveled father and uncle. They would not return to Venice for 24 years. When they came back, they had allegedly traveled about 15,000 miles.

Shawn Wallis earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology. Mr. Wallis currently resides in Zephyrhills with his Weimaraner puppy Samantha.

En la casa de la abuela -en las montañas de México- los sábados estaban llenos de familiares y de mucho sol. Areli era buena jugando al escondite y aún mejor persiguiendo gallinas. Cuando Areli era sólo una bebé, su mamá y su papá se mudaron a Nueva York con su hermano -Alex- en busca de una mejor vida para su familia. Cuando Areli entró a preescolar, enviaron a alguien por ella también.

In this moving picture book, Noemi and Mama flee their home in Mexico, and head for the US border. There, they look for "The Notebook Keeper"—the person in charge of a ledger for those waiting to cross, and they add their names to the book. As the days turn into weeks, and hope dwindles, the little girl looks for kindness around her—and inside herself. One day, when the Notebook Keeper's own name is called to cross, Noemi and her Mama are chosen—for the generosity in their hearts—to take her place.