Mark Fearing

It's another Thanksgiving at Grandma's. Gavin expects a long day of boredom and being pestered by distantly related toddlers, but his cousin Rhonda has a different idea: make a break for it - out of the kids' room to the swing set in the backyard! Gavin isn't so sure, especially when they encounter vicious guard dogs (in homemade sweaters), a hallway full of overly affectionate aunts, and worse yet, the great wall of butts! Will they manage to avoid...

"In five spooky stories, an intrepid young resident invites readers to look a little closer at this scenic rural town's secrets, mysteries, and unexplained disappearances"--

After searching high and low for his missing pants, Belbum the giant asks his friends if he can borrow their trousers, but when none of the clothes fit him he realizes there is only one thing left for him to do--walk to the tailor in town with no pants on.

"The poor villagers of Handkerchief! For as long as they can remember, the Baron Von Sneeze, who lives in Castle Gesundheit, has been sniffling, wheezing, and coughing day and night, and no one can get any rest. Hoping for some sleep, a girl named Fiona finally drums up the courage to visit the castle and find out what's ailing its noble resident. When she arrives, she discovers that the Baron Von Sneeze is the only human around, and that he's convinced...

When ten-year-old Nolan and his little sister, Olive, find Ben Franklin in their kitchen, they do their best to guide Ben through the new world he helped form.

Three aliens set off to find a new planet for themselves but soon Bork and Gork have forgotten all of their mother's good advice and only Nklxwcyz builds a home safe enough to withstand the Big Bad Robot in this story reminiscent of "The Three Little Pigs."

A young girl must face her least favorite food when a mean gang of green beans kidnaps her parents.

When Eleanor Roosevelt and Fala turn up in ten-year-old Nolan's bedroom closet, his mother, taking Mrs. Roosevelt for the new baby sitter, leaves him and his little sister Olive with her.

When a boy leaves cupcake crumbs in his bed, his mother warns him "If you don't clean up after yourself, we're going to get pests!" But really, what's the worst that can happen? It's no big deal ... until Vlad shows up and wants an entire cupcake. And then more barbarians take over the TV room ... and the garage! They use the school supplies to scratch their hairy backs! The exterminator won't take the case, and mousetraps don't work. What can the...

A little boy who is disappointed by the seven steps in his Superhero Instruction Guide gets a glimpse of true heroism.