Basketball-loving Jackson Jones never wanted any part of Rooter's, the community garden where his mother got him his very own plot for his 10th birthday. But he made the best of it, even planting a thorny rosebush. Now, after months of watering, weeding, and waiting, red roses have finally bloomed. So when Jackson learns that big city developers want to bulldoze Rooter's, he can't believe it. The garden means something to him, and he likes hanging out with the neighbors who tend their own plots. But what can Jackson do?With unasked-for help from well-meaning friends--and going to great lengths to avoid a fearsome bully who loves to taunt him--Jackson sets out to save Rooter's. But coming up with a winning strategy isn't so easy.From the Hardcover edition.

Who's afraid of Fred the ghost? Unfortunately, no one!Fred the ghost is perfectly happy haunting his lonely old New Orleans house until Pierre and his daughter Marie move in and turn the house into . . . (horrors!) . . . a restaurant. They clean up his beloved dust. They fix the house's squeaks and leaks. And as much as Fred clanks and groans and haunts and moans, not one single diner is scared away. In fact, no one even notices him. Is it time for Fred to find a new home?A hungry ghost in more ways than one, Fred satisfies develops a taste for friendship--and beignets--in this deliciously satisfying New Orleans tale.From the Hardcover edition.