Saguaro Books

While on a journey to find the final ingredient for her Practically Perfect Parsley Potion, Quagmire Pinch, has a misstep and tumbles down a cliff drawing the attention of a group of  gnomes and discovers that in the past their king has killed any and all witches who have stumbled upon his hidden kingdom.

As young Petros maneuvers the hallways of the Hellenic American School for the Arts, it’s the ice cream man who stops by at recess whom he learns the most from. Just one year shy of making it into high school, Petros challenges the strict rules of his school while also trying to follow the strict rules of his traditional Greek home in a tough neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens.When he finally gets the chance to go to the specialized high school his brother now attends, his hopes and efforts are challenged by all the authority figures around him, except for his newfound friend, Mulvaney.

Seventeen-year-old Jessa lives in the remote mountains of Kentucky and has always found peace in the forest. Close to her eighteenth birthday, her dad buys her a book and things begin to happen. With her dreams leading her, she uncovers a world within her own with Faeries. They look and act like people she grew up with but she quickly finds she is the one who is different. She is the hidden heir to the throne and the Faeries need her to come home and save them from the Trolls.

Frederic (Freddy) Gold is smart, talented, funny and overweight. She hates her name, her body and the school bully. As if that weren’t enough, her parents are newly divorced and her dad has a young girlfriend. Excited about turning twelve and starting middle school, Freddy meets Dolly,and African-American girl and Eva, a Latina, who are also fat. They discover a mutual love and talent for music and form a band. In this coming-of-age story, Freddy learns to cope with adversity by using her  humor, talent and the support of  her friends, her older brother, and a special ‘fat angel’ to earn respect and popularity.

Eleven-year-old Willie, always the smartest kid in town, skips two grades, doesn’t have any friends, and spends his days reading in an abandoned old cellar. Suddenly, a boy who calls himself Huby as in the red ruby, appears out of nowhere and becomes Willie’s new friend. Who is this weird new boy who knows things he shouldn't, and might not be what he seems to be? Together they explore Willie’s favorite hideout where mysterious noises and dots of light could mean a ghost. When Willie wins a school contest with a proposal to build a baseball field, the project may fall apart because third base will be over Willie’s cellar hideout and whatever may be down there. With the help of new friends and the town witch, Willie solves the ghostly mystery under third base.

 Meet Danny West, a talented young artist who has trouble reading, especially aloud when he starts to stammer. Kids laugh at him, and bullies sometimes beat him up after school, so he has to cut through the desert to get home. Danny’s dad was a police detective who died trying to stop a robbery at an art gallery. Danny was only two-year-old, but nobody will talk about it.  There is the art teacher, Mr. Lewis who has his own secrets and may be more than just a middle-school art teacher, but he won’t talk about it. Danny’s best friend forever is Amy Crowe who thinks he’s great and tries to help him read. Then one day Huby as in red ruby, appears in Danny’s yard. Is Mr. Lewis linked to the art gallery robbery where Danny’s father died? Danny, Amy and Huby set out to solve the mystery of the stolen painting and Danny’s father’s death.

A mysterious lost land deed and a missing map hidden somewhere in Grandma’s attic can save Ellen and Troy Baron. The twelve-year-old twins live with their mother in a falling-down house with no hot water or a working toilet, and most nights they all go to bed hungry and dirty. Troy is bullied by the boys in gym and Ellen faces the “snoots” every day, girls who make fun of her. Their father may be hiding from the police and their grandmother who can help them can’t get in touch because they don’t have a telephone. Their mother has Cerebral Palsy and walks with a jerky limp, but everyone thinks she is drunk. Ellen and Troy are afraid something will happen to her and they will be alone with no-one to help them. Huby returns to Arizona in book four of The Shadow Boy Mysteries in his hardest quest yet, to save the twins and their family before it’s too late.

It all starts one sunny morning as Mermilo, a purebred Golden Retriever is heading to his groomer. He is preparing for a long awaited evening out that night with the beautiful French Poodle who lives across the street and he wants to look his best. Unfortunately, a huge obstacle presents itself: he is dognapped. Not just Mermilo, but dogs from all over town are disappearing, as well!

As feisty Jessica moves to yet another middle school, she struggles to stay out of trouble, while living in constant fear that others will find out her family's dark secrets: Jess's mom is an alcoholic, her dad left them years ago, and most days Jess struggles just to find food to eat. 

     Convinced that she is the reason her mother drinks, especially since Jess constantly gets into trouble at school, she lives with the daily pain of her mom's explosive behavior, and the accompanying shame.

     Befriended by sassy, red-headed Anna and cheerful, encouraging Grace, Jess balances the joy of friendship with the hurt she carries with her. 

     Will self-proclaimed Jess the Mess open her heart and life to her new friends? What happens when her secrets are revealed? Jess learns that everyone can change, but some change comes with a price. 

Kiara grew up in a secret, magical city buried under the earth.She lives a happy existence in Emeraldo as the daughter of the queen, until her twelfth birthday when her parents are brutally murdered by the power-hungry Chief Administrator. Kiara escapes with her life, and the secret to ruling the city of Emeraldo. Finding herself in the strange Land Above, she discovers a new family kept secret from her. But safety doesn't last, and when her family's murderer follows her to her new home, she must use all her powers to protect herself and her new family

Danny Meyers is a kid with a plan—he’s smart, goal-oriented, and the definition of a goody-two-shoes. So how does an A+ student get mixed up with the school bully? In the summer of 1995, Danny is about to learn that people aren’t always what they seem, that sometimes the best-laid plans fail, and that the ordinary events of day-to-day life can be important—even if you don’t think so at the time. Danny is on the verge of turning a corner and he won’t be able to go back. But what he learns after turning that corner, and a few more, just might help him make sense of things after all.