The Ryans lived in a small cottage with a thatched roof. The family had lived on Maidin Bay on the west coast of Ireland for generations. Nory was twelve, and she lived with her grandfather, her fourteen-year-old sister, and a little brother. Her mother had died in childbirth when her little brother was born. Da, her father, a fisherman, had gone to sea to earn enough money to pay the rent. The Ryans, just like their neighbors, depended on the potato crop to have enough to eat and earn a little bit of extra money.

A member of the English nobility, Lord Cunningham, owned the land and collected rent from each of the families. He made no secret of the fact that he wished all of the families would lose their land, so he could tear down their little cottages and graze flocks of sheep on what had been their small homesteads. Those families that could raise enough money were gradually paying the fare for sons and daughters to sail overseas. Once in America, there was a chance to make a better life.

When Nory's story begins, a terrible disease, called potato blight, is attacking the potato crop. The potatoes turn black and smelly and become too rotten to eat. Not only do the Irish farmers no longer have enough to eat, but they have no money to pay rent to Lord Cunningham's rent collector. For Nory's family, their only hope is for Nory's Da to return from sea with enough money to pay the rent. Even then, they will be desperate to find food enough to get through the winter. But Da has not made it home by his usual time. How can Nory help herself and her family survive?

"Nory Ryan's Song" by Patricia Riley Giff helps a young reader understand why so many families in America are descended from Irish immigrants. Thousands of us have ancestors that came here to escape the terrible conditions in Ireland in generations past.

A girl, who wishes for an adventure,
gets more than she bargained for

Kaci, a beginning seventh grader, lived with her dad, a school principal, her mom, an office manager at a health clinic, and three other kids. Her mom wanted to move the family to a bigger house in a better neighborhood. The father resisted at first, but finally was convinced, when the mom said she was getting frightened to live where they did because crime was on the increase in this older neighborhood. So they bought a house in Lofty Cedars Estates with five bedrooms and three bathrooms - just what a family with four kids needed. The neighborhood was good and supposed to be a safe one.

Kaci liked to hear stories and to make up stories of her own. She especially liked scary stories and movies. Her complaint much of the time was that her life was boring and without any adventure. At least she now was going to have a room of her own. She could decorate it herself and pick the furniture she wanted in it. Things would be more interesting, at least for awhile.

Before they moved from their old house, Kaci and her older brother, Jeff, noticed what appeared to be light from a flashlight in the house across the street. They knew those neighbors had won a trip out of town and were not at home. The local newspaper had a story about their winning the contest. So burglars would know the house was empty. Besides, there was an old van parked in the driveway. Foolishly, Jeff ran across the street to see what was going on. The burglars were scared off but not before Jeff was hit on the head. Jeff turned out to be okay, and was able to report the number on the old van's license plate.

The old house sold quickly, but it took longer than expected for the new house to be ready. The family was gradually moving their things into the new home. One day, after school started, Kaci needed her asthma medicine. With the permission of the school nurse, she walked the short distance to her new house, to pick up her meds. While she was getting the medication, she heard noises in the big new house. There were burglars starting to load the family's valuables into a van parked in front. In fact it was the same group of crooks she and Jeff had seen earlier in their old neighborhood.

A very scared Kaci failed in her effort to slip out undetected. The burglars grabbed her, and, later tied her up and took her with them as a hostage. Now, she was having a real-life scary adventure. How would she escape and save the family's valuables?

A boy from Cuba wants to play baseball
in the shadow of Yankee Stadium

Michael Arroyo is only twelve, but he can pitch a baseball with serious heat. He and his older brother, Carlos, had been brought out of Cuba by their father. Unfortunately, their father had died of a heart attack not long after arriving in New York. Carlos was only seventeen, so the boys no longer could report that they had a parent or legal guardian. Michael had become a star on his Little League team. A coach of a rival team, though, had challenged Michael's age, and Michael had no way to prove that he was only twelve.

Michael had wanted to play baseball all his life. Now, when he had a chance to play, he couldn't pitch for his team, the Clippers, until he found some way to obtain a birth certificate - from Cuba! In the meantime, all he was allowed to do was be a base coach, not a player.

There had been a mysterious girl who had watched Michael when he still had been allowed to pitch. Finally, he met her and found out her name was Elly. His team mates kidded Michael and called Elly his girlfriend. Surprisingly, the girl could play baseball herself, and could pitch almost as well as Michael could. Only later did he find that Elly was the daughter of his favorite Yankee player, the Cuban pitcher the fans called "El Grande."

Although adults who knew him tried to get a birth certificate from Cuba for Michael, they were not having any success. Would Michael have to give up on his dream, just because of jealousy on the part of a rival team? Who could get the attention of the Cuban officials so that they would send a copy of Michael's birth certificate to New York?

You need to read the book "Heat" by Mike Lupica to find out. While reading it, be ready to read a lot of baseball action as well.