When Heidi’s Aunt Dete brings the orphaned girl to live withher grandfather, no one can imagine the bitter, solitary old mancaring for a child. But, to everyone’s surprise, the two grow tolove each other—and Heidi blossoms in her new home. Johanna Spyri’scharming story—and spirited heroine—have won children’s hearts formore than a century.

A shipwreck; a deserted island; a single family, wonderingif they can survive. Rich in suspense and surprises, The SwissFamily Robinson entices young readers to come along on awonderful adventure, where each moment brings a new thrill.Featuring amazingly resourceful characters and a wondrous landscapebursting with exotic wildlife and plants, it’s an irresistible taleof ingenuity.

The long-ago mysteries of the great opera house in Paris havenever been explained. Why did so many terrible tragedies happenthere? Why did everyone flee from it in fear? This gripping storyabout the “opera ghost” and the beautiful singer he loves launchedone of the most popular musicals in Broadway history—and it servesup enough thrills, chills, and surprises to keep even the mostreluctant reader fascinated.

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of itschildren's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes adazzling new series: Classic Starts . The stories areabridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats theworld's beloved tales (and children) with the respect theydeserve--all at an incomparable price. Poor Sara Crewe. onceupon a time her beloved father pampered and adored her. But eversince he died, leaving her alone and penniless, she's been caughtin the cruel clutches of Miss Minchin, the headmistress at theSelect Seminary for Young Ladies, where Sara once studied. But nomatter how terrible things get, Sara always has her imagination andgoodness of heart to carry her through. This timeless tale of apoor orphan has won children's hearts for a century--and continuesto be a favorite.

0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%" Dickens’ timeless noveltransports young readers to a colorful Victorian England filledwith mistreated orphans, grim workhouses, and gangs of thievingchildren. The hero finds himself in dire circumstances after hedares to beg for more food in the orphanage. Determined to make hisway in the world, he escapes to London, where he becomes involvedwith criminals…and finally finds a real home.

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of itschildren's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes adazzling new series: Classic Starts . The stories areabridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats theworld's beloved tales (and children) with the respect theydeserve--all at an incomparable price. The discovery of a neglected garden transforms the life of a sullenand unloved little girl-and everyone around her, too. When thenewly orphaned Mary Lennox leaves her native India and arrives ather uncle's mansion in Yorkshire, everything seems strange to her.Then Mary hears of a mysterious garden where no one has set foot in10 years. With the help of some new friends, she plans to uncoverits secrets...and make it blossom once again.

one boy, penniless and in rags, forced to beg in the street.The other, a king’s son, coddled and given all he could want. Whathappens when the two boys change clothes and places, and each onelearns how the other half lives? Mark Twain’s satirical andsuspenseful novel about the thin line that separates prince andpauper is a perennial favorite.

0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%" “We said there was no homelike a raft. other places do seem so cramped up and smothery…butyou feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft.” Saildown the Mississippi with Huck Finn and the runaway slave, Jim.Twain’s beloved tale, with its folksy language, creates anindelible image of antebellum America with its sleepy river towns,con men, family feuds, and a variety of colorful characters.

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of itschildren's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes adazzling new series: Classic Starts. The stories are abridged; thequality is complete. Classic Starts treats the world's belovedtales (and children) with the respect they deserve--all at anincomparable price. Black Beauty is the classic horse story, a beautiful and touchingtale told by the title character himself. Set in Victorian London,it follows Beauty's life and changing fortunes as he moves fromowner to owner. As the horse encounters new experiences and newfriends who reveal their own histories, the story quietly paints afascinating portrait of how animals were treated during thatera.

one very special boy weaves some magic in Frances HodgsonBurnett’s sentimental favorite. When young Cedric Errol learns thathe is actually a British lord and heir to an estate, his life istransformed. He leaves Boston for Dorincourt Castle to live withhis uncle, the Earl—a tyrant who’s loathed by one and all. WillCedric succeed in melting his cold, cruel uncle’s heart?

0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%" A single person—but with twopersonalities: one that’s noble and kind and another that’s pure,repulsive evil. Robert Louis Stevenson’s engrossing masterpieceabout the dual nature of man—and a good doctor whose thirst forknowledge has tragic consequences—serves up all the suspense andsatisfying chills one expects from the best horror and sciencefiction.

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of itschildren's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes adazzling new series: Classic Starts. The stories are abridged; thequality is complete. Classic Starts treats the world's belovedtales (and children) with the respect they deserve--all at anincomparable price. Lucy Maud Montgomery's classic tale, with its engaging heroineand evocative de*ion of the Prince Edward Island landscape,never fails to delight youngsters. When Matthew Cuthbert goes tothe train station to pick up the orphan he and his sister Marillaplan to adopt, he expects to meet a boy who can help on the familyfarm. Instead it's Anne--a talkative, dreamy, red-haired,freckle-faced 11-year-old little girl who transforms the Cuthberts'life forever and fills it with love and joy

With Classic Starts, young readers can experience the wonder oftimeless stories from an early age. Abridged for easier reading andcarefully rewritten, each classic novel is filled with all themagic and excitement that made the original story a belovedfavorite.

0in 0in 0pt" Call me Ishmael. These three famous wordsbegin one of America’s most epic novels, a tale of one obsessedcaptain, his doomed crew, and an elusive white whale namedMoby-Dick. The massive original, however, can be very hardfor young readers to navigate. This beautifully abridged andadventure-filled version will thrill children and whet theirappetite for the complete work—when they are ready to tackleit.

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of itschildren's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes adazzling new series: Classic Starts . The stories areabridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats theworld's beloved tales (and children) with the respect theydeserve--all at an incomparable price. No child is too young to appreciate the amazing deductive powers ofthe world's smartest detective. These easy-to-read Sherlock Holmesstories provide the perfect introduction to the super sleuth andhis friend and assistant, Dr. Watson. Among the intriguing tales:"A Scandal in Bohemia," Holmes's first encounter with themysterious Irene Adler; "The Red-Headed League"; "The Adventure ofthe Six Napoleons" and others.

0in 0in 0pt" Nothing’s more magical than going down therabbit hole and through the looking glass with Alice. There, inworlds unlike any other ever created, conventional logic is turnedupside down and wrong-way round to enchanting effect. Children willlove reading Carroll’s many humorous nonsense verses and meetingsuch unforgettable characters as the Mad Hatter, the Knave ofHearts who steals some tarts, and the grinning Cheshire Cat (in Alice in Wonderland ) and Tweedledee, Tweedledum, HumptyDumpty, and the Jabberwock (in Through the LookingGlass ).

Homer's epic tale of the warrior odysseus's decades-longstruggle to return home after the Trojan War is simply andbeautifully retold, with all the drama intact. Young readers willthrill at odysseus's adventures with the man-eating Cyclops; theenchantress Circe, who turns his crew into pigs; and the angry seagod Poseidon.

0in 0in 0pt" Now every child can celebrate the 100thanniversary of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s ever-popular story! Firstintroduced in Anne of Green Gables as a young orphan, Montgomery’sfeisty and imaginative heroine is now 16 years old and embarking ona new adventure: becoming a teacher in her old Avonlea school. It’san exciting year as Anne struggles to win over all her students,welcomes two new members to her family, and feels the firststirrings of love.

once upon a time… there were two brothers, Jacob and WilhelmGrimm, who gave the world some of the best-loved fairy tales everwritten. From “Cinderella” and “Rumpelstiltskin” to “Snow White”and “The Brave Little Tailor,” this charming anthology offers youngreaders a wonderful introduction to 12 of the Grimms' most popularstories.

0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%" A searing tale of fear andcourage, set during the Civil War, but more powerful today thanever. A young man enlists in the Union Army, but nervously wondershow he will react to the blood, violence, and death of a realbattle. When that terrible day arrives, he flees the fighting interror. But his cowardly behavior gnaws at his conscience, and hesearches for redemption for what he has done.

Following Sterling's spectacularly successful launch of itschildren's classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes adazzling new series: Classic Starts . The stories areabridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats theworld's beloved tales (and children) with the respect theydeserve--all at an incomparable price. Pirates, buriedtreasure, and action aplenty--that's what's served up in this finestory, mates, and kids will eat it up. After Jim Hawkins finds themap to a mysterious treasure, he sets sail in search of thefortune. Little does he realize he's boarded a pirate ship, andthat surprises and danger await him...including a meeting with theinforgettable Long John Silver.

0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%" Half wolf, half dog, WhiteFang fully understands the cruelty of both nature and humans. Afternearly starving to death during the frigid Arctic winter, he’staken in first by a man who “trains” him through constantwhippings, and then by another who forces him to participate invicious dogfights. Follow White Fang as he overcomes theseobstacles and finally meets someone who offers him kindness andlove.

0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%" Jules Verne’s classicscience fiction fantasy carries its hero—Professor Aronnax of theMuseum of Paris—on a thrilling and dangerous journey far below thewaves to see what creatures live in the ocean’s depths. In theprocess, Verne imagined a vessel that had not yet been invented:the submarine.