The Secret Box (Secret Box, 1)

The Secret Box is a Junior Library Guild selection and the first in an irresistible middle grade series that will delight fans of Dan Gutman, Wendy Mass, and Trenton Lee Stewart.

What starts as a fun quest to open a mysterious birthday present quickly turns crazy and dangerous when Jax and her cousin Ethan discover themselves at the center of a special magical legacy. Soon they realize the secret box was not intended as a gift, but as call for help that they alone can answer.

Readers will love the page-turning mystery, hilarious girl and boy narrators, and clever incorporation of mythology—and lingering questions will leave them eager for more.

Before becoming an author, Whitaker Ringwald was certified as World's Greatest Snowball Maker and developed a nonstick peanut butter formula in conjunction with lauded Ig Nobel scientists. Whitaker spends six months of every year in a deep sea submersible trying to film live footage of giant squids. But giant squids are hard to come by, so that's where Whitaker gets a lot of writing done.