In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the            sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset            glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we      lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies      grow
In Flanders fields.

The idea for LOOT came from a simple question: what if you were the son or daughter of the greatest jewel thief in the world? When I asked myself that, a story started to spark in my mind. There was only one thing I knew before I started: I wanted to write a book where kids use mad skills to do bad things for good reasons… and get away with it!

Twelve-year-old March has bounced from one heist to another with his dad Alfie McQuin—from Paris to Hong Kong to London, and everywhere in between. Until one night when Alfie takes a fatal tumble off a roof in Amsterdam.

But before he falls, Alfie tosses March a glittering stone that just might make his fortune… if he can find his long-lost sister, assemble a gang, and reunite seven moonstones that just might be magic.
​
It’s a big job, but luckily, March has the greatest formerly living jewel thief living in his head.

• Look directly at the person
• Use a pleasant voice
• Say "hi" of "hello"
• Stand up if sitting down
• Extend a hand
• Interact with others
• Recognize when a peer is being left out and invite him/her to join the group
• Make sound judgments and decisions

• Articulate point of view
• Differentiate greeting approach for different settings
• Demonstrate awareness of hierarchy and use proper names
• Know personal information and use it as a conversation starter
• Use context of environment to start "small talk"
• Move from small talk to appropriate talk

I’ve seen people, at their lowest times in life, pealing their miserable skeletons from the ground, putting their skin back on, and starting over at nothing. In their times of need, they did not moan and complain. They never publicly asked, “Why me?” They do not blamed others for their own plight. Though none asked for the storm, they stood in its path. Though no one invited an EF-5 into their living rooms, they accepted the visitor and are still cleaning up after it. They are too proud to accept pity, too humble to take credit, and too strong to give excuses.

​I've witnessed weak people who made strong by adversity, broken people made beautiful through tribulation, and defeated people made victorious in disaster. They remove themselves from the ruins, cast off the cocoon of catastrophe, and walk willingly through the debris with their heads held high. Defeat is not an option.

​Whisper, even when you have run out of breath. Pray, even when you have no words. Rejoice, even when you have been knocked off your feet. Hope, even when you have lost all you own. Reach, even when your arms are heavy. Serve, even in your own time of need.

When you are knocked down, climb. When you are over your head, swim. When you are beaten, fight. When you are silenced, speak. When you are crippled, fly!

Poppy's life has been turned upside down after her grandma (and guardian) had a stroke and ended up in the hospital. But Poppy is working on a plan to help Grandma Beth so their life together can go back to normal. But when she witnesses an armed robbery, "back to normal" slips even further out of her reach. To keep Poppy safe, the budget-strapped police devise an unusual "witness protection program," wherein Poppy will stay with Detective Brannigan's mother. Soon Poppy is feeling almost at home, even making sort-of friends with a girl named Lizzie and definitely friending Gunner, a beautiful dog with an uncertain fate. But it's still not home. So while she and Lizzie navigate a rocky friendship and plot to save Gunner's life, Poppy also tries to figure out a new plan to save Grandma Beth and their home, all while avoiding a dangerous robber who might be searching for her. But what if Grandma Beth can never come home and the robber is put behind bars? What will happen to Poppy then?