TY - BOOK AU - Lerner,Gail TI - The big dreams of small creatures SN - 9780593407851 PY - 2022/// CY - New York PB - Nancy Paulsen Books KW - Human-animal relationships KW - Juvenile fiction KW - Insects KW - Ability KW - Bullies KW - African Americans KW - Fantasy fiction KW - lcgft KW - Novels N1 - Ages 10+; Nancy Paulsen Books; Grades 4-6; Nancy Paulsen Books N2 - At a secret laboratory devoted to the peaceful coexistence of human and insects, the fate of the insect world hangs in the balance of ten-year-old Eden who can speak to insects and nine-year-old August, a bullied fourth grader who wants to squash everything; Ten-year-old Eden's quiet life is upended when she saves a paper wasp nest from destruction and discovers, to her awe and amazement, that she and its haughty queen can talk to each other. This first conversation is the start of a grand adventure, leading Eden to The Institute for Lower Learning, a secret laboratory devoted to the peaceful coexistence of humans and insects. The Institute is more fantastic and idyllic than Eden could've imagined but hidden deep within its tunnels is an old secret that could spell the end for all insects on earth. Nine-year-old August, an aspiring actor and bullied fourth-grader, is looking for that very secret after a few disastrous encounters have left him wanting to squash every annoying bug into oblivion. After all insects are small--he is big. And if there is anything he's learned from the bullies at school--it's that being bigger is what counts. But in the world of the Institute where insects have a place of their own, both Eden and August discover being bigger isn't necessarily better and sometimes the most courageous thing to do is to set out to make a new friend ER -