Nathaniel Fludd's life has taken a turn for the worst. With his parents lost at sea, he lands on the doorstep of a distant cousin--the world's last remaining beastologist. Soon Nate is whisked off on his first expedition, to Arabia, where the world's only phoenix prepares to lay its new egg. When disaster strikes, Nate quickly finds himself all alone. Will he be able to see the phoenix safely hatched, keep his accidental pet gremlin out of trouble, and rescue his guardian from the Bedouin? If he fails, nothing will stand between the world's mythical creatures and extinction. Too bad Nate's not the sort of boy who enjoys adventure . . .yet. AUTHOR When R L La Fevers grew up she had an unusually wide variety of pets, from the usual dogs, cats and rapits to goats, chickens, chipmunks, a paby anteater and for s short time, two baby bear cubs. In addition she was also surrounded by a gaggle of brothers who taught her an awful lot about how to get into mischief of all kinds. When she wasn't taking care of her pets or getting her brothers out of scrapes, she usually had her nose buried in a book. Now she lives on a small ranch in Southern California with her husband, two teenaged sons (who are also very good at getting into mischief and scrapes of one sort or another), a dog who thinks he's a person, and a cat who is really a tigress in disguise. Although she no longer has any exotic pets, she does have raccoons who visit her back porch, coyotes who howl near her window, and hawks that soar high overhead. See www.rllafevers.com SELLING POINTS Teachers guide and reading points are available on her website. AGES 8-12 years