Griffin's father's invention, the Smartpick FruitsafeT picking mechanism, has endangered the family's finances. So when Griffin finds a Babe Ruth baseball card, he takes it to a collectibles shop, hoping to cash in. The proprietor, S. Wendell Palamino, declares it a knockoff and pays him just one hundred twenty dollars-only to display the card on TV the next day as one that could "break the million-dollar barrier." Furious at the injustice, Griffin assembles a group of kids with unique talents to get the card back.
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Summary Griffin’s family is nearly torn apart by money worries as his inventor father seeks financing for his revolutionary invention—the SmartPick fruit picker. Soon they will have to sell their house and move away. When S. Wendell Palomino swindles Griffin out of the vintage baseball card he had found in a condemned building—a card worth an estimated million dollars—Griffin decides to get even by stealing back the card. To pull of the heist, he assembles a team of specialists from his class. Griffin has planned for all the known obstacles—the vicious guard dog, the touchy alarm, the nosy neighbor—but the team’s true worth is shown by how they deal with the unexpected, including betrayal from within.
This collection features fiction titles selected for upper elementary and early middle school readers who are ready for engaging, well-crafted stories that reflect their everyday lives and interests. Selections span contemporary and realistic fiction, as well as approachable genre titles, offering accessible narratives with emotional depth, humor, and heart—designed to encourage independent reading and sustained engagement.