Mr. and Mrs. Tupper, who own an antique store, live with their daughter, Jillian, at Number 3 Ramshorn Drive. But in this story, the human characters (all white) take a backseat to the other residents of Number 3: Toasty, a grumpy goldfish, and Ivy, an ebullient houseplant. Toasty resents Ivy, who is talkative and rather full of herself, for being Jillian’s “favorite,” but Toasty tolerates Ivy because she fetches him cheese puffs, which he loves. When a brainy spider named Arthur arrives at the house in an antique desk, closely followed by a second potted plant, Ollie, the social dynamic shifts. Ivy begins to realize that she has a lot to learn about friendship. She also discovers that she and Ollie have magical abilities caused by splashes of water from Toasty’s antique octagonal fish tank. As it turns out, the tank is one of two magical items designed by one Augustus Octothorpe; the other is a birdcage that Mr. Tupper has acquired and is restoring. When an underhanded buyer realizes the Tuppers have no intention of selling the items to him, he breaks into the Tuppers’ home to steal them—and is met with the well-orchestrated countermeasures of Toasty, Ivy, Ollie, and Arthur, who have come together to protect themselves and their home. Cleverly plotted, charming, and satisfying, this standalone novel has a cozy, old-fashioned feel and delightful illustrations. Who knew houseplants could undergo such profound emotional growth?

An instant New York Times bestseller!
“A meditative, charming delight.” —School Library Journal (starred review)

An unlikely team of talkative plants, a curious spider, and a grumpy goldfish use their newfound magical abilities to defend their family from a greedy human in this charming middle grade novel from New York Times bestselling author Beth Ferry, with illustrations from the award-winning Fan brothers.

Ivy is the beloved houseplant of young Jillian Tupper of Number 3 Ramshorn Drive, much to the constant dismay of Toasty the goldfish, who is technically the family pet—swimming in his special place of honor, the antique octagonal fish tank—and should be the most loved. It seems that’s how the cookie (or cheese puffs, in Toasty’s case) crumbles in the curious Tupper household, but soon a sequence of thrilling and magical events challenges that way of life forever.

First, there’s the arrival of Arthur, a knowledgeable spider with a broken leg and a curious mind, hidden in an old typewriter. Then Jillian throws everyone for a loop when she brings home dear, sweet Ollie, a school houseplant who just wants to be friends and sing. When Toasty splashes the plants with his tank water out of frustration, the friends learn that they can do magical things—like lift heavy objects and turn things invisible!

It turns out Toasty’s fishtank isn’t just for fish; it was made by a curious inventor who gave it special powers that, in the wrong hands, could disrupt everything forever. And a curious man with purple shoes just so happens to want that tank at any cost. Can Ivy, Toasty, Arthur, and Ollie grow to be friends in time to work together to save their beloved Tupper family from utter ruin?