Book excerpt: Stella, Star of the Sea, the first book in Marie-Louise Gay's wildly popular series, was published ten years ago. Since then, she has written six more books about Stella and little brother Sam, all of which have received rave reviews and countless awards. In celebration of the series' tenth anniversary, four of the irrepressible redhead's most popular adventures are collected here in mini-harcover formats: Stella, Star of the Sea; Stella, Queen of the Snow; Stella, Fairy of the Forest; and Stella, Princess of the Sky. All reflect Gay's remarkable ability to capture the joy of young children discovering about the world around them.