Nervous about middle school because her family does not get her and her friends know exactly what they want to do, Abbie Wu searches for her own passion before discovering a knack for leadership when injustices in the cafeteria come to light.

In 2008, J.K. Rowling delivered a deeply affecting commencement speech at Harvard University. Now published for the first time in book form, VERY GOOD LIVES presents J.K. Rowling's words of wisdom for anyone at a turning point in life. How can we embrace failure? And how can we use our imagination to better both ourselves and others? Drawing from stories of her own post-graduate years, the world famous author addresses some of life's most important...

Wren Baker is an anxious twelve-year-old, so when her mother goes into a hospital for depression, and she and her younger brother, who has Asperger's syndrome, go to live with her aunt and her cousin, Silver, who have just recently moved to Pennsylvania, her stress level soars--especially since Silver is a fearless child who conceives a plan to climb Creeper Mountain and interview "Witch Weatherly" for the class history project.

"Portico Reeves is the greatest superhero a lot of people have never heard of. He likes it that way--then no one can get in the way of him from keeping other other people safe. Super safe. He's Stuntboy. He's got the moves. And the saves. Except. There's been one major fail. He couldn't save his parents from becoming Xs. Which is a word that sounds like coughing up a hairball. But don't talk to him about the divorce, because of the hairball thing,...

"It's the start of the school year, and nothing feels right to Justin. He didn't get the teacher he wanted, he's not in the same class as his best friend, and his little sister, Elizabeth, is starting kindergarten at his school. Elizabeth doesn't seem nervous at all. Justin is very nervous about third grade. And to top it off, he's lost his favorite stuffed animal, but he can't tell anyone, because technically he's too old to still have stuffed animals....

Drawn into the mystical world she created, 11-year-old Kiki Kallira must battle against her fear and anxiety to save two worlds--the real and imagined--from the wrath of an ancient deity bent on total destruction.

When an unexpected blizzard strands the animals of the Athensville Zoo in a seemingly empty elementary school overnight, Plum the peacock must overcome his anxiety to save his friend Itch, who gets lost in a snowdrift.

While twelve-year-old Andi has suffered from anxiety attacks ever since her mother died ten months ago, Zora starting hurting herself whenever she feels out of control; they are both at Camp Harmony, an elite summer music camp, trying to deal with their problems and also the stress of competition--but as the summer passes they find themselves increasingly drawn to each other, and maybe not just as friends.

When her brother is sent to fight in Vietnam, twelve-year-old Jamie begins to reconsider the army world that she has grown up in. 5.5 5-8