Difficult Family

Cordelia Lu Hankins is the half Caucasian, half Chinese - and all albino. She has grown up in a remote lumber town with her distant father and a giant stepmother nicknamed Babe (after Paul Bunyan's blue ox), convinced she is ugly. Then, in the summer of 1918, when she is fourteen, she falls in love with the dashing Squirl. One day they meet on the mountain and Cordy receives her first kiss, as well as a wild ride down a log flume that gets Squirl fired.

"If only life were as easy as your sisters." Abby’s heard that one before. And it’s true - Shelby and Kait aren’t exactly prim and proper. Abby is determined not to follow in their footsteps, so she has created the One True Love Plan. The most important part of the plan is Rule #1: Find Someone New. This means finding a guy who hasn’t already dated Shelby or Kait. But when Abby starts falling for the possible father of Kait’s baby, she has to figure out if some rules are meant to be broken.

Frankie Parsons is twelve going on old man, an apparently sensible, talented boy with a drumbeat of worrying questions steadily gaining volume in his head: Are the smoke alarm batteries flat? Does the cat, and therefore the rest of the family, have worms? Will bird flu strike and ruin life as we know it? Is the Kidney-shaped spot on his chest actually a galloping cancer?

The girls at North Bay Academy are taking sides. It all started when Mike Parker's girlfriend showed up with a bruise on her face. Or, more specifically, when she walked into the principal's office and said Mike hit her. But her classmates have questions. Why did she go to the principal and not the police? Why did she stay so long if Mike was hurting her? Obviously, if it's true, Mike should be expelled. But is it true?

Award-winning educator and author Alan Lawrence Sitomer’s engaging young adult novels have been named among the ALA’s Best Books of the Year. This first tale in his planned Nerd Girls series follows 13-year-old self-proclaimed “dorkasaurus” Maureen and her fellow social outcasts Alice and Barbara. When Maureen discovers that the Pretty, Popular, Perfect girls are planning a mean trick on Alice, she decides it’s finally time to take a stand. Signing up to compete against the ThreePees in a talent show, Maureen plans her revenge.

High school freshman Jessica Walsh is a Virago - a woman warrior who must protect her hometown from danger. And in Nightshade, California, trouble is always lurking. At the town’s Battle of the Bands, Jess’ boyfriend, Dominic, and his band, Side Effects May Vary, are up against Hamlin, a band so popular,their fans follow them everywhere. Soon,the competing musicians are doing risky, illegal, and even fatal things - and claiming that they heard strange music that compelled them to do it. Can Jess and her friends track down the tuneful tyrant before it’s too late?

Matt’s parents argue more often than not. His best friend Sammy has his own family circus of crazy. Together they create a safe space for their oddball group of friends. Navigating the woes of teenage life, they’re targeted by school jerk and lead jock Brandon. Maybe getting involved with Brandon’s girlfriend wasn’t Sammy’s brightest idea, but revenge fell on someone innocent. Guilt weighs heavy, and these powerless teens are looking for someone to make things right. When others’ troubles take center stage, Matt’s issues pale in comparison.

While on a whale-watching excursion with her dad, Willa is alone on one side of the boat when she sees a humpback whale. Her awe and wonderment about this massive and beautiful creature turns to shock when the whale communicates with her, introducing herself as Meg. As their friendship develops, Willa comes to view Meg as a trusted confidant - who offers her advice about difficult issues in Willa’s life.

Mina, Penny, and Sheryl have the typical expectations of prom night in 2005: dresses, dancing, and of course some coming of age moments. None of them plans to get pregnant, but when all three do, they band together as they face decisions that have the power to shape the rest of their lives. In 2024, their three children—Blossom, Amber, and Cole—are high school seniors, gearing up to go to prom and facing some big decisions of their own.

Best friends Carly, Daniella, Lainie, and Penny–aka the self-proclaimed #SummerSisters–have been coming to the New Jersey shore town of Ocean Park Heights ever since they could remember. And every year, the girls make a bucket list and dedicate their entire summer to completing every item on it, documenting their wacky escapades on FotoSlam for everyone to see. It's their tradition, and as long as the Summer Sisters had each other, the rocky jetty on the shore, and their bucket list, that would never change. Right? But then, tragedy strikes.

Sixteen-year-old Samar - aka Sam - is an Indian American teenager whose mom has kept her away from her old-fashioned family. It’s never bothered Sam, who is busy with school, friends, and a demanding boyfriend. But things change after 9/11. A guy in a turban shows up at Sam’s house - and turns out to be her uncle.

What's it like to be undocumented? High school senior M.T. knows all too well. With graduation and an uncertain future looming, she must figure out how to grow up in the only country she's ever called home... a country in which she's "illegal". M.T. was born in Argentina and brought to America as a baby without any official papers. And as questions of college, work, and the future arise, M.T. will have to decide what exactly she wants for herself, knowing someone she loves will unavoidably pay the price for it.

Baby is a teenager in trouble, and her last chance is a foster home with a husband and wife whose idea of fun is dogsledding. Still, it beats going to the juvenile detention center. Baby comes to love the dogs and takes naturally to sledding, but when her old boyfriend, Bobby, shows up, she can't stop herself from running off with him. Life with Bobby goes bad, and Baby has to make some hard decisions.

Since emigrating from Bangladesh, 14-year-old Nadira and her family have been living in New York City on expired visas, hoping to realize their dream of becoming legal U.S. citizens. But after 9/11, everything changes. Suddenly being Muslim means you are dangerous - a suspected terrorist. When Nadira's father is arrested and detained at the U.S.-Canadian border, Nadira and her older sister, Aisha, are told to carry on as if everything is the same. The teachers at Flushing High don't ask any questions, but Aisha falls apart....

Virginia "V" Dunn is alone when her dog is hit by a car. Lucky's back leg is shattered, and when she comforts him, his blood is wet on her hands. Suddenly the monotony of V's suburban life dissolves: Lucky is in a cast; her best friend, Eileen, is avoiding her; her mother's drinking is getting worse; and her father is sick with a mysterious illness.

Dell is used to disappointment. Ever since her dad left, it’s been one letdown after another. But no one - not even her best friend - understands all the pain she's going through. So Dell hides behind self-deprecating jokes and forced smiles. Then the one person she trusts betrays her. Dell is beyond devastated. Without anyone to turn to for comfort, her depression and self-loathing spin out of control. But just how far will she go to make all of heartbreak and the name-calling stop?

Julia lived in her country club world and Colt...didn't. Then Julia dies in a car accident. Colt is devastated but can't mourn openly, and he's tormented that he may have played a part in her death. And when Julia's journal ends up in his hands, he is forced to relive their year together - just when he is trying to forget. The problem is, how do you get over someone who was never really yours to begin with?

Everyone has a secret. But Lucy's is bigger and dirtier than most. It's one she's been hiding for years: that her mom's out-of-control hoarding has turned their lives into a world of garbage and shame. She has managed to keep her home life hidden from her best friend and her crush, knowing they'd be disgusted by the truth.

An engaging, brilliantly written, bittersweet drama perfect for Rainbow Rowell fans. Five teens are at a 17th birthday party when one of them unexpectedly gives birth in the bathroom. From that moment on, the five find their lives inextricably intertwined with the arrival of the baby. All of them must deal with not only their own feelings but their secrets, too.

Siblings Jenna and Jeremy have known for a long time that their parents don’t get along. They find out just how bad it is when they are pulled out of class and told their father just shot and killed their mother. Jenna was always her father’s favorite, while Jeremy was his mother’s. Now a painful silence has fallen between them. They have trouble agreeing on just about everything at a time when they need each other more than ever. Where are they going to live? Who is going to take care of them? Can they have a relationship with their imprisoned father?