"Avid baker Zoe Washington receives a letter on her twelfth birthday from her biological father, who is in prison for a terrible crime"-- Zoe Washington isn't sure what to write. What does a girl say to the father she's never met, hadn't heard from until his letter arrived on her twelfth birthday, and who's been in prison for a terrible crime? A crime he says he never committed. Could Marcus really be innocent? Zoe is determined to uncover the truth....

The Vanderbeekers have always lived in the brownstone on 141st Street. It's practically another member of the family. So when their reclusive, curmudgeonly landlord decides not to renew their lease, the five siblings have eleven days to do whatever it takes to stay in their beloved home and convince the dreaded Beiderman just how wonderful they are. And all is fair in love and war when it comes to keeping their home.

For as long as he can remember, Malcolm has never felt like he was good enough. Not for his parents, who have always seemed at odds with each other, with Malcolm caught in between. And especially not for his dad, whose competitive drive and love for sports Malcolm has never shared. That is, until Malcolm discovers miniature golf, the one sport he actually enjoys. Maybe it's the way in which every hole is a puzzle to be solved. Or the whimsy of the...

In Rainbow Valley, Anne's children grow up alongside theose of Reverent John Meredith. With a distracted father and no mother, the Meredith children get into so much trouble they decide to form a Good-ConductClub to bring themselves up and punish themselves when they do wrong. Unfortunately this only makes things worse. What they really need is a stepmother, but everyone know stepmothers are wicked. Just ask Mary Vance. -- Adapted from page [4] cover....

Still grieving for her father, twelve-year-old Birdie struggles to adjust to many changes, including when her grandmother, her mother, and her best friends all begin dating.

Sixth-grader Carter must adjust to the unwelcome presence of a know-it-all butler who is determined to help him become a gentleman, and also to deal with burdens from the past.

After her mother's death, Julie goes to live with Aunt Cordelia, a school teacher, where she experiences many emotions and changes as she grows from seven to eighteen.

The struggle of three brothers to stay together after their parent's death and their quest for identity among the conflicting values of their adolescent society.

While preparing for a role in the school play, twelve-year-old Leo finds an autobiography that his father wrote as a teenager and ponders the ways people change as they grow up. Includes the text for the play, "Rumpopo's Porch" at the end of the book (31 pages).

"Beverly Tapinski has run away from home plenty of times, but that was when she was just a kid. By now, she figures, it's not running away. It's leaving. Determined to make it on her own, Beverly finds a job and a place to live and tries to forget about her dog, Buddy, now buried underneath the orange trees back home; her friend Raymie, whom she left without a word; and her mom, Rhonda, who has never cared about anyone but herself. Beverly doesn't...