Three brothers struggle to stay together after their parents' death, as they search for an identity among the conflicting values of their adolescent society in which they find themselves "outsiders.".

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...

"As war surges in the dystopian society around her, sixteen-year-old Divergent Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves--and herself--while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love"--

Penny instantly loves the doll her grandmother sends her, but finding the perfect name for her is a challenge.

"Eleven-year-old Alex Petroski, along with his dog, Carl Sagan, makes big discoveries about his family on a road trip and he records it all on a golden iPod he intends to launch into space"--

Greg, stuck indoors with his family over the holiday because of a blizzard, suffers from claustrophobia and worries they will not be able to weather the storm.

In a future Chicago, sixteen-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomoly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.

When the Lago family's new couch accidentally falls off their car, it's found by Llama, who discovers how much fun a couch can be.

"Fifth grader Sammy Hayes-Rodriguez has to find a solution when his robot 'brother' has repeated malfunctions at school and a newer model robot steps in as competition--and his mother's job is in jeopardy as a result"--

Second-grader Stink's parents tell him he must play a sport after he gets an unsatisfactory grade in physical education, and so he masters thumb wrestling, as seen on a sports channel.