As Bridge makes her way through seventh grade on Manhattan's Upper West Side with her best friends, curvacious Em, crusader Tab, and a curious new friend--or more than friend--Sherm, she finds the answer she has been seeking since she barely survived an accident at age eight: "What is my purpose?".

In 1948, Nikko Spirakis, twelve, loves baseball but must get past his hard-working immigrant parents--and the rhino in the outfield--to become a batboy for the local minor league team.

"Twelve-year-old Caleb is shorter, frailer, and more protected than most kids his age. That's because he has cystic fibrosis, a diagnosis meaning lungs that fill with mucus and a shortened lifespan. Caleb tries not to let his disorder define him, but it can be hard with an overprotective mom and a perfect big brother. Then Caleb meets Kit--a vibrant, independent, and free girl--and his world changes instantly. Kit reads Caleb's palm and tells him...

Junior high girls Julie and Lydia deal with romance issues as Julie and Roland become an official couple and Lydia's mom announces she is getting married.

On Halloween, when her father cancels their plans, Amelia and her Aunt Tanner throw a party that brings out the little monsters.

All her life Aurora has heard stories about how wonderful and lucky Heidi is, and soon this paragon (now grown up and expecting a baby) will be visiting; but before she arrives part of their house is damaged in a fire, and worse, Aurora's beloved dog disappears--and while her parents have always believed in "soof" (Heidi's mom's word for love), Aurora, who has never really fit in with children her own age, will just have to find her own soof.

"Twelve-year-old Emily is flying with her parents to China to adopt and bring home a new baby sister. She's excited but nervous to travel across the world and very aware that this trip will change her entire life. And the cracks are already starting to show the moment they reach the hotel--her parents are all about the new baby, and have no interest in exploring. In the adoption trip group, Emily meets Katherine, a Chinese-American girl whose family...

"Fifth-grader Sammy Hayes-Rodriguez struggles to fit in when his inventor mother requires him to take her latest creation, a robotic 'brother,' to school with him to learn to become a student"--

"Twelve-year-old Ivy Aberdeen's house is destroyed in a tornado, and in the aftermath of the storm, she begins to develop feelings for another girl at school"--

On the last night of summer, Emma and her Maine game warden father rescue a small domestic rabbit stuck in a fence; the very next day Emma starts fifth grade after years of being home schooled, excited and apprehensive about making new friends, but she is paired with Jack, a hyperactive boy, who does not seem to fit in with anyone--except that they share a love of animals, which draws them together, because of the rabbit.