This collection of short stories paints miniature portraits of an assemblage of Eid-al-Fitr celebrations. While the practice of faith varies within the Muslim community, each unique Eid observance is memorable.

It’s true. Muslims women are diverse. They cannot be typecast. Each woman is unique, reflecting her country, culture, and family. Some chose to express themselves with a head scarf. Some opt for a western style of dress. 

What do they have in common? Pride in their Muslim identity. Respect for the diverse ways to practice their faith.

Thirteen-year-old Julia keeps a deeply personal journal describing her life near the Mexico -United States border. Over the course of approximately two years she discloses her fears, her uncertainty, and the longings of her heart. Detailed lists and commentary reveal her life, her everything.
Living in Juárez with father, mother, and younger brother Willy, Julia’s life experiences a seismic shift when her father begins working for the mafia. She assumes that he is a courier. Suddenly the family has a new car, a new house, and many luxury items. But wealth has a downside.
Mamá is no longer her confidant. Her mother's primary objective is to protect and care for her husband. In an attempt ​to shield her children from the mob's influence and possible retribution, she sends Julia and Willy to live with family in El Paso: Aunt Tia, Cousin Jose, and their dementia- afflicted great grandmother.

Meticulously researched, the narrative describes the ordeal endured by passengers and crew set adrift in the icy Atlantic. The story of six boys who spent eight days clinging to a lifeboat until they were rescued is particularly harrowing.

​​Torpedoed: The True Story of the World War II Sinking of “The Children’s Ship” chronicles this catastrophe and the fate of its few survivors. ​A story of tragedy and suffering.  A story of heroism and hope. Narrative nonfiction at its best.

Two sisters, along with their parents live in a lighthouse set on a clifftop overlooking the sea. Nearby are four upright stones, which local lore believes are four girls turned into stone. Petra suspects that she is destined to become a part of this ancient legend.

With the threat of a German invasion, Britain relocates individuals with German heritage and possible enemy sympathies to internment camps. Petra Zimmerman Smith's mother is German. A tribunal determines that this wife of a British citizen may be a threat to security. She is sent to an internment camp.

It is evident that there is a saboteur within the community. Petra is determined to discover the traitor's identity and exonerate her mother. It's a dangerous mission. The enemy is ruthless and will stop at nothing to silence anyone who interferes with plans to aid a German invasion. Petra risks her life to save her family and her country.

This benefactor offers the siblings a clean warm home with plenty of nourishing food. She arranges a consultation with a doctor who believes that the deformed foot can be corrected. Ada learns to read, makes a friend, and watches for German spies. ​Most wondrous of all, Ada cares for and rides the beautiful pony in the adjoining pasture. ​

While the threat of an enemy invasion is constantly on the minds of everyone, within the home of Susan Smith each one is fighting a personal battle.

The War That Saved My Life is satisfying and heartwarming. A story of conquering fear and learning to love.

Isabella Crawford leads a double life. At home she is the daughter of her white father, a Marine killed in action and her Puerto Rican mother, who ekes out a living as a nurse's aide, moving her family from place to place.
Now the family resides in Virginia where Izzy has received a scholarship to attend a prestigious Catholic high school and sing with the school's premier vocal group. She has her father’s green eyes and can "pass" at school, borrowing clothing from her best friend to supplement her meager wardrobe. She informs classmates that her mother is a nurse.

There are traditional youth organizations with badges, bake sales, and award ceremonies. But what about those who don't fit neatly into a group structure?  is there a place for them?

Meet four girls who appear to have little in common. Lane DiSanti, artist and instigator, lives with her wealthy grandmother while her parents work out an impending divorce. Ofelia Castillo, aspiring journalist  struggles under the watchful eye of over-protective Cuban American parents.  Cat Garcia feels pressure from her close-knit family to participate in a local contest. She'd rather spend her time birdwatching. Gourmet chef Aster Douglas lives with her African American grandfather, a researcher and retired college professor.  Her widowed mother is overseas.

Thirteen-year-old Patricia "Sweet Pea" DiMarco is experiencing some significant changes. Her parents have agreed to an amicable divorce and will live on the same street in similar houses to minimize their daughter's discomfort with this new family dynamic.
She is simultaneously negotiating a falling-out with her former best friend and the repercussions from thoughtlessness toward her new best friend. This girl is headed for a world of hurt.
Then there's her neighbor, the eccentric advice columnist Miss Flora Mae who leaves town and asks Sweet Pea to forward advice requests and then deliver the answers to the newspaper editor. Sweet Pea succumbs to temptation and reads letters addressed to Miss Flora Mae. She decides to dispense her own advice and sets up an elaborate scheme to impersonate Miss Flora Mae in print. Sometimes the plan works. Sometimes it doesn't. How she extricates herself from a situation of her own making, salvages damages friendships, and rebuilds trust makes for a humorous, heartwarming tale.

Stacey Lee addresses racism, worker's rights, immigration, and women's suffrage from a unique perspective: a Chinese girl living in Atlanta Georgia in the late 1800s.
​Seventeen-year-old Jo Kuan loses her job as a milliner and must return to the demeaning life of a lady's maid for the cruel daughter of one of the wealthiest men in Atlanta. She and immigrant Old Gin secretly live in a tunnel beneath a newspaper printer's shop. She faces discrimination on several fronts. She’s an orphan, female, and Chinese .

An intelligent and resourceful young woman, she is determined to protect Old Gin and rise above her current circumstances. She finds a way, pseudonymously penning a local newspaper's advice column "Dear Miss Sweetie." Many questions are of the mundane sort: unruly children, troubled marriages, making a hat fit properly. She doesn’t stop there. Under the cloak of anonymity, she speaks out forcefully on racial and gender inequality. Her column is a success and newspaper subscriptions skyrocket.

Born in the Philippines but raised in the United States, seventeen-year-old Jay learns that his Filipino cousin is dead. Stunned by the tragedy and his family’s reluctance to divulge any of the details, Jay returns to the land of his birth to ascertain what happened to his gentle, thoughtful relative.
​Tracing the life of Jun is challenging. The family is unwilling to discuss anything about him or his life. Jay suspects a cover-up and wants to learn the truth.
He is startled by what he eventually finds and realizes that surviving can be dangerous for a young man trying to make his way through a drug-infested sub-culture.
Ultimately Jay develops an appreciation for his Filipino heritage and decides to make a major life change.
​Hopeful, heart-wrenching, unforgettable storytelling.

Devastated by the disappearance of her friend, investigative reporter Sara Zapata discovers the astonishing number of young girls who have gone missing. Her published news articles begin to draw attention. As she searches for answers, things take a frightening turn when she discovers that key pieces of information are missing. Her family is threatened and her home is no longer a safe place. Sara learns that her brother may have jeopardized the family's future by a decision which will brings him into the influence of the drug cartel. Will she find her friend? Can she protect her family? Sara will risk all to discover the truth and remain true to herself.

Seeking asylum and crossing the border from Mexico into the United States make this book particularly relevant.

​Pub date: April 26, 2016  Publisher: Scholastic ISBN: 978-1338032352

Best friends Libby and May invented Princess X, a comic featuring a sword-wielding warrior princess wearing a gold crown and red sneakers. One fateful night Libby's mother fell asleep while driving across a bridge. The car tumbled into the icy water with Libby and her mother trapped inside. Libby is dead. Princess X is no more.
Three years later May discovers Princess X stickers directing her to a website. She wonders: Why this sudden reappearance of Princess X? May sets off on a dangerous mission to uncover what happened that fateful night. Her quest pits her wits and her nerve against a cunning man with a deranged plan. A can't-put-it-down combination comic and prose thriller. ​​

The Year We Fell From Space is a searing portrait of a young girl in conflict.
​Liberty Johansen distances herself from her classmates when she refuses to participate in school playground activities such as marriages and excommunications. And she’s not afraid to let her views be known.
​It’s stupid...We’re in sixth grade. Having weddings is stupid.

​She shoulders a massive self-imposed burden, trying to keep her family together, attempting to maintain peace and a sense of normalcy in situations which are beyond her control.
She is fascinated with astronomy and creates her own star maps. Her interest in the stars becomes her safe place. She discovers an unusual rock and believes that it is a meteorite, sent from the skies directly to her. The rock becomes her solace, her companion, and her confidante.

Lib views herself and her world through the lens of her current circumstances: sixth-grade outcast, protector for her younger sister, and dutiful daughter to her separated parents.

Liberty's life is filled with hikes, gazing at the night sky, campfires, and s'mores. And smeelings.
​
Smeelings are "smells that make feelings."
I'm sending a toasted gooey s'more with lots of smeelings to King. Thanks for this poignant portrayal of a young girl and her family coping with mental illness. Its a story that has found a home in my heart.

Reynolds has penned a novel comprised of interconnected stories. Read independently they are insightful vignettes, zeroing in on the ten city blocks students attending Lattimer Middle School traverse each day. Collectively the stories reveal the hearts of those bound together by geography. The lives of these unique individuals intersect in unexpected ways.

In the push and pull of everyday life, we meet students affected by life-altering events such as sickle cell anemia, cancer, dementia, incarceration, and gay-shaming.

These ten blocks are jam-packed with a rich assortment of sensory details.

Emilia Rosa is juggling a plethora of problems. Let's start with family. Dad, a Marine who was deployed during most of of her childhood, returns home. He seems to be a different person from the father she remembers. Mami, who keeps Emilia focused and organized, will be away on an extended business trip. Abuela, her maternal grandmother has definite notions about Emilia’s life, including the need for a quinceañera. This is something she emphatically does not want.

Sixth grade is a struggle. Not because she isn't intelligent, but because she processes stimuli in a different way. She needs time and individual attention in order to complete her homework. Some school assignments are difficult to untangle without guidance from her mother.The noises associated with school rallies in the gym are a horrific assault on her senses.