Child Self Esteem

Meet Anna Von Ogre, a delightful monstrosity. When Anna’s attempt to gross out the family backfires, she finds herself stuck with a face of such beauty that even the neighbors are repulsed. How the sickeningly adorable, rosy-cheeked little girl finds her inner ugly again is the subject of a hilarious fable for the ages.

Meet Bubble Gum Brain and Brick Brain: two kids with two very different mindsets. Bubble Gum Brain likes to have fun adventures, learn new things, and doesn't worry about making great mistakes. Brick Brain is convinced that things are just fine the way they are and there's not much he can do to change them, so why try?

Amber Brown and Justin Daniels are best friends. They sit next to each other in school, help each other with fractions and spelling, and always stick up for one another. But when Justin finds out that he is moving away, everything begins to change.

In London in 1735, 11-year-old Forrest Harper is living with his family at the Tower of London. There he helps his father tend the ravens and guard the prisoners. Still, life is lonely. When vicious Scottish Rebels are captured, Forrest is delighted. Perhaps now he can prove his courage and impress the local bullies who torment him. His happiness is short lived, though, when the Harpers are only given custody of Maddy, a Scottish Rebel's daughter.

A terrible danger is looming on the horizon, and Faolan is the only one who knows how to fight it. Will he be able to claim his rightful place as leader and lead his clan in battle? Unless Faolan can inspire the pack to stand together, it could be the end of the wolves of the beyond.

When Autumn becomes the secret voice of the advice column in her middle school newspaper she is faced with a dilemma - can she give fair advice to everyone, including her friends, while keeping her identity a secret?

Margaret Thursday was named after the day she was found on the church steps as a baby. But she isn’t really an orphan – each year a bag of gold coins is left at the church for her keep. When the money suddenly stops, her guardians have no choice but to send her away to an orphanage. The orphanage is worse than they could have imagined. Vowing to protect her new friends, Peter and Horatio, Margaret plans their daring escape...but she’ll have to outwit Matron at every turn.

Ever since Unicorn moved into the neighborhood, Goat has been feeling out of sorts. Goat thought his bike was cool--until he saw that Unicorn could "fly" to school! Goat made marshmallow squares that almost came out right, but Unicorn made it rain cupcakes! Unicorn is such a show-off, how can Goat compete? When Goat and Unicorn share a piece of pizza, Goat learns that being a unicorn might not be all it's cracked up to be. And when Unicorn shows his admiration for Goat, it looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Just like other kids, Zinkoff rides his bike, hopes for snow days, and wants to be like his dad when he grows up. But Zinkoff also raises his hand with all the wrong answers, trips over his own feet, and falls down with laughter over a word like "Jabip".

Hugo is not happy about being dragged halfway across the state of Colorado just because his dad had a midlife crisis and decided to become a ski instructor. It’d be different if Hugo weren’t so tiny and guys didn’t call him “leprechaun” and rub his head for luck. But here he is, the tiny new kid on his first day of middle school. When his fellow students discover his remarkable talent for garbology, the science of studying trash to tell you anything about a person, Hugo becomes the cool kid for the first time in his life. But what happens when it all goes to his head?

One year after being diagnosed with hearing loss, Rayne’s hearing keeps getting worse, even with aids. It’s a struggle to maintain friendships and keep up in school, surfing is now a wipeout, and she can’t understand her favorite singer’s lyrics. But worst of all, Rayne’s parents are pushing for her to get cochlear implants, a surgery Rayne’s not convinced is worth the risks and challenges. Rayne begs her parents to consider other options, but they’re not budging.

Teaching other kids how to be funny is the toughest gig that Jamie Grimm has ever had, and with the highest stakes. If he fails, his school library will be shut down for good! With the fate of his school's library on his shoulders, Jamie has to dig deep to see if he has what it takes to succeed at his most difficult challenge yet.

Starting kindergarten is a big milestone - and the hero of this story is ready to make his mark! He's dressed himself, eaten a pile of pancakes, and can't wait to be part of a whole new kingdom of kids. The day will be jam-packed, but he's up to the challenge, taking new experiences in stride with his infectious enthusiasm! And afterward, he can't wait to tell his proud parents all about his achievements - and then wake up to start another day.

It is time to choose the next Keeper of the Crystal - a magical crystal that imbues knowledge, wisdom and power. The Crystal dims. The Chooser is summoned.... When the man from the distant land of Maris delivers his mysterious message to the people of Rin, Rowan is shocked to discover what it means to him. Within hours he is travelling far from home, all the way to the glittering sea, and into the strange world of the Maris people.

Liv knows he was always meant to be a boy, but with his new school's terrible dress code, he can't even wear pants. Only skirts. Operation Pants Project begins! The only way for Liv to get what he wants is to go after it himself. But to Liv, this isn't just a mission to change the policy - it's a mission to change his life. And that's a pretty big deal.

Katherine Paterson, author of Newbery Medal winners Bridge to Terabithia and Jacob Have I Loved, again displays her storytelling talent in this powerful novel. Eleven-year-old Angel must play the adult when she and her brother are abandoned at their great-grandmother’s house and the old lady proves incapable of caring for them. An emotional tale, this drama teaches the age-old lesson that every person can stand tall when the world lets them down.

MJ is more than ready for her first day of kindergarten! With her hair freshly braided and her mom's special tiara on her head, she knows she’s going to rock kindergarten. But the tiara isn’t just for show—it also reminds her of all the good things she brings to the classroom, stuff like her kindness, friendliness, and impressive soccer skills, too!

In starred reviews, Booklist has described Gerber's novels as "highly empathetic" and "truly inspiring" - Taking Up Space promises to be a realistic and compelling story about overcoming struggles with body image and learning that true self-esteem comes from within.

Far from the owls of Ga’Hoole, a war is brewing. A bear cub has been snatched by a wolf - an unthinkable betrayal of the peace that has long existed between the wolves and grizzly bears of the Beyond. The bears are massing, roaring for revenge. The wolves claim to be innocent, but they must either fight back or face total annihilation. For Faolan, a young wolf raised by a grizzly bear mother, the threat of war starts a terrible race. Somewhere in the honorable wolf clans hides a traitor, and Faolan must stop him and rescue the lost bear cub before it’s too late.

As the only Indian American kid in her small town, Lekha Divekar feels like she has two versions of herself: Home Lekha, who loves watching Bollywood movies and eating Indian food, and School Lekha, who pins her hair over her bindi birthmark and avoids confrontation at all costs, especially when someone teases her for being Indian. When a girl Lekha’s age moves in across the street, Lekha is excited to hear that her name is Avantika and she’s Desi, too! Finally, there will be someone else around who gets it.