"Ben Ripley and his friends are training in Alaska when Cyrus Hale is kidnapped by his old Russian nemesis. Ben, Erica, and the others mount a rescue mission, but events quickly spiral out of control in a plot involving the secret history of US-Russian relations, a young KGB agent with skills to rival Erica's--and lots and lots of bears."--

Everyone knows the most stressful day of middle school is picture day! And that's exactly where this yearbook-worthy graphic novel series opener begins: with reinventing yourself, drama, popularity, and the friends who see you through.
Seventh-grader Viv never looks forward to picture day. It’s just another day where she wears a boring braid and no one notices her. (Her two best friends, Milo and Al, don’t count,...

This series of short novels was designed to engage a broad spectrum of struggling readers. No longer will upper-elementary students have to read material junior to their maturity and interests. Characters are age appropriate and come from diverse cultures and backgrounds. Science fiction, sports, paranormal, realistic life, historical fiction, and fantasy are just a few of the many genres. Books are no higher than a 1.5 reading level, with illustrations...

Jessie keeps a diary as part of a project on superheroes--she wants to know what it would take to be Batgirl. Can Jessie prove to her friends that she's more than a sidekick? And will she outwit her nemesis at the school Superhero Slam?

Evelyn befriends Queen, the new boy in town, who does not seem to get fazed by bullies and lives by his own rules, and soon begins to learn new things about the world and herself.

Everyone in Zach King's family has a magical power. His father can turn back time, his sister can turn invisible, and his mother can transform any object into something else. And Zach...well, he has't found his magical power yet and his family is growing worried that he's been "skipped." So his parents decide to stop homeschooling him in magical arts and send him instead to a regular middle school with regular kids. To Zach, it's the worst news...

In this reimagining of the classic novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, "Zane is itching for an adventure that will take him away from his family's boarding house in Rockaway, Queens. So when he is entrusted with a real treasure map, leading to a spot somewhere in Manhattan, Zane wastes no time in riding the ferry over to the city to start the search with his friends Kiko and Jack and his dog Hip-Hop. Through strange coincidence, they...

"Forced to join the school's Community Action Club, troublemaking best friends Helen and Gracie take over the club's campaign for maxi pads in bathrooms and soon find themselves closer to change and deeper in trouble than ever before, forcing them to make a difficult decision."--

Derrick finally feels like he's getting the hang of Middle School. He's in a band with his best friends and his dogs Bennie and Max are getting along. Even his Dead Max comics and advice columns are a hit, until Max's cat-hating ways start raising hackles with his cat-loving readers. Then when Derrick's cartoons protesting racism backfire, the Muslim kids turn against him and the paper is in danger of being shut down, along with Derrick's cartooning...

"Are you concerned that middle school will wreak havoc on your tween's well-being and sense of self? Wondering how you can ward off the decline in confidence research shows kids experience during these vulnerable years? Seeking strategies that will help your child emerge from middle school with even more resilience than when they started? From the author of Middle School Matters, which set up kids in grades 6 8 to thrive by developing social, emotional,...