Hillcrest High Boys' School has admitted girls for the first time, but with only ten girls in the school, it hasn't been an easy start for Abby, Tara and their new friends. With her sister still very ill, Abby's had it tougher than most. When she has the chance to go on holiday for half term, she's excited to get away from everything. And even more thrilled to meet a new friend, Gerry. Abby has never felt cool or popular, but Gerry makes her feel special. Together they have a blast... But it's not long before Gerry starts behaving strangely and soon Abby is forced to wonder: what if befriending Gerry was the biggest mistake she's ever made?

New best friend? Check. Cool band? Check. Simple life? As if. Obi's thrilled to be invited to join Sucker Punch - and to top it off Donna, the band's singer, calls Obi her best friend. The only problem is, Obi can't tell her mum about being in the band. She can't tell her friends she's also joined the orchestra. And she definitely can't tell Donna about her friendship with Lenny - he's Donna's boyfriend. But when things get complicated at home, Obi starts seeing more and more of Lenny: it feels like he's is the only one who understands ... What's one more little secret?

Woman's western adventure. A captivating book that will keep you enthralled from beginning to end. Written by Dianne Lininger and cover illustration by April Sampson

Comprehensive and up-to-dateThe first contemporary publication to go beyond examining broad themes and trends in the field, this timely volume looks closely at specific authors and texts. The book is comprehensive and as current as possible, covering works by African American authors for young adults published between 1968-1993-some 200 titles by close to 50 writers. In addition to established authors and bestselling titles, the coverage includes material overlooked by previous studies, such as works from small presses and talented new authors.Guidlines for evaluationAn extensive introduction reviews important milestones in this body of literature and analyzes noteworthy bibliographical and critical publications about such writing. It includes suggested guidelines for evaluating a work in terms of its direct and indirect treatment of such issues as race, gender, class, ability, age, sexuality, and sexual orientation. The book also offers specific guidance for determining the appropriate readership for a work with regard to age and gender.Unusually extensive annotationsThe main body of the book is an annotated bibliography, alphabetical by author, with the works arranged chronologically by publication date. The annotations are much more extensive than those in other bibliographies. Each annotation reads more like a full-length book review and is from one to two pages long and explores themes, plot and character development, evaluates the quality of the writing, judges the handling of issues of race, class, and gender, and provides a readership recommendation.Written in accessible language, this user-friendly book presents a wide range of factual information, evaluations, and analyses. It is a valuable tool for all teachers, librarians, counselors, and young adults

Hillcrest High Boys' School is admitting girls for the first time, and Tara couldn't be more excited. New friends? Check. Cute boys? Check. Mean sister gone? Wrong... When she discovers Maxie is joining the school too, Tara is crushed. How can she be her own person when her cleverer, prettier sister seems determined to outshine her? And sibling trouble isn't Tara's only problem. With only ten girls in the year, they're going to have to stick together to survive. Boys against girls? Bring. It. On.

Percy Jackson meets Thor in a laugh-out-loud, action-packed adventure inspired by Norse mythology. Twelve-year-old Abby Beckett is proud to come from a long line of elite Viking warriors known as the Aesir. She's spent her entire life training to hunt the horrific creatures known as Grendels-the ancient foe of the Aesir-just like her mother did before she died. But there's just one, small problem: No one has seen a Grendel in centuries, and the Viking Council wants to disband the Aesir . . . forever. When her father is injured in an attack that leaves him in a coma, Abby is forced to take refuge at Vale Hall, a mysterious school in Minnesota where nothing is quite as it seems. She soon discovers the tables have turned and a Grendel is hunting her, but when she tries to alert the Viking Council, they accuse her of making up stories for attention . . . just like her mother did. Desperate to protect her father and clear her mother's name, Abby goes on a dangerous quest to discover the truth--a journey that brings her face-to-face with some unlikely foes, including a Ping-Pong-playing sea monster with a wicked backhand, and a dark Valkyrie with a fondness for bingo. Abby quickly realizes that someone at the school is trying to stop her progress and destroy the Aesir for good. And only she can unravel the sinister plot before it's too late.

Elon's life had seemed like it was brightening until she learns of the Darkness looming over her.

“[A] riveting debut novel . . . Unsentimental yet deeply felt, this tale examines what bubbles under the surface of a supposedly happy Long Island family” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). The follow-up to her highly praised debut story collection, The First Hurt, Rachel Sherman’s Living Room is a beautiful and disarmingly direct portrait of a family in trouble. With the tone of a modern-day Jewish The Ice Storm set in Long Island, imbued with Alice Munro’s fascination with personal history, Living Room is a deep exploration of the ripple effects of mental illness on a family, as well as a look at generational differences in mating and marriage, and a wry, wise look at suburban angst. “The fractured lives of three generations of women told with zero sentimentality and a huge amount of heart. Living Room is edgy, moving, smart, funny and altogether human. Rachel Sherman is the real deal.” —Dani Shapiro, New York Times–bestselling author of Inheritance “Sherman turns her unflinching, unsentimental eye once again on deepest suburbia, where personal history festers rather than heals. [Living Room] hums along, its heavier moments tempered with plenty of dark humor and incisive language; but it’s the intimate character sketches that truly resonate.” —Time Out (New York) “Often praised for her lack of sentimentality, Sherman doesn’t hesitate to capture her characters’ weird, unbecoming thoughts . . . Her writing lends itself to the form: her story structures tight as fists, her prose terse and unadorned.” —The Rumpus