Child Self Esteem

Jeremy Heere is your average high school dork. Day after day, he stares at beautiful Christine, the girl he can never have, and dryly notes the small humiliations that come his way. Until the day he learns about the "squip." A pill-sized supercomputer that you swallow, the squip is guaranteed to bring you whatever you most desire in life. By instructing him on everything from what to wear, to how to talk and walk, the squip transforms Jeremy from geek to the coolest guy in class. But Jeremy discovers that there is a dark side to handing over control of your life....

First time I saw her was in the mirror on my locker door. I'd kicked my swim gear onto the bottom shelf and was reaching to the top for my calc book when she opened her locker across the hall. She had a streaked blonde ponytail dangling out the back of her baseball cap.... We slammed our lockers in unison and turned. Her eyes met mine. "Hi," she said, smiling. My stomach fluttered. "Hi," I answered automatically. She was new. Had to be. I would've noticed her. She sauntered away, but not before I caught a glimpse of her T-shirt. It said: IMRU? Am I what?

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.

Max's parents are missing. They are actors, and thus unpredictable, but sailing away, leaving Max with only a cryptic note, is unusual even for them. Did they intend to leave him behind? Have they been kidnapped? Until he can figure it out, Max feels it's safer to keep a low profile. Hiding out is no problem for a child of the theater. Max has played many roles, he can be whoever he needs to be to blend in. But finding a job is tricky, no matter what costume he dons. Ironically, it turns out Max has a talent for finding things.

When Maisie gets into a terrible accident, her face is partially destroyed. She's lucky enough to get a face transplant - but how do you live your life when you can't even recognize yourself anymore? She was a runner, a girlfriend, a good student...a normal girl. Now all that has changed. As Maisie discovers how much her looks did - and didn't - shape her relationship to the world, she has to redefine her own identity and figure out what "lucky" really means.

Good moods, bad moods, can't-stand-Jessica-Finch moods. Judy Moody has a mood for every occasion, and this time she's in a jealous mood. Jealous of Jessica Finch, that is, who gets her picture on the front page of the newspaper. When Judy sets off in pursuit of her own fame and happiness, watch out! She's so determined, she just might find it, or she might merely become more infamous than ever!

Maud has grown up in a house made of gingerbread, wanting nothing more than to be a witch like Mother Agatha. But just like all of Agatha's gingerbread creations—from the magical house to the chocolate mousse squirrel—Maud will turn back into crumbs if anything ever happens to Agatha. This seems unthinkable…until Hansel and Gretel, a pair of witch hunters, push Agatha into the cottage's oven.

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.

The last day of seventh grade has Jaime and Maya wondering who their real friends are. Jaime knows something is off with her friend group. They’ve started to exclude her and make fun of the way she dresses and the things she likes. At least she can count on her BFF, Maya, to have her back...right? Maya feels more and more annoyed with Jaime, who seems babyish compared to the other girls in their popular group.

In the series finale of Maz Evans' best-selling Who Let the Gods Out? series, Elliot faces his darkest period yet. As well as facing up to his fears, he realises that the future of mankind - and the survival of everything he holds dear - is at stake. But can a bunch of misfit gods, a lost constellation and a mortal boy stand up to the daemon hordes?

Author of the award-winning Miss Bridie Chose a Shovel, Leslie Connor has also won great acclaim for ,i>Waiting for Normal. Addie's life has always been all or nothing. And now that Dwight and mommers are divorced, Addie's stuck in a tiny trailer on a Schenectady corner with a mom who's rarely there. Finding friendship at the gas station across the street, Addie clings to the ever-dimming possibility that one day she'll have a normal, happy home.

ALA notable author Iain Lawrence pens a moving tale with a Dickensian atmosphere about a young man's life aboard a cruel 19th-century prison ship. 14-year-old Tom Tin is forced to scavenge on the grimy streets of London after his father is sent to debtor's prison. Tom's survival is threatened by the sinister lowlifes that inhabit his hopeless world. But when he is unjustly arrested for murder, he finds a place that is even worse than the dark city streets.

Author Elizabeth Atkinson’s debut novel for middleschoolers was included in the Bank Street College of Education’s Best Children’s Books of 2009. I, Emma Freke tells of one girl’s search for her identity. Smart and shy, Emma is as close to normal as her family gets. Still, she has a terrible time fitting in at school—and things only get worse when Emma attends her family reunion. Soon, she realizes that she’s better off being herself than someone else’s Freke.

For most girls, sleepaway camp is great fun. But for Amy Becker, it's a nightmare. Amy, whose home life is in turmoil, is sent to Camp Takawanda for Girls for the first time as a teenager. Although Amy swears she hates her German-immigrant mother, who is unduly harsh with Amy's autistic younger brother, Amy is less than thrilled about going to camp. At Takawanda she is subjected to a humiliating "initiation" and relentless bullying by the ringleader of the senior campers.

Kathryn Erskine won the National Book Award for her mesmerizing novel Mockingbird. In The Absolute Value of Mike, a young man grows up during an unlikely adventure. Despite his best efforts, Mike has a hard time communicating with his calculus-loving father - and having a math learning disability certainly doesn’t help. But when Mike is sent to Pennsylvania to work on an engineering project, the young man learns valuable lessons from the colorful characters he meets.

A sleepy town on the coast of Maine is the last place where 13-year-old Manuel wants to spend his summer vacation. He'd give anything to be back in New Haven, with the greatest pizza in the world and a twelve-theater Cineplex around the corner from his house. So far the only thing that Manuel has found to do is watch Zeke, a cranky, old lobsterman, unload his boat, while a one-legged seagull perches nearby. But Manuel soon discovers that even sleepy New England towns can bring trouble.

The tween years are an important time to learn and discover the world and shape who you will be in it. While these are exciting times, they can also be tricky. Preteens are dealing with big emotions and physical changes that they may not feel equipped to handle.

Vashti thinks she can draw, but her journey of self discovery and expression is an enchanting invitation to everyone to explore his or her own creative spirit.

Lexie and her cousin Eleni are super-crazy-mega-extra-seriously close. They're like twins who aren't actually twins, if that's possible. But when Lexie tells a terrible, jealous lie, her whole family is split apart. It's up to Lexie to bring them all back together and fix her relationship with Eleni. After a few calamitous escapades, Lexie has discovered that there are all sorts of truths and all sorts of lies too.... But when is the truth more hurtful than a lie?

Yes, there really is a Normal, Illinois. Charles Harrisong should know; he was born there. But life is difficult for Charles because his family isn't normal. They're poor, for one thing. They stand out, which is the worst thing. After an ugly incident at school, Charles and family leave Normal and begin an adventure that takes them to a houseboat that just might be their new home. And Charles begins a personal journey within his own heart; one that will ultimately deliver him both from and to himself.