Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online. Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content. The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary. You Must Be Layla, a Level 4 Reader, is A2+ in the CEFR framework. The text is made up of sentences with up to three clauses, introducing more complex uses of present perfect simple, passives, phrasal verbs and simple relative clauses. It is well supported by illustrations, which appear regularly. Layla is a 13-year old Muslim girl. She has just moved to one of the best schools in Brisbane. Layla is clever and funny, and loves making things, but some of the students are not kind to her. How can Layla show that she is a good student and make friends? Visit the Penguin Readers website Exclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.

Punching Bag is the compelling true story of a high school career defined by poverty and punctuated by outbreaks of domestic abuse. Rex Ogle, who brilliantly mapped his experience of hunger in Free Lunch, here describes his struggle to survive; reflects on his complex, often paradoxical relationship with his passionate, fierce mother; and charts the trajectory of his stepdad's anger. Hovering over Rex's story is the talismanic presence of his unborn baby sister. Through it all, Rex threads moments of grace and humour that act as beacons of light in the darkness. Compulsively readable, beautifully crafted and authentically told, Punching Bag is a remarkable memoir about one teenager's cycle of violence, blame, and attempts to forgive his parents-and himself.

One teenager in a skirt.

One teenager with a lighter.

One moment that changes both of their lives forever.

If it weren’t for the 57 bus, Sasha and Richard never would have met. Both were high school students from Oakland, California, one of the most diverse cities in the country, but they inhabited different worlds. Sasha, a white teen, lived in the middle-class foothills and attended a small private school. Richard, a black teen, lived in the crime-plagued flatlands and attended a large public one. Each day, their paths overlapped for a mere eight minutes. But one afternoon on the bus ride home from school, a single reckless act left Sasha severely burned, and Richard charged with two hate crimes and facing life imprisonment. The case garnered international attention, thrusting both teenagers into the spotlight.

Mekong Kids is the heartwarming story of a tubby, fifth-grade boy named Boom, who lives in northeastern Thailand in a village along the Mekong River. As Boom struggles to make friends with the other boys in his community, he learns to take responsibility for his actions, overcome his fears, bridge barriers, and help rivals become friends. Genuine friendship based on caring for others overrides social and national barriers. The distinctive culture of northeastern Thailand and the friendship that evolves with Lao boys across the river add rich multicultural themes. Mekong Kids is a translation of Luk Mae Nam Khong (2001), the award-winning Thai-language children's novel.

The girl in this story sees it happening, but she would never do these mean things herself. Then one day something happens that shows her that being a silent bystander isn't enough. Will she take some steps on her own to help another kid? Could it be as simple as sitting on the bus with the girl no one has befriended (and discovering that she has a great sense of humor)? Resources at the end of the book will help parents and children talk about teasing and bullying and find ways to stop it at school.One child at a time can help change a school. Since its release in May 2004, this book has sparked Say Something weeks in schools from Maine to Shanghai. It has been turned into plays, distributed to hundreds of kids at conferences, read by principals on large screens, and rewritten by students in several schools (Do Something! is a favorite title). Most importantly, Say Something has helped start countless conversations among kids and adults about teasing. We're celebrating with this new edition, updated with a new cover and an author's note. Fountas & Pinnell Level O

A graphic novel about bullying, body image and the transformative power of fiction. Helene has been inexplicably ostracized by the girls who were once her friends. Her school life is full of whispers and lies -- Helene weighs 216; she smells like BO. Her loving mother is too tired to be any help. Fortunately, Helene has one consolation, Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. Helene identifies strongly with Jane's tribulations, and when she is lost in the pages of this wonderful book, she is able to ignore her tormentors. But when Helene is humiliated on a class trip in front of her entire grade, she needs more than a fictional character to see herself as a person deserving of laughter and friendship. Leaving the outcasts' tent one night, Helene encounters a fox, a beautiful creature with whom she shares a moment of connection. But when Suzanne Lipsky frightens the fox away, insisting that it must be rabid, Helene's despair becomes even more pronounced: now she believes that only a diseased and dangerous creature would ever voluntarily approach her. But then a new girl joins the outcasts' circle, Geraldine, who does not even appear to notice that she is in danger of becoming an outcast herself. And before long Helene realizes that the less time she spends worrying about what the other girls say is wrong with her, the more able she is to believe that there is nothing wrong at all. This emotionally honest and visually stunning graphic novel reveals the casual brutality of which children are capable, but also assures readers that redemption can be found through connecting with another, whether the other is a friend, a fictional character or even, amazingly, a fox. Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.6 Explain how an author develops the point of view of the narrator or speaker in a text.

Melody Sullivan is falling apart after the death of her mother. The 16-year-old pours her cynicism and grief into poetry and an intense relationship with her powerhouse best friend, Yasmina Khdour. When Melody's father drags her to an overseas archeology conference in Jerusalem, she is left to wander alone. Hanging out on a Tel Aviv beach, smoking dope with her Israeli cousins and their army buddies, sounds like fun until she is sexually assaulted by a friend of her cousin. She cannot share this devastating truth with her emotionally distant dad and impulsively flees to Hebron where Yasmina is visiting her family. As a Palestinian, Yasmina is unable to enter Jerusalem. Melody's only other source of solace is Aaron Shapiro, a shy, religious boy back home with an awkward crush on her, but Aaron's anxious texts make it clear he believes she's wandering into enemy territory. This is a story about trauma and taking emotional risks, about facing internal demons and the external realities of war and occupation, about finding oneself in the most unexpected places.

Memoirs of a Geisha meets The Selection in this stunning YA fantasy novel. Perfects for fans of Renée Ahdieh, Laini Taylor and Sabaa Tahir.

Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It's the highest honour they could hope for...and the most demeaning. This year, there's a ninth. And instead of paper, she's made of fire.

Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. Ten years ago, her mother was snatched by the royal guards, and her fate remains unknown. Now, the guards are back and this time it's Lei they're after - the girl with the golden eyes, whose rumored beauty has piqued the king's interest.

Over weeks of training in the opulent but oppressive palace, Lei and eight other girls learns the skills and charm that befit a king's consort. There, Lei does the unthinkable - she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens her world's entire way of life. Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide how far she's willing to go for justice and revenge.

Geraldine is an energetic, spirited second-grader with a passion for inventing. When the class bully picks on Geraldine and her friends one too many times, Geraldine devises a plan to teach him a lesson. Sorting through her parents' old gadgets and gizmos, she finds exactly what she needs to create the perfect anti-bullying shield. She and her friends work together to create something that shows the bully exactly what he looks and sounds like when he picks on other kids. Will it be enough to make him stop?

"Previously published under the title "Boy Nobody"""
""They needed the perfect assassin."
Boy Nobody is the perennial new kid in school, the one few notice and nobody thinks much about. He shows up in a new high school in a new town under a new name, makes a few friends, and doesn't stay long. Just long enough for someone in his new friend's family to die-of "natural causes." Mission accomplished, Boy Nobody disappears, moving on to the next target.
But when he's assigned to the mayor of New York City, things change. The daughter is unlike anyone he has encountered before; the mayor reminds him of his father. And when memories and questions surface, his handlers at The Program are watching. Because somewhere deep inside, Boy Nobody is somebody: the kid he once was; the teen who wants normal things, like a real home and parents; a young man who wants out. And who just might want those things badly enough to sabotage The Program's mission.
In this action-packed series debut, author Allen Zadoff pens a page-turning thriller that is as thought-provoking as it is gripping, introducing an utterly original and unforgettable antihero.

Emmy is brilliant at the computer game, Illusory Isles. Her avatar is a powerful fire elemental with magma claws and flaming breath. When Emmy's gaming video gets a front-page feature, thousands of devoted fans flock to watch her battle the ultimate online baddie, the Mulch Queen herself. Life at school is the exact opposite. Emmy is friendless and bullied by Vanessa AKA the Queen of Mean. To Vanessa and her gang, Emmy is a weirdo with bad handwriting, horrible fashion sense and no dad. But if Emmy can take on the Mulch Queen online, perhaps she can also find a way to take on Vanessa too? Emmy decides to level up and solve this challenge alone. But then Emmy discovers that Mulch Queens and Mean Queens are much easier to face when you have a little help from new friends . . .

A charming non-fiction book that promotes a caring attitude, confidence, self-esteem and gives children a way to discuss emotions. The book explores topics such as what makes a good friend, best friends and friendship groups and explains what bullying is. It includes practical advice for making and keeping friends. The book is an ideal starting point for discussing friendship issues. It is part of a series 'I care about' for children aged 4+. The titles are: My Friends, My Planet, Animals, My Family, My Growing Brain, My Body. The illustrations by Michael Buxton are quirky and fun and are designed to inspire a child's imagination.

The perfect companion to Wonder, the #1 New York Times bestseller! Choose Kind with 365 Days Of Wonder. In Wonder, readers were introduced to memorable English teacher Mr. Browne and his love of precepts. Join Mr. Browne, Auggie, Julian, Summer and Jack in this collection of essays, quotes and words of wisdom. With a precept for each day of the year-drawn from popular songs to children's books to inscriptions on Egyptian tombstones to fortune cookies! Packed with words of wisdom from such noteworthy people as Anne Frank, Martin Luther King Jr., Confucius, Goethe, Sappho-and over 100 readers of Wonder who sent R. J. Palacio their own precepts-this book is the perfect celebration of everyday wonder and hope! Praise for 356 Days Of Wonder: Palacio has an uncanny grasp of the minds and hearts of 8- to 12-year-olds, and the people who used to be them - New York Times I love this beautiful little book so much that I want to carry it around with me every day . . . I really can't say enough good things about it! - Wondrous Reads

The beloved story of an Inuvialuit girl standing up to the bullies of residential school, updated for a new generation of readers. Margaret Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton's powerful story of residential school in the far North has been reissued to commemorate the memoir's 10th anniversary with updates to the text, reflections on the book's impact, and a bonus chapter from the acclaimed follow-up, A Stranger at Home. New content includes a foreword from Dr. Debbie Reese, noted Indigenous scholar and founder of American Indians in Children's Literature, while Christy Jordan-Fenton, mother of Margaret's grandchildren and a key player in helping Margaret share her stories, discusses the impact of the book in a new preface. With important updates since it first hit the shelves a decade ago, this new edition of Fatty Legs will continue to resonate with readers young and old.