Lately everybody's messing with Jamal. His teachers, the kids at school, even his dad. And now that Jamal's brother Randy's in the slam, Crazy Mack has a crazy idea. He wants Jamal to take control of the Scorpions and run crack.

All the gang jive--Jamal has no use for it. Unless, like some say, it's the only way to cop the bread for Randy's appeal...

The story of twelve-year-old Jamal, whose life changes drastically when he acquires a gun. Though he survives the experience, it's not without sacrificing his innocence and possibly his relationship with his best friend.

1989 Newbery Honor Book
Notable Children's Books of 1988 (ALA)
1988 Best Books for Young Adults (ALA)
1989 Recommended Books for Reluctant Young Adult Readers (ALA)
The USA Through Children's Books 1990 (ALA)
Young Adult Choices for 1990 (IRA)
1989 Judy Lopez Children's Books Award, Honorable Mention
Children's Books of 1988 (Library of Congress)
1989 Books for the Teen Age (NY Public Library)

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.

Uncover a riveting story of palace intrigue set in a sumptuous Asian-inspired fantasy world in the breakout YA novel that Publisher's Weekly calls "elegant and adrenaline-soaked." In this richly developed fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards for an unknown fate still haunts her. 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, she 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.

Ever since the accident, Chase feels shattered. He can't remember that night, and everyone's treating him like a broken freak. He just wants things to go back to normal. So when he starts getting flashes of memory, he's relieved. He's sure once he remembers everything, he can put the crash behind him and start over.

But when the flashes reveal another memory, Chase starts to panic. He's desperate to leave his ugly past behind. But if he wants to put the pieces together once and for all, he must face the truth about who he is . . . and what he has done.

Jamie Kidding finds a semi-automatic handgun in an inner-city dumpster. An aspiring artist, Jamie initially resorts to his notebook to record the reality of his complicated life with his mother, his deadbeat stepfather and the bullies he faces daily at his high school. Gradually, the weapon takes over Jamie's life and his imagination, tantalizing him with deadly solutions to his personal troubles. Seduced by a sense of power, one fateful day he takes the gun to school. Jamie's Got a Gun is a hypbrid of novel, film noir, and comic/graphic novel.

A positive and proactive book that helps you understand and cope with prejudice. There's two sides to every story. In Prejudice, you will read two sides to the dilemmas, sticky situations or issues that children sometimes have to face when dealing with others. Encouraging you to put yourself in someone else's shoes to see why they have reacted in a certain way or said certain things will help you to understand why different point of view arise in the first place and why your perspective might cloud your judgement or stop other seeing your point of view. It will help you to find ways to positively and proactively resolve situations, deal with your emotions and maybe even change your mind. Prejudice tackles situations including: being singled out because of a disability, homophobic language, fairness, religious discrimination and racism. The book includes top tips for dealing with your emotions and conflict resolution. The A Problem Shared series looks at tricky situations and common problems from two sides. The books encourage the reader to not only speak out, but also to listen to what others have to say. Some of the core values of PSHE are empathy, mindfulness and engaging with debate and this series puts the reader firmly in the middle, allowing them to make up their own mind about the scenarios presented and to question their own initial assumptions or bias. Perfect resources for students of PSHE at Key Stage 2 aged 9+, these books are also useful as opportunities for discussion topics in class or as role play situations. Title in this series are: Bullying Death Mental Health Prejudice Relationships Social Media

Winner of the ALAN Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Longlisted for the Carnegie Medal I've always loved when the light finds the broken spots in the world and makes them beautiful . . . Cash's life in his small Tennessee town is hard. He lost his mom to an opioid addiction and his grandfather's illness is getting worse. His smart but troubled best friend, Delaney, is his only salvation. But Delaney is meant for greater things, and she finds a way for Cash to leave with her. Will abandoning his old life be the thing that finally breaks Cash, or will it be the making of him? From the award-winning author of The Serpent King comes a beautiful story of grief, found family, and young love.

Bestselling author Tony Abbott's YA novel-in-verse is an unflinching and heartbreaking look at a boy's junk-filled life, and the ways he finds redemption and hope, perfect for fans of The Crossover and Long Way Down. Junk. That's what the kids at school call Bobby Lang, mostly because his rundown house looks like a junkyard, but also because they want to put him down. Trying desperately to live under the radar at school-and at the home he shares with his angry, neglectful father-Bobby develops a sort of proud loneliness. The only buffer between him and the uncaring world is his love of the long, wooded trail between school and home. Life grinds along quietly and hopelessly for Bobby until he meets Rachel. Rachel is an artist who sees him in a way no one ever has. Maybe it's because she has her own kind of junk, and a parent who hates what Rachel is: gay. Together the two embark on journeys to clean up the messes that fill their lives, searching against all odds for hope and redemption. Narrated in Bobby's unique voice in arresting free verse, this novel will captivate readers right from its opening lines, urging them on page after page, all the way to its explosive conclusion.

"The Last Last-Day-of-Summer reminds me that all children deserve to exist in magical spaces where their imaginations and familial bonds will them into heroism. Every single child should have the freedom to be one of The Legendary Alstons. And I, for one, am grateful to Giles, and this brilliant story, for that reminder." -Jason Reynolds, #1 New York Times bestselling and Newbery Honor-winning author of Stuntboy, in the Meantime In the first Legendary Alston Boys mystery from Edgar Award nominee Lamar Giles-now in paperback-two adventurous cousins accidentally freeze time on the last day of summer, and the secrets hidden between the seconds, minutes, and hours aren't quite the endless fun they expected! Otto and Sheed are the local sleuths in their zany Virginia town, masters of unraveling mischief using their unmatched powers of deduction. And as the summer winds down and the first day of school looms, the boys are craving just a little bit more time for fun, even as they bicker over what kind of fun they want to have. That is, until a mysterious man appears with a camera that literally freezes time. Now, with the help of some very strange people and even stranger creatures, Otto and Sheed will have to put aside their differences to save their town-and each other-before time stops for good. And don't miss the Legendary Alston Boys in their next adventures: The Last Mirror on the Left and The Last Chance for Logan County!

Picture book stories on tough topics handled with sensitivity and care Bullying can sadly affect many children and have a dramatic impact on their daily life. This hands-on picture book is designed to help children with their questions and feelings about tricky topics that can be hard to talk about. The exquisite and approachable illustrations give a comforting story book feel, particularly aimed at 5-7 year olds, while also appealing to both younger and older children. A perfect aid to help children open up and explore how they feel and give them steps they can take to help them cope.

When a girl with a troubled history of finding dead bodies investigates the murder of her ex, she uncovers a plot to put herself---and everyone she loves---on the list of who's next.Flora Calhoun has a reputation for sticking her nose where it doesn't belong. After stumbling upon a classmate's body years ago, the trauma of that discovery and the police's failure to find the killer has haunted her ever since. One night, she gets a midnight text from Ava McQueen, the beautiful girl who had ignited Flora's heart last summer, then never spoke to her again. Just in time to witness Ava's death from a gunshot wound, Flora is set on a path of rage and vengeance for all the dead girls whose killer is never found. Her tunnel-visioned sleuthing leads to valuable clues about a shocking conspiracy involving her school and beyond, but also earns her sinister threats from the murderer. She has a choice---to give up the hunt for answers, or keep digging and risk her loved ones' lives. Either way, Flora will regret the consequences. Who's next on the killer's list?

In her first novel since winning the Newbery Medal for When You Trap a Tiger, Tae Keller offers a gripping and emotional story about friendship, bullying, and the possiblity that there's more in the universe than just us. Sometimes middle school can make you feel like you're totally alone in the universe...but what if we aren't alone at all? Thanks to her best friend, Reagan, Mallory Moss knows the rules of middle school. The most important one? You have to fit in to survive. But then Jennifer Chan moves in across the street, and that rule doesn't seem to apply. Jennifer doesn't care about the laws of middle school, or the laws of the universe. She believes in aliens-and she thinks she can find them. Then Jennifer goes missing. Using clues from Jennifer's journals, Mallory goes searching. But the closer she gets, the more Mallory has to confront why Jennifer might have run . . . and face the truth within herself. Tae Keller lights up the sky with this insightful story about shifting friendships, right and wrong, and the power we all hold to influence and change one another. No one is ever truly alone.

You think you know John? Well, let's see . . .
What bathroom fixture did his father have in mind at his birth? What amphibian plagues John in band? Does algebra have a use, besides torture? Who or what is Lashasa Palulu? Who is Glory Hallelujah? Who is Violent Hayes? What do they want from John? If friends are people who like you, does John have any? Why do fools fall in love? If school is a place for learning, where does John go every day? How can anyone who's fighting a secret battle for his life know anyone, really? And how can they know him?

Going to school is a misery for Sean. Whatever he does to avoid the school bully, Mark Thomas and his mates always catch up with him. Then the students join Warrior Kids, a programme that teaches leadership and self-control. So begins a journey for Mark and Sean that has a predictable outcome for one boy and a surprise for the other. Tim Tipene sensitively depicts the reality of bullying-and strategies to address it-for children on both sides of the problem.

Speak enters the world of Gossip Girl in this modern immigrant story from New York Times bestselling author Kelly Yang about two girls navigating wealth, power, friendship, and trauma.

They’re called parachutes: teenagers dropped off to live in private homes and study in the United States while their wealthy parents remain in Asia. Claire Wang never thought she’d be one of them, until her parents pluck her from her privileged life in Shanghai and enroll her at a high school in California.

Suddenly she finds herself living in a stranger’s house, with no one to tell her what to do for the first time in her life. She soon embraces her newfound freedom, especially when the hottest and most eligible parachute, Jay, asks her out.

Dani De La Cruz, Claire’s new host sister, couldn’t be less thrilled that her mom rented out a room to Claire. An academic and debate team star, Dani is determined to earn her way into Yale, even if it means competing with privileged kids who are buying their way to the top. But Dani’s game plan veers unexpectedly off course when her debate coach starts working with her privately.

As they steer their own distinct paths, Dani and Claire keep crashing into one another, setting a course that will change their lives forever.