At Café Hex, Samantha Henderson can imagine being the person she really wants to be. It’s her place to daydream about going to art school and getting away from her politician father. It’s her place to imagine opening herself up to a new kind of connection, away from her family and the drama of high school. Enter X—the boy she refuses to name. He’s older, edgy, bohemian . . . in short, everything she thinks she needs. Her family and friends try to warn her that there may be more to him than...

Joe’s got a problem. He has to write to an author for a school assignment and get her to answer a bunch of questions. But the author he’s chosen, Maureen O’Toople, just doesn’t want to play along. Jon Scieszka and Kate DiCamillo collaborate on a hilarious and heartfelt short story from the acclaimed collection Guys Read: Funny Business, edited by Jon Scieszka.

50 Things Every YoungGentleman Should Know is a young man’s guide to becoming the type of guythat people respect and enjoy. He knows how to shake hands. He knows how to bea good sport. He knows how to give a genuine compliment and how to speak hismind without being offensive. His friends listen to what he has to say, and hereturns the favor. He knows how to achieve the perfect knot in a necktie, and moreimportant, he knows when he should be wearing a tie in the first place. Oh, an...

Ever since Riley Strout lost her mother two years ago, her survival has depended on her other family: the quirky kids she met in a grief support group at school. Jay, Kate, and Noah are the only people who understand her pain; each lost a loved one.When Riley sees her dead mother shopping in a grocery store, she fears post-traumatic stress—until Jay and Kate report similar visions. Noah, having seen nothing, withdraws. Soon he disappears, and Riley fears the worst. But the frantic ...

When a generous quiltmaker finally agrees to make a quilt for a greedy king, but only under certain conditions, she causes him to undergo a change of heart. Each page highlights a different quilt block pattern whose name relates to the unfolding story.