Synopses & Reviews
"If thirteen is supposed to be an unlucky number...you would think a civilized society could come up with a way for us to skip it."andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; -- from andlt;iandgt;"What's the Worst That Could Happen?"andlt;/iandgt; by Bruce Coville andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; No one will want to skip any of the twelve short stories and one poem that make up this collection by some of the most celebrated contemporary writers of teen fiction. The big bar mitzvah that goes suddenly, wildly, hilariously out of control. A first kiss -- and a realization about one's sexual orientation. A crush on a girl that ends up putting the boy who likes her in the hospital. A pair of sneakers a kid has to have. By turns funny and sad, wrenching and poignant, the moments large and small described in these stories capture perfectly the agony and ecstasy of being thirteen.
Synopsis
If you want to know the truth...
Sometimes I'm not sure who I am anymore.
Thirteen. It's an age of wonder...or dread. The best year of your life...or maybe the worst ever. You've just become an official teenager, even though you're not quite sure you feel like one, but you're no longer a kid, either. Here, from fourteen different points of view, are stories about that wonderful, terrible time. The big bar mitzvah that goes suddenly, wildly, hilariously out of control. A first kiss -- and a realization about one's sexual orientation. A crush on a girl that ends up putting the boy who likes her in the hospital. A pair of sneakers that a kid has to have, no matter what. Written by some of today's finest writers for young adults, these stories -- by turns funny and sad, wrenching and moving -- truly capture the agony and ecstasy of being thirteen.
Synopsis
"If thirteen is supposed to be an unlucky number...you would think a civilized society could come up with a way for us to skip it."
-- from "What's the Worst That Could Happen?" by Bruce Coville
No one will want to skip any of the twelve short stories and one poem that make up this collection by some of the most celebrated contemporary writers of teen fiction. The big bar mitzvah that goes suddenly, wildly, hilariously out of control. A first kiss -- and a realization about one's sexual orientation. A crush on a girl that ends up putting the boy who likes her in the hospital. A pair of sneakers a kid has to have. By turns funny and sad, wrenching and poignant, the moments large and small described in these stories capture perfectly the agony and ecstasy of being thirteen.
About the Author
James Howe is the author of more than ninety books for young readers, including the modern classic andlt;iandgt;Bunniculaandlt;/iandgt; and its highly popular sequels. In 2001, Howe published andlt;iandgt;The Misfitsandlt;/iandgt;, the story of four outcast seventh-graders who try to end name-calling in their school. andlt;i andgt;The Misfitsandlt;/iandgt; is now widely read and studied in middle schools throughout the country, and was the inspiration for the national movement known as No Name-Calling Week (NoNameCallingWeek.org), an event observed by thousands of middle and elementary schools annually. There are three companion novels to andlt;iandgt;The Misfitsandlt;/iandgt;: andlt;iandgt;Totally Joe andlt;/iandgt;(2005), andlt;iandgt;Addie on the Inside andlt;/iandgt;(2011), and andlt;iandgt;Also Known as Elvis andlt;/iandgt;(2014). Howeand#8217;s many other books for children from preschool through teens frequently deal with the acceptance of difference and being true to oneself. Visit him online at JamesHowe.com.
Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction
James Howe
What's the Worst That Could Happen?
Bruce Coville
Kate the Great
Meg Cabot
If You Kiss a Boy
Alex Sanchez
Thirteen and a Half
Rachel Vail
Jeremy Goldblatt Is So Not Moses
James Howe
Black Holes and Basketball Sneakers
Lori Aurelia Williams
Picky Eater
Stephen Roos
Such Foolishness
Maureen Ryan Griffin
Noodle Soup for Nincompoops
Ellen Wittlinger
Squid Girl
Todd Strasser
Angel and Aly
Ron Koertge
Nobody Stole Jason Grayson
Carolyn Mackler
Tina the Teen Fairy
Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin