Wendelin Van Draanen

In alternating chapters, two teenagers describe how their feelings about themselves, each other, and their families have changed over the years. You never forget your first love.

"Wendelin Van Draanen didn't grow up wanting to be a writer, but thirty books later, she's convinced that writing saved her life. Or, at least, saved her from a life of bitterness and despair. Writing helped her sort out what she thought and felt and wanted. And digging deep into fictional characters helped her understand the real people in her life better as well. Wendelin shares what she's learned-about writing, life, and what it takes to live the...

Thirteen-year-old Sammy's penchant for speaking her mind gets her in trouble when she involves herself in the investigation of a robbery at the "seedy" hotel across the street from the seniors' building where she is living with her grandmother.

Sammy continues to make life with her grandmother interesting as she tries to discover who is stealing from St. Mary's church, befriends a homeless girl, and plays in a softball tournament against a bitter rival.

On Halloween night, seventh grader Sammy stumbles onto a mystery involving a twenty-year-old family feud and some heirlooms stolen by a man in a skeleton costume.

Fifth-grader Nolan Byrd, tired of being called names by the class bully, has a secret identity--Shredderman!

When thirteen-year-old Sammy finds herself with an abandoned baby on her hands, she sets out to find the young mother, who may belong to a gang, and accidentally jeopardizes her position on the softball team.

Twelve-year-old Carolyn, who has always wished she were a boy, begins to see things in a new light when her sister is born.

"Sure enough, she struggles with stumbles and bumbles at home, trips and blips on the bus, and bashes and crashes in the classroom. But a lesson on gravity helps her understand what’s really going on. And after a visit to a science center, Leda’s mood is lifted…just in time for her to tumble– happily!–into bed." --publisher's website.