Central Kansas Library System

A heartfelt and funny story about a shy eleven-year-old who learns to manage her anxiety through improv classes--and discovers her activist voice. From Margaret Dilloway, author of Summer of a Thousand Pies, and perfect for fans of Sharon Draper, Lynda Mullaly Hunt, and Holly Goldberg Sloan. Eleven-year-old Ava Andrews has a Technicolor interior with a gray shell. On the inside, she bubbles with ideas and plans. On the outside, everyone except her...

"Brian has always been anxious, whether at home, or in class, or on the basketball court. His dad tries to get him to stand up for himself and his mom helps as much as she can, but after he and his brother are placed in foster care, Brian starts having panic attacks. And he doesn't know if things will ever be 'normal' again... Ezra's always been popular. He's friends with most of the kids on his basketball team--even Brian, who usually keeps to himself....

Worried sick about his baby brother's operation, twelve-year-old Dominic does not really feel much like playing soccer, so he just messes around on the field during practice--but when his grandfather teaches him some moves he starts to take an interest, and sets out to win the trust of his coach and teammates.

Eleven-year-old Maybelle Lane collects sounds. She records the Louisiana crickets chirping, Momma strumming her guitar, their broken trailer door squeaking. But the crown jewel of her collection is a sound she didn't collect herself: an old recording of her daddy's warm-sunshine laugh, saved on an old phone's voicemail. It's the only thing she has of his, and the only thing she knows about him. Until the day she hears that laugh--his laugh--pouring...

When aspiring artist Deena's anxiety reaches a breaking point, both she and her mother learn the importance of asking for help, and that, with the right support, she can create something truly beautiful.

When her stepfather leaves and her family loses their home to fire, twelve-year-old Chinese-American Monica, or Mo, struggles with anxiety, but the chance to hunt an elephant ghost -- and the promise of a new friend -- help convince her to live a little more dangerously.

Bear is very sad when Mommy must go to work and leave him at Cub Care, but his first day turns out to be a good one.

"Starting middle school is hard enough when you don't know anyone; it's even harder when you're shy. A contemporary middle-grade graphic novel for fans of Guts and Real Friends about how dealing with anxiety and OCD can affect everyday life. As long as Maggie rolls the right number, nothing can go wrong... right? Maggie just wants to get through her first year of middle school. But between finding the best after-school clubs, trying to make friends,...

"Portico Reeves is the greatest superhero a lot of people have never heard of. He likes it that way--then no one can get in the way of him from keeping other other people safe. Super safe. He's Stuntboy. He's got the moves. And the saves. Except. There's been one major fail. He couldn't save his parents from becoming Xs. Which is a word that sounds like coughing up a hairball. But don't talk to him about the divorce, because of the hairball thing,...