Ten-year-old Auggie Pullman, who was born with extreme facial abnormalities and was not expected to survive, goes from being home-schooled to entering fifth grade at a private middle school in Manhattan, which entails enduring the taunting and fear of his clasassmates as he struggles to be seen as just another student.

"Two smart girls in one small town use their combined genius to liven up their world--one prank at a time"--

Twelve-year-old Dexter Foreman has lived at The Pines Retirement Village with his grandmother since he was 6 years old, homeschooled by the residents until he's forced to attend middle school, where he sticks out like a sore thumb.

Eleven-year-old Maggie Mayfield is an A-plus student with big plans for herself, but at this moment she is also facing a lot of problems--like starting middle school and figuring out how to help her father who is out of work and in a wheelchair.

Told from different viewpoints, five sixth-graders, facing various challenges and under pressure to do well on statewide assessment tests, agree to a plan for acing the tests.

Seventh-grader Sharkita "Kita" embarks on a tumultuous journey to keep her family together while handling the consequences of her mother's alcoholism.

"Elliot isn't sure where he fits in. Ever since his best friend moved away and his dada a stepmom announced the arrival of their new baby, he's been feeling invisible. Plus his dad doesn't seem to understand what having ADHD really feels like, or why cooking is the once activity where Elliotts's mind clicks into place."

"Love at first sight isn't a myth. For seventh graders Olivia and Eden, it's fate. Olivia is a capital-P Poet, and Eden thinks she wants to be a musician one day, but for now she's just the new girl. And then Eden shows up to Poetry Club and everything changes. Eden isn't out, and she has rules for dating Olivia: don't call. Don't tell her friends. And don't let anyone know they're together. But when jealousy creeps in, it's Olivia's words that push...

When sixth-grader Mac discovers several words of his classroom copy of Jane Yolen's The Devil's Arithmetic are blacked out he is outraged, so he, his friends, and his eccentric family set out to do something about the censorship imposed by one teacher and the school board.

Seventh-grader Hercules Beal has to figure out how to fulfill his teacher's assignment of performing the Twelve Labors of Hercules in real life, and discovers important things about friendship, community, and himself along the way.