Showing results by narrator "Janice Card" in All Categories

The Japanese hold a Mogi ceremony for young women coming of age. Latina teenagers get quinceaneras. And Janice Wills of Melva, NC ... has to compete in the Miss Livermush pageant.

Fourteen-year-old Elvira Witsil lives in a remote area of Wisconsin with her mother, Connie, who acknowledges Elvira only when chores need doing; her grandma, a cantankerous woman who can't hold her tongue; and her baby sister, Jessie - who, the family discovers, is a seer. Along with the burdens of a difficult family, Elvira also bears a daunting secret - she encouraged her father to enlist in World War II. Ever since he was declared missing in action, Elvira has felt responsible for his presumed death.

Ever feel like everyone but you has their life under control? Isabella, Mary ,and Lauren feel like everyone they know has a plan, a good job, and a nice boyfriend. Isabella, on the other hand, thinks she might hate her own boyfriend; Mary is working so hard she's hoping to get hit by a car just so she can have some time off work; and Lauren is dating a man who can't spell her first name.

Winnie's best friend, Iggie, has just moved away – and Winnie's bored out of her mind without her. So she's determined to be friends with the new family, the Garbers, who've moved into Iggie's old house – especially Glenn, who's kind of cute. But certain people don't want the Garbers to be there, and have started a petition to get rid of them. You see, Glenn and his family are black. And Grove Street is stuck in the past. And the toughest thing of all is that Winnie is terrified her parents might sign the petition – and there's nothing she can do to stop them.