Agnes Parker tries to maintain her old persona and keep a low profile in middle school, but her best friend Prejean's problems, persistent harrassment from the eighth-grade boys, and a friendship with an interesting boy in her art class make it difficult.
Katie really wants to be the star of her third-grade class, but the noisy, mean atmosphere of her class makes it hard to decide how to use the three wishes given to her by an old magic lamp.
Although Bobby's father thinks that he might be expelled just like his older brother, with the encouragement of a new fifth-grade teacher, Bobby tries to channel his penchant for humor into a learning experience.
Julie, a middle child, feels overwhelmed by problems with her schoolwork, her teenage sister's moodiness, and her father's recent heart attack, all of which make her feel dumb and useless.
Racially mixed seventeen-year-old Lauren, the daughter of drug users, is pressured to have sex with her boyfriend and questions her promise to herself to stay a virgin until she is married.
Fourth grade is a time for the irrepressible Gus, whose imaginative ideas constantly get him into trouble as he tries to train his new dog, organizes a school art show, and battles his enemy Nanny Vincent.
