Growing up in Saitter, Louisiana, in the 1950s, twelve-year-old Tiger Ann struggles with her feelings about her stern, but loving grandmother, her mentally slow parents, and her good friend and neighbor, Jesse.
The first time a friend invites Bernard to dinner, his mother gives him a long list of rules to follow, such as keeping his elbows off the table and not speaking with his mouth full, but he soon sees that being well-to-do does not mean one has the best manners.
After the sudden death of her parents, Stevie, thirteen, is sent to live at a rundown motel, where she charms everyone except her estranged grandfather.
Rippling Creek, Louisiana, 1948: Tate writes to Hank Williams about her film-star mother and famous-photographer father until, gradually, she gets to the truth.
In Rippling Creek, Louisiana, in 1948, eleven-year-old Tate writes letters to her favorite country singer, sharing her dreams of becoming a singer and revealing that her mother is in prison.
During the summer of 1971 in a small Texas town, thirteen-year-old Toby and his best friend Cal meet the star of a sideshow act, 600-pound Zachary, the fattest boy in the world.
Piper is sad about leaving her home and friends behind when her father, a Navy aircraft mechanic, is transferred yet again, but with help from her often-annoying sisters and a surprise from their parents, she finds happiness in their new home in Pensacola, Florida.
The first time a friend invites Bernard to dinner, his mother gives him a long list of rules to follow, such as keeping his elbows off the table and not speaking with his mouth full, but he soon sees that being well-to-do does not mean one has the best manners.
In a small Louisiana mill town in 1940, Jolene does not want her Momma to marry the logger who is courting her, but it seems that even her most defiantly bad behavior cannot make him go away.
