When some of his gerbils escape and he gets in trouble for not paying attention in class, fourth-grader Andy Russell worries about asking if a friend can move in with his family--especially when he learns that his mother is going to have another baby.
After her brother Jared dies, ten-year-old Annie worries about the hidden dangers of everything, from bug bites to bicycle riding, until she is befriended by a new neighbor who is grieving her own loss.
Eleven-year-old Bethany has a list of worries, including her younger brother's speech development, the lack of popularity of some of her friends at school, and especially the fear that her mother can't cope with all of Bethany's worries.
Beverly is thrilled to finally check out a book with her own library card, but when she accidentally keeps the book too long she worries that she'll have to pay a huge fine or go to jail.