juvenile fiction / social themes / self-esteem & self-reliance

Millie Fleur La Fae is new in Garden Glen, and she plans to plant her garden of strange and sometimes dangerous plants, but the town garden club does not approve of her and wants to tear it down.

Thirteen-year-old Isaiah grapples with the loss of his best friend as he strives to fit into a world that expects him to toughen up, which leads him on a exploration of identity and vulnerability.

A young girl contemplates the importance of compassion for oneself and others and the power of community on a global scale.

Now back at Riverbend Middle, social media loving tween Hasani tries to prove her former friend, and fellow witch, LaToya, is responsible for the recent chaos at school.

In rhyming text, Princess Truly visits the science museum with her brother, solves the mystery of her missing snack, and uses her magic curls to take a trip to outer space with her put, Sir Noodles.

"[An] inclusive picture book about all the different ways to make a family. Families come in many different shapes and forms -- but they all teach you how to be strong and show you how loved you are. . . Beginning with Down syndrome advocate Sofia Sanchez's adopted family, readers will meet families with two moms and two dads, families with single parents, and kids raised by grandparents, guardians, or older siblings. Big families, small families, extended families, blended families, and mixed race families--including parents with their own differences that make them unique, too"--Provided by publisher.

Mirha questions her name after her classmates continually pronounce it wrong on the first day of school so her mother helps her to learn the significance of her name and to be proud of it.

A fourth grader fights back when From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg is challenged by a well-meaning parent and taken off the shelves of her school library. Amy Anne is shy and soft-spoken, but don't mess with her when it comes to her favorite book in the whole world. Amy Anne and her lieutenants wage a battle for the books as they start a secret banned books locker library, make up ridiculous reasons to ban every single book in the library to make a point, and take a stand against censorship.

On the day of the school talent show, the lives of shy Bri and dreamer Izzy converge to create an event even more dramatic than either could even imagine.

Marc hopes that his Uncle Jake can help him turn around his terrible summer, which he has to spend at camp with Nathan James, who is mean and annoying, while longing for a fancy new bike his parents will not buy him.