"I'm assuming I'll turn into a woman someday whether I know anything about being one or not... But being womanly... is something you definitely have to learn. Girls probably don't even know they're learning it. It just gets absorbed into them while they are sleeping. But one thing for certain is that it has to come from a mother. And a mother is one thing I don't have." Gabby Weiss is watching every woman she knows, looking for tips on how to be female. Some of her father's girlfriends have found it a bit unnerving. Not Cleo. Gabby is hoping she'll be the one, the one who stays, the one who will teach her what every girl knows...

Is it possible? Could one miraculous pair of consignment store jeans really fit four different girls - and turn each of them from girl to goddess? Lena, Tibby, Bridget, and Carmen have always been friends, always been together. This will be their first summer apart. They make a vow to share the pants - and their various adventures - while Lena finds love in Greece, Bridget seeks sex at soccer camp, Tibby is trapped in bargain store employment hell and Carmen is doing time with her divorced dad. A funny and tender story of unshakeable friendship.

"Chores up the wazoo? Hate climbing stairs? Need help with errands, shopping or your kids? Don't say, 'No, I can't afford it.' JUST ASK IRIS!" Stuck in a small apartment in a bad neighborhood, Iris is unhappy about the move, unhappy about her parents divorce, unhappy about learning to type, unhappy about needing a bra, unhappy abut her mother's refusal to see that she is growing up, unhappy about having no friends. She is dreading the lonely summer months before school. But illicit trips up and down the crumbling fire escape introduce Iris to her fascinating collection of neighbours, inspire her to start her own business, and solve a few other problems as well! Who knew a broken elevator could be a blessing?

"I met Amandine on the last day of my first week at James DeWolf High School... I did not think she could tell I was staring at her, but she knew. It was something I learned about her, later. That Amandine was always aware of her audience." Delia is grateful for Amandine's offhand gestures of friendship. She knows there is something wrong, but even a bizarre and scary friend is better than none, right? Right?

What does it mean to be "friends 'til the end"? Megan, Kit, Mia and Elaine are about to find out. Kit is pregnant. Her mother is not much help and Kit is counting on her friends to help her through this. Of them all, it's Megan who is the most concerned, the most caring, the most critical and the most in danger of messing up her own life for the sake of a friend...

"Insight is cheap Alice. Especially warped insight. And that's the only kind you have." These are the words of Alice's counsellor - right before the paramedics haul her away. Alice fears she may have opened up a little too much in their sessions. Alice is still in therapy (and Alternative School), looking for romance - and a paying job - in Smithers B.C. Go Alice!

"I suddenly had no friends. I tried to think of someone I could call. Someone outside the group, some friend from before... If I called one of those girls now, I'd have to say something about why I hadn't called them in so long. Worse, they'd instantly know I'd been dumped." Why did Maya's friends suddenly throw her away? Because Candace said so - and what Candace says, goes. Is it harder finding out who your friends are, or not knowing?

Georgia Hansen can fly. It runs in her family - at least, in the female line. Three generations of Hansen women live together, sharing the private mystery of flight, and other secrets. Georgia has always played by the rules, kept the secrets. But now things are changing...

"It's going to be one of the best summers of our lives... All the stupid things we've ever done will be behind us, and all the wonderful stuff will be waiting to happen." But now that it's almost here, Alice and her friends are looking ahead to ninth grade with apprehension. Deciding that perfect bodies will ensure highschool happiness, they embark on an intense program of diet and exercise. But diets can't cure death or divorce, and sometimes, they can be dangerous. Another enjoyable installment in the popular series that began with The Agony of Alice.

Myrtle Parcittadino has the body of a goddess - you know, one of those squat, rotund statues from the days of pagan worship? Myrtle has never liked herself, never been liked much by others. High school was a nightmare and so far, college is worse. Myrtle is cursed with a comically insensitive roommate called Jada whose body and brain are the size of models, and whose ubiquitous boyfriend Goat has a serious talent for irritation. Can Myrtle overcome her misery and learn to be who she really is?

Liza's mother is sick, really sick. She is battling breast cancer. Liza wants to be strong, to be positive, to keep it together so no one will be worried about her, too. She won't allow herself to be scared. But it's hard work. It's even harder to keep the rest of her life running smoothly - school, friends, her advice column, driving lessons, the new guy in her life... Liza is doing her best to hang on, but sometimes it feels like everything is slipping away. By the author of Don't Think Twice.

Georgia Nicholson is back and as ridiculous as ever! Having landed the guy of her dreams (see her paroxysms of agony in Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging), Georgia wonders whether it's too late to throw him back. Meanwhile, Georgia still has to cope with her annoying family, challenging friends and insane dog-like cat, Angus. Great fun. Watch for the third installment in Georgia's trip through the land of teen angst, Knocked Out by My Nunga-Nungas, Further, Further Confessions of Georgia Nicholson.

Kate, Melinda and Rebecca have been friends all their lives. Endless summers in a small Newfoundland community have brought the cousins together despite their differences. But the summer of 1960 brings changes - for all of them. Sometimes they are still little girls, playing by the sea and dreaming of dresses in the Eaton's catalogue. But soon they will have to make decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. Should Melinda stay in school and become a nurse or marry her Matt and become a fisherman's wife? Will Rebecca run away to Boston to be an artist? Will Kate stay or go back to the city and her dreams of university? This small community is seething with human drama, fascinating characters, and deep dark secrets. Be sure to visit. Winner of the 2002 Ruth Schwartz Award (Young Adult Category).

OKAY, HERE'S THE PLAN:
I'll call the store from a phone booth and ask the to hold the black dress for two weeks.
I'll baby-sit for the Weingarten and the Bigelows and the Devlins.
And I'll give up lunches, which will save me another couple of dollars a day right there.
Then, when I have enough, I'll sneak over, buy the dress and stash it at Rachel's.
On the night of the dance, I'll leave the house in the rose disaster dress but do a quick change at Rachel's.
And what my mother doesn't know won't hurt me.

This is just one in a series of poems, now comical, now poignant, that make up this unusual novel. Sophie's experiences with the rapture and misery of highschool and home life are familiar, but so much more fun when they happen to someone else.

Tomomi Kiriki knows she is changing - and she doesn't like it. She is horrified by the changes in her body and equally disgusted with her roller-coaster emotions. Is she becoming some kind of monster? A sensitively drawn portrait of the painful transition to adulthood by the author of The Friends.