Being "the new girl" at Palmetto Bay Middle School is hard enough for archaeologist's daughter Isabella Jones (Izzy, to her friends...if she had any.) All this eleven year old, sixth grader wants is to fit in and, if she's lucky, maybe make some real friends, especially with the fun loving, always loyal clique known as the Palmetto Princesses. But the road to friendship grows rocky when an imaginary relative leads to an embarrassing misunderstanding. Will Izzy be a 6th grade outcast for the whole year? And is her widowed father really starting to date her teacher? It's not easy being the new...

Pour the wine and pass the food - there are tales to tell about family, friends, and foreign travels, and you'll want to hear all of them. From a pick pocket incident at the Vatican to a chic dinner party in Paris, these recollections (with recipes) will have you laughing out loud. So will dinner with The Crocodile Man in deepest, darkest Africa, an autumn chestnut festival in Languedoc, a "meet the in law's" Thanksgiving in New Jersey and so many more. If these stories don't convince you that telling tales at the table is the best way to dine, then nothing else will.