Best friends Jeff and Wiley are legends. There is practically no one in their school who hasn't been nicknamed by the duo. They've dubbed their own underachieving class -The Dim Bulbs-; their pop-eyed principal is better known as -Deer in Headlights-; and their enormous new English teacher, Mr. Hughes, is -Mr. Huge.-

But now some of the nicknames that Jeff and Wiley have invented are backfiring on them. Will the nicknamers be able to get it together before it's too late?

*A New York Public Library Best Book for Reading and Sharing

*A Bank Street Best Book of the...

Nobody understands Wallace Wallace. This reluctant school football hero has been suspended from the team for writing an unfavorable book report on Old Shep, My Pal. But Wallace won't tell a lie-he hated every minute of the book Why does the dog in every classic novel have to croak at the end?
After Wallace refuses to do a rewrite, his English teacher, who happens to be directing the school play of Old Shep, My Pal, forces him to go to the rehearsals as punishment. Although Wallace doesn't change his mind, he does end up changing the play . . . into a rock-and-roll rendition,...

Cameron Boxer is very happy to spend his life avoiding homework, hanging out with his friends, and gaming for hours in his basement. It's not too hard for him to get away with it . . . until he gets so caught up in one game that he almost lets his house burn down around him.



Oops.



It's time for some serious damage control -- so Cameron and his friends invent a fake school club that will make it seem like they're doing good deeds instead of slacking off. The problem? Some kids think the club is real -- and Cameron is stuck being...

Leo Caraway, president of the Young Republicans club, future Harvard student, has his life all mapped out. That is, until he discovers his biological father is the notorious King Maggot, the lead singer of Purge, the most popular and destructive punk rock band in history.

Not only is Leo not a punk rock fan, but he believes the Maggot blood in his veins is a dangerous time bomb just waiting to explode. And sure enough it does-when Leo stubbornly defends the unlikeliest of people, thereby getting himself falsely accused of cheating on a test.

Because of the blemish on his record, the...

Vince Luca is just like any other high school guy. His best friend, Alex, is trying to score vicariously through him; his brother is a giant pain; and his father keeps bugging him to get motivated. There is just one thing that really sets him apart from other kids-his father happens to be the head of a powerful crime organization.Needless to say, Vince's family's connections can put a serious crimp in his dating life. How is he supposed to explain to a girl what his father does for a living? But when Vince finally meets a girl who seems to be worth the trouble, her family turns out to be the...

Chase's memory just went out the window.



Chase doesn't remember falling off the roof. He doesn't remember hitting his head. He doesn't, in fact, remember anything. He wakes up in a hospital room and suddenly has to learn his whole life all over again . . . starting with his own name.



He knows he's Chase. But who is Chase? When he gets back to school, he sees that different kids have very different reactions to his return.



Some kids treat him like a hero. Some kids are clearly afraid of him.



One girl in...

JINGLE: a light clinking or tingling sounds, often heralding the approach of Santa, reindeer, or the mysterious thief of a priceless possession . . .



Griffin Bing and his friends are NOT happy. Instead of going away for winter break, they've been signed up to volunteer at a local Christmas extravaganza . . . as elves.



It's not easy being an elf. Not when Santa is bad news and Rudolph is being played by a Doberman who makes up his own rules wherever he goes.



But being an elf is nothing compared to being blamed when a prized...