Lydia and Julie are best friends with one goal: to crack the code of popularity. Lydia's the bold one: aspiring theater star, stick-fighting enthusiast, and human guinea pig. Julie's the shy one: observer and artist, accidental field hockey jock, and faithful recorder. In this notebook they write down their observations and carry out experiments to try to determine what makes the popular girls tick. But somehow, the harder Lydia and Julie try to imitate the popular girls, the farther they get from their goal--and each other. Amy Ignatow understands friendship and the fifth grade, and she...

Amy Ignatow's signature sense of humor is on full display in this satisfying sequel. After spending all of fifth grade studying popularity together, Julie and Lydia are finally ready to put their hard-earned lessons to use in junior high. But before they can, disaster strikes: Lydia's mom gets a job in London for six whole months Before Lydia can say "Fancy a cup of tea?" she's thrust into a new school, where she earns a reputation as "the Violent American." Meanwhile Julie's stuck navigating the cliques of American junior high on her own and is adopted by a group of troublemaking eighth...