Kids will relate to Elizabeth's fervent wish to be called by her proper name.

Lizzie loves school almost more than anything. First she loved Nursery school. She loved Kindergarten even more. When the time comes for Lizzie to start First Grade, she can't wait. Everyone tells her it will be a whole year of school. And Miss Giggliano, the first-grade teacher, tells her class to make this the best year of school ever. Yippee! thinks Lizzie--a whole year of school! And what a year it is. Miss G.'s class wins the Centipede Reading Award. And they even win the Nature Study Award for their bee and butterfly garden. It's a great year! But all great things must come to an end. When the last day of school arrives, Lizzie is dismayed. How can this be? It was supposed to be a whole year! But good news soon arrives and Lizzie, along with Miss G., finds herself in a different classroom and eager to learn!

Raped and reduced to working in a brothel to keep her baby, unwed, teenage mother, Lizzie, forges a new life for herself and her child in the Kimberley region of Australia. But can she evade her persecutors and ultimately bring to them to justice? This is a story of a girl from inner Sydney. Her family is poor, her father dies when she is nine, life is hard. But her courage rises above adversity. It is story of her struggle to survive and make a life of her own, first as a prostitute, then with her child in a remote outback town. This is the second book in the series, "Old Balmain House" and begins in the same house as the first book and continues part of the story of Sophie, the girl who vanished half a century ago. Lizzie, aged eight, meets Sophie, the girl who lived in the same bedroom as a child. Sophie becomes her friend. When Lizzie turns fifteen Sophie tries to warn her not to go in a car with three older boys. Lizzie ignores her warning and is brutally raped by these three men. Lizzie becomes pregnant and is determined to keep her child. She leaves Sydney and goes to Melbourne, to have and keep her baby. Here, penniless and desperate, she become a prostitute the only way she can support herself. She is discovered and the authorities try to take her child. She flees to Broome, a small town in the furthest corner of of Australia. Here she assumes the role of widow with a small child and settles into this friendly town. Her life is good until a man from her former life finds her and threatens to expose her or harm her child. She runs again. On a remote desert road her car breaks down. Without water, with her six year old daughter beside her, they face death from thirst. Help comes in an unexpected way. She takes refuge in a local aboriginal community. Her school friend from Balmain, now a journalist, seeks retribution from the the men who raped Lizzie many years ago and have continued their ways with others. Now, as successful business men, they seek to use the law to deny justice.

Fleeing Ella Wood and haunted by her past... Lizzie is the first of three novellas that accompany the highly acclaimed Ella Wood trilogy, a Civil War Southern romance series. Lizzie can be read as a stand-alone, but starting with the main trilogy is recommended. BOOK DESCRIPTION: Lizzie has made it aboard a ship without anyone guessing her deception, but many miles still lie between South Carolina and freedom in Canada. With two small children to hide, she and Ketch will no longer have their former master's daughter, Emily, nearby to protect them. They'll need to rely on their wits, their strength, and each other. Though Lizzie loves Ketch and longs to merge their two small families, she's still haunted by that violent night at Ella Wood nearly a year before that resulted in the birth of her son. Will she be able to put that nightmare behind her? Will the North hold the peace, safety, and love she so desperately desires? But before the steamer even leaves Charleston harbor, the water grows red with danger... SERIES DESCRIPTION: Lizzie, Jack, Jovie...you've grown to love them. Now come to a deeper understanding of these important characters through their own experiences. This series will fill in additional details in the Ella Wood trilogy's main storyline. Find out if Lizzie gets her fairytale ending in this, the first of the Ella Wood novellas. To avoid spoilers within the original Ella Wood trilogy, the following reading order is recommended: Book 1: Lizzie. To be read anytime after the first book of the Ella Wood trilogy, Ella Wood. Book 2: Jack. To be read anytime after the second book of the Ella Wood trilogy, Blood Moon. Book 3: Jovie. To be read after the third book of the Ella Wood trilogy, Ebb Tide.

Now a major motion picture starring Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates! A Time Best YA Book of All Time Margaret shares her secrets and her spirituality in this iconic Judy Blume novel, beloved by millions. Margaret Simon, almost twelve, likes long hair, tuna fish, the smell of rain, and things that are pink. She’s just moved from New York City to Farbook, New Jersey, and is anxious to fit in with her new friends—Nancy, Gretchen, and Janie. When they form a secret club to talk about private subjects like boys, bras, and getting their first periods, Margaret is happy to belong. But none of them can believe Margaret doesn’t have religion, and that she isn’t going to the Y or the Jewish Community Center. What they don’t know is Margaret has her own very special relationship with God. She can talk to God about everything—family, friends, even Moose Freed, her secret crush. Margaret is funny and real. As you read her story, you’ll know why this book has been the favorite of millions of readers. It’s as if Margaret is talking right to you, sharing her secrets with a friend.

Lizzie's mom is serving in the military overseas, and Lizzie really misses her. While they are apart, Lizzie and her mom write letters to each other to help make the separation easier. Lizzie asks her mom to hurry up and defend freedom so she can come home soon. It's hard when her mom misses Lizzie's soccer championship and her birthday. Throughout the story, Lizzie draws maps to show her mother the important things in her life--like the new ice cream store, her new friend's house, the family's Thanksgiving airplane trip to Florida, and the stars in the sky. While Lizzie doesn't know exactly where her mom is, they both can wish on the same star.