Lucas and Tessa's friendship is the stuff of legend in their small Midwestern town. So it's no surprise when Lucas finally realizes his feelings for Tessa are more than friendship and he asks her to prom. What no one expected, especially Lucas, was for Tessa to come out as a lesbian instead of accepting his heartfelt invitation. Humiliated and confused, Lucas also feels betrayed that his best friend kept such an important secret from him. What's worse is Tessa's decision to wear a tastefully tailored tuxedo to escort her female crush, sparking a firestorm of controversy. Lucas must decide if he should stand on the sidelines or if he should stand by his friend to make sure that Tessa Masterson will go to prom. Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin tackle both sides of a ripped-from-the headlines story to show that true friendship will triumph after all.

In an ultimate test of friendship, Olivia and Codman agree to their manic friend Bertucci's plan to to spend one last night with him--the night before their high school graduation--in a movie theater that has been closed permanently.

Fans of romance don't need to look any further than the fauxmance brewing between teen idols Charlie Tracker and Fielding Withers-known on their hit TV show as Jenna and Jonah, next-door neighbors flush with the excitement of first love. But it's their off-screen relationship that has helped cement their fame, as passionate fans follow their every PDA. They grace the covers of magazines week after week. Their fan club has chapters all over the country. The only problem is their off-screen romance is one big publicity stunt, and Charlie and Fielding can't stand to be in the same room. Still, it's a great gig, so even when the cameras stop rolling, the show must go on, and on, and on. . . . Until the pesky paparazzi blow their cover, and Charlie and Fielding must disappear to weather the media storm. It's not until they're far off the grid of the Hollywood circuit that they realize that there's more to each of them than shiny hair and a winning smile.

"Something was wrong. Julie flew to the ceiling." Julie Rouge is nearly 16 and can't wait to join her mother, the masked crimefighter Red Talon, patrolling the crime-ridden streets of New Edinburgh. Unfortunately, Julie's mom has disappeared, and, while searching for her, Julie is going to discover that the city she calls home is even nastier, more corrupt, and riddled with toxic secrets than she ever knew. With brutality and betrayal around every corner, Julie will need the help of some unlikely friends and strength she never knew she had in order to become the hero she was born to be.

The true story behind the acclaimed movie 12 Years a Slave, this book is based on the life of Solomon Northup, a free black man from New York who was captured in the United States and sold into slavery in Louisiana. Solomon Northup awoke in the middle of the night with his body trembling. Slowly, he realized that he was handcuffed in a dark room and his feet were chained to the floor. He managed to slip his hand into his pocket to look for his free papers that proved he was one of 400,000 free blacks in a nation where 2.5 million other African Americans were slaves. They were gone. This remarkable story follows Northup through his 12 years of bondage as a man kidnapped into slavery, enduring the hardships of slave life in Louisiana. But the tale also has a remarkable ending. Northup is rescued from his master's cotton plantation in the deep South by friends in New York. This is a compelling tale that looks into a little known slice of history, sure to rivet young readers and adults alike. National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources. Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

DIVDIVThe Chalet Girls have left the icy mountains for hot beaches and sizzling surfer boys/div Melissa is ready to escape her job—and mismanaged love life—at Les Trois Alpes. On the West Indian island of Nevis, she finds new opportunities to cook things up at a high-end restaurant—and with a new crush. Harley has been a beach bum since she arrived—she can’t hold a job and recklessly flirts with the one person who could ruin her friendship with Lily. And speaking of Lily . . . she has finally been reunited with the guy of her dreams. But now that they’re together, is he really all she wanted? With the lure of the sand, surf, and steamy romances, will the girls ever want to go back to the slopes? /div

DIVDIVHow do you share the soundtrack of your life?/div Just out of grad school, Laney is ready to embark on a new phase of her life. Leaving California to head back east, she’s got three thousand miles to reflect on her past before moving ahead to the future. With a box of mixed tapes at the ready, she envisions a trip spent reminiscing about first crushes, high school, family issues, and college loves and losses—her most precious memories. What she doesn’t picture is her mother in the seat beside her—which is exactly what happens when her mom invites herself along for the ride. Soon, Laney’s giving her mother a crash course in retro hits from her formative years—and a history of her life that her mom never knew about. As they roll through the American landscape, Laney and her mother discover that their lives are no one-hit wonders. /div