There aren’t too many good coming-of-age books for boys, but this novel is a sure bet! The story follows Felton Reinstein, a reluctant athlete who is trying to manage friends, a first love, and a family that is falling apart. He has to figure out how to juggle his newfound athletic abilities, a mother who refuses to be a parent, a genius pianist of a little brother, and the new girl in town who wants to kiss him. And even his fantastical speed won’t help him run from the shocking secret about his past! Told through Felton’s witty inner monologue, this book had me laughing out loud more than once. The unique first-person narrative really helps to capture the confusing awkwardness that accompanies being a teenager and will ring true with readers of any age or gender.

Lucy Desberg fixes the local homecoming queen's hair crisis in her family's struggling pharmacy and soon finds herself giving makeovers to customers. Now when her mother and grandmother seem to be losing faith, Lucy must find a way to save the pharmacy, go green with the Eco Club and help her friend deal with a first crush. An excellent read filled with tips for applying makeup and going green.

When a flower blooms in the middle of her back, Laurel discovers that she is a faerie and was placed with human parents as a child. As Laurel learns about her true background and the dangers that face the faerie realm, she struggles to find her place in both worlds.

Is it possible to grow up while getting younger?  Welcome to Elsewhere. It's quiet and peaceful. You won't become ill or get any older. Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall finds herself, after she has died. There she will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver's license, graduate from high school, and go to college. And now that she's dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn't want with a grandmother she has only just met. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in reverse is no different from a life lived forward? This moving, often funny, book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

My favorite review of this book comes from Carl Hiaasen (author of Hoot): "The Thieves of Manhattan is a sly and cutting riff on the book-publishing world that is quite funny unless you happen to be an author, in which case the novel will make you consider a more sensible profession—like being a rodeo clown, for example, or a crab-fisherman in the Bering Sea." With a winning combination of exciting characters, mind-blowing plot twists, and a satisfyingly snarky commentary, this fast-paced novel pokes and prods at the publishing world making the reader think twice about the books they pull off the shelf!

Featuring timeless wisdom from fourteen of John C. Maxwell's leadership books, The Maxwell Daily Reader is an excellent resource for group inspiration. Each entry delivers a powerful leadership principle, ready for real-world practice. Anyone in need of inspiration or motivation is sure to find The Maxwell Daily Reader a perfect fit!