Middle School Friendship

Middle school isn’t hard because of lockers. It’s hard because your friend group can change overnight, your phone can explode with drama at 10: 43 PM, and you’re expected to act “fine” while your brain is running worst-case scenarios on repeat. Middle school can feel like living inside a social pop quiz every day, where the rules keep changing and everyone else seems to get the answer key.

Brought to you by Penguin. Rafe Khatchadorian is getting the Hollywood treatment in a film version of Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life starring Griffin Gluck, Lauren Graham, Rob Riggle and Thomas Barbusca. It's a dog-eat-dog world, and Rafe Khatchadorian is just trying to live in it...

Meet Hope Roberts. She's 11 years old, and she wants to be an astrophysicist. She loves swimming, Galaxy Girl comicbooks, and her two rescue dogs. Hope believes it's always a good day to champion a cause, defend an underdog, and save the future. And most of all, she believes in dreaming big. That's why she's enrolled in all of the advanced classes at her new middle school. She's smart and confident in her abilities. But though Hope seems super strong on the outside, there's another side of her, too. She's just a regular girl trying to survive middle school.

For once, Claudia's studied really hard for her math test. And when she gets her paper back, it has an A- on it. All right! But then Claudia's math teacher calls her to his desk and accuses her of copying off of Shawna Riverson's test. Claudia can't believe it, and neither can the baby-sitters. Claudia would never cheat! And they're not going to rest until they help clear Claudia's name!

When her troubles in school culminate in her being dropped back to the seventh grade, Claudia struggles with feelings of failure while adjusting to classmates outside of the Baby-sitters Club.

Imagine walking into class feeling confident, acing your exams and effortlessly balancing extracurricular activities, friends and your online world. Whether you're navigating tricky friendships, trying to level up your grades or staying safe and savvy online, this book has your back. Packed with easy-to-follow success strategies, relatable stories and fun tips, it's like having your own personal coach guiding you every step of the way.

Help your tween thrive in middle school without stress, even if social scenes and homework drama seem overwhelming. Are you worried your child will struggle to find their squad, with homework, or stand up to peer pressure? Do you wish you had a real guide to help them confidently navigate rumors, group chats, and the not-so-friendly moments? Every parent and teacher wants their kids to feel empowered. Middle school brings new social rules, academic pressure, and emotional ups and downs for kids and the adults who support them.

Nadia's school is choosing a new mascot, and her idea is totally going to win! She’s also going to kick butt writing for the school newspaper this term.... Maybe. A couple of weeks in, the newspaper is a big mess. The mascot contest is mayhem, too. (Who knew choosing a costumed character could cause such controversy?) Then Nadia and Titi discover that the hippo amulet holds a second secret, one that’s super powerful - and super scary. Too bad they have no idea how to stop it. But Nadia is on the case!

It was the worst day of my life. The biggest bully in seventh grade punched me, and everybody at school ignored my existence—I felt invisible. Then I ditched class and was caught by the principal. And when I finally had the courage to tell my parents that my brother also bullies me at home, they said I was exaggerating. Really? I’m Louie Pickle, and my twisted life in middle school has been more gut-wrenching than my friends and I could’ve ever imagined. We’ve been teased, picked on, and punched for words we can't read and foods we can’t eat, which is why I’m writing this story.

Here are 33 stories about bullies and the ups and downs of friendship for younger teens, including "True Friends and New Friends", "Mean Girls... and Boys", "Embarrassing Moments" and "Bully Payback".