Dork. Weird. Freak. Worthless.
Middle school can be a tough place for kids. Friendships shift, feelings are fragile and name-calling abounds. For 12-year-old Elyse Everett, though, the pain of being labeled is literally skin deep. Elyse was born with a rare medical condition that makes the words people say about her appear on her limbs. The positive ones--beautiful, sassy, cool--aren't so bad, but the mean ones itch. Sixth grade finds her struggling to fit in and hang on to her friendship with her BFF Jeg, who is increasingly drawn to the cool clique. As Elyse grows more insecure, the name-calling ramps up, which makes her even more self-conscious. So when a mysterious note shows up in her locker--"I know who you are, and I know what you're dealing with. I want to help."--Elyse is hopeful that something good is in store. For the rest of the year, the notes appear, offering support, suggestions and inspiration for Elyse to realize she's definitely more AWESOME than LOSER.
In Sticks & Stones, Abby Cooper's wonderfully original and poignant first novel, Elyse's dry, self-deprecating wit wins the day, both in the first-person narrative and in the monthly goal-packed letters she writes to her future self: "4. Stop being weird (and calling myself weird, because now WEIRD has popped up again and it is really not a good time)." Just about every sixth grader on the planet will relate to the awkward social jostling that Elyse and her peers experience, and will cheer her growing confidence and self-acceptance. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor