Angry and humiliated when his sharecropper father is jailed for stealing food for his family, a young black boy grows in courage and understanding by learning to read and with the help of the devoted dog Sounder.

In 1933, when twelve-year-old Hallie Turner and her brothers, Tom and Benny, take to the road seeking whatever work they can get, they find kindness in small-town Kansas.

Jeremy, who longs to have the black high tops that everyone at school seems to have but his grandmother cannot afford, is excited when he sees them for sale in a thrift shop and decides to buy them even though they are the wrong size.

Thirteen-year-old Jeff's life spirals downward into homelessness after his alcoholic mother loses her job.--

"Distraught after the loss of his sister, Ambrose is captured by the detestable duke while trying to gather food for his starving family. After being taken to the duke's court and narrowly escaping execution with the help of his new friend, Domnivan, Ambrose flees, but it seems he can't run from his past forever. While Ambrose runs, he meets new friends along the way and loses some too. He battles his breaking will and the ruthless anarchy of nature....

The first in a series of books about the Pepper family, these imaginative children's stories have delighted readers since their original publication in 1881. This first novel introduces Ben, Polly, Joel, Davie, and Phronsie, the children of their widowed Mamsie, Mrs. Pepper. While very poor, the Peppers live in a supportive little town in their beloved Little Brown House. The family faces many challenges, such as sickness and an overflowing generosity...

"Joe Oak is used to living on unsteady ground. His mom can't be depended on as she never stays around long once she gets "the itch," and now he and his grandmother find themselves without a home. Fortunately, Joe has an outlet in his journals and drawings and takes comfort from comic books. But things fall apart again when Joe is suddenly left to fend for himself. He doesn't tell anyone he's on his own, as he fears foster care and has hope his mom...

In 1573, the crippled, scorned, and destitute Meggy Swann goes to London, where she meets her father, an impoverished alchemist, and eventually discovers that although her legs are bent and weak, she has many other strengths.

Ruben feels like he is the only kid without a bike. His friend Sergio reminds him that his birthday is coming, but Ruben knows that the kinds of birthday gifts he and Sergio receive are not the same. After all, when Ruben's mom sends him to Sonny's corner store for groceries, sometimes she doesn't have enough money for everything on the list. So when Ruben sees a dollar bill fall out of someone's purse, he picks it up and puts it in his pocket. But...

With love and determination befitting the "world's greatest family," twelve-year-old Deza Malone, her older brother Jimmie, and their parents endure tough times in Gary, Indiana, and later Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression.