Paige struggles to improve her own maternal ability and self-worth, knowing that in order to find true happiness with her husband and child, she must first come to terms with the painful memories of the mother who abandoned her years earlier.

When Russian skating coach Andrei Grosheva offers twelve-year-old farm girl Claire a scholarship to train with the elite in Lake Placid, she encounters a world of mean girls on ice, where competition is everything.

Celebrates the magnificent feeling that comes from walking out of a barber shop with newly-cut hair.

Nell is told by her BIG sisters and her mother that she is too small to help out, but everyone, including Nell, feels differently after her forest friends give her the confidence to build a large snowman.

Roly Poly, a pangolin, is shy and afraid of new things until he discovers that some new experiences are not bad at all.

Vashti believes that she cannot draw, but her art teacher's encouragement leads her to change her mind.

Poor Hermit Crab! He's outgrown his snug little shell and has to find a new home. And he does, with help from some friends who make the move less scary. Children facing change in their own lives will relate to Hermit Crab's story-and learn a lot about the fascinating world of marine life along the way. Hermit Crab's problem is that he keeps outgrowing things. When he outgrows his first shell-house, he's a bit scared. The next one he finds is big enough...

Zelly Fried wants a dog more than anything, so at the urging of her grandfather, during the summer before sixth grade she takes care of a "practice dog" made out of an orange juice jug to show her parents that she is ready for the responsibility, even though she is sometimes not entirely sure about the idea.

Ramon loses confidence in his ability to draw, but his sister gives him a new perspective on things.

John can do nothing well until a snail gives him one hundred fabulous stories to tell, but when even they wear thin, he goes in search of the snail again.