Long ago in Nowhere, Texas, Mama and Papa Upagainstit agree to take in the wild baby their five children find in a passing tumbleweed, despite the objections of the one who used to be "the littlest-of-all girl."

"Yusuf is excited to start middle school in his small Texas town, but with the twentieth anniversary of the September 11 attacks coming up, suddenly it feels like the country's same anger and grief is all focused on his Muslim community"--

Twelve-year-old Teddy Fitzroy is the prime suspect when FunJungle's newly-acquired koala goes missing, thanks to a prank staged by middle school bully Vance Jessup.

Twelve-year-old Wilder Good spends a week in West Texas at his grandfather's ranch, working cattle on horseback and exploring the rough ranch country.

Hank the Cowdog is at it again! There's a burglar on the loose, and he's robbing houses with the help of a super-sneaky, superstinky secret weapon. As Head of Ranch Security, Hank knows it's his job to protect the ranch and all the buildings on it. So when a suspicious character comes sniffing around Slim's bachelor shack, Hank heads right into action. But does Hank have what it takes to save the day-even after getting caught?

The eleven-year-old Brewster triplets, Dawn, Darby, and Delaney, are afraid this is going to be the worst Christmas ever--they have been cast as angels in their local Christmas pageant just because they are girls, their mother, older sister, and aunt are stuck in Boston because of the snow, someone is stealing outdoor Christmas decorations and baked goods, and their father is just too busy for Christmas.

Eleven-year-old injured soccer player Luz has a hard enough time reframing her identity as a computer programmer, but when her Guatemalan half-sister moves in, she learns what it truly means to start over. Includes author's note.

Phoebe is a wish-granting fairy who does not believe in children, so when she crash-lands in the woods, she is surprised to meet three twelve-year-olds who could use a true wish, but first they must race against the clock to restore Phoebe's powers and get her back home.

The narrator describes the excitement of having the train pull into the town of Jacksonville, Texas, when he was a boy.