Thirteen-year-old Aluna, like most citizens of the City of Shifting Tides, has never left the ocean. But, with her ceremony of transformation—when she and others her age will swallow the Ocean Seed, which will change her legs into a tail—a day away, she fears for the future of her people. For breathing shells are failing, and Kampii are dying. The Elders—of whom her father is one—are not interested in discovering why the technology is not operating properly. Aluna believes the answer lies in the marine nerve center, HydroTek. When it becomes clear that the Elders are playing ostrich, the teen leaves the ocean for the first time in her life.
The friends don’t agree on when their dream began. Was it that day on the merry-go-round, or when Auntie Nat bought two poodles, or on the first day of kindergarten? Whenever the idea first took root, Gemma, Meera, and Karl long to start a farm right in their city of Lonchester. However, that is easier said than done when they: 1) don’t have any animals, and 2) have no place to keep them.
Dallas and Florida are twins. As far back as they can remember, the thirteen-year-olds have been residents of the Boxton Creek Home for Children (except for a few unfortunate experiences when they briefly lived in foster homes that were the stuff of nightmares.) Living under the doubtful care of the Trepids–who have labeled the siblings the Trouble Twins–is no picnic. As time passes, their dream of having a real, loving home is fading fast.
Yonatan is eleven years old; old enough, in his opinion, for his parents to stop calling him Yoni and to be treated with more respect. But there are bigger concerns facing Yonatan, his family, and the entire city of Jerusalem. Sancheriv, the evil king of Ashur, is determined to conquer the Jews’ homeland and lay siege to the city. With its siege machines and strong fighting force, the enemy will soon be poised to attack.
“Feeling things. That’s one of the gifts I got from my mother, being able to feel things that other people don’t. Spooky, isn’t it? That’s how most other kids see it. And me. Spooky Armie. Ever since I was really little…I’ve been teased because I was weird. It wasn’t just because I looked different, with my thick black hair and my brown skin. It was also because I said things that other kids thought was strange.”
Some twenty years have passed since Phileas Fogg made his historic journey around the globe (and his exploits were recorded by Jules Verne in Around the World in 80 Days). Since that time, he and the Indian lady he married have raised a son. Now young Harry, believing that motorcars are the way of the future, wagers that he can drive his vehicle–the Flash–around the globe in 100 days. His father agrees to make good on the bet on one condition: if Harry loses, he must give up his preoccupation with motorcars and engage in a profession more suitable for a gentleman. And so the younger Fogg, along with his loyal and talented mechanic, a stodgy observer to ensure that the rules are kept, and a lady journalist covering the story for her newspaper, departs from the same club that marked the beginning of his father’s venture. 
What can a boy do to keep himself busy when his mother goes to the store and leaves him alone in the house shortly before his birthday on the third night of Chanukah? Make a huge latke, that’s what! So Matisyohu Dov Ber Chaim Tzvi peels potatoes galore, adds all the necessary ingredients, but then the mixer stops working! That is no problem–the young chef sees a solution right outside his window in the form of a cement mixer. This is only the beginning of the adventure: with a little help from some unlikely places, Matisyohu Dov Ber Chaim Tzvi ends up with the biggest latke anyone has ever seen, and a fantastic story to tell. “So I wrote all that happened for you to read, too/ If you want to believe it – well, that’s up to you!”
Leibush and his friends spend their days in school, learning from morning to evening–except on Wednesdays, when they are dismissed early. It is on such a day in late summer when, cooling off by the river, Leibush learns that Shnook has arrived in Korovenko. The peddler, who is so simple that nobody calls him by his real name of Shimon, is always entertaining, so Leibush rushes home. To his delight, Shnook is there, and has spread out his goods on the table. Although his mother would love the beautiful blue cloth, she has only one ruble to spend, and settles for a few necessary items–which the peddler, as always, tells her cost one ruble.
