Susan Lubner

Told with humor and heart, this is a middle grade story about family, friendship, and hope--plus cats in sweaters! Living in the small town of East Thumb, Maine, upstairs from her family's diner, twelve-year-old Lizzy Sherman searches for signs to guide her and perhaps guarantee her a bump-free path through life. She pays attention to the clouds in the sky, the ice cubes in her water, the heart-shaped puddle of the juice her friend spilled. If only she can figure out what the signs are trying to tell her, she'll know what to do next. When Lizzy and her best friend go searching for a stray cat and find a runaway girl instead, they want to help. And when Lizzy notices a tiny four-leaf clover tattooed on the girl's hand, she knows it's a sign. Lizzy hides the girl inside her bedroom closet, convinced the girl will be able to protect Lizzy's family from tragedy. But signs can be tricky, and what the girl has to offer may be more valuable that luck.

Lizzy and the Good Luck Girl

Twelve-year-old Lizzy Sherman believes there are signs everywhere that can help her keep her family safe, so when she begins helping a runaway girl her own age--a stranger to their small town in Maine--Lizzy hopes that she, too, can protect Lizzy's family.

Eleven-year-old Jermaine wants to be famous: limo-riding, camera-flashing, crowd-waving famous. Since her family isn't likely to move from Maine to Hollywood so she can become a movie star, she decides she'll make a reality TV show about her family and friends. Jermaine quickly realizes that her everyday life is boring, so to kick up her show a notch, she starts staging events to elicit more humor, more drama, more excitement. This laugh-aloud debut novel takes a lighthearted look at unbridled ambition, the cult of celebrity, the reality behind reality TV, and the upside of being part of an ordinary family.

The Upside of Ordinary

Eleven-year-old Jermaine's quest for fame as the creator of a reality television show based on her less-than-exciting family and friends teaches her important lessons about unbridled ambition, selfishness, and the upside of ordinary.

Susan Lubner

About

Books

Join the club