Most Popular Books by Julie Halpern

Drawing from her own experiences in a mental hospital as a teen, Halpern delivers a brave--and brazen--novel that finds humor in the unlikeliest of places.

While looking for new friends, Jessie''s surprised to find the D&D crowd might be just what she needs.

Two best friends, plus one faked kidnapping, plus one life-changing cross-country adventure--these add up to Halpern''s funniest and most heartfelt novel to date.

What if your soul mate was decided for you? It started happening a few years ago: the names of MTBs—"meant to be" mates—appeared emblazoned on the skin at age eighteen. Agatha''s best friend has embraced the phenomenon and is head over heels in love with her MTB. But Aggy isn''t so sure. As she struggles with accepting her MTB fate, she finds herself falling for a coworker at the local amusement park. Is he a better match? What does Agatha really want in a mate, and moreover, what does she want for herself? With her trademark wit and irreverence, acclaimed author Julie Halpern explores an age-old question: Who are we meant to be with?

When Anna returns from a three-week stay in a mental hospital she struggles to resume a normal life in the face of her parents'' arguments and peers who are afraid to ask her what happened.

With her signature heart and humor, Julie Halpern explores a strained friendship strengthened by one girl''s battle with cancer.

Thirty six year old Annie Schwartz-Jensen thinks she''s ready for a baby but her maternity leave proves otherwise. As Annie navigates life with her new baby, she realizes that not all Mommies are created equal. But she is determined to find her way, love her baby, her husband, herself.

In Girl on the Ferris Wheel , Julie Halpern and Len Vlahos expertly tackle this quirky and poignant romance that explores what first love really means—and how it sometimes hurts like hell. Tenth graders Eliana and Dmitri could not be more different. He''s an outgoing, self-confident drummer in a punk band called Unexpected Turbulence. Eliana is introspective and thoughtful, and a movie buff who is living with depression. Dmitri quite literally falls for Eliana when he sees her in gym class and slams into a classmate. The pair then navigate the ins and outs of first love. Exciting, scary, unexpected, and so much more difficult than they ever imagined. They say opposites attract, but they soon realize that there is so much they just don''t understand about each other. It begs the question: How long can first love possibly last when you''re so different?

When friends move away, it is hard for them to leave and even harder to watch them go. Toby’s best friend moved yesterday, and now all Toby has is his friend’s baseball glove (which smells like Parmesan cheese). Toby is bored and alone. But then the snow starts to fall, and Toby finds an unexpected flurry of friends . . . With humor and warmth, Julie Halpern and Matthew Cordell tell the story of one little boy who learns about friendship, change, and the nature of the snowflake.

Best friends since childhood Liz Saidel (later Liz Mason of Quimby''s zine store) and Julie Halpern (author of Get Well Soon and Toby and the Snowflakes) write stories about pre-adolescence and their teen years in their clip-art and cartoon filled zine: crushes, the prom, Hanson, and menstrual products.

Julie and Liz''s recreation issue features articles on malls, bagels, Judaism, car accidents, Starbucks, Girl Scouts, their high school speech team, and role-playing games.

Librarian Julie and grad school student Liz write about their love for karaoke, complete with "dos-and don''ts," a list of their proudest moments and favorite songs, fashion tips, and rules of background music accompaniment.

This issue of Cul-de-sac includes Sanrio clip-art, more essays on librarian Julie and grad school student Liz''s friendship, teen movie reviews, essays on dating Jewish men and unrequited crushes as well as a centerfold about Jake Ryan.

"If you watched ''The Adventures of Pete and Pete,'' you loved ''The Adventures of Pete and Pete.'' I loved it so much that in the summer of 1995 I was an intern on the show. This zine tells that story in full color with lots of personal photos and some light gossip. Also: me, Iggy Pop, and a ghost."--Author''s Etsy description.