Most Popular Books by Susan Beth Pfeffer

It seems incredible that a call-in TV show featuring pictures of missing children could change her life so drastically, but when a 16-year-old recognizes her father in the photo on the screen, she discovers that the family who''s been searching for their daughter is looking for her. But who is she? Brooke or Amy? She''s been living with her father and now learns he''s taken her illegally. Who do you love when everyone says they love you? How can anyone know which parent loves you most? Susan Beth Pfeffer delivers yet another hard-hitting novel that delves into the issues that confront real teens today. "Lively narration, peppered with wry, insightful wit, and the story''s balanced resolution make it enjoyable reading...."--School Library Journal "Pfeffer perfectly conveys Brooke''s hurt and resentment.... Readers will share Brooke''s anxiety as she tries to adapt to a new family while remaining loyal to her father, and they''ll understand her anger when she finally realizes the cost of her father''s actions."--Booklist "The emotions are raw...but the story combines the draw of sensational headlines with an understanding of teenage struggles."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children''s Books "The author maintains so brisk a pace and so appealingly plumbs her heroine''s emotional life that the reader will want to believe in the story."--Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

I guess I always felt even if the world came to an end, McDonald''s still would be open. High school sophomore Miranda''s disbelief turns to fear in a split second when an asteroid knocks the moon closer to Earth, like "one marble hits another." The result is catastrophic. How can her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis are wiping out the coasts, earthquakes are rocking the continents, and volcanic ash is blocking out the sun? As August turns dark and wintery in northeastern Pennsylvania, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove. Told in a year''s worth of journal entries, this heart-pounding story chronicles Miranda''s struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all--hope--in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world. An extraordinary series debut Susan Beth Pfeffer has written several companion novels to Life As We Knew It, including The Dead and the Gone, This World We Live In, and The Shade of the Moon.

Relates ten-year-old Beth''s exciting trip to pre-Civil War New York City with Marmee and Father.

Best-selling author, Susan Beth Pfeffer, delivers a riveting companion to Life As We Knew It in this enthralling tale that follows seventeen-year-old Alex Morales as he fights to survive in the aftermath of apocalyptic events in New York City. Alex Morales is an average high schooler focused on his after-school job, helping his dad out with building superintendent responsibilities, and getting good grades so he can make it into an Ivy League college. But when the moon alters its gravitational pull and catastrophic events ensue, everything changes. Now, he has to care for his younger sisters, decide whether it’s ethical to rob the dead, and keep the hope alive that their lost parents will return. Bone-chilling and harrowing, Susan Beth Pfeffer investigates what it takes to survive when the odds are stacked against you in this captivating story about sacrifice and humanity.

The highly anticipated follow-up to Life As We Knew It and The Dead and the Gone

In this eagerly awaited addition to the series begun with "New York Times" bestseller "Life As We Knew It, " Jon Evans is one of the lucky onesNuntil he realizes that escaping his safe haven may be the only way to truly survive.

Young Margaret Winslow had beauty and a family name, but inside she felt empty . . . until Nick Sebastian gave her his heart and the strength to stand up for herself The Sebastian women grew up on the story of their parents’ great love—how their mother had been an orphan, raised by a forbidding aunt, and then, contrary to all expectations, danced with the love of her life at her sixteenth birthday party. Her aunt Grace called her Margaret, and her daughters would call her Megs, but to her loving parents and her cherished Nicky, she would always be Daisy. Nicky and Meg’s love never faltered—in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, through dingy apartments that Meg always made beautiful, joined by family, stricken by tragedy, through it all: Nicky and Meg had each other, and that was more than enough. This is their love story.

Exuberant Jo March never sits still. Whether she''s racing against boys or scribbling and acting in her latest play, Jo is always active and creative. So when Aunt March asks her to befriend Pauline Wheeler, Jo can''t believe that the girl spends every day cooped up in her bedroom. True, Pauline is blind and utterly dependent on her governess, but her fear of life exhausts Jo''s patience. The two girls simply have nothing in common--until they''re caught in a snow squall that changes their lives.

Having kept the secret that their family VCR can send people back in time, eleven-year-old twins Scott and Kelly continue to search for the best way to use that power and make an amazing new discovery. Sequel to "Rewind to Yesterday."

Winner of the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award and the Sequoyah Children''s Book Award: To save money for a bike, a young girl becomes a business tycoon Janie is desperate for a new bike, but her parents won''t buy her one unless she can pay for half of it herself. She''s too young to babysit and it''s too late to get a paper route, so Janie decides to open her own business. She calls it Kid Power and promises her customers that there is no problem too big or too small for her to handle—but this budding entrepreneur will soon find that running a company isn''t as easy as it looks. As Janie begins walking dogs, feeding cats, cleaning gutters, and pulling weeds, she gets closer and closer to her bike. But as Kid Power grows bigger than Janie can handle, she learns that there are some problems money can''t solve, and some things even more important than getting a new bike.

The darker the truth, the deeper you hide it—but what happens when you can''t hide anymore? Innocence, I guess, is not my image. Sixteen-year-old Iris knows that between her bohemian playwright father who lives off the grid in the New Mexican desert and her mother, to whom getting married (but not staying married) is a full-time job, she''s led an unorthodox life, which hasn''t left with her with a lot of childhood illusions. So it''s no surprise when her mom sends her to spend the summer with her aunt, uncle, and cousin. Iris''s younger cousin Caryn is different. She''s only fourteen, and much more sheltered. Aunt Elaine hopes that Iris will be good company for Caryn, and when the girls meet an appealing young man at the pool and all three become friends, it seems her plan just might be working. But for Iris, making things work means keeping secrets from Caryn. If Iris can''t pretend to be someone she isn''t all summer long, will she still be all right?

Always the youngest but never the baby, Sibyl sometimes wonders, What good is inner strength if only you know it’s there? Sybil loves Aunt Grace’s dark, old house, even if the upkeep is a burden the Sebastians can’t entirely afford. It feels like home, and after years of surgeries and therapy, all Sybil wants for her sixteenth birthday is to be surrounded by her crazy family in a place of their own. But Evvie’s been keeping a secret, one that puts her at risk, and when the truth finally comes out, it throws the whole family into turmoil as they struggle to face the facts. Sybil may not have Evvie’s charm, Thea’s patience, or Claire’s beauty, but she does have herself: quiet, perceptive, and absolutely determined. When her father, Nicky, declares that he’s found a solution to their troubles, Sybil faces a difficult choice—and her heart tells her there are some betrayals that can never be forgiven.

Bad things aren’t supposed to happen to good people. But somewhere between home and the softball field, 16-year-old Jody Chapman’s younger brother disappeared, and now the family is falling apart. Her parents hardly speak to each other, her younger sister is angry and bitter, and Jody’s friends, always so important to her, are slowly slipping away. It seems that all anyone can do is wait. Wait—for Michael to walk in the door. Wait—to stop missing him. Wait—to stop waiting. When a private detective can’t uncover a single clue about Michael’s disappearance, Jody’s urgent need to find him drives her to make a last desperate attempt to hold her family together.

An incurable gossip tries to learn how to keep secrets to herself Sometimes Cass just can''t help herself. Tell her something personal, even something embarrassing, and before you know it, the whole school will have heard. It''s not that Cass doesn''t want to keep secrets—she just doesn''t know how. After her bad habit lands her in a fight with one of her friends, Cass asks her family for help. Mom proposes a psychological experiment. Every time Cass manages to keep a secret, she''ll get a dollar—and a lesson worth far more than that. It''s easy at first, but pretty soon Cass is so full of gossip, she feels like she''s going to burst. When an earth-shattering secret traps her in the middle of her two best friends, she learns that sometimes it''s more important not to keep your mouth shut.

On their first hiatus from TV''s cool new prime-time series, Bill, Miranda, TJ, Alison, Rafe, and Molly are looking forward to getting back to the real world—but will they ever be normal teenagers again? The first season of Hard Time High is over, and Bill, Miranda, TJ, Alison, Rafe, and Molly have three whole weeks to themselves. It''s back to high school for Bill—no more cramming in homework between takes—and spending quality time with his girlfriend, Calista. After years of acting on the road, Molly can''t wait to share a real Thanksgiving with Miranda and her family in New England. Between a commitment to a holiday parade and a spread for a fashion magazine, Alison won''t have much time for herself. Rafe is taking his parents on an all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii. And TJ''s headed to Indiana to visit his mom. Then it''s on to New York to meet his East Coast fan club before he strikes out for London and Paris. But it seems that Rafe, Molly, and TJ are keeping major, scandal-worthy secrets. In between reuniting with old friends and doing normal stuff like attending football games, they''re all trying to cope with their new celebrity and wondering what the new season has in store.

A cast member of TV’s number-one show is about to be fired—how will Alison, Bill, TJ, Rafe, Molly, Miranda, and Susie handle the possibility of being unemployed? A bombshell has just been dropped on the cast of TV’s Hard Time High: A major new storyline is being introduced. But it means someone is going to get canned from the show. Former childhood star TJ has lived through this before, when his previous hit TV show was canceled. Used to the steady paycheck after a life on the road, Molly makes a list of her options. Left with a mountain of debt if he gets axed, Rafe’s only hope is the movie he just filmed. If ex–teen beauty queen Alison loses her job, how will she go on supporting her family? After years of commercials and made-for-TV movies, Bill doesn’t want to lose his chance at a real career. Miranda can’t imagine being let go when she’s still learning the acting ropes. And Susie worries that she was only cast in the first place because she’s the producer’s daughter. But one of the seven is going to be kicked off the show. The bigger surprise is what will happen next.

Robin doesn''t want to be perfect, but it would be nice to be more than perfectly average Robin can''t believe it: Out of the thousands of girls who applied for the Image magazine summer internships, she''s one of only four winners who will be spending the summer in New York City. Robin knows she''ll be working hard at the popular teen magazine, but she hopes there will be plenty of time for shopping, eating out, and living the fabulous life. Her excitement is only a little dulled when she hears her cousin Annie got one of the other spots. Robin and Annie used to be close, but now that their mothers compare them to each other all the time, both girls feel like they can''t win. So when they meet at their hotel, the cousins agree: All they want is to be themselves and have a perfect summer. Along with their roommates, Ashley and Torey, Robin and Annie dive into their new responsibilities—and into the parties, makeovers, and social lives they''ve always dreamed of. But while their friendships are getting stronger, life in the public eye is harder than it looks, and all four girls know that only one intern can be chosen for the cover of the special Image issue. Will Robin''s dream of the perfect summer survive reality?

Amy encourages the attentions of Robert, a well-to-do classmate, but when he surprises her with an expensive gift, she must face her true feelings.

When her best friend’s parents separate, a seventh grader struggles to keep their friendship alive When Carrie and Jill are alone together, they can be anyone in the whole world. Whether they’re pretending to be movie stars, environmental activists, or the leaders of the free world, there is one thing they don’t have to imagine: They are as close as any friends could be. Going into seventh grade, there is a lot that Carrie is afraid of, but she knows Jill will be by her side forever—until, suddenly, she’s not. When Jill’s father announces that he wants a divorce, it puts a distance between the two friends that never used to be there. As Jill’s life falls apart around her, Carrie must find a way to talk to her friend again and save her from a problem that’s anything but make-believe.