Books with author Jan McCafferty

This friendly book talks to teens in their own language, with emphasis on the subject that is foremost in the minds of just about every adolescent boy and girl: Sex. Separate chapters titled Boy Stuff and Girl Stuff describe body changes that occur during puberty, with frank and open explanations of male and female genitals, how they feel and how they function. Chapters that follow discuss typical teen problems, as well as those entirely new feelings that come with sexual development. Among them are, having a crush on that attractive boy or girl, coping with controlling parents, menstruation, dating and sexual activity, contraception, pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, homosexual impulses, and generally surviving those difficult yet exciting teen years. Line drawings on most pages.

Is it impossible for old elementary-school friends and new junior-high friends to all get along as just, you know, friends? Good or bad, that's what I'm about to find out. Jessica Darling is finally getting the hang of seventh grade! Hosting an epic slumber party might even help to make Jessica popular...but is that what she really wants? New York Times bestselling author Megan McCafferty's It List series introduces readers to Jessica Darling, an unabashedly brainy seventh grader who tries to stay true to herself, even if it means being (totally not) cool.

Crazy teachers; best friends turning pretty overnight; "The Unbreakable Laws of Cafeteria Line Cutting".... Junior high is rough, and Jessica Darling needs help! Enter older sister Bethany and her "It List," meant to help Jessica uphold "The Darling Domination of Popularity." In Jessica Darling's It List 3, Jessica faces the potentially mortifying outcome of the Top Secret Pineville Junior High Crushability Test. Plus, she's kind of stuck in the middle, as smarties and skaters unite to collect signatures on a petition to bring back the school's annual dance. Will the dramarama of seventh grade be Jessica's downfall? Not if she can help it.

Crazy teachers, best friends turning pretty overnight, The Unbreakable Laws of Cafeteria Line Cutting.... Junior high is rough, and Jessica Darling needs help! In Jessica Darling's It List 3, Jessica faces the potentially mortifying outcome of the Top Secret Pineville Junior High Crushability Quiz. Plus, she's kind of stuck in the middle, as friends compete to collect signatures on a petition to bring back the school's annual dance. Will the dramarama of seventh grade be Jessica's downfall? Not if she can help it.

Jessica Darling’s in college!Things are looking up for Jessica Darling. She has finally left her New Jersey hometown/hellhole for Columbia University in New York City; she’s more into her boyfriend, Marcus Flutie, than ever (so what if he’s at a Buddhist college in California?); and she’s making new friends who just might qualify as stand-ins for her beloved best friend, Hope.But Jessica soon realizes that her bliss might not last. She lands an internship at a snarky Brooklyn-based magazine, but will she fit in with the überhip staff (and will she even want to)? As she and Marcus hit the rocks, will she end up falling for her GOPunk, neoconservative RA . . . or the hot (and married!) Spanish grad student she’s assisting on a summer project . . . or the oh-so-sensitive emo boy down the hall? Will she even make it through college now that her parents have cut her off financially? And what do the cryptic one-word postcards from Marcus really mean? With hilarious insight, the hyperobservant Jessica Darling struggles through her college years—and the summers in between—while maintaining her usual mix of wit, cynicism, and candor.

Jessica Darling’s in college!Things are looking up for Jessica Darling. She has finally left her New Jersey hometown/hellhole for Columbia University in New York City; she’s more into her boyfriend, Marcus Flutie, than ever (so what if he’s at a Buddhist college in California?); and she’s making new friends who just might qualify as stand-ins for her beloved best friend, Hope.But Jessica soon realizes that her bliss might not last. She lands an internship at a snarky Brooklyn-based magazine, but will she fit in with the überhip staff (and will she even want to)? As she and Marcus hit the rocks, will she end up falling for her GOPunk, neoconservative RA . . . or the hot (and married!) Spanish grad student she’s assisting on a summer project . . . or the oh-so-sensitive emo boy down the hall? Will she even make it through college now that her parents have cut her off financially? And what do the cryptic one-word postcards from Marcus really mean? With hilarious insight, the hyperobservant Jessica Darling struggles through her college years—and the summers in between—while maintaining her usual mix of wit, cynicism, and candor.

Old flames are reignited in the fifth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Jessica Darling series.Captivated readers have followed Jessica through every step and misstep: from her life as a tormented, tart-tongued teenager to her years as a college grad stumbling toward adulthood. Now a young professional in her mid-twenties, Jess is off to a Caribbean wedding. As she rushes to her gate at the airport, she literally runs into her former boyfriend, Marcus Flutie. It’s the first time she's seen him since she reluctantly turned down his marriage proposal three years earlier–and emotions run high. Marcus and Jessica have both changed dramatically, yet their connection feels as familiar as ever. Is their reunion just a fluke or has fate orchestrated this collision of their lives once again?Told partly from Marcus’s point of view, Perfect Fifths finally lets readers inside the mind of the one person who’s both troubled and titillated Jessica Darling for years. Expect nothing less than the satisfying conclusion fans have been waiting for, one perfect in its imperfection. . . .

Crazy teachers; best friends turning pretty overnight; "The Unbreakable Laws of Cafeteria Line Cutting".... Junior high is rough, and Jessica Darling needs help! Enter older sister Bethany and her "It List," meant to help Jessica uphold "The Darling Domination of Popularity." In Jessica Darling's It List 3, Jessica faces the potentially mortifying outcome of the Top Secret Pineville Junior High Crushability Test. Plus, she's kind of stuck in the middle, as smarties and skaters unite to collect signatures on a petition to bring back the school's annual dance. Will the dramarama of seventh grade be Jessica's downfall? Not if she can help it.

Growing Up Can Be Perfect in Its Imperfection The Jessica Darling series chronicles one young woman’s coming-of-age in the first decade of the 21st century. Over five books and ten years, Jessica Darling fumbles her way into adulthood. She evolves from a sixteen-year-old cynic, snarking in her diary about catty cliques, unrequited crushes, and other high school indignities, into a jet-setting twenty-six-year-old urbanite searching for more meaning in her life. Through all her misadventures in high school, college, and beyond, Jessica gets long-distance support from her best friend, Hope. But it's her on-again/off-again love of her life, Marcus Flutie, who can always be counted on to complicate her life in ways that are infuriating, intoxicating, and ultimately irresistible. SLOPPY FIRSTS: Meet Jessica Darling—and fall for Marcus Flutie—in this high school comedy of many, many errors. A fresh, funny, utterly compelling fiction debut, Sloppy Firsts is an insightful true-to-life look at sixteen-year-old Jessica's predicament as she embarks on another year of teenage torment—from the dark days after her best friend, Hope, moves away through her months as a type-A personality turned insomniac to her completely mixed up feelings about Marcus Flutie, the intelligent and mysterious "Dreg" who works his way into her heart. SECOND HELPINGS: Can Jessica survive senior year without losing her mind . . . or her heart?This time, Jess is going through the social and emotional ordeal of her last year at Pineville High. Not only does the mysterious Marcus Flutie continue to distract her, but Hope still lives in another state, and she can't seem to escape the clutches of the Clueless Crew, her annoying so-called friends. To top it off, Jessica's parents won't get off her butt about choosing a college. Will Jess crack under the pressure of senioritis? CHARMED THIRDS: Jessica is in college . . . and smart girls have more fun!Jessica has finally left her hometown/hellhole for Columbia University; she's into Marcus more than ever (so what if he's at a Buddhist college in California), and she's making new friends. But Jess soon realizes that her bliss might not last. As she and Marcus hit the rocks, will she fall for her GOPunk, neoconservative RA . . . or for the hot grad student she's assisting on a summer project . . . or for the oh-so-sensitive emo boy down the hall? Will she even make it now that her parents have cut her off financially? And what do the cryptic one-word postcards from Marcus really mean? FOURTH COMINGS: Is the real world ready for Jessica Darling?At first it seems like she's living the New York City dream. She's subletting an apartment with her best friend, working for a magazine that actually cares about her psychology degree, and is still deeply in love with Marcus. But when Marcus proposes—giving her only one week to answer—Jessica must decide if she's ready to give up a world of late-night literary soirees, art openings, and downtown drunken karaoke to move back to New Jersey and be with the one man who's gripped her heart for years. PERFECT FIFTHS: Does Jessica and Marcus's journey end here? Or is it just the beginning? . . . Now a young professional in her mid-twenties, Jess is off to a Caribbean wedding. As she rushes to her gate at the airport, she literally runs into her former boyfriend, Marcus Flutie. It's the first time she's seen him since she reluctantly turned down his marriage proposal three years earlier—and emotions run high. They have both changed dramatically, yet their connection feels as familiar as ever. Is their reunion just a fluke, or has fate orchestrated this collision of their lives once again?

The New York Times Bestseller“Acidly funny, imaginatively profane, and, above all, a sharp reflection of the what-to-do-now, post-college dilemma.­”—Miami Herald Is the real world ready for Jessica Darling?At first it seems she’s living the New York City dream. She’s subletting an apartment with her best friend, working for a magazine that actually cares about her psychology degree, and still deeply in love with the charismatic Marcus Flutie. But reality is more complicated than dreamy clichés. When Marcus proposes—giving her only one week to answer—Jessica must decide if she’s ready to give up a world of late-night literary soirees, art openings, and downtown drunken karaoke to move back to New Jersey and be with the one man who’s gripped her heart for years. Jessica ponders this and other life choices with her signature snark and hyper-intense insight, making it the most tumultuous and memorable week of her twenty-something life.

Is it impossible for old elementary-school friends and new junior-high friends to all get along as just, you know, friends? Good or bad, that's what I'm about to find out.Jessica Darling is finally getting the hang of seventh grade! Hosting an epic slumber party might even help to make Jessica popular...but is that what she really wants?New York Times bestselling author Megan McCafferty's It List series introduces readers to Jessica Darling, an unabashedly brainy seventh grader who tries to stay true to herself, even if it means being (totally not) cool.

The most hilarious, charming, realistic story of middle-grade friendships you'll ever read, from Megan McCafferty, the mega bestselling, beloved author of Sloppy Firsts.Twelve-year-old Ella has everything she needs to take seventh grade by storm, from the perfect outfit to the perfect new best friend. She's still not 100% sure why cool, confident Morgan has chosen Ella to be her newest sidekick, but Ella is flattered by the attention, even if it means giving up some of the things she's always loved, like fantasy novels . . . and her former best friend, Sophie. Ella feels a little guilty about ditching Sophie, but middle school is no laughing matter, and Ella knows that it'll be safer in popular Morgan's shadow than by Sophie's side.But life as Morgan's best friend is trickier than Ella imagined. Everything has to be perfect, from their "on brand" selfies to the videos they record of them singing. And the more demanding Morgan becomes, the more Ella starts to wonder if she made the right choice. But Sophie already has a new best friend, leaving Ella feeling more alone and out of place than ever.So when Ella discovers a new activity that she's really good at -- a hopelessly dorky sport that Morgan has forbidden her from pursuing, Ella has to ask herself what matters more: popularity . . . or staying true to herself? But does she even know who she really is without loyal Sophie by her side?