Books published by publisher HCI Teens

Friends. You gotta have 'em, but sometimes they drive you crazy. You love 'em, but sometimes they make you mad. They'll help you through a crisis...unless they are the crisis. So What's The Deal? Friends are more than just the people you hang out with. They make you laugh, they keep your secrets, they offer advice (some good, some bad), they give you a shoulder to cry on. Sometimes they move away, or betray your trust, or flake out, but mostly they are the people who are always there for you. And they know you'll be there when they need you most. Because that's what it means to be a friend. Sometimes friendship is overwhelming, sometimes it's confusing, sometimes you feel like you don't have a friend in the world, buy don't worry, it's like that for everyone. That's what the stories in this book are all about. They're from real teens, and they're about the bizarre, difficult and wonderful things that really happened to them and their friends. Put that together with weird facts, cool graphics, fun advice and quizzes designed to help you figure what you and your friends are all about, and you've got the real deal on friendship

Emily's the sick one . . . all of the time. Plagued with some sort of cold or fever or bizarre aches and pains for much of her life, Emily thought the dizziness and stomachaches at the start of her senior year were just another bout of "Emily flu." But when they didn't go away, she knew something was seriously wrong. Eventually diagnosed with the rare and incurable West Nile virus, Emily watched her senior year and the future she had planned for go up in smoke. "I want a normal life for a teenager. I want to ache from a long day at work. I want to be so busy that I don't have time to post on my blog. I want to run the race of life instead of being pushed along it in a wheelchair. I want to be on the ride of my life, you know?" Because Truth Is More Fascinating Than Fiction

This second volume in Kimberly Kirberger's bestselling Teen Love series offers teens a look at friendship from the perspective of their peers. Teens candidly touch on all aspects of friendship--from making and keeping friends to losing friends and growing apart, from learning to be a friend to themselves to discovering that their feelings for a special friend have grown into a deeper form of love. Because friendships are of paramount importance to teens-and because Kirberger combines life lessons for teens from teens with her own unique brand of compassion and nonjudgmental wisdom-this book is sure to be as much of a hit with readers as Teen Love : On Relationships. In anticipation of the success of On Friendship, its companion journal is scheduled to be released in Spring 2001. On Friendship is divided into chapters that include Being Yourself; Being Your Own Best Friend; Making Friends; Silver and Gold Friends; Friends and Lovers; Growing Apart; Lessons in Friendship; and Long-Distance Friends. Teen Love : On Friendship is sure to be the next bestseller in this series, and a must-read for all teens.

At age fourteen, Taylor LeBaron was nearly 300 pounds. He had difficulty just getting to the mailbox without becoming short of breath. A chubby kid from birth who was prone to obesity, Taylor allowed his weight to skyrocket through mindless 'whatever' eating and his sedentary techie lifestyle. But a membership to the Y, a keen imagination, and an indomitable spirit changed all that. Approaching proper eating and weight loss as he would a new video game, Taylor made fitness into a fun challenge with his creation of THE ULTIMATE FITNESS GAME (UFG)―a method of tracking calories, avoiding pitfalls, overcoming obstacles, and working out by following hard-andfast rules that literally helped him shed half of his body weight in a matter of a year and a half. Cutting Myself in Half is Taylor's motivational strategy guide to THE ULTIMATE FITNESS GAME.Taylor shows kids who are currently where he was that weight loss and fitness are within reach . . . one workout, one calorie, one 'byte' at a time.

Like its best-selling predecessor, this book deftly combines teen contributions and responses with the commentary and sensitive advice of coauthors Bettie B. Youngs, Ph.D., Ed.D., and Jennifer Leigh Youngs, showing teens that we each can make life better through our love and compassion. This book will focus on the themes similar to the ones handled in the first volume and the journal, including: self-worth; friendship; love and relationships; parents and teens; how to create an attitude for life success; how to decide what to do in life; how to give, share and make a difference; and how to cope with stress-filled and embarrassing moments. As with the other volumes in this series, teens are sure to find that this book will help them connect with their innermost feelings, identify their fondest dreams and turn them into reality, and, most important, recognize that they are not alone in what they encounter or how they feel. More Taste Berries for Teens is sure to become a treasured companion and trusted guide to all its readers as they journey toward making their lives better and brighter.

Like its predecessors in this phenomenal series, this new addition tackles the pressures of being a teen through a combination of stories and compassionate wisdom provided by the mother/daughter team of Bettie and Jennifer Youngs. In A Taste-Berry Teen's Guide to Managing the Stress and Pressures of Life, teens will learn how to: Understand what stress is-and isn't Examine how they respond to stressful situations and how effective it is Determine how stress affects their physical and emotional behavior Minimize stress and stay cool under pressure through some terrific (and time-tested) intervention and prevention strategies Get through stressful situations and use them to their advantage. Stories written by teens demonstrate the issues that are a source of stress for them, including schoolwork, dating, moving, parents' divorce, weight problems and sexual identity. To cope with these problems, the author suggests three skills for helping teens "think" their way through stressful times. Practical stress-busting techniques are also provided in each chapter. A Taste-Berry Teen's Guide to Managing the Stress and Pressures of Life is sure to be the next big success in this extraordinary teen series.

Bettie B. Youngs, Ph.D. and Jennifer Leigh Youngs have worked with hundreds of teens of various ages and backgrounds to get to the heart of real-life teen issues. This latest offering reflects what teens tell them is the staple of life-making, keeping and coping with friends finding someone special then dealing with makeups and breakups; and sorting through control issues with their parents. More and more, teens are concerned about friends facing a health crisis (such as AIDS or eating disorders), having a serious alcohol or drug problem, and how to help their parents with their problems. Taste Berries for Teens 3 addresses these growing concerns through a combination of stories expressing teens' thoughts and the compassionate wisdom of Bettie and Jennifer Youngs. Taste Berries for Teens 3 lightens things up with a new chapter chockful of little-known trivia that teens will find fascinating and fun and wraps up with a section called "Ask Dr. Youngs," where Bettie answers the most common questions she gets from teens in the areas of self-improvement, friendship, love and sex, grieving, rumors, harassment and parents. Her responses reveal her love for teens by providing real solutions and encouraging teens to talk to their parents or important adults. This collection of stories and advice is inspiring, honest and compelling, and will support teens as they progress on their life journeys. Taste Berries for Teens 3 is sure to be the next big success in this extraordinary teen series.

A chilling and masterfully crafted teen horror novel guaranteed to keep the pages turning, the mind reeling, and the lamp on any reader's bedside table on long after midnight. Privileged and popular Caleb Mason is celebrating his high school graduation when he receives a mysterious, disturbing letter from his long-lost childhood playmate, Christine. Caleb and his jokester friend Bean decide to travel to his tiny hometown of Hudsonville, Florida, to find her. Upon arrival, they discover the town has taken a horrifying turn for the worse. Caleb's childhood home is abandoned and his father has disappeared. Children are going missing. The old insane asylum has reopened, and Christine is locked inside. Her mother, a witch, is consumed with madness, and Christine's long-dead twin sister whispers clues to Caleb through the static of an a.m. radio. The terrifying prophesies of the spirits are coming to pass. Sixteen clocks are ticking; sixty-six murdered souls will bring about the end of the world. As Caleb peels back layer after layer of mystery, he uncovers a truth more horrible than anything he had imagined, a truth that could only be uttered by the lips of the dead.