One-third Nerd

A funny story about a lovable family and the best dog ever from the Newbery Honor-winning author of Al Capone Does My Shirts and the Tales from Alcatraz series.

Fifth grade is not for amateurs, according to Liam. Luckily, he knows that being more than one-third nerd is not cool. Liam lives in the Bay area near San Francisco with his mom and two younger sisters. Dakota is fascinated by science and has a big personality but struggles to make friends; Izzy, a child with Down syndrome, makes friends easily and notices things that go past everyone else. Dad lives across town, but he's over a lot. And then there's Cupcake, their lovable German shepherd, who guards their basement apartment.

Recently, Cupcake has a problem--she's peeing in the house. The kids need to make enough money to take her to the vet before their landlord upstairs finds out. And Mom and Dad have said if Cupcake doesn't stop, they will find her a new home. But the kids will never let Cupcake go. Can they save her?

"A smart, funny, sweet story about a wonderfully real family. And their leaky dog." --JON SCIESZKA, the first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature and the award-winning author of The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales and The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs

Hi, I'm Sasha Choldenko, Gennifer's German shepherd, and I'd like to add my two doggy biscuits here. Gennifer says she's written fourteen books for kids, but how many are for dogs? Lately, I've decided to take matters into my own paws. I am recommending these changes to Gennifer's previous books: Dog Does My Shirts, Dog Shines My Shoes, Dog Does My Homework, Al Capone Throws His Dog a Stick, and my personal favorite, Chasing Cats. Send your fan mail directly to me. Bones of any kind are also welcome.

If you must, visit her online at gennifercholdenko.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/gennifer.choldenko, and on Twitter at @choldenko.

Églantine Ceulemans was born in Belgium, where she spent her childhood drawing silly characters and funny pets. She attended the Emile Cohl art school in Lyon, France, transforming her passion for illustration into a career. She loves combining humor and sensitivity in her illustrations to inspire both children and their parents. She lives in Paris. Visit her online at eglantineceulemans.com, on Twitter at @lelephantine, or on Instagram at @eglantineceulemans.