You've Got Verve, Jamie Ireland!

So far, fifth grade is off to a rotten start for ten-year-old Jamie Ireland. Her best friend, Alexanna, moves away, and not just across town-she's now 818 miles away from Jamie's home in Westcott, North Carolina. She might as well be on the moon. Jamie's spelling tests are a disaster. She reads well, but when she tries to write, her brain seems to shut down. It's like the letters have turned into a big jumble of spaghetti noodles that she can't untangle. To make matters worse, Daniel, the meanest bully in school, is making Jamie's life miserable, and sticking out her tongue at "Dan-evil" doesn't even faze him. It has the opposite effect. Pretty much the only time Jamie enjoys school is during the recess races, but even here she's running into obstacles. No matter how fast she runs, her best is usually fourth place. Jamie would never guess a "ghost" in her attic, a dead man's bones, a learning disability test, and a baking contest could help her solve her spelling troubles and show her how to deal with Dan-evil, but sometimes solutions show up in the most unexpected places. Told, in part, through entries in Jamie's diary, You've Got Verve, Jamie Ireland! shows how through creativity, determination, and yes, plenty of verve that Jamie can overcome her problems as she triumphs over Dan-evil, her best friend's move, and her learning disability. And along the way she makes some new friends. As for verve, Jamie now spells it Vegetable pie, Egg, Rice-a-roni, Vegetable pie, Egg.