WINNER - 2025 Children's Book International Award "...especially and unreservedly recommended for family, elementary school, middle school, and community library Social Issues themed fiction collections for young readers ages 7-14." – James A. Cox, Midwest Book Review In Book 1 of the “Growing Up Alex” series for young readers, it is April 1960 as title character, Alexandria Kelley, prepares for her sixth-grade spelling bee amidst a backdrop of stresses at home and school. Author Betts Arney writes in Alex’s voice as she navigates the challenges of pre-teen adolescence. As Alex explains: I was looking forward to the school spelling bee and the end of sixth grade. I wanted to win first place to make my parents proud of me, especially my mother. But then, all heck broke loose! The weeks before the end of the school year were turning out horribly. Almost every day my mom asked, “Alexandria McKenzie Kelley, don’t you have any common sense?” I decided to find an answer to my mom’s question, no matter how hard I had to search. I made a terrible wish to end my mom’s constant questioning and to get her to stop blaming me for things I didn’t do! Nothing turned out the way I wanted. But, maybe that was a good thing.