Julia Gillian (and the Art of Knowing) — Alison McGhee

Nine-year-old Julia Gillian is a girl of many accomplishments. Among other things, she is skilled in the Art of Knowing -- about her quirky neighbors, her Minneapolis neighborhood, even the inscrutable "claw machine" in the back of the corner hardware store.

Unfortunately, the one skill Julia Gillian doesn't have is knowing how the book she's reading is going to end; it doesn't seem as if it's going to have a happy ending, and that frightens her. But being afraid teaches her something new: that having good friends and family around you makes life a bit less scary -- and much more fun.