Della Splatnuk, Birthday Girl — Lisa McCourt

The last thing Carrie wants to do is go to Della Splatnuk's birthday party. Everyone knows Della is weird, and Carrie's best friends have vowed not to go. But once Carrie is there, she begins to wonder whether Della is really all that bad, and whether all the kids who did not show up have ever given Della a chance.

When Carrie looks within her own little soul to find an independence and conviction she didn't know she had, readers will learn that how people look doesn't always tell you what they are like inside. Just as Carrie learns amazing new things about herself, about Della and about friendship, children reading or listening to this story will learn to trust their own feelings when it comes to who is their friend, not the opinions of their peers.

Lisa McCourt and Pat Porter previously combined their talents on The Goodness Gorillas (more than 110,000 copies sold).