A Different Kind of Friend — Vivian Schurfranz

Even good friends can be trouble.

No matter how she tries, Leah Dvorak just isn't interested in school...until the day she receives an unusual assignment: Interview someone you'd like to know more about. And Leah selects a most unusual subject -- “The Witch of Tall Trees Lane”

Mrs. Fox isn't really a witch at all, but an eccentric woman who lives in a broken-down old house, speaking to no one. But inside the house's forbidding exterior, Leah discovers a variety of stray animals, which Mrs. Fox cares for lovingly. And behind Mrs. Fox's gruff manner, she discovers a warm, gentle person.

But Leah's best friend, Roseanne, is jealous of the time Leah spends with Mrs. Fox. Torn between her two very different friends, Leah is forced to make some difficult decisions.