Since Nina's middle school in her new home in tiny Janesville, Illinois, does not have a girls basketball team, she tries out for the boys team and makes the roster--but the hostility of one the players threatens to disrupt the whole team.

Twelve-year-old Max, who has an extreme overbite, must navigate sibling rivalry and middle school bullies. Max Plink's life is complicated. Her parents aren't getting along. The school bullies are relentless, and her own sister is the cruelest of them. Worst of all, her mouth is a mess. With a mismatched puzzle of a jaw, Max has a Class II malocclusion, otherwise known as a severe overbite. She already has braces, which means she lives on Advil and...