Twelve-year-old Cassie has a lot to cope with when her father moves "out of the picture." Her mom's constantly working overtime, her teenage sister's going AWOL, and her little brother seriously needs attention. It's up to Cassie to prevent total chaos at home — or so she thinks.

She can't control everything, though. At school Cassie's two "best" friends are turning nasty, and a cute boy is sending mixed signals. And then there's Mr. Mullaney — the weirdest, hardest English teacher in the seventh grade — who hates everything she does. Since Mr. Mullaney isn't even reading her brilliant work, Cassie starts submitting journal entries like "A Virtual Tour of My Insanely Messy Desk." But her sassy humor isn't winning her any friends or helping her ailing grades. What's a girl to do when life gets totally insane?

Barbara Dee has created a witty, poignant portrait of an intense, honest, feisty girl who is ferociously funny and only too human.

"Dee makes an impressive debut with this achingly real novel. [Cassie has a] sharp sense of humor...that readers will find refreshing."

— Publishers Weekly, starred review

This funny, poignant novel introduces 12-year-old Cassie, whose sassy humor isn't winning her any friends or helping her ailing grades. In her madcap race to restore order at school and home, Cassie discovers she still has a lot to learn about friendship and responsibility.

Mustard. A charity orange. Five apples. A half-gone pint of charity cream cheese. A half-gone gallon of milk. An open can of Friskies. And a half-gone liter of Diet Coke.

That's all the food in the house when Cassie's sister, Miranda, forgets to do the shopping. It's just the latest crisis in Cassie's life since her father moved out and her mother went back to work, and Cassie feels totally responsible for keeping things together for her little brother.

And things aren't any better at school. Cassie's grades are plummeting, her best friends have turned nasty, she's getting mixed signals from a cute boy, and then there's Mr. Mullaney — the weirdest, hardest English teacher in the seventh grade — who hates everything she does. Cassie's sassy humor has seen her through in the past, but it doesn't seem to be helping her now. What's a girl to do when life gets totally insane?

Barbara Dee is the author of Just Another Day In My Insanely Real Life. She lives in suburban New York with her husband and three children. Solving Zoe is her second novel.