Mercy on These Teenage Chimps

On his thirteenth birthday Ronnie woke up feeling like a chimp—all long armed big eared and gangly. He''s been muddling through each gawky day since. Now his best friend Joey has turned thirteen too—and after Joey humiliates himself in front of a cute girl he climbs a tree and refuses to come down. So Ronnie sets out to woo the girl on Joey''s behalf. After all teenage chimps have to stick together.Acclaimed author Gary Soto tells a fun and touching story about friendship understanding and the painful insecurities of being thirteen.