Juvenile Fiction. Barbara isn't the most popular girl in school and she's hoping that the Ruth Warren self-help book can help her navigate through the questions in her life. How can she get Beth to be her friend? Why isBeth so popular? How can she get her true love, Tim, to notice her?What is her mad scientist uncle working on in his basement laboratory? Why does he need an alcoholic homeless woman to live with them for nine months?The terrible answers will affect Barbara's entire life and most of all, her own daughter.