Stacy Arrow's first day of school isn't going well at all. She was only trying to help when she told Jiwon, the girl with the black hair, that her drawing of herself looked like a cow. And she didn't mean to scare her with stories about man-eating snakes. Now Jiwon refuses to be Stacy's best friend. What's Stacy doing wrong? "You have to be nice to a friend," says Stacy's sister Emily, and suddenly Stacy knows what she has to do. But can her plan win her a best friend? Snakes or no snakes, Stacy's ready to try her hardest.

"Little kids don't go to jail." At least Stacy's hoping they don't! It's not easy to be good all the time. Stacy just had to try on the beautiful gold shoes her friend Jiwon brought to school to sell in the class store. Now the shoes are lost, and it's Stacy's fault. Even worse, Stacy's friends think she stole the shoes. How can she explain what really happened? Telling the truth is hard, but Stacy knows if the shoe fits, she has to wear it!

Stacy can't wait to start her new class project, making an "About-Me" box. Into it will go special things that she likes. Jiwon's putting a scrap of her old baby dress in her About-Me box. Eddie's putting pictures of food in his. But Stacy can't think of one thing to put in hers. How can Stacy make her About-Me box as special as Jiwon's or Eddie's? She has to do something fast. Can she turn her box of troubles into a box of delights?

That's what Stacy thinks the new girl Annie is. And having to be Annie's partner in class is horrible too. Annie stores her snack in the wrong place, and she has no front teeth. Her whistling scares away the birds outdoors. Annie just doesn't do one thing the way everybody else does. It's not easy for Stacy to be friends with someone who says potatoes are for breakfast. Then she tries some for herself and discovers it is fun to be different.

"You never help people," Jiwon says. Her friend is right. Stacy can't remember the last time she'd helped anyone! Now Mrs. Zachary wants her class to be people-helpers and prepare a Spectacular Stone Soup together. Stacy works hard to be helpful, but no one seems to notice. Can quick thinking and a bunch of onions turn her into a spectacular people-helper?

Stacy's thrilled to see the class' baby pictures go up on the bulletin board—until Twana spoils the day by saying Stacy's picture looks like a hippopotamus. Now Mrs. Zachary says she has a wonderful secret to share with the class. But can Stacy stand any more surprises?