GREEN BAY, Wis. - s4story -- Book 1 of the "Growing Up Alex" series introduces young readers to Alexandria Kelly, who is living in the seemingly simpler times of 1960 America. While modern social media pressures have not yet arrived, the challenges of forging your own sense of self through real, interpersonal relationships is very much a part of growing up.

Elusive Common Sense: Why is Common Sense So Hard to Find? (GAB Publishing) follows young Alex as she prepares for her sixth-grade spelling bee amidst a backdrop of stresses at home and school. Author Betts Arney writes in Alex's voice as she navigates the challenges of pre-teen adolescence.

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As Alex explains:

I was looking forward to the school spelling bee and the end of sixth grade. I wanted to win first place to make my parents proud of me, especially my mother. But then, all heck broke loose!

The weeks before the end of the school year were turning out horribly. Almost every day my mom asked, "Alexandria McKenzie Kelley, don't you have any common sense?"

I decided to find an answer to my mom's question, no matter how hard I had to search. I made a terrible wish to end my mom's constant questioning and to get her to stop blaming me for things I didn't do!

Nothing turned out the way I wanted. But, maybe that was a good thing.

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Elusive Common Sense: Why is Common Sense So Hard to Find? is appropriate for boys and girls ages 7-13. It is available on Amazon in print and digital versions at https://amzn.to/4hm8s8L.