Mercy on These Teenage Chimps
by Gary Soto
On his thirteenth birthday, Ronnie woke up feeling like a chimp—all long armed, big eared, and gangly. 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.