Alan Mendelsohn, The Boy From Mars by Daniel M. Pinkwater

I used to teach middle school reading classes and I still substitute teach in reading and language arts classes a lot and I love literature written for this age group.  Alan Mendelsohn, The Boy From Mars is one of my favorite books for young people that I have read lately!  I love the author's use of funny words and descriptive language as he tells the story of Leonard Neeble, a short, portly (not fat or chubby), boy with glasses, whose clothing is always wrinkled after he has moved to a suburban yuppieish town and is the new kid in a middle school filled with kids who are all alike - or want to all be alike and who are quite different from him and who reject and laugh at him.  Luckily, Alan Mendelsohn, a new, even stranger boy moves to town and takes Leonard's place as the biggest outcast in the school and they become friends and have many interesting adventures as they learn  how to read minds, control other people, and visit other planes of existence. 
This is a fantastic book for kids age 10 to 15 and I highly recommend it!