Pieces of my sister's life / Elizabeth Joy Arnold
Block Island
2007
Fiction
Nasty Breaks / Charlotte Elkins
Block Island
1997
Mystery
She's not there : a Poppy Rice novel / Mary-Ann Tirone Smith.
Block Island
2003
Mystery
The Passions of Emma / Penelope Williamson
Bristol
1997
Historical Fiction
Rogue's Wager : a Michael Carolina mystery / by Thomas Gately Briody.
Cranston
1997
Mystery
The Memory of Running / Ron McLarty
East Providence
2004
Fiction
Traveler / Ron McLarty.
East Providence
2007
Fiction
Spartina / John Casey
Narragansett
1989
Fiction
London is the best city in America / Laura Dave
Narragansett
2006
Romance
The mayday : a Jack Merchant and Sarah Ballard novel / Bill Eidson.
Narragansett
2005
Thriller
Envious moon / Thomas Christopher Greene
Narragansett
2007
Fiction
Calm at sunset, calm at dawn / Paul Watkins
Narragansett
1989
Fiction
The House of Five Talents / Louis Auchincloss
Newport
1960
Fiction
Strange Wives / Shirley Barker
Newport
1963
Historical Fiction
Truant / Richmond B. Barrett
Newport
1944
Fiction
My favorite witch / Annette Blair
Newport
2006
Fiction
My New Found Land / Dean Brelis
Newport
1963
Historical Fiction
Rogue's Regatta : a Michael Carolina mystery / by Thomas Gately Briody. Newport
1999
Mystery
Moonlight becomes you: a novel / Mary Higgins Clark.
Newport
1996
Mystery
Hide Yourself Away / Mary Jane Clark
Newport
2004
Mystery
Trust me once / Jan Coffey
Newport
2001
Fiction
The Red Rover / James Fenimore Cooper
Newport
1852
Fiction
Strange Bedfellow / Janet Dailey
Newport
1979
Romance
Wind of time / John Dandola
Newport
1995
Historical Fiction
Newport / by Edward T. Duranty
Newport
2005
Fiction
The last season / Ronald Florence.
Newport
2000
Historical Fiction
Newport; a novel / Edwin Gilbert
Newport
1971
Fiction
The Gods of Newport / John Jakes
Newport
2006
Historical Fiction
The ivory tower / by Henry James
Newport
1917
Fiction
Siren's Lullaby / William Kennedy
Newport
1997
Thriller
Death on The Cliff Walk : A Gilded Age Mystery / Mary Kruger
Newport
1994
Mystery
Ask No Quarter / George Marsh
Newport
1945
Historical Fiction
Stars on the sea / F. van Wyck Mason
Newport
1940
Historical Fiction
Murder on the Cliff / Stefanie Matteson
Newport
1991
Mystery
The photograph upstairs / Anita McAndrews
Newport
2000
Fiction
Blood red / James A. Moore
Newport
2005
Vampires
The maidenstone lighthouse / Sally Smith O'Rourke
Newport
2007
Fiction
Dusk at the grove / Samuel Rogers
Newport
1934
Fiction
Spies / Richard Sapir
Newport
1984
Thriller
The challenge and the glory / Antoinette Stockenberg
Newport
1987
Fiction
Time after time / Antoinette Stockenberg
Newport
1995
Fiction
The minister's wooing / Harriet Beecher Stowe
Newport
1859
Fiction
Ariabella, the first / Nina Straight
Newport
1981
Fiction
Murder stalks a mansion : a Newport mystery / by Anne-Marie Sutton
Newport
2003
Mystery
Mansions of the Dead / Sarah Stewart Taylor
Newport
2004
Mystery
The reach / Sprague J. Theobald
Newport
1999
Fiction
Dragon Cove / Carter A. Vaughn
Newport
1964
Historical Fiction
One night in Newport / Elizabeth Villars
Newport
1981
Fiction
Newport woman / Delphine Washburn
Newport
1967
Fiction
Shadow of Innocence / Ric Wasley
Newport
2007
Fiction
The story of my disappearance / Paul Watkins
Newport
1998
Thriller
The voyage of the encounter / Sheldon Burton Webster.
Newport
1998
Fiction
Spindrift / Phyllis Whitney
Newport
1975
Mystery
Theophilus North / Thornton Wilder
Newport
1973
Historical Fiction
The Last waltz / Nancy Zaroulis
Newport
1984
Historical Fiction
Double Lives / Jane Barnes
North Kingstown - Saunderstown
1981
Fiction
The Catherine / Robert S. Macdonald. --
North Kingstown - Saunderstown
1982
Fiction
The witches of Eastwick / John Updike.
North Kingstown - Wickford
Fiction
The widows of Eastwick / John Updike.
North Kingstown - Wickford
Fiction
Outside Providence / Peter Farrelly
Pawtucket
1988
Fiction
Murfy's Men / Gerald Green
Portsmouth
1981
Historical Fiction
Gravewriter / Mark Arsenault.
Providence
2006
Mystery
The Golden Mistress / Basil Beyea
Providence
1975
Historical Fiction
Crows over the wheatfield / Adam Braver
Providence
2006
Fiction
Rogue's Isles: a Michael Carolina mystery / by Thomas Gately Briody.
Providence
1995
Mystery
Rogue's justice : a Michael Carolina mystery / by Thomas Gately Briody.
Providence
1996
Mystery
A confidential source / Jan Brogan.
Providence
2005
Mystery
Yesterday's fatal / Jan Brogan.
Providence
2007
Mystery
Teaser / Jan Brogan
Providence
2008
Mystery
A killing on church grounds / Barbara Cummings.
Providence
2006
Mystery
Shadows in the darkness / Elaine Cunningham.
Providence
2004
Urban Fantasy
Shadows in the starlight / Elaine Cunningham.
Providence
2006
Urban Fantasy
Benefit Street / by David Cornel De Jong
Providence
1942
Fiction
Heart of the night / Barbara Delinsky.
Providence
1989
Romance
The Survivors Club / Lisa Gardner.
Providence
2002
Thriller
The aberration / by Al Giannini
Providence
2000
Fiction
Keeper and kid / Edward Hardy.
Providence
2008
Fiction
The Knitting Circle / Ann Hood
Providence
2007
Fiction
Mill Stream / Hortense Lion
Providence
1941
Historical Fiction
The case of Charles Dexter Ward / H. P. Lovecraft
Providence
1927
Thriller
The dreams in the Witch House and other weird stories / H.P. Lovecraft
Providence
2005
Thriller
Defenceless / Celeste Marsella
Providence
2008
Thriller
Airs of Providence / Jean McGarry
Providence
1985
Short Stories
The house on Benefit Street / Donna Montalbano.
Providence
2003
Mystery
The probe / by Jack O'Rourke
Providence
2000
Mystery
Ceremony / Robert B. Parker
Providence
1982
Thriller
Straight pool / by J.J. Partridge
Providence
2008
Mystery
Carom shot / by J.J. Partridge
Providence
2005
Mystery
Every Sunday / Peter Pezzelli
Providence
2005
Fiction
Francesca's Kitchen / Peter Pezzelli
Providence
2006
Fiction
The Family / David Plante
Providence
1978
Fiction
Informed Consent / Neil Ravin
Providence
1983
Fiction
Rebecca of Providence, Rhode Island : 1605-1683 / Bonnie L. Schermer
Providence
2003
Fiction
To feel stuff / Andrea Seigel
Providence
2006
Fiction
An American killing : a novel / by Mary-Ann Tirone Smith
Providence
1998
Thriller
This Room Is Yours / Michael Stein
Providence
2004
Fiction
A miracle on Charles Street / Pasco Verducci
Providence
2006
Fiction
Providence / Geoffrey Wolff
Providence
1986
Fiction
Roberta's Woods / by Betty J. Cotter
Rhode Island
2008
Fiction
My story being this : details of the life of Mary Williams Magahee, lady of colour / Pamala-Suzette Deane.
Rhode Island
2004
Historical Fiction
New Bedlam : a novel / Bill Flanagan
Rhode Island
2007
Fiction
Keepers / Russell Greenan
Rhode Island
1978
Thriller
Pike's folly / Mike Heppner.
Rhode Island
2006
Fiction
Earthsound / Arthur Herzog
Rhode Island
1975
Thriller
Coming Home / Dee Holmes
Rhode Island
2003
Romance
The boy on the porch / Dee Holmes
Rhode Island
2003
Romance
The silver screen / Maureen Howard.
Rhode Island
2004
Fiction
The ghost and the dead man's library / Alice Kimberly
Rhode Island
2006
Mystery
The ghost and the femme fatale / by Cleo Coyle writing as Alice Kimberly
Rhode Island
2008
Mystery
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure / Alice Kimberly
Rhode Island
2004
Mystery
The Ghost and the Dead Deb / Alice Kimberly
Rhode Island
2005
Mystery
She's Come Undone / Wally Lamb
Rhode Island
1996
Fiction
Italian lessons / Peter Pezzelli
Rhode Island
2007
Fiction
My Sister's Keeper / Jodi Picoult
Rhode Island
2004
Fiction
The edge of winter / Luanne Rice
Rhode Island
2007
Fiction
Blue Moon / Luanne Rice
Rhode Island
1993
Romance
Dance with me / Luanne Rice.
Rhode Island
2004
Romance
Strike Three You're Dead : a Harvey Blissberg mystery / R.D. Rosen
Rhode Island
1984
Mystery
Dead ball : a Harvey Blissberg mystery / R.D. Rosen
Rhode Island
2001
Mystery
I, Roger Williams : a fragment of autobiography / by Mary Lee Settle.
Rhode Island
2001
Historical Fiction
Where or when : a novel / Anita Shreve
Rhode Island
1993
Fiction
Yankee Yorkshirewomen / Hedley Smith
Rhode Island
1978
Fiction
Fade to Black / Wendy Corsi Staub
Rhode Island
2002
Thriller
Escape from the mill / by Robert V. Sweet
Rhode Island
1994
Fiction
Passing Through Paradise / Susan Wiggs
Rhode Island
2002
Romance
Summer by the Sea / Susan Wiggs
Rhode Island
2002
Romance
Winner of the National Book Award / Jincy Willet
Rhode Island
2003
Fiction
The vineyard : a novel / Barbara Delinsky.
Rhode Island - Aquidneck Island
2000
Romance
February Hill / Victoria Lincoln
Rhode Island - Aquidneck Island
1934
Fiction
Celia Amberley / Victoria Lincoln
Rhode Island - Aquidneck Island
1949
Fiction
Snow Island / by Katherine Towler
Rhode Island - Aquidneck Island
2002
Historical Fiction
Strangers / Michael de Guzman
Rhode Island - South County
1979
Fiction
The King and Queen of Moonlight Bay / Michael de Guzman
Rhode Island - South County
1982
Fiction
Ruby / Ann Hood
Rhode Island - South County
1997
Fiction
The Snitch / Robert Leuci
Rhode Island - South County
1997
Fiction
Diligence in Love / Daisy Newman
Rhode Island - South County
1951
Fiction
The secret ingredient murders : a Eugenia Potter mystery / by Nancy Pickard based on the character created by Virginia Rich.
Rhode Island - South County
Mystery
The Human Shore / Harvena Richter
Rhode Island - South County
1959
Fiction
Rhode Island Blues / Fay Weldon
Rhode Island - South County
2000
Fiction
Interpreter of maladies : stories / Jhumpa Lahiri
South Kingstown
1999
Short Stories
Avery's Knot / Mary Cable
Tiverton
1981
Historical Fiction
The Tragedy at Tiverton / Raymond Paul
Tiverton
1984
Historical Fiction
Gaspee / by Alex Gabbard
Warwick
2007
Historical Fiction
Gift of armor : a romance of Warwick / Hedley Smith
Warwick
1968
Fiction
The properties of water / Ann Hood.
West Warwick
1995
Fiction
Waiting to Vanish / Ann Hood
West Warwick
1988
Fiction
The Summer They Came / William Storandt
Westerly
2002
Fiction
Children's Books
Cornelius Vandermouse : the pride of Newport / Peter Barnes
Newport
1997
Young Children
Puma goes to the Cliff Walk of Newport, Rhode Island / Muriel Barclay de Tolly
Newport
2005
Young Children
Puma goes to the Elms
Newport
2004
Young Children
Puma, Lost in Newport
Newport
2002
Young Children
Puma Sails The Harbor of Newport
Newport
2007
Young Children
Something Upstairs : A Tale of Ghosts / Avi
Providence
1988
Children's Fiction
The Man Who Was Poe / Avi
Providence
1989
Children's Fiction
Gray bonnets in the days of Roger Williams / Slater Brown
Providence
1954
Children's Fiction
Whisper in the dark / Joseph Bruchac
Providence
2005
Children's Fiction
A Little maid of Newport / Alice Turner Curtis
Newport
1915
Children's Fiction
A little maid of Narragansett Bay / Alice Turner Curtis
Warwick
1915
Children's Fiction
Melonhead / Michael de Guzman
Rhode Island
2002
Children's Fiction
Secret in the moonlight / by E.L. Flood
Rhode Island
1994
Children's Fiction
How I saved my father's life (and ruined everything else) / Ann Hood
Providence
2008
Children's Fiction
The Governor's ship / A. John Kennelly
Rhode Island
1995
Children's Fiction
Meg Mackintosh Mysteries / Lucinda Landon
Rhode Island
Children's Fiction
Some of the adventures of Rhode Island Red / by Stephen Manes
Rhode Island
1990
Children's Fiction
The case of the mysterious codes / by John F. Warner
Newport
1995
Children's Fiction
Young Adult Fiction
Where I want to be / Adele Griffin
South Kingstown
2005
YA
I am the wallpaper / Mark Peter Hughes
Rhode Island
2005
YA
Lemonade Mouth / Mark Peter Hughes
Rhode Island
2007
YA
Devilish / by Maureen Johnson
Providence
2007
YA
The Art of Keeping Cool / Janet Taylor Lisle
Rhode Island
2000
YA
Black Duck / Janet Taylor Lisle
Newport
2006
YA
The crying rocks / Janet Taylor Lisle
Rhode Island
2003
YA
'38 : the Great Hurricane in Quonochontaug Rhode Island : a novel / by John Livsey
Westerly
2004
YA
A circle of two : book of Newport / A. Valentine Smith
Newport
2001
YA
The Possibilities of Sainthood / Donna Freitas
Providence
2008
YA
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Issues? A Child Called It, and Issue-driven fiction for Teens
Dave and Richard Pelzer's books
A Child Called It:: One Child's Courage to Survive Dave Pelzer
The Lost boy : A Foster Child's Search for the Love of a Family Dave Pelzer
The Privilege of Youth : A Teenager's Story of Longing for Acceptance and Friendship Dave Pelzer
A Man Named Dave : A Story of Triumph and Forgiveness Dave Pelzer
A Brother's Journey : Surviving a Childhood of AbuseRichard Pelzer
A Teenager's Journey : Overcoming a Childhood of Abuse Richard Pelzer
Twisted Laurie Halse Anderson 17 year old Tyler enjoys his tough reputation and the attentions of a popular girl, but when life starts to go bad again, he must choose between transforming himself or giving in to his destructive thoughts.
Speak Laurie Halse Anderson Melinda stops speaking after speaking up and calling the police at a party.
Alt Ed Catherine Atkins Susan and Brendan have to participate in a 12 week after-school group therapy session- or be expelled.
Candy Kevin Brooks Joe desperately wants to save beautiful Candy from a life of drug use and prostitution.
Smack Melvin Burgess Gemma and Tar run away from home, only to fall into the trap of heroin addiction.
The facts speak for themselves Brock Cole At the request of her social worker, thirteen-year-old Linda gradually reveals how her life with her unstable mother and her younger brother led to her rape and the murder she witnessed.
Just Listen Sarah Dessen Annabelle's reluctance to deal with confrontation has devastating results.
Party Girl Lynne Ewing Ana and Kata have always played together, and then they partied together. What will Ana do without her?
I Am an Artichoke Lucy Frank 15 year old Sarah is caught between a mother and her anorexic daughter.
Perfect Natasha Friend Isabelle's need to be perfect drives her to bulimia.
Fat Kid Rules the World K.L. Going 17-year old Troy gets a chance to play drums in a band with a homeless guitar genius.
Stone Cold Pete Hautman Sixteen-year-old Denn finds himself alienating both friends and family when he becomes obsessed with playing high-stakes poker with adult gamblers.
Second Star to the Right Deborah Hautzig Leslie can never be thin enough. Written by an author who suffered from anorexia.
Kissing Doorknobs Terry Spencer Hesser Fourteen-year-old Tara describes how her increasingly strange compulsions begin to take over her life and affect her relationships with her family and friends.
Crank Ellen Hopkins Kristina, the perfect daughter, has an alter-ego she calls Bree- and Bree is into crank.
You Don't Know Me David Klass John suffers abuse from his violent step-father.
Stoner and Spaz Ron Koertge Ben and Colleen are unlikely friends.
The Loser's Club John LeKich Alex has a way to deal with Jerry, the school bully.
Inexcusable Chris Lynch High school senior and football player Keir sets out to enjoy himself on graduation night, but when he attempts to comfort a friend whose date has left her stranded, things go terribly wrong.
RX Tracy Lynn Thyme is an honors student, popular, on student council, and a drug dealer.
Cut Patricia McCormick Callie is sent to Sea Pines, a therapy facility, to deal with her self-mutilation issues.
Anything to win Gloria Miklowitz To increase his chances of winning a college scholarship, a talented high school quarterback risks his health by taking anabolic steroids to gain weight
Past forgiving Gloria Miklowitz Fifteen-year-old Alexandra finds that her boyfriend Cliff demands all her time, isolates her by his jealousy, and finally becomes physically abusive.
Bottled up : a novel Jaye MurrayA high school boy comes to terms with his drug addiction, life with an alcoholic father, and a younger brother who looks up to him.
The Beast Walter Dean MyersA visit to his Harlem neighborhood and the discovery that the girl he loves is using drugs give sixteen-year-old Anthony Witherspoon a new perspective both on his home and on his life at a Connecticut prep school.
The Keeper Phyllis Reynolds NaylorJunior high school student Nick must face the fact that his father is plunging fast into serious mental illness.
Lisa Bright and Dark John Neufeld Lisa's family and teachers won't face her deep depression.
The Body of Christopher Creed Carol Plum-Ucci When Christopher Creed, class loser, disappears, why does everyone want to blame Bo Richardson?
The Night My Sister Went Missing Carol Plum-Ucci Kurt doesn't understand what happened at first- but as the night goes on, horrible secrets are uncovered.
The boy from the basement Susan Shaw A twelve-year-old boy is confined to his basement without food or clothing
Project X Jim Shepard Edwin and Flake can't take any more- and they have a plan to put a stop to it.
Go Ask Alice Beatrice Sparks Alice's diary describes her slide into heavy drug use.
Kim: Empty Inside Beatrice Sparks Seventeen-year-old Kim, feeling the pressure of maintaining an A average to stay on her college gymnastics team, becomes obsessive about her weight and develops anorexia.
Give A Boy A Gun Todd Strasser Gary and Brendan are sick of being bullied, and they have a terrible plan to put an end to it.
Fair Game Erika Tamar High school senior Laura Jean is shocked when the school jocks are accused of gang-raping a retarded girl and her boyfriend Scott appears to be involved.
The Game Teresa Toten Dani and Kelly were always there for each other, like sisters should be. So why is Danni alone at Riverwood Clinic?
Inside Out Terry Trueman A sixteen-year-old with schizophrenia is caught up in the events surrounding an attempted robbery by two other teens who eventually hold him hostage.
The Rules of Survival Nancy Werlin Matt addresses the abuse he and his siblings suffered from their bipolar mother.
Memories of Summer Ruth White Lyric and her sister Summer have a hard time adjusting to the move from Glory Bottom, Virginia to Flint, Michigan.
NONFICTION
Please Stop Laughing at Me… Jodee Blanco A shocking, disturbing look at bullying and social torture, and an inspiring story of resilience and survival.
The Basketball DiariesJim CarrollThe rock singer's account of losing his chances at being a pro-basketball player because of drug use is searing.
Stick Figure: A diary of my former selfLori GottliebLori’s high school diary records her battles with bulimia.
Sickened: The Memoir of a Munchausen by Proxy ChildhoodJulie GregoryJulie tells her disturbing story about growing up suffering a rare form of child abuse, and her eventual, against-all-odds recovery.
SybilFlora Rheta SchrieberSybil is a true story based on one of the most severe cases of Multiple Personality Disorder and child abuse known.
Katie.com: My StoryKatherine TarboxKatie was 13 when she met Mark on the internet- it wasn't till they met in person that she found out that "Mark" was a pedophile in his 40s named Frank.
More Resources
Surviving the Roller Coaster: A Teen's Guide To Coping With Moods Jean Ford
Nothing to Be Ashamed Of: Growing Up With Mental Illness in Your FamilySherry Dinner
Respect: A Girl’s Guide to Getting Respect and Dealing When Your Line Is CrossedCourtney Macavinta and Andrea Vander Pluym
The Teenage Guy's Survival Guide Jeffrey Dandry
When Nothing Matters Anymore: A Survival Guide For Depressed Teens Bev Cobain
Teen Addiction Edited by Paul Winters
A Child Called It:: One Child's Courage to Survive Dave Pelzer
The Lost boy : A Foster Child's Search for the Love of a Family Dave Pelzer
The Privilege of Youth : A Teenager's Story of Longing for Acceptance and Friendship Dave Pelzer
A Man Named Dave : A Story of Triumph and Forgiveness Dave Pelzer
A Brother's Journey : Surviving a Childhood of AbuseRichard Pelzer
A Teenager's Journey : Overcoming a Childhood of Abuse Richard Pelzer
Twisted Laurie Halse Anderson 17 year old Tyler enjoys his tough reputation and the attentions of a popular girl, but when life starts to go bad again, he must choose between transforming himself or giving in to his destructive thoughts.
Speak Laurie Halse Anderson Melinda stops speaking after speaking up and calling the police at a party.
Alt Ed Catherine Atkins Susan and Brendan have to participate in a 12 week after-school group therapy session- or be expelled.
Candy Kevin Brooks Joe desperately wants to save beautiful Candy from a life of drug use and prostitution.
Smack Melvin Burgess Gemma and Tar run away from home, only to fall into the trap of heroin addiction.
The facts speak for themselves Brock Cole At the request of her social worker, thirteen-year-old Linda gradually reveals how her life with her unstable mother and her younger brother led to her rape and the murder she witnessed.
Just Listen Sarah Dessen Annabelle's reluctance to deal with confrontation has devastating results.
Party Girl Lynne Ewing Ana and Kata have always played together, and then they partied together. What will Ana do without her?
I Am an Artichoke Lucy Frank 15 year old Sarah is caught between a mother and her anorexic daughter.
Perfect Natasha Friend Isabelle's need to be perfect drives her to bulimia.
Fat Kid Rules the World K.L. Going 17-year old Troy gets a chance to play drums in a band with a homeless guitar genius.
Stone Cold Pete Hautman Sixteen-year-old Denn finds himself alienating both friends and family when he becomes obsessed with playing high-stakes poker with adult gamblers.
Second Star to the Right Deborah Hautzig Leslie can never be thin enough. Written by an author who suffered from anorexia.
Kissing Doorknobs Terry Spencer Hesser Fourteen-year-old Tara describes how her increasingly strange compulsions begin to take over her life and affect her relationships with her family and friends.
Crank Ellen Hopkins Kristina, the perfect daughter, has an alter-ego she calls Bree- and Bree is into crank.
You Don't Know Me David Klass John suffers abuse from his violent step-father.
Stoner and Spaz Ron Koertge Ben and Colleen are unlikely friends.
The Loser's Club John LeKich Alex has a way to deal with Jerry, the school bully.
Inexcusable Chris Lynch High school senior and football player Keir sets out to enjoy himself on graduation night, but when he attempts to comfort a friend whose date has left her stranded, things go terribly wrong.
RX Tracy Lynn Thyme is an honors student, popular, on student council, and a drug dealer.
Cut Patricia McCormick Callie is sent to Sea Pines, a therapy facility, to deal with her self-mutilation issues.
Anything to win Gloria Miklowitz To increase his chances of winning a college scholarship, a talented high school quarterback risks his health by taking anabolic steroids to gain weight
Past forgiving Gloria Miklowitz Fifteen-year-old Alexandra finds that her boyfriend Cliff demands all her time, isolates her by his jealousy, and finally becomes physically abusive.
Bottled up : a novel Jaye MurrayA high school boy comes to terms with his drug addiction, life with an alcoholic father, and a younger brother who looks up to him.
The Beast Walter Dean MyersA visit to his Harlem neighborhood and the discovery that the girl he loves is using drugs give sixteen-year-old Anthony Witherspoon a new perspective both on his home and on his life at a Connecticut prep school.
The Keeper Phyllis Reynolds NaylorJunior high school student Nick must face the fact that his father is plunging fast into serious mental illness.
Lisa Bright and Dark John Neufeld Lisa's family and teachers won't face her deep depression.
The Body of Christopher Creed Carol Plum-Ucci When Christopher Creed, class loser, disappears, why does everyone want to blame Bo Richardson?
The Night My Sister Went Missing Carol Plum-Ucci Kurt doesn't understand what happened at first- but as the night goes on, horrible secrets are uncovered.
The boy from the basement Susan Shaw A twelve-year-old boy is confined to his basement without food or clothing
Project X Jim Shepard Edwin and Flake can't take any more- and they have a plan to put a stop to it.
Go Ask Alice Beatrice Sparks Alice's diary describes her slide into heavy drug use.
Kim: Empty Inside Beatrice Sparks Seventeen-year-old Kim, feeling the pressure of maintaining an A average to stay on her college gymnastics team, becomes obsessive about her weight and develops anorexia.
Give A Boy A Gun Todd Strasser Gary and Brendan are sick of being bullied, and they have a terrible plan to put an end to it.
Fair Game Erika Tamar High school senior Laura Jean is shocked when the school jocks are accused of gang-raping a retarded girl and her boyfriend Scott appears to be involved.
The Game Teresa Toten Dani and Kelly were always there for each other, like sisters should be. So why is Danni alone at Riverwood Clinic?
Inside Out Terry Trueman A sixteen-year-old with schizophrenia is caught up in the events surrounding an attempted robbery by two other teens who eventually hold him hostage.
The Rules of Survival Nancy Werlin Matt addresses the abuse he and his siblings suffered from their bipolar mother.
Memories of Summer Ruth White Lyric and her sister Summer have a hard time adjusting to the move from Glory Bottom, Virginia to Flint, Michigan.
NONFICTION
Please Stop Laughing at Me… Jodee Blanco A shocking, disturbing look at bullying and social torture, and an inspiring story of resilience and survival.
The Basketball DiariesJim CarrollThe rock singer's account of losing his chances at being a pro-basketball player because of drug use is searing.
Stick Figure: A diary of my former selfLori GottliebLori’s high school diary records her battles with bulimia.
Sickened: The Memoir of a Munchausen by Proxy ChildhoodJulie GregoryJulie tells her disturbing story about growing up suffering a rare form of child abuse, and her eventual, against-all-odds recovery.
SybilFlora Rheta SchrieberSybil is a true story based on one of the most severe cases of Multiple Personality Disorder and child abuse known.
Katie.com: My StoryKatherine TarboxKatie was 13 when she met Mark on the internet- it wasn't till they met in person that she found out that "Mark" was a pedophile in his 40s named Frank.
More Resources
Surviving the Roller Coaster: A Teen's Guide To Coping With Moods Jean Ford
Nothing to Be Ashamed Of: Growing Up With Mental Illness in Your FamilySherry Dinner
Respect: A Girl’s Guide to Getting Respect and Dealing When Your Line Is CrossedCourtney Macavinta and Andrea Vander Pluym
The Teenage Guy's Survival Guide Jeffrey Dandry
When Nothing Matters Anymore: A Survival Guide For Depressed Teens Bev Cobain
Teen Addiction Edited by Paul Winters
Read-alikes for The Clique, or Gossip Girl
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The Insiders by J. Minter
The Insiders (2004)
Pass It On (2004)
Take It Off (2005)
Break Every Rule (2005)
Hold on Tight (2006)
Girls We Love (2006)
Inside Girl (2007)
Confessions series by Dyan Sheldon
Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
My Perfect Life-Confessions of a Hollywood Star
The It Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar
The It Girl (2005)
Notorious (2006)
Reckless (2006)
Unforgettable (2007)
Lucky (2007)
Tempted (2008)
Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar
Gossip Girl (2002)
You Know You Love Me (2002)
All I Want Is Everything (2003)
Because I'm Worth It (2003)
I Like It Like That (2004)
You're the One I Want (2004)
Nobody Does It Better (2005)
Nothing Can Keep Us Together (2005)
Only In Your Dreams (2006)
Would I Lie To You (2006)
Don't You Forget about Me (2007)
It Had to Be You: The Gossip Girl Prequel (2007)
Private by Kate Brian
Private: A Novel (2006)
Invitation Only (2006)
Untouchable (2006)
Confessions (2007)
Inner Circle (2007)
Secrets of My Hollywood Life by Jen Calonita
Secrets of My Hollwood Life: A Novel (2006)
Secrets of My Hollwood Life: On Location (2007)
Au Pairs by Melissa de la Cruz
The Au Pairs (2004)
Skinnydipping (2005)
Sun-Kissed (2006)
Crazy Hot (2007)
The A-List by Zoey Dean
The A-List (2003)
Girls on Film (2004)
Blonde Ambition (2004)
Tall Cool One (2005)
Back in Black (2005)
Some Like it Hot (2006)
American Beauty (2006)
Heart of Glass (2007)
Beautiful Stranger (2007)
California Dreaming (2008)
The Clique by Lisi Harrison
The Clique (2004)
Best Friends for Never (2004)
Revenge of the Wannabes (2005)
Invasion of the Boy Snatchers (2005)
The Pretty Committee Strikes Back (2006)
Dial L for Loser (2006)
It's Not Easy Being Mean (2007)
Sealed with a Diss (2007)
Bratfest at Tiffany’s (2008)
Poseur by Rachel Maude
The Rise and Fall of a 10th Grade Social Climber by Lauren Meekling and Laura Moser
The Insiders by J. Minter
The Insiders (2004)
Pass It On (2004)
Take It Off (2005)
Break Every Rule (2005)
Hold on Tight (2006)
Girls We Love (2006)
Inside Girl (2007)
Confessions series by Dyan Sheldon
Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
My Perfect Life-Confessions of a Hollywood Star
The It Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar
The It Girl (2005)
Notorious (2006)
Reckless (2006)
Unforgettable (2007)
Lucky (2007)
Tempted (2008)
Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar
Gossip Girl (2002)
You Know You Love Me (2002)
All I Want Is Everything (2003)
Because I'm Worth It (2003)
I Like It Like That (2004)
You're the One I Want (2004)
Nobody Does It Better (2005)
Nothing Can Keep Us Together (2005)
Only In Your Dreams (2006)
Would I Lie To You (2006)
Don't You Forget about Me (2007)
It Had to Be You: The Gossip Girl Prequel (2007)
Guitar Heroes and more
So you wanna be a superstar?
Live large, big house and five cars?
Check out these books about fortune and fame through music and acting .
Audrey, Wait!
Robin Benway
While trying to score a date with her cute co-worker at the Scooper Dooper, sixteen-year-old Audrey gains unwanted fame and celebrity status when her ex-boyfriend, a rock musician, records a breakup song about her that soars to the top of the Billboard charts.
Cherokee Bat and the Goat Guys
Francesca Lia Block
With their parents away, four young people form a rock band that becomes wildly popular, carrying them into a "freer" life than they can cope with.
Teen Idol
Meg Cabot
When teenage heartthrob Luke Stryker shows up at a small-town Indiana high school to do research for a movie role, he persuades junior Jenny Greenley to use her considerable talents to try to change things at school for the better.
Secrets of My Hollwood Life: A Novel
Jen Calonita
Longing to experience the life of a "normal" teenager, sixteen-year-old actress Kaitlin Burke assumes a false identity to attend a local high school.
Beige
Cecil Castelucci
Katy, a quiet French Canadian teenager, reluctantly leaves Montréal to spend time with her estranged father, an aging Los Angeles punk rock legend.
Pop Princess
Rachel Cohn
Yearning to escape the small Massachusetts town where her family retreated after her sister's death, Wonder Blake gets her chance when her sister's manager offers Wonder a record contract on her sixteenth birthday.
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
High school student Nick O'Leary, member of a rock band, meets college-bound Norah Silverberg and asks her to be his girlfriend for five minutes in order to avoid his ex-sweetheart.
LBD : it's a girl thing
Grace Dent
Barred by their overprotective parents from attending a rock music festival, fourteen-year-olds Ronnie, Fleur, and Claude, also known as "Les Bambinos Dangereuses," decide to stage their own music festival at Blackwell School.
This Lullabye
Sarah Dessen
Raised by a mother who's had five husbands, eighteen-year-old Remy believes in short-term, no-commitment relationships until she meets Dexter, a rock band musician.
Fat kid rules the world
K.L. Going
Seventeen-year-old Troy, depressed, suicidal, and weighing nearly 300 pounds, gets a new perspective on life when a homeless teenager who is a genius on guitar wants Troy to be the drummer in his rock band.
Lemonade Mouth
Mark Peter Hughes
A disparate group of Rhode Island high school students thrown together in detention form a band to play at a school talent show and end up competing with a wildly popular local rock band.
Heavy metal and you
Christopher
KrovatinHigh schooler Sam begins losing himself when he falls for a preppy girl who wants him to give up getting wasted with his best friends and even his passion for heavy metal music in order to become a better person.
Carbon Diaries 2015
Saci Lloyd
In 2015, when England becomes the first nation to introduce carbon dioxide rationing in a drastic bid to combat climate change, sixteen-year-old rock musicial Laura documents the first year of rationing as her family spirals out of control.
Guitar Girl Sarah ManningMolly, 17, never planned to reach pop stardom. She just enjoyed writing songs and playing music with her friends, Jane and Tara.
Rock star superstar Blake NelsonWhen Pete, a talented bass player, moves from playing in the high school jazz band to playing in a popular rock group, he finds the experience exhilarating even as his new fame jeopardizes his relationship with girlfriend Margaret.
Confessions of a backup dancer Tucker ShawKelly Kimball spent a summer as a backup dancer for Darcy Barnes, the biggest pop star in the world. Kelly's got the real story on Darcy, her life, her family, and her entourage -- and she's spilling it here for the first time. Glamour. Access. Scandal. Ever wonder what your favorite pop divas are like after the cameras stop rolling?
Drums, girls, & dangerous pie Jordan SonnenblickWhen his younger brother is diagnosed with leukemia, thirteen-year-old jazz drummer Steven tries to deal with his complicated emotions, his school life, and his desire to support his family.
Nobody Does it Better: A Gossip Girl novel Cecily von ZiegesarScandal abounds as the uptown girls take "time to shop, drink, eat, and make merry," winding up their days as Constance Billard students with a Senior Spa Day that is crashed by The Raves rock group and assorted other guys.
Beautiful city of the dead Leander WattsAfter joining a heavy metal band, high school student Zee learns that she is a god of water and is called upon to fight sinister forces that want her powers for their own.
The last days : a novel Scott WesterfeldAs an ancient evil stirs beneath the streets of New York City, infecting rats and people like a plague, five quirky teens come together to form a "New Sound" band whose music seems to have paranormal power.
Pay The Piper Jane YolenWhen Callie interviews the band, Brass Rat, for her school newspaper, her feelings are ambivalent, but when all the children of Northampton begin to disappear on Halloween, she knows where the dangerous search must begin.
Gangsta rap Benjamin ZephaniahWhen teenage Ray and his two friends, Prem and Tyronne, form a successful rap band in the London's East End where they live, they soon find themselves embroiled in increasingly violent gang warfare.
Live large, big house and five cars?
Check out these books about fortune and fame through music and acting .
Audrey, Wait!
Robin Benway
While trying to score a date with her cute co-worker at the Scooper Dooper, sixteen-year-old Audrey gains unwanted fame and celebrity status when her ex-boyfriend, a rock musician, records a breakup song about her that soars to the top of the Billboard charts.
Cherokee Bat and the Goat Guys
Francesca Lia Block
With their parents away, four young people form a rock band that becomes wildly popular, carrying them into a "freer" life than they can cope with.
Teen Idol
Meg Cabot
When teenage heartthrob Luke Stryker shows up at a small-town Indiana high school to do research for a movie role, he persuades junior Jenny Greenley to use her considerable talents to try to change things at school for the better.
Secrets of My Hollwood Life: A Novel
Jen Calonita
Longing to experience the life of a "normal" teenager, sixteen-year-old actress Kaitlin Burke assumes a false identity to attend a local high school.
Beige
Cecil Castelucci
Katy, a quiet French Canadian teenager, reluctantly leaves Montréal to spend time with her estranged father, an aging Los Angeles punk rock legend.
Pop Princess
Rachel Cohn
Yearning to escape the small Massachusetts town where her family retreated after her sister's death, Wonder Blake gets her chance when her sister's manager offers Wonder a record contract on her sixteenth birthday.
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
High school student Nick O'Leary, member of a rock band, meets college-bound Norah Silverberg and asks her to be his girlfriend for five minutes in order to avoid his ex-sweetheart.
LBD : it's a girl thing
Grace Dent
Barred by their overprotective parents from attending a rock music festival, fourteen-year-olds Ronnie, Fleur, and Claude, also known as "Les Bambinos Dangereuses," decide to stage their own music festival at Blackwell School.
This Lullabye
Sarah Dessen
Raised by a mother who's had five husbands, eighteen-year-old Remy believes in short-term, no-commitment relationships until she meets Dexter, a rock band musician.
Fat kid rules the world
K.L. Going
Seventeen-year-old Troy, depressed, suicidal, and weighing nearly 300 pounds, gets a new perspective on life when a homeless teenager who is a genius on guitar wants Troy to be the drummer in his rock band.
Lemonade Mouth
Mark Peter Hughes
A disparate group of Rhode Island high school students thrown together in detention form a band to play at a school talent show and end up competing with a wildly popular local rock band.
Heavy metal and you
Christopher
KrovatinHigh schooler Sam begins losing himself when he falls for a preppy girl who wants him to give up getting wasted with his best friends and even his passion for heavy metal music in order to become a better person.
Carbon Diaries 2015
Saci Lloyd
In 2015, when England becomes the first nation to introduce carbon dioxide rationing in a drastic bid to combat climate change, sixteen-year-old rock musicial Laura documents the first year of rationing as her family spirals out of control.
Guitar Girl Sarah ManningMolly, 17, never planned to reach pop stardom. She just enjoyed writing songs and playing music with her friends, Jane and Tara.
Rock star superstar Blake NelsonWhen Pete, a talented bass player, moves from playing in the high school jazz band to playing in a popular rock group, he finds the experience exhilarating even as his new fame jeopardizes his relationship with girlfriend Margaret.
Confessions of a backup dancer Tucker ShawKelly Kimball spent a summer as a backup dancer for Darcy Barnes, the biggest pop star in the world. Kelly's got the real story on Darcy, her life, her family, and her entourage -- and she's spilling it here for the first time. Glamour. Access. Scandal. Ever wonder what your favorite pop divas are like after the cameras stop rolling?
Drums, girls, & dangerous pie Jordan SonnenblickWhen his younger brother is diagnosed with leukemia, thirteen-year-old jazz drummer Steven tries to deal with his complicated emotions, his school life, and his desire to support his family.
Nobody Does it Better: A Gossip Girl novel Cecily von ZiegesarScandal abounds as the uptown girls take "time to shop, drink, eat, and make merry," winding up their days as Constance Billard students with a Senior Spa Day that is crashed by The Raves rock group and assorted other guys.
Beautiful city of the dead Leander WattsAfter joining a heavy metal band, high school student Zee learns that she is a god of water and is called upon to fight sinister forces that want her powers for their own.
The last days : a novel Scott WesterfeldAs an ancient evil stirs beneath the streets of New York City, infecting rats and people like a plague, five quirky teens come together to form a "New Sound" band whose music seems to have paranormal power.
Pay The Piper Jane YolenWhen Callie interviews the band, Brass Rat, for her school newspaper, her feelings are ambivalent, but when all the children of Northampton begin to disappear on Halloween, she knows where the dangerous search must begin.
Gangsta rap Benjamin ZephaniahWhen teenage Ray and his two friends, Prem and Tyronne, form a successful rap band in the London's East End where they live, they soon find themselves embroiled in increasingly violent gang warfare.
Fantasy After Harry
What to read next
The Lost Years of Merlin by T.A. Barron
This series for fans of myths, legends, magic, heroes, dragons, and ancient history. Lost in the mists of time, the series covers the adventures of the young wizard Merlin as he grows his power and wisdom in the years before he becomes chief advisor to King Arthur.
The Lost Years of Merlin (1996)
The Seven Songs of Merlin (1997)
The Fires of Merlin (1998)
The Mirror of Merlin (1999)
The Wings of Merlin (2000)
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Artemis Fowl is a notorious young criminal genius. Greed and sheer criminality lead Artemis and his friends, enemies, and in-betweens into conflict and trouble with fairies, goblins, and the like, with non-stop action the whole time. “Die Hard” with fairies.
Artemis Fowl (2001)
Artemis Fowl : The Arctic Incident (2002)
Artemis Fowl : The Eternity Code (2003)
Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception (2005)
Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony (2006)
The Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins
This series follows 11 year old Gregor’s prophesied adventures underground New York City, amongst groups of humans, bats, moles, and the strange creatures that live in the Underland. .
Gregor the Overlander (2003)
Gregor and The Prophesy of Bane (2004)
Gregor and The Curse of The Warmbloods (2005)
Gregor and The Marks of Secret(2006)
Gregor and the Code of Claw (2007)
City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
This excellent and thought provoking series starts in a post-apocalyptic society, where a small group of citizens make up the underground City of Ember– but the last resources are dwindling, and the infrastructure is crumbling. Lina and her friend Doon have to find a way to save their world– or a way to leave it.
The City Of Ember (2003)
The People of Sparks (2004)
The Prophet of Yonwood (2006)
Shadow Children by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Set in an overpopulated and resource deprived future, these books follow the saga of Luke Garner, a Shadow Child– a child born without official approval. Luke has to hide his true identity in order to survive, and to fight the oppressive government.
Among the Hidden (1998)
Among the Impostors (2001)
Among the Betrayed (2002)
Among the Barons (2003)
Among the Brave (2004)
Among the Enemy (2005)
Among the Free (2006)
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
This classic series follows the adventures of children who discover a way through space and time to a hidden world– Narnia, where magic, talking animals, and epic battles between good and evil take place.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)
Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia (1951)
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
The Silver Chair (1953)
The Horse and His Boy (1954)
The Magician’s Nephew (1955)
The Last Battle (1956)
Twilight by Stephanie MeyerFantasy/horror/gothic romance? All of the above. Bella Swan’s new life in Washington becomes complicated when her brooding new boyfriend turns out to be a vampire.
Twilight (2005)
New Moon (2006)
Eclipse (2007)
Charlie Bone, or The Red King Series by Jenny Nimmo
These books are for readers who love the magical boarding school idea. Admittedly similar in general plot premise to the Harry Potter books, Charlie’s skills and challenges are unique, and the series appeals those with a taste for the English-boarding-school flavor of fantasy..
Charlie Bone and The Wizard’s Rock (2002)
Charlie Bone and The Time Twister (2003)
Charlie Bone and The Invisible Boy (2004)
Charlie Bone and The Castle of Mirrors (2005)
Charlie Bone and The Council of the Firebird (2006)
Charlie Bone and The Beast (2007)
Immortals by Tamora Pierce
This series is for true lovers of fantasy. Set in the Kingdom of Tortall, which readers may recognize from Pierce’s other series, Song of the Lioness, heroine Daine’s “wild magic” enables her to communicate with animals. As her skills as a Mage develop, political intrigue and epic battles take place over the course of the series.
Wild Magic (1992)
Wolf-Speaker (1994)
The Emperor Mage (1995)
The Realms of the Gods (1996)
Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan
This series is for those who like the darker side of things– the main character, Darren, becomes a half-vampire after a visit to a bizarre freak-show, and the saga follows his adventures as he tries to adjust to his new life and fights evil.
Cirque du Freak (2001)
The Vampire's Assistant (2001)
Tunnels of Blood (2002)
Vampire Mountain (2002)
Trials of Death (2003)
The Vampire Prince (2004)
Hunters of the Dusk (2004)
Allies of the Night (2004)
Killers of the Dawn (2005)
The Lake of Souls (2005)
Lord of the Shadows (2006)
Sons of Destiny ((2006)
The Lord of The Rings by J.R. Tolkein
Classic high fantasy, done right. Hobbits, Elves, Orcs, Fairies, Dwarves, a vital quest, a heroic journey– the reason it might sound familiar is that this is the original. If you have any interest in fantasy at all, give this a try. Companion book: The Hobbit.
The Fellowship of the Ring (1954)
The Two Towers (1954)
The Return of The King (1955)
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
This fantastic series is exciting, thought provoking, and fun to read. Set in the not-too-distant future, the heroine Tally Youngblood must face societal pressure to become a “Pretty”- an adult who has had mandated plastic surgery to become both ‘beautiful’ and partially lobotomized. Tally’s struggle to maintain control over her life turns into a thrilling action-adventure.
Uglies (2005)
Pretties (2005)
Specials (2006)
Extras (2007)
The Lost Years of Merlin by T.A. Barron
This series for fans of myths, legends, magic, heroes, dragons, and ancient history. Lost in the mists of time, the series covers the adventures of the young wizard Merlin as he grows his power and wisdom in the years before he becomes chief advisor to King Arthur.
The Lost Years of Merlin (1996)
The Seven Songs of Merlin (1997)
The Fires of Merlin (1998)
The Mirror of Merlin (1999)
The Wings of Merlin (2000)
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Artemis Fowl is a notorious young criminal genius. Greed and sheer criminality lead Artemis and his friends, enemies, and in-betweens into conflict and trouble with fairies, goblins, and the like, with non-stop action the whole time. “Die Hard” with fairies.
Artemis Fowl (2001)
Artemis Fowl : The Arctic Incident (2002)
Artemis Fowl : The Eternity Code (2003)
Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception (2005)
Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony (2006)
The Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins
This series follows 11 year old Gregor’s prophesied adventures underground New York City, amongst groups of humans, bats, moles, and the strange creatures that live in the Underland. .
Gregor the Overlander (2003)
Gregor and The Prophesy of Bane (2004)
Gregor and The Curse of The Warmbloods (2005)
Gregor and The Marks of Secret(2006)
Gregor and the Code of Claw (2007)
City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
This excellent and thought provoking series starts in a post-apocalyptic society, where a small group of citizens make up the underground City of Ember– but the last resources are dwindling, and the infrastructure is crumbling. Lina and her friend Doon have to find a way to save their world– or a way to leave it.
The City Of Ember (2003)
The People of Sparks (2004)
The Prophet of Yonwood (2006)
Shadow Children by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Set in an overpopulated and resource deprived future, these books follow the saga of Luke Garner, a Shadow Child– a child born without official approval. Luke has to hide his true identity in order to survive, and to fight the oppressive government.
Among the Hidden (1998)
Among the Impostors (2001)
Among the Betrayed (2002)
Among the Barons (2003)
Among the Brave (2004)
Among the Enemy (2005)
Among the Free (2006)
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
This classic series follows the adventures of children who discover a way through space and time to a hidden world– Narnia, where magic, talking animals, and epic battles between good and evil take place.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)
Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia (1951)
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
The Silver Chair (1953)
The Horse and His Boy (1954)
The Magician’s Nephew (1955)
The Last Battle (1956)
Twilight by Stephanie MeyerFantasy/horror/gothic romance? All of the above. Bella Swan’s new life in Washington becomes complicated when her brooding new boyfriend turns out to be a vampire.
Twilight (2005)
New Moon (2006)
Eclipse (2007)
Charlie Bone, or The Red King Series by Jenny Nimmo
These books are for readers who love the magical boarding school idea. Admittedly similar in general plot premise to the Harry Potter books, Charlie’s skills and challenges are unique, and the series appeals those with a taste for the English-boarding-school flavor of fantasy..
Charlie Bone and The Wizard’s Rock (2002)
Charlie Bone and The Time Twister (2003)
Charlie Bone and The Invisible Boy (2004)
Charlie Bone and The Castle of Mirrors (2005)
Charlie Bone and The Council of the Firebird (2006)
Charlie Bone and The Beast (2007)
Immortals by Tamora Pierce
This series is for true lovers of fantasy. Set in the Kingdom of Tortall, which readers may recognize from Pierce’s other series, Song of the Lioness, heroine Daine’s “wild magic” enables her to communicate with animals. As her skills as a Mage develop, political intrigue and epic battles take place over the course of the series.
Wild Magic (1992)
Wolf-Speaker (1994)
The Emperor Mage (1995)
The Realms of the Gods (1996)
Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan
This series is for those who like the darker side of things– the main character, Darren, becomes a half-vampire after a visit to a bizarre freak-show, and the saga follows his adventures as he tries to adjust to his new life and fights evil.
Cirque du Freak (2001)
The Vampire's Assistant (2001)
Tunnels of Blood (2002)
Vampire Mountain (2002)
Trials of Death (2003)
The Vampire Prince (2004)
Hunters of the Dusk (2004)
Allies of the Night (2004)
Killers of the Dawn (2005)
The Lake of Souls (2005)
Lord of the Shadows (2006)
Sons of Destiny ((2006)
The Lord of The Rings by J.R. Tolkein
Classic high fantasy, done right. Hobbits, Elves, Orcs, Fairies, Dwarves, a vital quest, a heroic journey– the reason it might sound familiar is that this is the original. If you have any interest in fantasy at all, give this a try. Companion book: The Hobbit.
The Fellowship of the Ring (1954)
The Two Towers (1954)
The Return of The King (1955)
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
This fantastic series is exciting, thought provoking, and fun to read. Set in the not-too-distant future, the heroine Tally Youngblood must face societal pressure to become a “Pretty”- an adult who has had mandated plastic surgery to become both ‘beautiful’ and partially lobotomized. Tally’s struggle to maintain control over her life turns into a thrilling action-adventure.
Uglies (2005)
Pretties (2005)
Specials (2006)
Extras (2007)
Historical Fiction for Teens
Historical Fiction
Time travel is possible with books .
Little Women Louisa May Alcott (1868) During the Civil War, 4 Massachusetts sisters become women.
Fever, 1793 Laurie Halse Anderson. (2000) Mattie must survive Philadelphia’s yellow fever epidemic.
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austin (1813) The first romantic comedy! Elizabeth Bennet can’t stand Mr. Darcy– right?
Crispin: The Cross of Lead Avi (2002)13 year old Crispin must escape bounty hunters in 14th century England.
Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte (1847)Cathy and Heathcliff’s love destroys them both, and many around them.
A Northern Light Jennifer Donnelly (2003)Mattie’s life changes when a young woman drowning near the hotel where Mattie works turns out to be murder. Based on a true story, the murder took place in 1906.
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman Ernest Gaines (1971)This novel covers a hundred years of history, as Miss Jane reminisces about her life from just after the civil war to the beginning of the civil rights movement.
The Summer of My German Soldier. Bette Greene. When a WWII prison camp is built near her home in Arkansas, the last thing that Jewish Patty expects is to fall in love with Anton, an escapee.
Earthquake at Dawn Kristiana Gregory (1992)Edith and her maid Daisy get caught in the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and Edith discovers her passion for journalistic photography. Based on a true story.
Out of the Dust Karen Hesse (1997)A novel in verse, this book tells the story of Billie Jo, trying to overcome family tragedy during the gritty Dust Bowl years of the 1930s.
Soldier Boys Dean Hughes (2001)Dieter and Spence are both eager to join the military during WWII. What they experience in war will change them both.
Fallen Angels Walter Dean Myers (1989)Perry leaves Harlem to head to Vietnam in this excellent book about race, war, honor, and friendship.
Amistad David Pesci (1997)A group of Africans take over their slave ship, but then are captured and put on trial in 1839.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Betty Smith (1943)Francie Nolan grows up in a family that is struggling to support themselves in pre-WWI New York in this wonderful, must-read classic.
The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath (1963)Pressure to succeed leads Esther into a nervous breakdown in 1950’s America.
An Acquaintance With Darkness Ann Rinaldi (1997)When her mother dies and her best friend’s family is implicated in the assassination of President Lincoln, 14 year old Emily must go live with an uncle she suspects of immoral medical research.
Time travel is possible with books .
Little Women Louisa May Alcott (1868) During the Civil War, 4 Massachusetts sisters become women.
Fever, 1793 Laurie Halse Anderson. (2000) Mattie must survive Philadelphia’s yellow fever epidemic.
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austin (1813) The first romantic comedy! Elizabeth Bennet can’t stand Mr. Darcy– right?
Crispin: The Cross of Lead Avi (2002)13 year old Crispin must escape bounty hunters in 14th century England.
Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte (1847)Cathy and Heathcliff’s love destroys them both, and many around them.
A Northern Light Jennifer Donnelly (2003)Mattie’s life changes when a young woman drowning near the hotel where Mattie works turns out to be murder. Based on a true story, the murder took place in 1906.
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman Ernest Gaines (1971)This novel covers a hundred years of history, as Miss Jane reminisces about her life from just after the civil war to the beginning of the civil rights movement.
The Summer of My German Soldier. Bette Greene. When a WWII prison camp is built near her home in Arkansas, the last thing that Jewish Patty expects is to fall in love with Anton, an escapee.
Earthquake at Dawn Kristiana Gregory (1992)Edith and her maid Daisy get caught in the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and Edith discovers her passion for journalistic photography. Based on a true story.
Out of the Dust Karen Hesse (1997)A novel in verse, this book tells the story of Billie Jo, trying to overcome family tragedy during the gritty Dust Bowl years of the 1930s.
Soldier Boys Dean Hughes (2001)Dieter and Spence are both eager to join the military during WWII. What they experience in war will change them both.
Fallen Angels Walter Dean Myers (1989)Perry leaves Harlem to head to Vietnam in this excellent book about race, war, honor, and friendship.
Amistad David Pesci (1997)A group of Africans take over their slave ship, but then are captured and put on trial in 1839.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Betty Smith (1943)Francie Nolan grows up in a family that is struggling to support themselves in pre-WWI New York in this wonderful, must-read classic.
The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath (1963)Pressure to succeed leads Esther into a nervous breakdown in 1950’s America.
An Acquaintance With Darkness Ann Rinaldi (1997)When her mother dies and her best friend’s family is implicated in the assassination of President Lincoln, 14 year old Emily must go live with an uncle she suspects of immoral medical research.
Teen Vampire Booklist
Thirsty. M.T. Anderson. (1997). From the moment he knows that he is destined to be a vampire, Chris thirsts for the blood of people around him while also struggling to remain human.
Demon In My View. Amelia-Atwater Rhodes. (2001). Teenage writer Jessica becomes entangled with her own ghoulish characters.
In The Forests Of The Night .Amelia-Atwater Rhodes. (1999). 300 year old vampire Risika still looks 17– the age she was when she became immortal– and she is involved in a frightening mystery. Written when the author was 13 (!) this is a great introduction to her writing.
Shattered Mirror. Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. (2001).As seventeen-year-old Sarah, daughter of a powerful line of vampire-hunting witches, continues to pursue the ancient bloodsucker Nikolas, she finds herself in a dangerous friendship with two vampire siblings in her high school.
Glass Houses: The Morganville Vampires. Rachel Caine. (2006).When Claire decided to attend college early, she had no idea what she was going to learn. (Sequel: The Dead Girls’ Dance)
High School Bites. Liza Conrad. (2006). Having learned on her sixteenth birthday that Count Dracula exists and lives in her hometown of Seattle, Lucy tries to save herself and her friends while wondering whether her boyfriend is also a vampire.
The Vampire’s Promise. Caroline B. Cooney. (1993) A vampire holds a group of teenagers prisoners in his house. In order to be released, one must volunteer to stay behind.
Blue Bloods. Melissa de la Cruz. (2006). Select teenagers from some of New York City's wealthiest and most socially prominent families learn a startling secret about their bloodlines. (Sequel: Masquerade)
The Silver Kiss. Annette Curtis Klause. (1990).A mysterious teenage boy harboring a dark secret helps Zoe come to terms with her mother's terminal illness.
Gil’s All Fright Diner. A. Lee Martinez. (2005).Duke and Earl are just passing through Rockwood County in their pickup truck when they stop at the Diner for a quick bite to eat. They aren't planning to stick around-until Loretta, the eatery's owner, offers them $100 to take care of her zombie problem. Given that Duke is a werewolf and Earl's a vampire, this looks to be right up their alley.
Twilight, (2005) New Moon, (2006) and Eclipse (2007). Stephenie Meyer. When seventeen-year-old Bella leaves Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, she meets an exquisitely handsome boy at school for whom she feels an overwhelming attraction and who she comes to realize is not wholly human.
Vampire High. Douglas Rees. (2003). When his family moves from California to New Sodom, Massachusetts and Cody enters Vlad Dracul Magnet School, many things seem strange, from the dark-haired, pale-skinned, supernaturally strong students to Charon, the wolf who guides him around campus on the first day.
Braced 2 Bite. Serena Robar. (2006). When Colby Blanchard is attacked and turned into a half-vampire, her senior year of high school becomes surreal as she vacillates between trying to save her life and worrying about losing her place on the cheerleading squad.
Vampire Kisses. Ellen Schreiber. (2003). Sixteen-year-old Raven, an outcast who always wears black and hopes to become a vampire some day, falls in love with the mysterious new boy in town, eager to find out if he can make her dreams come true. (Sequel: Kissing Coffins)
Cirque du Freak series. Darren Shan. (2001)Darren becomes a half-vampire after a visit to a bizarre freak-show, and the saga follows his adventures as he tries to adjust to his new life and fights evil.
The Awakening. L.J. Smith. (1999). Elena is torn between two brothers- and it only further complicates things that they are vampires.
Vampirates: Demons of the Ocean. Justin Somper. (2005) When twins Connor and Grace's ship is wrecked in a storm and Connor is rescued by pirates, he believes that Grace has been taken aboard the mythical Vampirate's ship, and he is determined to find her.
Dracula. Bram Stoker. (1897). Jonathan Harker must try to defend his fiance Mina and her friend Lucy from the decadant Count Dracula.
Peeps. Scott Westerfeld. (2005). Cal Thompson is a carrier of a parasite that causes vampirism, and must hunt down all of the girlfriends he has unknowingly infected.
For older readers (Graphic elements)
Covenant with the Vampire. Jeanne Kalogridis. (1995). The first in a series of diaries of the family of Dracul.
‘Salem’s Lot. Stephen King. (1975). Ben and Susan don’t know exactly what is going on in their small town- but they know it feels evil.
Interview With the Vampire. Anne Rice. (1976). Louis, a vampire for 200 years, tells his story to a reporter in San Francisco.
Graphic novels with Vampire Themes
Vampire Knight. Matsui Hino. (2007). Cross Academy is attended by two groups of students: the day class and the night class. Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu are the guardians of the school, protecting the day class from the Academy's dark secret: the night class is full of vampires!
Vampire Game. Jason Judal. (2003). In this manga series, reincarnated vampires search for each other.
Vampire Loves. Joann Sfar. (2006). Ferdinand is a vampire- but he is too polite!
Tales of the Vampires. Joss Wheedon. (2004). This is based on the TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer.
Demon In My View. Amelia-Atwater Rhodes. (2001). Teenage writer Jessica becomes entangled with her own ghoulish characters.
In The Forests Of The Night .Amelia-Atwater Rhodes. (1999). 300 year old vampire Risika still looks 17– the age she was when she became immortal– and she is involved in a frightening mystery. Written when the author was 13 (!) this is a great introduction to her writing.
Shattered Mirror. Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. (2001).As seventeen-year-old Sarah, daughter of a powerful line of vampire-hunting witches, continues to pursue the ancient bloodsucker Nikolas, she finds herself in a dangerous friendship with two vampire siblings in her high school.
Glass Houses: The Morganville Vampires. Rachel Caine. (2006).When Claire decided to attend college early, she had no idea what she was going to learn. (Sequel: The Dead Girls’ Dance)
High School Bites. Liza Conrad. (2006). Having learned on her sixteenth birthday that Count Dracula exists and lives in her hometown of Seattle, Lucy tries to save herself and her friends while wondering whether her boyfriend is also a vampire.
The Vampire’s Promise. Caroline B. Cooney. (1993) A vampire holds a group of teenagers prisoners in his house. In order to be released, one must volunteer to stay behind.
Blue Bloods. Melissa de la Cruz. (2006). Select teenagers from some of New York City's wealthiest and most socially prominent families learn a startling secret about their bloodlines. (Sequel: Masquerade)
The Silver Kiss. Annette Curtis Klause. (1990).A mysterious teenage boy harboring a dark secret helps Zoe come to terms with her mother's terminal illness.
Gil’s All Fright Diner. A. Lee Martinez. (2005).Duke and Earl are just passing through Rockwood County in their pickup truck when they stop at the Diner for a quick bite to eat. They aren't planning to stick around-until Loretta, the eatery's owner, offers them $100 to take care of her zombie problem. Given that Duke is a werewolf and Earl's a vampire, this looks to be right up their alley.
Twilight, (2005) New Moon, (2006) and Eclipse (2007). Stephenie Meyer. When seventeen-year-old Bella leaves Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, she meets an exquisitely handsome boy at school for whom she feels an overwhelming attraction and who she comes to realize is not wholly human.
Vampire High. Douglas Rees. (2003). When his family moves from California to New Sodom, Massachusetts and Cody enters Vlad Dracul Magnet School, many things seem strange, from the dark-haired, pale-skinned, supernaturally strong students to Charon, the wolf who guides him around campus on the first day.
Braced 2 Bite. Serena Robar. (2006). When Colby Blanchard is attacked and turned into a half-vampire, her senior year of high school becomes surreal as she vacillates between trying to save her life and worrying about losing her place on the cheerleading squad.
Vampire Kisses. Ellen Schreiber. (2003). Sixteen-year-old Raven, an outcast who always wears black and hopes to become a vampire some day, falls in love with the mysterious new boy in town, eager to find out if he can make her dreams come true. (Sequel: Kissing Coffins)
Cirque du Freak series. Darren Shan. (2001)Darren becomes a half-vampire after a visit to a bizarre freak-show, and the saga follows his adventures as he tries to adjust to his new life and fights evil.
The Awakening. L.J. Smith. (1999). Elena is torn between two brothers- and it only further complicates things that they are vampires.
Vampirates: Demons of the Ocean. Justin Somper. (2005) When twins Connor and Grace's ship is wrecked in a storm and Connor is rescued by pirates, he believes that Grace has been taken aboard the mythical Vampirate's ship, and he is determined to find her.
Dracula. Bram Stoker. (1897). Jonathan Harker must try to defend his fiance Mina and her friend Lucy from the decadant Count Dracula.
Peeps. Scott Westerfeld. (2005). Cal Thompson is a carrier of a parasite that causes vampirism, and must hunt down all of the girlfriends he has unknowingly infected.
For older readers (Graphic elements)
Covenant with the Vampire. Jeanne Kalogridis. (1995). The first in a series of diaries of the family of Dracul.
‘Salem’s Lot. Stephen King. (1975). Ben and Susan don’t know exactly what is going on in their small town- but they know it feels evil.
Interview With the Vampire. Anne Rice. (1976). Louis, a vampire for 200 years, tells his story to a reporter in San Francisco.
Graphic novels with Vampire Themes
Vampire Knight. Matsui Hino. (2007). Cross Academy is attended by two groups of students: the day class and the night class. Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu are the guardians of the school, protecting the day class from the Academy's dark secret: the night class is full of vampires!
Vampire Game. Jason Judal. (2003). In this manga series, reincarnated vampires search for each other.
Vampire Loves. Joann Sfar. (2006). Ferdinand is a vampire- but he is too polite!
Tales of the Vampires. Joss Wheedon. (2004). This is based on the TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer.
Teens Sports Booklist
Baseball and Softball
Bull Catcher Alden Carter Pete and Jeff continue their friendship and love of baseball as they progress from ninth grade through high school in their small Wisconsin town.
Summerland Michael Chabon Ethan Feld, the worst baseball player in the history of the game, finds himself recruited by a 100-year-old scout to help a band of fairies triumph over an ancient enemy.
CPainting the Black Carl Deuker When star athlete Josh Daniels moves in across the street, Remy Ward doesn't realize how much his life will change during his senior year at Seattle's Crown Hill High.
Dean Duffy Randy Powell Eighteen-year-old Dean, a former high school baseball star whose future has been ruined by a batting slump and a bad arm, is offered a college baseball scholarship and finds himself uncertain of whether to take it.
Farm Team Will Weaver With his father in jail and his mother working full-time, 14-year-old Billy Baggs finds himself in charge of running the family farm in northern Minnesota and having to give up the thing he loves most--baseball.
Bat 6 Virginia Euwer Wolfe In small town, post-World War Oregon, twenty-one 6th grade girls recount the story of an annual softball game, during which one girl's bigotry comes to the surface.
Basketball
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie Budding cartoonist and basketball player Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Indian is the school mascot.
Ball, Don't Lie Matt de la Pena Seventeen-year-old Sticky lives to play basketball at school and at Lincoln Rec Center in Los Angeles and is headed for the pros, but he is unaware of the many dangers--including his own past--that threaten his dream.
Night Hoops Carl Deuker While trying to prove that he is good enough to be on his high school's varsity basketball team, Nick must also deal with his parents' divorce and erratic behavior of a troubled classmate who lives across the street.
On The Devil's Court Carl Deuker Struggling with his feelings of inadequacy and his failure to make the basketball team in his new school, seventeen-year-old Joe Faust finds himself willing to trade his soul for one perfect season of basketball.
Danger Zone David Klass When he joins a predominantly black "Teen Dream Team" that will be representing the United States in an international basketball tournament in Rome, Jimmy Doyle makes some unexpected discoveries about prejudice, racism, and politics.
Hoops Walter Dean Myers A teenage basketball player from Harlem is befriended by a former professional player who, after being forced to quit because of a point shaving scandal, hopes to prevent other young athletes from repeating his mistake.
Slam! Walter Dean Myers Sixteen-year-old "Slam" Harris is counting on his noteworthy basketball talents to get him out of the inner city and give him a chance to succeed in life, but his coach sees things differently.
Life, Love, and The Pursuit of Free Throws Jeanette Rallison High school freshmen Josie and Cami try to remain best friends as they compete for basketball awards and boys.
Black and White Paul Volponi Two star high school basketball players, one black and one white, experience the justice system differently after committing a crime together and getting caught.
BoxingThe Brave Robert Lipsyte Having left the Indian reservation for the streets of New York, seventeen-year-old boxer Sonny Bear tries to harness his inner rage by training with Alfred Brooks, who has left the sport to become a policeman.
Fighting Ruben Wolfe Marcus Zusak Partly because of their family's poor finances and partly to prove themselves, brothers Ruben and Cameron take jobs as fighters and find themselves reacting very differently in the boxing ring.
Dance and Ballet
On Pointe Lorie Ann Grover In this novel written in free verse, Clare and her grandfather must deal with changes in their lives when Clare's summer growth spurt threatens to end her dream of becoming a ballet dancer and her grandfather suffers a stroke.
Marie, Dancing Carolyn Meyer A fictionalized autobiography of Marie Van Goethem, the impoverished student from the Paris Opéra ballet school who became the model for Edgar Degas's famous sculpture, "The Little Dancer."
Another Way to Dance Martha Southgate Vicki's dream has been to attend the summer program at the School of American Ballet, and she is ready. What she wasn't ready for, though, was to be one of only two African American students in the entire program.
FootballImitate the Tiger Jan Cheripko A high school football player struggles with alcohol dependency and ends up at a rehab school for teenagers.
Roughnecks Thomas Cochran Travis Cody prepares for the final game of his high school football career, a rematch with his school's chief rival.
Running Loose Chris Crutcher A boy's senior year in high school goes awry when he's kicked off the football team for taking a stand against the coach, and his girlfriend is killed in a car accident.
Invisible Pete Hautman Doug and Andy are unlikely best friends--one a loner obsessed by his model trains, the other a popular student involved in football and theater--who grew up together and share a bond that nothing can sever.
Rash Pete Hautman In the year 2074, French fries are illegal, football has been banned, and running isn't just for your health anymore....
Necessary Roughness Marie Lee Sixteen-year-old Korean American Chan moves from Los Angeles to a small town in Minnesota, where he must cope not only with racism on the football team but also with the tensions in his relationship with his strict father.
Anything to Win Gloria Miklowitz To increase his chances of winning a college scholarship, a talented high school quarterback risks his health by taking anabolic steroids to gain weight.
Dairy Queen Catherine Murdock After spending her summer running the family farm and training the quarterback for her school's rival football team, sixteen-year-old D.J. decides to go out for the sport herself, not anticipating the reactions of those around her.. (Sequel: The Off Season)
Three Clams and an Oyster Randy Powell During their humorous search to find a fourth player for their flag football team, three high school juniors are forced to examine their long friendship, their individual flaws, and their inability to try new experiences.
Crash Jerry Spinelli Seventh-grader John "Crash" Coogan has always been comfortable with his tough, aggressive behavior, until his relationship with an unusual Quaker boy and his grandfather's stroke make him consider the meaning of friendship and the importance of family.
Hockey
Iceman Chris Lynch Fourteen-year-old Eric, a ruthless hockey player prone to violence on the ice, tries to reconcile his own needs with those of his parents.
RunningHeartbeat Sharon Creech Annie ponders the many rhythms of life the year that her mother becomes pregnant, her grandfather begins faltering, and her best friend (and running partner) becomes distant.
Rash Pete Hautman In the year 2074, French fries are illegal, football has been banned, and running isn't just for your health anymore....
SkiingThe Prince and the Snowgirl Simon Cheshire Tom Miller has been performing as a look-alike of Prince George of England for several years, but he finally decides to change his appearance and try to figure out who he really is when the real prince makes a surprise appearance while Tom is competing at the UK Inter-Schools Ski Championships in Scotland.
Bloomability Sharon Creech When her aunt and uncle take her from New Mexico to Lugano, Switzerland, to attend an international school, thirteen-year-old Dinnie discovers her world expanding.
SurfingGingerbread Rachel Cohn After being expelled from a fancy boarding school, Cyd Charisse's problems with her mother escalate after Cyd falls in love with a sensitive surfer and is subsequently sent from San Francisco to New York City to spend time with her biological father. (Sequel: Shrimp)
Amaryllis Craig Crist-Evans Jimmy and his older brother Frank share a love of surfing and their problems with a drunken father, until Frank turns eighteen and goes to Vietnam.
After Summer Nick Earls An Australian teen surfer feels bored while vacationing at his mother's beach house and is worried about passing his final examinations until he meets an attractive local girl.
Swimming
Whale Talk Chris Crutcher TJ shuns organized sports and the gung-ho athletes at his high school until he agrees to form a swimming team and recruits some of the school's less popular students.
These Are The Rules Paul Many Having quit his school's swim team, Colm tries to swim the lake at his family's summer home, at the same time working on his difficult relationship with his father and pondering the mystery of girls.
Tennis
Skeleton Key Anthony Horowitz Reluctant teenage-spy Alex Rider, on a routine mission at the Wimbledon tennis championships, gets caught up in Chinese gangs, illegal nuclear weapons, and the suspect plans of his Russian host, General Sarov.
The Whistling Toilets Randy Powell While coaching tennis for a group of inner city "runts" as well as for his friend Ginny, a star player, sixteen-year-old Stan grows in understanding himself and others.
Amazing Grace Megan Shull Grace “Ace” Kincaid, international teen tennis star, can’t take it any more.
Bull Catcher Alden Carter Pete and Jeff continue their friendship and love of baseball as they progress from ninth grade through high school in their small Wisconsin town.
Summerland Michael Chabon Ethan Feld, the worst baseball player in the history of the game, finds himself recruited by a 100-year-old scout to help a band of fairies triumph over an ancient enemy.
CPainting the Black Carl Deuker When star athlete Josh Daniels moves in across the street, Remy Ward doesn't realize how much his life will change during his senior year at Seattle's Crown Hill High.
Dean Duffy Randy Powell Eighteen-year-old Dean, a former high school baseball star whose future has been ruined by a batting slump and a bad arm, is offered a college baseball scholarship and finds himself uncertain of whether to take it.
Farm Team Will Weaver With his father in jail and his mother working full-time, 14-year-old Billy Baggs finds himself in charge of running the family farm in northern Minnesota and having to give up the thing he loves most--baseball.
Bat 6 Virginia Euwer Wolfe In small town, post-World War Oregon, twenty-one 6th grade girls recount the story of an annual softball game, during which one girl's bigotry comes to the surface.
Basketball
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie Budding cartoonist and basketball player Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Indian is the school mascot.
Ball, Don't Lie Matt de la Pena Seventeen-year-old Sticky lives to play basketball at school and at Lincoln Rec Center in Los Angeles and is headed for the pros, but he is unaware of the many dangers--including his own past--that threaten his dream.
Night Hoops Carl Deuker While trying to prove that he is good enough to be on his high school's varsity basketball team, Nick must also deal with his parents' divorce and erratic behavior of a troubled classmate who lives across the street.
On The Devil's Court Carl Deuker Struggling with his feelings of inadequacy and his failure to make the basketball team in his new school, seventeen-year-old Joe Faust finds himself willing to trade his soul for one perfect season of basketball.
Danger Zone David Klass When he joins a predominantly black "Teen Dream Team" that will be representing the United States in an international basketball tournament in Rome, Jimmy Doyle makes some unexpected discoveries about prejudice, racism, and politics.
Hoops Walter Dean Myers A teenage basketball player from Harlem is befriended by a former professional player who, after being forced to quit because of a point shaving scandal, hopes to prevent other young athletes from repeating his mistake.
Slam! Walter Dean Myers Sixteen-year-old "Slam" Harris is counting on his noteworthy basketball talents to get him out of the inner city and give him a chance to succeed in life, but his coach sees things differently.
Life, Love, and The Pursuit of Free Throws Jeanette Rallison High school freshmen Josie and Cami try to remain best friends as they compete for basketball awards and boys.
Black and White Paul Volponi Two star high school basketball players, one black and one white, experience the justice system differently after committing a crime together and getting caught.
BoxingThe Brave Robert Lipsyte Having left the Indian reservation for the streets of New York, seventeen-year-old boxer Sonny Bear tries to harness his inner rage by training with Alfred Brooks, who has left the sport to become a policeman.
Fighting Ruben Wolfe Marcus Zusak Partly because of their family's poor finances and partly to prove themselves, brothers Ruben and Cameron take jobs as fighters and find themselves reacting very differently in the boxing ring.
Dance and Ballet
On Pointe Lorie Ann Grover In this novel written in free verse, Clare and her grandfather must deal with changes in their lives when Clare's summer growth spurt threatens to end her dream of becoming a ballet dancer and her grandfather suffers a stroke.
Marie, Dancing Carolyn Meyer A fictionalized autobiography of Marie Van Goethem, the impoverished student from the Paris Opéra ballet school who became the model for Edgar Degas's famous sculpture, "The Little Dancer."
Another Way to Dance Martha Southgate Vicki's dream has been to attend the summer program at the School of American Ballet, and she is ready. What she wasn't ready for, though, was to be one of only two African American students in the entire program.
FootballImitate the Tiger Jan Cheripko A high school football player struggles with alcohol dependency and ends up at a rehab school for teenagers.
Roughnecks Thomas Cochran Travis Cody prepares for the final game of his high school football career, a rematch with his school's chief rival.
Running Loose Chris Crutcher A boy's senior year in high school goes awry when he's kicked off the football team for taking a stand against the coach, and his girlfriend is killed in a car accident.
Invisible Pete Hautman Doug and Andy are unlikely best friends--one a loner obsessed by his model trains, the other a popular student involved in football and theater--who grew up together and share a bond that nothing can sever.
Rash Pete Hautman In the year 2074, French fries are illegal, football has been banned, and running isn't just for your health anymore....
Necessary Roughness Marie Lee Sixteen-year-old Korean American Chan moves from Los Angeles to a small town in Minnesota, where he must cope not only with racism on the football team but also with the tensions in his relationship with his strict father.
Anything to Win Gloria Miklowitz To increase his chances of winning a college scholarship, a talented high school quarterback risks his health by taking anabolic steroids to gain weight.
Dairy Queen Catherine Murdock After spending her summer running the family farm and training the quarterback for her school's rival football team, sixteen-year-old D.J. decides to go out for the sport herself, not anticipating the reactions of those around her.. (Sequel: The Off Season)
Three Clams and an Oyster Randy Powell During their humorous search to find a fourth player for their flag football team, three high school juniors are forced to examine their long friendship, their individual flaws, and their inability to try new experiences.
Crash Jerry Spinelli Seventh-grader John "Crash" Coogan has always been comfortable with his tough, aggressive behavior, until his relationship with an unusual Quaker boy and his grandfather's stroke make him consider the meaning of friendship and the importance of family.
Hockey
Iceman Chris Lynch Fourteen-year-old Eric, a ruthless hockey player prone to violence on the ice, tries to reconcile his own needs with those of his parents.
RunningHeartbeat Sharon Creech Annie ponders the many rhythms of life the year that her mother becomes pregnant, her grandfather begins faltering, and her best friend (and running partner) becomes distant.
Rash Pete Hautman In the year 2074, French fries are illegal, football has been banned, and running isn't just for your health anymore....
SkiingThe Prince and the Snowgirl Simon Cheshire Tom Miller has been performing as a look-alike of Prince George of England for several years, but he finally decides to change his appearance and try to figure out who he really is when the real prince makes a surprise appearance while Tom is competing at the UK Inter-Schools Ski Championships in Scotland.
Bloomability Sharon Creech When her aunt and uncle take her from New Mexico to Lugano, Switzerland, to attend an international school, thirteen-year-old Dinnie discovers her world expanding.
SurfingGingerbread Rachel Cohn After being expelled from a fancy boarding school, Cyd Charisse's problems with her mother escalate after Cyd falls in love with a sensitive surfer and is subsequently sent from San Francisco to New York City to spend time with her biological father. (Sequel: Shrimp)
Amaryllis Craig Crist-Evans Jimmy and his older brother Frank share a love of surfing and their problems with a drunken father, until Frank turns eighteen and goes to Vietnam.
After Summer Nick Earls An Australian teen surfer feels bored while vacationing at his mother's beach house and is worried about passing his final examinations until he meets an attractive local girl.
Swimming
Whale Talk Chris Crutcher TJ shuns organized sports and the gung-ho athletes at his high school until he agrees to form a swimming team and recruits some of the school's less popular students.
These Are The Rules Paul Many Having quit his school's swim team, Colm tries to swim the lake at his family's summer home, at the same time working on his difficult relationship with his father and pondering the mystery of girls.
Tennis
Skeleton Key Anthony Horowitz Reluctant teenage-spy Alex Rider, on a routine mission at the Wimbledon tennis championships, gets caught up in Chinese gangs, illegal nuclear weapons, and the suspect plans of his Russian host, General Sarov.
The Whistling Toilets Randy Powell While coaching tennis for a group of inner city "runts" as well as for his friend Ginny, a star player, sixteen-year-old Stan grows in understanding himself and others.
Amazing Grace Megan Shull Grace “Ace” Kincaid, international teen tennis star, can’t take it any more.
Writing Without Rules Stories told in verse, IM’s, through emails and letters
Writing Without Rules
Stories told in verse, IM’s, through emails and letters…in writing,there areNO RULES.
NuGrl 90 : Sadie Cheryl Dellasega
Fifteen-year-old Sadie writes on her blog about having to move to a new high school at the beginning of sophomore year due to her parents' divorce, finding and losing a true love and a best friend, and being in therapy and taking antidepressants.
Who Killed Mr. Chippendale Mel Glenn Free verse poems describe the reactions of students, colleagues, and others when a high school teacher is shot to death as the school day begins.
Jazmin's Notebook Nikki Grimes Jazmin, an Afro-American teenager who lives with her older sister in a small Harlem apartment in the 1960s, finds strength in writing poetry and keeping a record of the events in her sometimes difficult life.
On Pointe Lorie Ann Grover In this novel written in free verse, Clare and her grandfather must deal with changes in their lives when Clare's summer growth spurt threatens to end her dream of becoming a ballet dancer and her grandfather suffers a stroke.
CrashBoomLove Juan Felipe Herrera After his father leaves home, sixteen-year-old Cesar Garcia lives with his mother and struggles through the painful experiences of growing up as a Mexican American high school student.
Love, Ghosts, and Facial Hair Steven Herrick Jack's got a lot on his mind: He's trying to figure out the mystery of the opposite sex, he can't stop wondering about facial hair, and he won't let go of his mother's ghost, even though she died seven years ago. Jack knows he can't hang on to the past forever, but what he doesn't know is how to let go.
Out of the Dust Karen Hesse In a series of poems, fifteen-year-old Billie Jo relates the hardships of living on her family's wheat farm in Oklahoma during the dust bowl years of the Depression.
Witness Karen Hesse A series of poems express the views of various people in a small Vermont town, including a young black girl and a young Jewish girl, during the early 1920s when the Ku Klux Klan is trying to infiltrate the town.
Crank Ellen Hopkins Kristina Georgia Snow is the perfect daughter, gifted high school junior, quiet, never any trouble. But on a trip to visit her absentee father, Kristina disappears and Bree takes her place. Bree is the exact opposite of Kristina. Through a boy, Bree meets the monster: crank. And what begins as a wild ecstatic ride turns into a struggle through hell for her mind, her soul - her life.
Burned Ellen HopkinsSeventeen-year-old Pattyn, the eldest daughter in a large Mormon family, is sent to her aunt's Nevada ranch for the summer, where she temporarily escapes her alcoholic, abusive father and finds love and acceptance, only to lose everything when she returns home.
Monster Walter Dean MyersWhile on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script as he tries to come to terms with the course his life has taken.
TTYL Lauren Myracle Chronicles, in "instant message" format, the day-to-day experiences, feelings, and plans of three friends, Zoe, Maddie, and Angela, as they begin tenth grade. (Sequel: TTFN)
TTFN Lauren Myracle Now high school juniors, Zoe, Maddie, and Angela continue to share "instant messages" with one another as one of them experiments with marijuana, another gets her first boyfriend, and the third moves three thousand miles away. (Sequel: L8R G8R)
An Order of Amelie, Hold the Fries Nina Schindler This story is told in a series of notes, text messages, letters, and emails, mostly between Tim and Amelie. Tim is walking on the street one day, watching a beautiful girl, when, miraculously, a scrap of paper falls out of her bag--with a name and address on it!
What My Mother Doesn’t Know Sonya SonesSophie describes her relationships with a series of boys as she searches for Mr. Right.
One of Those Hideous Books Where The Mother Dies Sonya Sones Fifteen-year-old Ruby Milliken leaves her best friend, her boyfriend, her aunt, and her mother's grave in Boston and reluctantly flies to Los Angeles to live with her father, a famous movie star who divorced her mother before Ruby was born.
Jinx Margaret Wild With the help of her understanding mother and a close friend, Jen eventually outgrows her nickname, Jinx, and deals with the deaths of two boys with whom she had been involved.
Make Lemonade Virginia Ewer Wolff In order to earn money for college, fourteen-year-old LaVaughn babysits for a teenage mother.
True Believer Virginia Ewer Wolff Living in the inner city amidst guns and poverty, fifteen-year-old LaVaughn learns from old and new friends, and inspiring mentors, that life is what you make it--an occasion to rise to.
Stories told in verse, IM’s, through emails and letters…in writing,there areNO RULES.
NuGrl 90 : Sadie Cheryl Dellasega
Fifteen-year-old Sadie writes on her blog about having to move to a new high school at the beginning of sophomore year due to her parents' divorce, finding and losing a true love and a best friend, and being in therapy and taking antidepressants.
Who Killed Mr. Chippendale Mel Glenn Free verse poems describe the reactions of students, colleagues, and others when a high school teacher is shot to death as the school day begins.
Jazmin's Notebook Nikki Grimes Jazmin, an Afro-American teenager who lives with her older sister in a small Harlem apartment in the 1960s, finds strength in writing poetry and keeping a record of the events in her sometimes difficult life.
On Pointe Lorie Ann Grover In this novel written in free verse, Clare and her grandfather must deal with changes in their lives when Clare's summer growth spurt threatens to end her dream of becoming a ballet dancer and her grandfather suffers a stroke.
CrashBoomLove Juan Felipe Herrera After his father leaves home, sixteen-year-old Cesar Garcia lives with his mother and struggles through the painful experiences of growing up as a Mexican American high school student.
Love, Ghosts, and Facial Hair Steven Herrick Jack's got a lot on his mind: He's trying to figure out the mystery of the opposite sex, he can't stop wondering about facial hair, and he won't let go of his mother's ghost, even though she died seven years ago. Jack knows he can't hang on to the past forever, but what he doesn't know is how to let go.
Out of the Dust Karen Hesse In a series of poems, fifteen-year-old Billie Jo relates the hardships of living on her family's wheat farm in Oklahoma during the dust bowl years of the Depression.
Witness Karen Hesse A series of poems express the views of various people in a small Vermont town, including a young black girl and a young Jewish girl, during the early 1920s when the Ku Klux Klan is trying to infiltrate the town.
Crank Ellen Hopkins Kristina Georgia Snow is the perfect daughter, gifted high school junior, quiet, never any trouble. But on a trip to visit her absentee father, Kristina disappears and Bree takes her place. Bree is the exact opposite of Kristina. Through a boy, Bree meets the monster: crank. And what begins as a wild ecstatic ride turns into a struggle through hell for her mind, her soul - her life.
Burned Ellen HopkinsSeventeen-year-old Pattyn, the eldest daughter in a large Mormon family, is sent to her aunt's Nevada ranch for the summer, where she temporarily escapes her alcoholic, abusive father and finds love and acceptance, only to lose everything when she returns home.
Monster Walter Dean MyersWhile on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script as he tries to come to terms with the course his life has taken.
TTYL Lauren Myracle Chronicles, in "instant message" format, the day-to-day experiences, feelings, and plans of three friends, Zoe, Maddie, and Angela, as they begin tenth grade. (Sequel: TTFN)
TTFN Lauren Myracle Now high school juniors, Zoe, Maddie, and Angela continue to share "instant messages" with one another as one of them experiments with marijuana, another gets her first boyfriend, and the third moves three thousand miles away. (Sequel: L8R G8R)
An Order of Amelie, Hold the Fries Nina Schindler This story is told in a series of notes, text messages, letters, and emails, mostly between Tim and Amelie. Tim is walking on the street one day, watching a beautiful girl, when, miraculously, a scrap of paper falls out of her bag--with a name and address on it!
What My Mother Doesn’t Know Sonya SonesSophie describes her relationships with a series of boys as she searches for Mr. Right.
One of Those Hideous Books Where The Mother Dies Sonya Sones Fifteen-year-old Ruby Milliken leaves her best friend, her boyfriend, her aunt, and her mother's grave in Boston and reluctantly flies to Los Angeles to live with her father, a famous movie star who divorced her mother before Ruby was born.
Jinx Margaret Wild With the help of her understanding mother and a close friend, Jen eventually outgrows her nickname, Jinx, and deals with the deaths of two boys with whom she had been involved.
Make Lemonade Virginia Ewer Wolff In order to earn money for college, fourteen-year-old LaVaughn babysits for a teenage mother.
True Believer Virginia Ewer Wolff Living in the inner city amidst guns and poverty, fifteen-year-old LaVaughn learns from old and new friends, and inspiring mentors, that life is what you make it--an occasion to rise to.
Sticks and Stones: FICTION ABOUT FITTING IN, BEING DIFFERENT AND FINDING YOUR IDENTITY
Sticks and Stones...
FICTION ABOUT FITTING IN, BEING DIFFERENT AND FINDING YOUR IDENTITY
Speak Laurie Halse Anderson A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect of Melinda's freshman year in high school.
Alt Ed Catherine Atkins Participating in a special after-school counseling class with other troubled students, including a sensitive gay classmate, helps Susan, an overweight tenth grader, develop a better sense of herself.
Stand tall Joan Bauer Tree, a six-foot-three-inch twelve-year-old, copes with his parents' recent divorce and his failure as an athlete by helping his grandfather, a Vietnam vet and recent amputee, and Sophie, a new girl at school.
Life in the Fat Lane Cherie Bennett Sixteen-year-old Lara, winner of beauty pageants and Homecoming Queen, is distressed and bewildered when she starts gaining weight and becomes a fat girl.
Runt V.M. Caldwell Although he tries to make a home with his older sister and her boyfriend after his mother's death, twelve-year-old Runt feels like an outsider until a young cancer patient and his family show him how life can become more meaningful.
Whale Talk Chris Cutcher J.T. Jones is stuck with the task of creating a swim team made up of all the geeks from his high school, including him. Can he make the team a success?
Geography Club Brent Hartinger A group of gay and lesbian teenagers form the “Geography Club” after school, the only place they can be themselves.
Invisible Pete Hautman Doug and Andy are unlikely best friends--one a loner obsessed by his model trains, the other a popular student involved in football and theater--who grew up together and share a bond that nothing can sever.
The Misfits James Howe Four students who do not fit in at their small-town middle school decide to create a third party for the student council elections to represent all students who have ever been called names.
Alice, I Think Susan Juby Fifteen-year-old Alice keeps a diary as she struggles to cope with the embarrassments and trials of family, dating, school, work, small town life, and a serious case of "outcastitis."
Flowers for Algernon Daniel Keyes The experimental operation to increase Charly's intelligence works, and he suddenly understands that people have been laughing at him instead of with him all along.
Carrie Stephen King A high school girl who has been bullied and tormented by her peers deals out a deadly revenge.
Losers’ Club John Lekich All the school losers turn to Alex "Savior" Sherwood to protect them from Jerry Whitman and his extortion ring. But what is a loser, really? This funny, feisty novel delivers some surprises and poses big questions about being true to yourself.
What Happened to Lani Garver Carol Plum-Ucci The close-knit residents of Hackett Island have never seen anyone quite like Lani Garver. Everything about this new kid is a mystery: Where does Lani come from? How old is Lani? And most disturbing of all, is Lani a boy or a girl?
The Body of Christopher Creed Carol Plum-Ucci Torey Adams, a high school junior with a seemingly perfect life, struggles with doubts and questions surrounding the mysterious disappearance of the class outcast.
Project X Jim Shepard Two high school loners create a terrible plan for revenge on those who bullied them.
Loser Jerry Spinelli Even though his classmates from first grade on have considered him strange and a loser, Daniel Zinkoff's optimism and exuberance and the support of his loving family do not allow him to feel that way about himself.
Stargirl Jerry Spinelli In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.
Crash Jerry Spinelli Seventh-grader John "Crash" Coogan has always been comfortable with his tough, aggressive behavior, until his relationship with an unusual Quaker boy and his grandfather's stroke make him consider the meaning of friendship and the importance of family.
The Gospel According to Larry Janet Tashjian Seventeen-year-old Josh, a loner-philosopher who wants to make a difference in the world, tries to maintain his secret identity as the author of a web site that is receiving national attention.
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town Kimberly Holt Willis During the summer of 1971 in a small Texas town, thirteen-year-old Toby and his best friend Cal meet the star of a sideshow act, 600-pound Zachary, the fattest boy in the world.
Probably Still Nick Swansen Virginia Euwer Wolff
Sixteen-year-old learning-disabled Nick struggles to endure a life in which the other kids make fun of him, he has to take special classes, his date for the prom makes an excuse not to go with him, and he is haunted by the memory of his older sister who drowned while he was watching.
FICTION ABOUT FITTING IN, BEING DIFFERENT AND FINDING YOUR IDENTITY
Speak Laurie Halse Anderson A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect of Melinda's freshman year in high school.
Alt Ed Catherine Atkins Participating in a special after-school counseling class with other troubled students, including a sensitive gay classmate, helps Susan, an overweight tenth grader, develop a better sense of herself.
Stand tall Joan Bauer Tree, a six-foot-three-inch twelve-year-old, copes with his parents' recent divorce and his failure as an athlete by helping his grandfather, a Vietnam vet and recent amputee, and Sophie, a new girl at school.
Life in the Fat Lane Cherie Bennett Sixteen-year-old Lara, winner of beauty pageants and Homecoming Queen, is distressed and bewildered when she starts gaining weight and becomes a fat girl.
Runt V.M. Caldwell Although he tries to make a home with his older sister and her boyfriend after his mother's death, twelve-year-old Runt feels like an outsider until a young cancer patient and his family show him how life can become more meaningful.
Whale Talk Chris Cutcher J.T. Jones is stuck with the task of creating a swim team made up of all the geeks from his high school, including him. Can he make the team a success?
Geography Club Brent Hartinger A group of gay and lesbian teenagers form the “Geography Club” after school, the only place they can be themselves.
Invisible Pete Hautman Doug and Andy are unlikely best friends--one a loner obsessed by his model trains, the other a popular student involved in football and theater--who grew up together and share a bond that nothing can sever.
The Misfits James Howe Four students who do not fit in at their small-town middle school decide to create a third party for the student council elections to represent all students who have ever been called names.
Alice, I Think Susan Juby Fifteen-year-old Alice keeps a diary as she struggles to cope with the embarrassments and trials of family, dating, school, work, small town life, and a serious case of "outcastitis."
Flowers for Algernon Daniel Keyes The experimental operation to increase Charly's intelligence works, and he suddenly understands that people have been laughing at him instead of with him all along.
Carrie Stephen King A high school girl who has been bullied and tormented by her peers deals out a deadly revenge.
Losers’ Club John Lekich All the school losers turn to Alex "Savior" Sherwood to protect them from Jerry Whitman and his extortion ring. But what is a loser, really? This funny, feisty novel delivers some surprises and poses big questions about being true to yourself.
What Happened to Lani Garver Carol Plum-Ucci The close-knit residents of Hackett Island have never seen anyone quite like Lani Garver. Everything about this new kid is a mystery: Where does Lani come from? How old is Lani? And most disturbing of all, is Lani a boy or a girl?
The Body of Christopher Creed Carol Plum-Ucci Torey Adams, a high school junior with a seemingly perfect life, struggles with doubts and questions surrounding the mysterious disappearance of the class outcast.
Project X Jim Shepard Two high school loners create a terrible plan for revenge on those who bullied them.
Loser Jerry Spinelli Even though his classmates from first grade on have considered him strange and a loser, Daniel Zinkoff's optimism and exuberance and the support of his loving family do not allow him to feel that way about himself.
Stargirl Jerry Spinelli In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.
Crash Jerry Spinelli Seventh-grader John "Crash" Coogan has always been comfortable with his tough, aggressive behavior, until his relationship with an unusual Quaker boy and his grandfather's stroke make him consider the meaning of friendship and the importance of family.
The Gospel According to Larry Janet Tashjian Seventeen-year-old Josh, a loner-philosopher who wants to make a difference in the world, tries to maintain his secret identity as the author of a web site that is receiving national attention.
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town Kimberly Holt Willis During the summer of 1971 in a small Texas town, thirteen-year-old Toby and his best friend Cal meet the star of a sideshow act, 600-pound Zachary, the fattest boy in the world.
Probably Still Nick Swansen Virginia Euwer Wolff
Sixteen-year-old learning-disabled Nick struggles to endure a life in which the other kids make fun of him, he has to take special classes, his date for the prom makes an excuse not to go with him, and he is haunted by the memory of his older sister who drowned while he was watching.
Love Stories for Teens
Fiction
Summer Boys Hailey Abbot
Three cousins embrace summer while vacationing in Maine.
Squashed Joan Bauer
A 16-year-old pursues her two goals--growing the biggest pumpkin in Iowa and losing twenty pounds herself while strengthening her relationship with her father and meets a young man with interests similar to her own.
24 Girls in 7 Days Alex Bradley
Jack Grammar, average American senior, has no date to the prom. Or so he thinks.
Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte
The tale of the passionate yet thwarted love between Heathcliff and Catherine, and how their doomed romance eventually destroys both themselves and many around them.
Honey, Baby, Sweetheart Deb Caletti
In the summer of her junior year, 16-year-old Ruby McQueen and her mother, both nursing broken hearts, set out on a journey to reunite an elderly woman with her long-lost love.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower Stephen Chbosky
A tale of adolescence whose hero is Charlie, a high school freshman in Pennsylvania. The novel follows Charlie as he is introduced to love, literature and more.
Truth or Dairy Catherine Clark
17-year-old Courtney Von Dragen Smith, who finds solace in a diary after being dumped by her college-bound boyfriend, Dave, at the beginning o f senior year.
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist Rachel Cohn
High school student Nick O'Leary, member of a rock band, meets college-bound Norah Silverberg and asks her to be his girlfriend for five minutes in order to avoid his ex-sweetheart.
The Truth About Forever Sarah Dessen
The summer following her father's death, Macy plans to work at the library and wait for her brainy boyfriend to return from camp, but instead she goes to work at a catering business where she makes new friends and finally faces her grief.
Someone Like You Sarah Dessen
Halley's junior year of high school includes the death of her best friend Scarlett's boyfriend, the discovery that Scarlett is pregnant, and Halley's own first serious relationship.
this lullaby Sarah Dessen
Raised by a mother who's had five husbands, eighteen-year-old Remy believes in short-term, no-commitment relationships until she meets Dexter, a rock band musician.
After Summer Nick Earls
An Australian teenager feels bored while vacationing at his mother's beach house and is worried about passing his final examinations until he meets an attractive local girl.
Will You Be My Brussels Sprout? Lucy Frank
An aspiring 16-year-old cellist falls in love with her friend's older brother and finds that the relationship is moving too quickly.
A Girl Named Summer Julie Garwood
15-year-old Summer falls hard for athletic, preppy David; loses him to an unworthy, manipulative
female foe; and then wins him back.
Koertge- The Arizona Kid
16-year-old Billy comes to terms with his own values when he is sent to live with his gay uncle in Tucson and is introduced to the world of rodeos where he falls in love with an outspoken racehorse rider named Cara.
Korman- Son of the Mob
17-year-old Vince's life is constantly complicated by the fact that he is the son of a powerful Mafia boss, a relationship that threatens to destroy his romance with the daughter of an FBI agent.
Levithan- Boy Meets Boy
Paul is smitten with Noah, and they are beginning a serious relationship when Kyle, Paul’s ex, begins to complicate things.
The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things Carolyn Mackler
Fifteen-year-old Virginia tries to deal with her self-image, her first physical relationship, and her disillusionment with some of the people closest to her.
Sloppy Firsts Megan McCafferty
When her best friend, Hope, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, 16-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. How is she supposed to deal with the boy-and-shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad's
obsession with her track meets, and her nonexistent love life?
rob&sara.com P.J. Peterson and Ivy Ruckman
Rob, who lives at a school for troubled teenagers, and Sara, the sixteen-year-old daughter of an army colonel, meet in a poetry chat-room and develop a close relationship via email.
The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman Louise Plummer
17-year-old Kate hopes for romance when her older brother's friend Richard comes to stay at their house during Christmas vacation.
Enthusiasm Polly Shulman
Julie and Ashleigh, high school sophomores and Jane Austen fans, seem to fall for the same Mr. Darcy-like boy and struggle to hide their true feelings from one another while rehearsing for a school musical.
What My Mother Doesn’t Know Sonya Sones
In this free verse novel, Sophie describes her relationships with a series of boys as she searches for Mr. Right.
Stargirl Jerry Spinelli
In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.
How I Created My Perfect Prom Date Todd Strasser
When Brad asks someone else to the senior prom, Nicole resorts to a desperate measure-- she decides to make her next-door neighbor over into a dream date.
Hard Love Ellen Wittlinger After starting to publish a zine in which he writes his secret feelings about his lonely life and his parents' divorce, 16-year-old John meets an unusual girl.
Heart on my Sleeve Ellen Wittlinger
From the end of high school to the beginning of college, Chloe and Julian deal with major changes in their families and friendships and explore their feelings for each other through emails, letters, and a visit.
My Darling, My Hamburger Paul Zindel
Four high school seniors struggle with the responsibilities of growing up, particularly the problems of an intimate relationship.
Nonfiction
Can you relate? : real-world advice for teens on guys, girls, growing up, and getting along Annie Fox Answers letters received by Talk City's "The InSite" and provides advice about dealing with authority figures, handling problems with parents and siblings, making a relationship work, finding and keeping real friends, sex, and more topics important to teens.
Respect : a girl's guide to getting respect and dealing when your line is crossed Courtney Macavinta and Andrea Vander Pluym This smart, savvy book helps teen girls get respect and hold on to it no matter what. It covers topics they deal with daily, like body image, family, friends, the media, school, relationships, and rumors. It confronts tough issues like sexual harassment, date rape, sex, drugs, and alcohol.
…Any Advice? Tucker Shaw and Fiona Gibb
All your questions about life, love, friendship, dating, self-image, and more are in this book--with answers and advice on how to deal with them.
Summer Boys Hailey Abbot
Three cousins embrace summer while vacationing in Maine.
Squashed Joan Bauer
A 16-year-old pursues her two goals--growing the biggest pumpkin in Iowa and losing twenty pounds herself while strengthening her relationship with her father and meets a young man with interests similar to her own.
24 Girls in 7 Days Alex Bradley
Jack Grammar, average American senior, has no date to the prom. Or so he thinks.
Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte
The tale of the passionate yet thwarted love between Heathcliff and Catherine, and how their doomed romance eventually destroys both themselves and many around them.
Honey, Baby, Sweetheart Deb Caletti
In the summer of her junior year, 16-year-old Ruby McQueen and her mother, both nursing broken hearts, set out on a journey to reunite an elderly woman with her long-lost love.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower Stephen Chbosky
A tale of adolescence whose hero is Charlie, a high school freshman in Pennsylvania. The novel follows Charlie as he is introduced to love, literature and more.
Truth or Dairy Catherine Clark
17-year-old Courtney Von Dragen Smith, who finds solace in a diary after being dumped by her college-bound boyfriend, Dave, at the beginning o f senior year.
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist Rachel Cohn
High school student Nick O'Leary, member of a rock band, meets college-bound Norah Silverberg and asks her to be his girlfriend for five minutes in order to avoid his ex-sweetheart.
The Truth About Forever Sarah Dessen
The summer following her father's death, Macy plans to work at the library and wait for her brainy boyfriend to return from camp, but instead she goes to work at a catering business where she makes new friends and finally faces her grief.
Someone Like You Sarah Dessen
Halley's junior year of high school includes the death of her best friend Scarlett's boyfriend, the discovery that Scarlett is pregnant, and Halley's own first serious relationship.
this lullaby Sarah Dessen
Raised by a mother who's had five husbands, eighteen-year-old Remy believes in short-term, no-commitment relationships until she meets Dexter, a rock band musician.
After Summer Nick Earls
An Australian teenager feels bored while vacationing at his mother's beach house and is worried about passing his final examinations until he meets an attractive local girl.
Will You Be My Brussels Sprout? Lucy Frank
An aspiring 16-year-old cellist falls in love with her friend's older brother and finds that the relationship is moving too quickly.
A Girl Named Summer Julie Garwood
15-year-old Summer falls hard for athletic, preppy David; loses him to an unworthy, manipulative
female foe; and then wins him back.
Koertge- The Arizona Kid
16-year-old Billy comes to terms with his own values when he is sent to live with his gay uncle in Tucson and is introduced to the world of rodeos where he falls in love with an outspoken racehorse rider named Cara.
Korman- Son of the Mob
17-year-old Vince's life is constantly complicated by the fact that he is the son of a powerful Mafia boss, a relationship that threatens to destroy his romance with the daughter of an FBI agent.
Levithan- Boy Meets Boy
Paul is smitten with Noah, and they are beginning a serious relationship when Kyle, Paul’s ex, begins to complicate things.
The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things Carolyn Mackler
Fifteen-year-old Virginia tries to deal with her self-image, her first physical relationship, and her disillusionment with some of the people closest to her.
Sloppy Firsts Megan McCafferty
When her best friend, Hope, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, 16-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. How is she supposed to deal with the boy-and-shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad's
obsession with her track meets, and her nonexistent love life?
rob&sara.com P.J. Peterson and Ivy Ruckman
Rob, who lives at a school for troubled teenagers, and Sara, the sixteen-year-old daughter of an army colonel, meet in a poetry chat-room and develop a close relationship via email.
The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman Louise Plummer
17-year-old Kate hopes for romance when her older brother's friend Richard comes to stay at their house during Christmas vacation.
Enthusiasm Polly Shulman
Julie and Ashleigh, high school sophomores and Jane Austen fans, seem to fall for the same Mr. Darcy-like boy and struggle to hide their true feelings from one another while rehearsing for a school musical.
What My Mother Doesn’t Know Sonya Sones
In this free verse novel, Sophie describes her relationships with a series of boys as she searches for Mr. Right.
Stargirl Jerry Spinelli
In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.
How I Created My Perfect Prom Date Todd Strasser
When Brad asks someone else to the senior prom, Nicole resorts to a desperate measure-- she decides to make her next-door neighbor over into a dream date.
Hard Love Ellen Wittlinger After starting to publish a zine in which he writes his secret feelings about his lonely life and his parents' divorce, 16-year-old John meets an unusual girl.
Heart on my Sleeve Ellen Wittlinger
From the end of high school to the beginning of college, Chloe and Julian deal with major changes in their families and friendships and explore their feelings for each other through emails, letters, and a visit.
My Darling, My Hamburger Paul Zindel
Four high school seniors struggle with the responsibilities of growing up, particularly the problems of an intimate relationship.
Nonfiction
Can you relate? : real-world advice for teens on guys, girls, growing up, and getting along Annie Fox Answers letters received by Talk City's "The InSite" and provides advice about dealing with authority figures, handling problems with parents and siblings, making a relationship work, finding and keeping real friends, sex, and more topics important to teens.
Respect : a girl's guide to getting respect and dealing when your line is crossed Courtney Macavinta and Andrea Vander Pluym This smart, savvy book helps teen girls get respect and hold on to it no matter what. It covers topics they deal with daily, like body image, family, friends, the media, school, relationships, and rumors. It confronts tough issues like sexual harassment, date rape, sex, drugs, and alcohol.
…Any Advice? Tucker Shaw and Fiona Gibb
All your questions about life, love, friendship, dating, self-image, and more are in this book--with answers and advice on how to deal with them.
Adult Books for Young Adult Readers
Adult Books for Young Adult Readers
Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe (1958) Okonkwo's village life in Nigeria is disrupted by British colonialism.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Anita Loos (1925) A blonde and a brunette set sail to Europe in this hilarious satire.
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austin (1813) The first romantic comedy! Elizabeth Bennet's mother is determined that her daughters marry well.
A Clockwork Orange Anthony Burgess (1962) Alex's ultraviolence is socially unacceptable, and while in prison, he agrees to test the controversial Ludovic treatment.
The Stranger Albert Camus (1942) Meursault feels no emotions- he can't grieve at his mother's funeral, and feels no remorse after killing a man.
My Ántonia Willa Cather (1918) Jim remembers his first love for immigrant farmgirl Antonia.
Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad (1902) Charles Marlow becomes obsessed with finding Mr. Kurtz as he sails down the Congo river.
Great Expectations Charles Dickens (1861) Pip's life is derailed by aristocratic Miss Havisham and her beautiful niece Estella.
An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser (1925)Clyde's blind ambition leads him to tragedy.
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925) Nick tells the story of his neighbor's desperate love for his cousin, Daisy.
Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert (1857) Emma is bored with her quiet life as a doctor's wife, and turns to affairs for excitement.
Memoirs of a Geisha Arthur Golden (1997) Sayuri recalls her training as a geisha in the years before WWII.
Lord of the Flies William Golding (1954) Without laws, children on a deserted island quickly turn to mob rule.
Jude The Obscure Thomas Hardy (1895) Jude has dreams of a better life but rigid class structures hold him back.
Stranger in a Strange Land Robert Heinlein (1961) Valentine Smith is the first human raised on Mars and is unable to fit in with Earthlings.
Catch-22 Joseph Heller (1961) Yossarian can't catch a break in this satirical WWII novel.
A Separate Peace John Knowles (1959) Gene and Phineas are friends at school during WWII.
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee (1960) Scout and Jem suffer when their father is appointed public defender of a black man accused of rape in the deep south.
Main Street Sinclair Lewis (1920) Carol feels trapped by the conventions of small town life.
Bright Lights Big City Jay McInerney (1984) He hates his job, his wife has left him- what else is there to do but party?
1984 George Orwell (1949) Winston breaks the law by questioning the rights of the government.
The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath (1963)Pressure to succeed drives Esther to a breakdown.
The Fountainhead Ayn Rand (1943) Architect Howard refuses to compromise his beliefs to get work.
Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger (1951) Holden is expelled from school and hides out in New York for a few days before telling his parents.
Hamlet William Shakespeare (1602) Hamlet in unable to get over his mother's remarriage after his father dies.
Frankenstein Mary Shelly (1818) Victor creates a monster, and must deal with the repurcussions of playing God.
On the Beach Nevil Shute (1957) Nuclear war has obliterated the Northern Hemisphere, and Australians are waiting for the fallout clouds.
A Handful of Dust Evelyn Waugh (1934) After Tony's marriage falls apart, he sets off on an Amazon expedition.
The Age of Innocence Edith Wharton (1920) Newland is married to ladylike May, but is attracted to her wild cousin Ellen.
Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe (1958) Okonkwo's village life in Nigeria is disrupted by British colonialism.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Anita Loos (1925) A blonde and a brunette set sail to Europe in this hilarious satire.
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austin (1813) The first romantic comedy! Elizabeth Bennet's mother is determined that her daughters marry well.
A Clockwork Orange Anthony Burgess (1962) Alex's ultraviolence is socially unacceptable, and while in prison, he agrees to test the controversial Ludovic treatment.
The Stranger Albert Camus (1942) Meursault feels no emotions- he can't grieve at his mother's funeral, and feels no remorse after killing a man.
My Ántonia Willa Cather (1918) Jim remembers his first love for immigrant farmgirl Antonia.
Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad (1902) Charles Marlow becomes obsessed with finding Mr. Kurtz as he sails down the Congo river.
Great Expectations Charles Dickens (1861) Pip's life is derailed by aristocratic Miss Havisham and her beautiful niece Estella.
An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser (1925)Clyde's blind ambition leads him to tragedy.
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925) Nick tells the story of his neighbor's desperate love for his cousin, Daisy.
Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert (1857) Emma is bored with her quiet life as a doctor's wife, and turns to affairs for excitement.
Memoirs of a Geisha Arthur Golden (1997) Sayuri recalls her training as a geisha in the years before WWII.
Lord of the Flies William Golding (1954) Without laws, children on a deserted island quickly turn to mob rule.
Jude The Obscure Thomas Hardy (1895) Jude has dreams of a better life but rigid class structures hold him back.
Stranger in a Strange Land Robert Heinlein (1961) Valentine Smith is the first human raised on Mars and is unable to fit in with Earthlings.
Catch-22 Joseph Heller (1961) Yossarian can't catch a break in this satirical WWII novel.
A Separate Peace John Knowles (1959) Gene and Phineas are friends at school during WWII.
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee (1960) Scout and Jem suffer when their father is appointed public defender of a black man accused of rape in the deep south.
Main Street Sinclair Lewis (1920) Carol feels trapped by the conventions of small town life.
Bright Lights Big City Jay McInerney (1984) He hates his job, his wife has left him- what else is there to do but party?
1984 George Orwell (1949) Winston breaks the law by questioning the rights of the government.
The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath (1963)Pressure to succeed drives Esther to a breakdown.
The Fountainhead Ayn Rand (1943) Architect Howard refuses to compromise his beliefs to get work.
Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger (1951) Holden is expelled from school and hides out in New York for a few days before telling his parents.
Hamlet William Shakespeare (1602) Hamlet in unable to get over his mother's remarriage after his father dies.
Frankenstein Mary Shelly (1818) Victor creates a monster, and must deal with the repurcussions of playing God.
On the Beach Nevil Shute (1957) Nuclear war has obliterated the Northern Hemisphere, and Australians are waiting for the fallout clouds.
A Handful of Dust Evelyn Waugh (1934) After Tony's marriage falls apart, he sets off on an Amazon expedition.
The Age of Innocence Edith Wharton (1920) Newland is married to ladylike May, but is attracted to her wild cousin Ellen.
Great Reads for High School
Great Reads For High School
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams (1979) Hapless Arthur Dent is one of only 2 survivors when Earth is demolished to make room for an intergalactic highway.
Little Women Louisa May Alcott (1868)During the Civil War, 4 Massachusetts girls become women.
Speak Laurie Halse Anderson (1999)Melinda called the cops after a party got way out of control, and now no one will talk to her, and she can not speak about why she made that call.
Go Ask Alice (Beatrice Sparks) Anonymous (1971) Alice's diary records her fall into heavy drug use.
Rules of the Road Joan Bauer (1998)Jenna's road trip teaches her a lot about sales, and much more about herself.
Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury (1953)In the future, firemen don't put out fires- they start them to burn books.
The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants Ann Brashares (2001) Lena, Bridget, Tibby and Carmen are about to spend their first summer apart.
The Perks of Being A Wallflower Stephen Chbosky (1999) Charlie's life in high school has been on the quiet, observing side- when will he move to the middle?
A Northern Light Jennifer Donnelly (2003) 16 year old Mattie discovers the reason a murder was committed at the hotel she works at.
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925)Nick tells the story of his neighbor's desperate love for his cousin, Daisy.
Lord of the Flies William Golding (1954)Without laws, children on a deserted island quickly turn to mob rule.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time Mark Haddon (2003) 15 year-old Christopher John Francis Boone has Asperger's Syndrome, hates the color yellow, and is determined to find out who killed his neighbor's dog.
Brave New World Aldous Huxley (1932)Bio-engineering is taken to terrifying lengths in the future.
A Separate Peace John Knowles (1959)Gene and Phineas are friends at school during WWII.
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee (1960)Scout and Jem have to grow up when their father is appointed public defender of a black man accused of rape in the deep south.
Twilight Stephenie Meyer (2005) Bella moves to gloomy Washington state, and falls in love with mysterious Edward.
Monster Walter Dean Myers (1999)While on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script.
Ttyl Lauren Myracle (2005) Angela, Zoe, and Madigan support each other through issues ranging from clothing decisions to peer pressure. Told entirely in texts and IMs.
Monsoon Summer Mitali Perkins (2004) Jazz doesn't want to go to India to volunteer- but she has no choice.
Life as We Knew It Susan Beth Pfeiffer(2006) When Miranda heard that a comet would strike the moon, she couldn't possibly have known how her life would be affected.
Great Non-Fiction
In Cold Blood. Truman Capote. (1965)The true story of a mass murder and the resulting arrests.
Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America. Barbara Ehrenreich. (2001)Undercover reporter tries to eat, buy clothes, and pay rent on minimum wage.
Girl, Interrupted. Susanna Kaysen. (1993) The author’s memoirs of being a patient in a psychiatric hospital, diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder.
High Tide: The truth about our climate crisis. Mark Lynas. (2004)An account of traveling to some of the world’s most vulnerable areas to see how climate change is already changing them.
The Hot Zone. Richard Preston. (1994)Thrilling, terrifying account of working with and hunting for some of the most deadly viruses in the world.
The Right Stuff. Tom Wolfe. (1979)A gonzo journalist’s take on the first seven astronauts selected to participate in the NASA space program.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams (1979) Hapless Arthur Dent is one of only 2 survivors when Earth is demolished to make room for an intergalactic highway.
Little Women Louisa May Alcott (1868)During the Civil War, 4 Massachusetts girls become women.
Speak Laurie Halse Anderson (1999)Melinda called the cops after a party got way out of control, and now no one will talk to her, and she can not speak about why she made that call.
Go Ask Alice (Beatrice Sparks) Anonymous (1971) Alice's diary records her fall into heavy drug use.
Rules of the Road Joan Bauer (1998)Jenna's road trip teaches her a lot about sales, and much more about herself.
Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury (1953)In the future, firemen don't put out fires- they start them to burn books.
The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants Ann Brashares (2001) Lena, Bridget, Tibby and Carmen are about to spend their first summer apart.
The Perks of Being A Wallflower Stephen Chbosky (1999) Charlie's life in high school has been on the quiet, observing side- when will he move to the middle?
A Northern Light Jennifer Donnelly (2003) 16 year old Mattie discovers the reason a murder was committed at the hotel she works at.
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925)Nick tells the story of his neighbor's desperate love for his cousin, Daisy.
Lord of the Flies William Golding (1954)Without laws, children on a deserted island quickly turn to mob rule.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time Mark Haddon (2003) 15 year-old Christopher John Francis Boone has Asperger's Syndrome, hates the color yellow, and is determined to find out who killed his neighbor's dog.
Brave New World Aldous Huxley (1932)Bio-engineering is taken to terrifying lengths in the future.
A Separate Peace John Knowles (1959)Gene and Phineas are friends at school during WWII.
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee (1960)Scout and Jem have to grow up when their father is appointed public defender of a black man accused of rape in the deep south.
Twilight Stephenie Meyer (2005) Bella moves to gloomy Washington state, and falls in love with mysterious Edward.
Monster Walter Dean Myers (1999)While on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script.
Ttyl Lauren Myracle (2005) Angela, Zoe, and Madigan support each other through issues ranging from clothing decisions to peer pressure. Told entirely in texts and IMs.
Monsoon Summer Mitali Perkins (2004) Jazz doesn't want to go to India to volunteer- but she has no choice.
Life as We Knew It Susan Beth Pfeiffer(2006) When Miranda heard that a comet would strike the moon, she couldn't possibly have known how her life would be affected.
Great Non-Fiction
In Cold Blood. Truman Capote. (1965)The true story of a mass murder and the resulting arrests.
Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America. Barbara Ehrenreich. (2001)Undercover reporter tries to eat, buy clothes, and pay rent on minimum wage.
Girl, Interrupted. Susanna Kaysen. (1993) The author’s memoirs of being a patient in a psychiatric hospital, diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder.
High Tide: The truth about our climate crisis. Mark Lynas. (2004)An account of traveling to some of the world’s most vulnerable areas to see how climate change is already changing them.
The Hot Zone. Richard Preston. (1994)Thrilling, terrifying account of working with and hunting for some of the most deadly viruses in the world.
The Right Stuff. Tom Wolfe. (1979)A gonzo journalist’s take on the first seven astronauts selected to participate in the NASA space program.
Great Reads for Middle School
Great Reads For Middle School
Fever, 1793. Laurie Halse Anderson. Mattie must survive Philadelphia’s yellow fever epidemic.
Feed. M.T. Anderson. Titus never questioned the Feed- the constant stream of media wired right into his brain- until he met Violet.
A Place Called Ugly . Avi. 14 year old Owen refuses to leave his family’s summer rental.
Nothing But The Truth. Avi. Phillip wants to hum “The Star Spangled Banner.” His teacher wants him not to. How does this become a national incident?
Tuck Everlasting. Natalie Babbit. In the woods, 10 year-oldWinnie meets the Tuck family- and learns their haunting secret.
Code Orange. Carolyn Cooney. Mitty would rather flirt with Olivia than do homework– until his science class research leads him into a life-or-death bioterrorism scare.
The Chocolate War. Robert Cormier. Jerry’s refusal to sell fundraising chocolates turns into so, so much more.
Bloomability. Sharon Creech. Dinnie is 13 when her aunt and uncle ‘kidnap’ her from her unraveling family and take her to Switzerland, where she learns that life is, in fact, full of bloomability.
Romiette and Julio. Sharon Draper. This modern retelling of Romeo and Juliette has Romiette’s African-American friends and family objecting to her relationship with Hispanic Julio.
City of Ember. Jeanne DuPrau. In the underground city of Ember, the food is running out and the power is flickering. Lina and her friend Doon have to save their city- but they’re running out of time!
In Search of Mockingbird. Loretta Ellsworth. 16 year old Erin is on a quest to understand her long-dead mother, and to meet her favorite writer, Harper Lee.
The Summer of My German Soldier. Bette Greene. When a WWII prison camp is built near her home in Arkansas, the last thing that Jewish Patty expects is to fall in love with Anton, an escapee.
Stormbreaker. Anthony Horowitz. Alex is 14 when he discovers his uncle Ian had a secret life as a spy for the British government- and that he needs to take over a vital mission.
The Giver. Lois Lowry. 12 year old Jonas is singled out to receive training from “The Giver”- the society’s keeper of memories.
Cut. Patricia McCormick. Callie is at Sea Pines , or as the other ‘guests’ call it, “Sick Minds” for treatment after her parents find out that she cuts herself.
Hoops. Walter Dean Meyers. Lonnie is under serious pressure- big bucks are being bet on his game, and his coach is reliving his own nightmare.
Anne of Green Gables. L.M. Montgomery. Anne Shirley, an orphan, was sent to Marilla and Matthew by mistake- what can she do to make them want to keep her at Green Gables?
Eleven. Lauren Myracle. Winnie isn’t sure why her best friend Amanda is changing- or is it Winnie who is changing?
April and the Dragon Lady. Lensey Namioka. 16 year old April is caught between her life as an American teenager and her family’s Chinese-American heritage and their expectations for and of her.
Shiloh. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Marty knows what he has to do to save Shiloh, an abused dog, from a violent neighbor. But can it be right to do wrong to do right?
All Alone in the Universe. Lynne Rae Perkins. Debbie learns how it is to be 13 and to feel friendless.
The Body of Christopher Creed. Carol Plum-Ucci. When class ‘loser’ Chris Creed disappears, why is it so easy for people to blame Bo Richardson?
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Betty Smith. Francie grows up during the Great Depression, telling her story from age 11 to becoming a young woman.
Stargirl. Jerry Spinelli. As fascinating as Leo finds Stargirl, she drives him crazy too. Why can’t she just, well, be normal and fit in like everyone else? What would happen if she tried?
Uglies. Scott Westerfeld. Tally Youngblood has waited all her Ugly life to turn 16- to get the surgery that will make her a Pretty. Well, now she’s 16- what is she waiting for?
The Bar Code Tattoo. Suzanne Weyn. The tattoo makes your life so much easier- and now it’s the law. When Kayla decides she doesn’t want to get it, she’s forced to go on the run.
Armageddon Summer. Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville. Marina and Jed meet on Mount Weeupcutt, where their parents are camping- to wait for the Apocalypse.
NON-FICTION
Diary of a Young Girl. Anne Frank. Anne’s diary, kept while in hiding from Nazis, is must-read.
Stick Figure: A diary of my former self. Lori Gottlieb. Gottlieb’s own diaries, beginning at age 11, tell of her battle with anorexia.
An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. Jim Murphy. A great companion book to Fever 1793, this is a well-told history of the epidemic that swept through the brand new nation.
Fever, 1793. Laurie Halse Anderson. Mattie must survive Philadelphia’s yellow fever epidemic.
Feed. M.T. Anderson. Titus never questioned the Feed- the constant stream of media wired right into his brain- until he met Violet.
A Place Called Ugly . Avi. 14 year old Owen refuses to leave his family’s summer rental.
Nothing But The Truth. Avi. Phillip wants to hum “The Star Spangled Banner.” His teacher wants him not to. How does this become a national incident?
Tuck Everlasting. Natalie Babbit. In the woods, 10 year-oldWinnie meets the Tuck family- and learns their haunting secret.
Code Orange. Carolyn Cooney. Mitty would rather flirt with Olivia than do homework– until his science class research leads him into a life-or-death bioterrorism scare.
The Chocolate War. Robert Cormier. Jerry’s refusal to sell fundraising chocolates turns into so, so much more.
Bloomability. Sharon Creech. Dinnie is 13 when her aunt and uncle ‘kidnap’ her from her unraveling family and take her to Switzerland, where she learns that life is, in fact, full of bloomability.
Romiette and Julio. Sharon Draper. This modern retelling of Romeo and Juliette has Romiette’s African-American friends and family objecting to her relationship with Hispanic Julio.
City of Ember. Jeanne DuPrau. In the underground city of Ember, the food is running out and the power is flickering. Lina and her friend Doon have to save their city- but they’re running out of time!
In Search of Mockingbird. Loretta Ellsworth. 16 year old Erin is on a quest to understand her long-dead mother, and to meet her favorite writer, Harper Lee.
The Summer of My German Soldier. Bette Greene. When a WWII prison camp is built near her home in Arkansas, the last thing that Jewish Patty expects is to fall in love with Anton, an escapee.
Stormbreaker. Anthony Horowitz. Alex is 14 when he discovers his uncle Ian had a secret life as a spy for the British government- and that he needs to take over a vital mission.
The Giver. Lois Lowry. 12 year old Jonas is singled out to receive training from “The Giver”- the society’s keeper of memories.
Cut. Patricia McCormick. Callie is at Sea Pines , or as the other ‘guests’ call it, “Sick Minds” for treatment after her parents find out that she cuts herself.
Hoops. Walter Dean Meyers. Lonnie is under serious pressure- big bucks are being bet on his game, and his coach is reliving his own nightmare.
Anne of Green Gables. L.M. Montgomery. Anne Shirley, an orphan, was sent to Marilla and Matthew by mistake- what can she do to make them want to keep her at Green Gables?
Eleven. Lauren Myracle. Winnie isn’t sure why her best friend Amanda is changing- or is it Winnie who is changing?
April and the Dragon Lady. Lensey Namioka. 16 year old April is caught between her life as an American teenager and her family’s Chinese-American heritage and their expectations for and of her.
Shiloh. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Marty knows what he has to do to save Shiloh, an abused dog, from a violent neighbor. But can it be right to do wrong to do right?
All Alone in the Universe. Lynne Rae Perkins. Debbie learns how it is to be 13 and to feel friendless.
The Body of Christopher Creed. Carol Plum-Ucci. When class ‘loser’ Chris Creed disappears, why is it so easy for people to blame Bo Richardson?
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Betty Smith. Francie grows up during the Great Depression, telling her story from age 11 to becoming a young woman.
Stargirl. Jerry Spinelli. As fascinating as Leo finds Stargirl, she drives him crazy too. Why can’t she just, well, be normal and fit in like everyone else? What would happen if she tried?
Uglies. Scott Westerfeld. Tally Youngblood has waited all her Ugly life to turn 16- to get the surgery that will make her a Pretty. Well, now she’s 16- what is she waiting for?
The Bar Code Tattoo. Suzanne Weyn. The tattoo makes your life so much easier- and now it’s the law. When Kayla decides she doesn’t want to get it, she’s forced to go on the run.
Armageddon Summer. Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville. Marina and Jed meet on Mount Weeupcutt, where their parents are camping- to wait for the Apocalypse.
NON-FICTION
Diary of a Young Girl. Anne Frank. Anne’s diary, kept while in hiding from Nazis, is must-read.
Stick Figure: A diary of my former self. Lori Gottlieb. Gottlieb’s own diaries, beginning at age 11, tell of her battle with anorexia.
An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. Jim Murphy. A great companion book to Fever 1793, this is a well-told history of the epidemic that swept through the brand new nation.
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