As Easy As Falling Off the Face of the Earth,Lynne Rae PerkinsGreenwillow Books, 2010
Major Awards: None (yet!)
Recommended Reading Level: Sophomore +
Perfect for: Slow pace of novel is not a good fit for reluctant readers; aspiring writers
Possible pairings: Paper Towns by John Green; One Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke; The Miles Between by Mary Pearson; Going Bovine by Libba Bray;Defining Dulcie by Paul Acampora;Brian's Return by Gary Paulson
Selected Other Books by Author: All Alone in the Universe; Criss Cross
Official Lynne Rae Perkins Website
16 year-old Ry begins his series of misadventures when he receives a letter that the summer camp he is headed toward has been closed. While debating his next move, his train and all his belongings departs the Montana station without him on it. Armed with a dying cell phone and only one shoe, Ry must rely on the help of a calm and problem-solving adult stranger named Del to try to locate his off the grid family. Life-threatening misfortune and bad luck abound in this novel, but Perkin's trademark humor and a knack for unveiling the small moments keep the story pace relaxed.
A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend, Emily HornerDial, 2010
Major Awards: None (yet!)
Recommended Reading Level: Freshmen +
Perfect for: Booktalks to Juniors; GLBTQ and questioning; those looking for a strong and independent female protagonist
Possible Pairings: Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan; As Easy As Falling Off the Face of the Earth by Lynn Rae Perkins; Looking for Alaska by John Green; Paper Towns by John Green; Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan.
Official Emily Horner Website
Cass Meyer's life hits a tail spin when her long time best friend, Julia, dies in a car accident. All of Julia's friends are left to grieve, and they seek to cope by memorializing Julia in different ways. While Julia's drama friends commit to producing and performing the top-secret musical that Julia wrote before her death, Cass decides to carry out her former summer plans to road trip to California with Julia; however, this plan substitutes solitary bicycle riding and a Tupperware container of Julia's ashes. This novel explores love and friendship, sexual identity, and loss.
Harper Collins, 2008
Major Awards: Newberry Medal, 2009; Hugo Award winner, 2009; British Fantasy Society nominee, 2009; World Fantasy Award, 2009; Carnegie Medal winner, 2010
Recommended Reading Level: Eighth grade +Perfect for: Goth/Emo kids; fans of Tim Burton; that one boy that would read if you could just find the right book
Possible Pairings:
Selected Other Books by Author: Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, The Sandman
Official The Graveyard Book Website
Bod is not an ordinary boy-- not only was his entire family murdered by a razor-weilding "Jack," he lives in a graveyard amongst ghosts, witches, skeletons, and Silas, all of which spin a protective web around the boy. Eventually, however, all of this isn't enough to prevent Jack from stalking Bod, hoping to make him a resident of the graveyard, permanently.
Major Awards: 2010 Alex Award winner
Recommend Reading Level: H.S. Senior +
Perfect for: Older lovers of The Chronicles of Narnia or the "Harry Potter" series, that one AP kid who has read everything in the library and understood it
Possible Pairings: The Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis; the "Harry Potter" series, J.K. Rowling; Half-Magic, Edward Eager
Selected Other Books by Author: Warp; Codex; The Magician King (sequel to The Magicians, released Summer 2011)
Official The Magicians Website
Quentin is a gifted and socially awkward teenager when he chances upon the opportunity to attend a magical college. Quentin and his friends graduate, full-fledged magicians, and roam Manhattan, drinking and doing drugs in an attempt to find some meaning to their everything-at-their-fingetips (literally) lives. Such an opportunity arises when Quentin has the chance to enter his ultimate fantasy... but like all things magical, this turns into much more than he bargained for.
Inside Out , Terry Trueman
Harper Tempest, 2003
Major Awards: YALSA Best Books for Teens, 2004; ALA's Top Ten Books for Teens, 2004; YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers, 2004Recommended reading level: 7th grade +
Perfect for: Reluctant readers, especially boys; last minute book reports
Possible pairings:
Selected Other Books by Author: Stuck in Neutral; Cruise Control; No Right Turn
Official Inside Out Website
While Zach is waiting for his mom, all he wants is a maple bar-- but before he can get it, two young men with guns rob the coffee shop. The situation goes from bad to worse when the cops show up and the boys take the customer's hostage. The danger is real, but especially for Zach-- he has schizophrenia, and if he can't get his medicine, the voices in his head become more frightening than any gun.
Simon Pulse, 2003
Major Awards: Coretta Scott King Award, 2004; Michael L. Printz Award, 2004; Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers, 2003
Recommended reading level: 8th- 12th
Perfect for: Book reports, especially last minute ones (short, but carries a lot of cache with high school English teachers!)
Possible pairings: Mahalia, Joanne Horniman; Slam, Nick Hornby; Hanging on to Max, Margaret Bechard; After Tupac and D Foster, Jaqueline Woodson; titles by Jaqueline Woodson, Sharon Draper, Sharon Flake, and Rita Garcia-Williams
Perfect for: Book reports, especially last minute ones (short, but carries a lot of cache with high school English teachers!)
Possible pairings: Mahalia, Joanne Horniman; Slam, Nick Hornby; Hanging on to Max, Margaret Bechard; After Tupac and D Foster, Jaqueline Woodson; titles by Jaqueline Woodson, Sharon Draper, Sharon Flake, and Rita Garcia-Williams
Selected Other Books by Author: The "Heaven" Trilogy, which includes The First Part Last, Heaven, and Sweet, Hereafter; Toning the Sweep; When I Am Old With You; Lily Brown's Paintings; Bird. Angela Johnson is incredibly prolific and has written picture books, middle-grade novels, and several YA titles.
Bobby is a typical New York 16-year old, until his girlfriend gets pregnant. After a tragedy leaves Bobby caring for his daughter, Feather, alone, he continues being a normal teenager... but homework, friends, and experiencing life is a whole lot different with a seven-month in tow.
My Invisible Boyfriend, Susie Day
Bobby is a typical New York 16-year old, until his girlfriend gets pregnant. After a tragedy leaves Bobby caring for his daughter, Feather, alone, he continues being a normal teenager... but homework, friends, and experiencing life is a whole lot different with a seven-month in tow.
My Invisible Boyfriend, Susie DayScholastic Press, 2010
Major Awards: Kid's Indie Next List Summer Reading, 2010
Recommended reading level: High schoolPerfect for: High school girls who tear through teeny romance novels
Possible pairings: The Boyfriend List: (15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs, and me, Ruby Oliver), E. Lockhart; Things You Either Hate or Love, Brigid Lowry; Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, Louise Rennison
Selected Other Books by Author: Girl Meets Cake; Serafina 67 *Urgently Requires Life*
Official Susie Day Website
Heidi hates always being the "noob": now that's she's been in one place long enough to make some friends, it's time to address her popularity. What better solution than a fake boyfriend? When Heidi makes an online profile, and fronts as this boyfriend online with her friends, however, things start to get sticky... and not in a gingerbread-goodness kind of way. To complicate matters, "A Real Boy" says he know the truth about Heidi's "boyfriend"-- will this doom her chances for friendship and romance forever?
Greenwillow Books, 2005
Major Awards: Newbery Medal, 2006; School Library Journal Best Book; ALA Notable Children's Book; ALA Best of the Best Books for Young Adults
Recommended reading level: 8th- 12th
Perfect for: Readers with a high reading level, but don't want more mature content; recommended reading lists
Possible pairings: Stargirl, Jerry Spinelli; The View from Saturday, E.L. Konigsburg; Jonathan Safran Foer's fiction; Franny and Zooey, J.D. Salinger
Selected Other Books by Author: All Alone in the Universe (Prequel to Criss Cross); Home Lovely; Snow Music; The Broken Cat; As Easy as Falling Off the Face of the Earth
Debbie just wishes something would happen to her... conditionally, she wishes that something would happen soon. Debbie is just one of a group of teens whose lives one summer are explored in vignettes that are seemingly about nothing; yet each one leaves the reader with a distinct feeling of wishing for something soon, too, be it for guitar lessons, a kiss, or a banana split.
Hyperion Books CH, 2008
Major Awards: Michael L. Printz Honor Book, 2009; National Book Award for Young People's Literature Finalist, 2008; School Library Journal Best Books of the Year, 2008
Recommended reading level: 9th+Perfect for: Any teen girl, AP class book talks, back-to-school displays, mother/daughter book clubs
Possible pairings: Paper Towns, John Green; The Year of Secret Assignments, Jaclyn Moriarty; Secret Society, Tom Dolby; Tell it to Naomi, Daniel Ehrenhaft; Remember Me to Harold Square, Paula Danziger; Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life, Wendy Mass
Selected Other Books by Author: Dramarama; The Treasure Map of Boys; Real Live Boyfriends; How to Be Bad (co-written with Lauren Myracle and Sarah Mlynowski); Toys Go Out: Being the Adventures of a Knowledgeable Stingray, a Toughy Little Buffalo, and Someone Called Plastic (written as Emily Jenkins)
Official Disreputable History Website
Frankie Landau-Banks spends her summer in a hammock drinking lemonade and reading the short stories of Dorothy Parker, becoming a curvy beauty and uncomfortably aware of the pigeonhole her family and friends have placed her in. When Frankie discovers her very hot, very desirable boyfriend is a member of a secret all-male club that she is not even allowed to know about, she concocts an elaborate plan to prove that high school girls are not as safe and forgettable as those about her want to believe.
Major Awards: ALA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers; ALA Best Book for Young Adults; ALA 100 Best of the Best for the 21st Century; Best Book of the Year, 2003, Publisher's Weekly
Perfect for: Display at a "Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist" movie night, LGBTQ youth, the subculture teen, reluctant reader teen girls
Possible pairings: Other Rachel Cohn titles (see below for Gingerbread sequels), Jonathan Leviathan titles, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, Meg Cabot titles, "Confessions of Georgia Nicolson" titles, Vegan Virgin Valentine, Weetzie Bat and other "Dangerous Angels" titles
Selected Other Books by Author: Shrimp (Sequel to Gingerbread); Cupcake (Sequel to Shrimp); Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist; Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List
Official Gingerbread Website
Cyd Charisse Just.Can't.Deal with her mother's over-protective ways: "I will be as wild as I wanna be." Her family just doesn't understand what she's been through-- no one does, except her doll Gingerbread, and maybe dreamy broody surfer/artist boyfriend Shrimp. But when Cyd pushes her wild ways too far, she is sent to live with her father for the summer, where she discovers that while her lattes may be perfect, nothing else is.
Major Awards: National Book Award, 2002; Newbery Honor, 2003; Michael L. Printz Honor Book Award, 2003
Perfect for: Free-choice book reports, class-room supplement to 1984, Brave New World, or Animal Farm, reluctant readers, teen boys, political-minded teens
Possible pairings: The Hunger Games Trilogy
Selected Other Books by Author: The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm; A Girl Named Disaster; The Sea of Trolls; The Land of the Silver Apples
Official The House of the Scorpion Website
When readers first meet Matt Alacrans, he is imprisoned in a small house in a vast field of poppies in the country of Opium. This powerful strip of land, which lies between Atzlan (Mexico) and the United States, is ruled by the cruel and ancient El Patron-- and Matt is his clone. As he discovers more about this dystopian world and why he was harvested from the womb of a cow, Matt also learns the power of intelligence, individualism, friendship, and love.
When readers first meet Matt Alacrans, he is imprisoned in a small house in a vast field of poppies in the country of Opium. This powerful strip of land, which lies between Atzlan (Mexico) and the United States, is ruled by the cruel and ancient El Patron-- and Matt is his clone. As he discovers more about this dystopian world and why he was harvested from the womb of a cow, Matt also learns the power of intelligence, individualism, friendship, and love.
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1 comment:
Thanks for this blog! I'm thinking of going into IS and there's so much useful information on this site.
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