Young Adult

The summer Hattie turns 12, her predictable small-town life is turned on end when her uncle Adam returns home for the first time in over 10 years. Hattie has never met him, never known about him. He's been institutionalized; his condition involves schizophrenia and autism. Hattie, a shy girl who prefers the company of adults, takes immediately to her excitable uncle, even when the rest of the family – her parents and grandparents – have trouble dealing with his intense way of seeing the world. And Adam, too, sees that Hattie is special, that her quiet, shy ways are not a disability. Newbery Honor Book.

From the author of Tuck Everlasting comes the story of young Joe Casimir, a twelve old boy who’s been raised by his grandmother following the tragic death of his parents as an infant. Perfect alternative to all the negative and disheartening tales that seem to dominate YA lists.

In this hilariously informative take on surviving the trials of middle school and the jungles of South America, Buchholz combines the expertise of National Geographic on nature and adventure with a fun-and-engaging learning approach. Edgy, young, authoritative and amusingly illustrated, this title will grab the attention of any young teen.

A searing look into the world of a single Muslim family in the wake of 9/11. Powerful.

Life gets pretty boring when you can beat the snot out of any villain with just one punch. Think your teenage boys might be intrigued? One of the best ways to hook boys on books nowadays is with Manga. Manga creator “One” began this series as a webcomic, which quickly went viral, garnering over 10 million hits. The illustrations by Yusuke Murata are fabulous, and your boys will HAVE to grab all the other volumes in this series.

Six critically acclaimed, bestselling and award-winning authors – Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon – celebrate the beauty of six couples and the unforgettable magic that can be found on a sweltering starry night in the city in this interlinked novel of charming, hilarious and heartwarming stories.

A severely burned teenager. A guitar. Punk rock. The chords of a rock ‘n’ roll road trip in a coming-of-age novel that is a must-read story about finding your place in the world…even if you carry scars inside and out.

Time has stopped. It has been June 23, 2020 for nearly a year as far as anyone can tell. Frantic adults demand teenagers focus on finding practical solutions to the worldwide crisis. Not everyone is on board, though. Javelin-throwing prodigy Truda Becker is pretty sure her "Solution Time" class won't solve the world's problems, but she does have a few ideas what might. Truda lives in a house with a switch that no one ever touches, a switch her father protects every day by nailing it into hundreds of progressively larger boxes. But Truda has a crow bar, and – one way or another – she’s going to see what happens when she flips the switch.

Many thanks to Tussey Mountain teacher Nathan Thompson for recommending this one, Paulsen’s only attempt at sci-fi (boys LOVE Gary Paulsen). Mark’s solo camping trip in the desert turns into a terrifying and thrilling odyssey when a mysterious beam of light transports him to another time on what appears to be another planet. As Mark searches for a pathway back to his own time on Earth, he must make a new life in a new world. His encounters with primitive tribes bring the joy of human bonds, but violence and war as well – and, finally, a contest in which he discovers his own startling powers.

Dahlia 16 sees her face in every crowd. She’s nothing special – just one of five thousand girls created from a single genome to work for the greater good of the city. But meeting Trigger 17 changes everything. He thinks she’s interesting. Beautiful. Unique. Which means he must be flawed. When Dahlia can’t stop thinking about him she realizes she’s flawed, too. Your teens will LOVE this one!

My high schoolers got a kick out of this easy-to-read memoir. Having taken on the role of Roger Moore’s executive assistant in 2002, Owen became the right-hand man to “James Bond,” as well as his co-author, onstage co-star and confidant. Faithfully at the icon’s side until his passing in 2017, Owen provides a unique and rare insight into life with one of the world’s most beloved actors in this affectionate and amusing book.

I’m always looking for good stories about strong women for my girls, and Shaw provides a compelling and concise look into the life of Joan of Ark. With Saint Joan, which distills many of the ideas Shaw had been exploring in earlier works on politics, religion, feminism, and creative evolution, he reached the height of his fame as a dramatist. Fascinated by the story of Joan of Arc, but unhappy with the way she had traditionally been depicted, Shaw wanted to remove “the whitewash which disfigures her beyond recognition.” He presents a realistic Joan: proud, intolerant, naïve, foolhardy, and brave – a rebel and a woman for Shaw’s time…and our own.

With one of my favorite subtitles of all time, “15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me,” this is the first book in the uproarious and heartwarming Ruby Oliver novels.

Good tweener that won the Newbery Award 40 years ago. All summer Sara Godfrey has fretted over herself, her impossible body, her terrible new haircut. One moment she's elated; the next, she's in tears. And she can’t figure out why. Maybe her wildly changing moods are tied to the sudden and unaccountable appearance of the swans, which hold the rapt attention of Charlie, Sara’s mentally handicapped brother, who she loves far more than herself these days. In fact, it will be the sudden disappearance of Charlie that will compel Sara to abandon her own small, annoying miseries and lose herself in searching for him. In her anguish, Sara turns to Joe Melby, whom she has long despised, and together they search through the dense woods and rough fields to find him. Sara knows that she will never be the same again.

With drug education for children more important than ever, this nonfiction book draws on the experiences of the New York Times best-selling father/son team, and inspiration behind the film Beautiful Boy – David and Nic Scheff – to provide all the information teens need to know about drugs, alcohol and addiction.