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Young Adult

Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List

Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List

By Rachel Cohn,David Levithan 256 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

For older teens (based on language and content), this one is popular reading with high school girls who enjoy romances. It is so well-written that even I managed to breeze through it, and it held my interest the entire way (a rarity for me with teen romances). A touching and often very funny portrayal of friendship, I like it best for how it deals with alternate points of view.
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Mocky's Revinge

Mocky's Revinge

By Mark Louis Lehman 125 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

I like slender books! This novelette actually took a little longer than I thought, as the story is told through the point of view of an 8-year-old girl who has a penchant for misspelling (as seen in the title). I think teachers will appreciate recommending this book to students as an exercise in fluency. I have found that middle schoolers enjoy the story and delight in identifying misspellings.
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The True Story of Christmas

The True Story of Christmas

By Anne Fine 144 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

I confess that I am a big fan of British humor, as I love Monty Python, Ricky Gervais and Jeanne Willis. Anne Fine has that twisted sense of humor in this engrossing book about a boy sentenced to his bedroom on Christmas. His descriptions of his various family members remind me of the Dursleys from Harry Potter. A little too mean for little kids, the humor is perfect for teens. 
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The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker

The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker

By Cynthia DeFelice 160 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

One of the best pieces of young adult historical fiction that I have read in the past five years. A boy apprentices for a doctor in the 19th century and searches for a cure to the consumption that is killing everybody in town, including his own family. I used this book for a class that was discussing advances in medical technology (it worked great with my impression of Steve Martin acting as a middle age doctor/barber in a hilarious old Saturday Night Live sketch).
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Making Up Megaboy

Making Up Megaboy

By Virginia Walter 64 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

I am a huge fan of the great Japanese film director Akira Kirosawa, and one of Kurosawa’s most provocative films is Rashomon, the story of a woman’s rape told from different perspectives. Walter attempts to do the same in this book by telling the story of a teenager who kills an elderly store owner, as told through 18 different first-person perspectives. I have heard many teachers gripe that the book offers no definite resolution, but that is precisely one of the things I like about the book. It makes for intense book discussions. 
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Something Like An Autobiography

Something Like An Autobiography

By Akira Kurosawa 205 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

Alright, the Megaboy book got me thinking about Kurosawa, so of course I wound up re-watching some of my favorite Kurosawa films (The Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, Ran, The Hidden Fortress). If you have never heard of Kurosawa, just know that George Lucas and Steven Spielberg idolized him, and his movies inspired all sorts of American adaptations (e.g. The Magnificent Seven, High Plains Drifter, Star Wars). Because of Kurosawa, I have managed to get a lot of middle and high school students interested in foreign films and Joseph Campbell. This brief autobiography is great and should whet your appetite for the much longer The Emperor and the Wolf (about Kurosawa and his turbulent relationship with his favorite star, Toshiro Mifune).
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Kissing Tennessee

Kissing Tennessee

By Kathi Appelt 132 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

Appelt’s collection of short stories revolving around a middle school dance makes for a great book discussion among middle schoolers, especially girls. Appelt captures the voice of teen girls as well as any current young adult author. I have even shared this with grown-ups who were moved by the writing.
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Hot Scots, Castles, and Kilts

Hot Scots, Castles, and Kilts

By Tammy Swoish 208 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

Sixteen-year-old Sami has a lot to deal with when she moves with her mother to Scotland to turn a struggling family farm into a “tourist farm.” While her cousins want to tell her what a magical country Scotland is, Sami feels like a peasant without electricity. A group of eighth-grade girls I have been reading with likes this book because: (a) it is written like a diary; (b) there’s a ghost; and (c) it has a hot guy. 
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Rowing To The Rescue

Rowing To The Rescue

By Doris Licameli 80 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

There are several things I like about this little book. First of all, my mother is a lighthouse fanatic, and I can see how this book would be great for any parent or teacher to read with children before or after a lighthouse visit. More importantly, I love books that feature teenage-girl protagonists who rock, and 15-year-old Ida Lewis is such a character (and she is a real-life heroine who lived in 19th century Rhode Island). A delightful quick read.
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It's All About Me: Personality Quizzes for You and Your Friends

It's All About Me: Personality Quizzes for You and Your Friends

70 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

I honestly have no idea how I have overlooked putting this book on a prior edition of the Lazy Readers’ Book Club, as this was my favorite book of 2006. If you are a teacher, you HAVE to buy this book. This book is applicable for all ages, but teenagers love it the most. It is filled with funny personality quizzes that delight students. Parents and teens: BUY THIS BOOK. Great fun! I’d also like to plug the publisher, Klutz, which publishes a lot of high-quality books.
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How They Met and Other Stories

How They Met and Other Stories

By David Levithan 256 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

David Levithan is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. As it is February, I realized I had to include at least one book for Valentine’s Day. This collection of 18 delightful stories about love written from different perspectives (first, second and third person) chronicles love in all its forms, and I would recommend this book not just for teens but for their parents, as well.
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Garfield Large & in Charge

Garfield Large & in Charge

By Jim Davis 96 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

Davis is always funny, and the reason I include this book recommendation is to bring more attention to his website, www.professorgarfield.org. This is one of my favorite websites to teach students how to write, as its free comic strip creator is a terrific way to allow students to create their own Garfield comic strips to teach sequence of events, review concepts learned each day, etc. Any K-8 teacher needs to check out this site.
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The Arrival

The Arrival

By Shaun Tan 128 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

This is a MUST BUY for all middle school teachers. I think it is one of the best books I have read for young adults in years. A wordless picture book that captures the immigrant experience and speaks loudly to my English language learners, this book can be used to stimulate amazing class discussions. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
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The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

By Stephen Chbosky 224 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

Chbosky knows teenagers, and this book does a decent job of addressing the issues so many 11th graders face. I recommend this book to parents of teens, as I hope it will make more parents empathetic with the trials and tribulations of today’s adolescents.
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Define

Define "Normal"

By Julie Anne Peters 196 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

The story of two opposites discovering they are not so different after all is nothing new. Still, many teenage girls I read with connect to 15-year-olds Antonia and Jazz. I think Peters does a good job of capturing the way teens communicate. 
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