Anderson, Laurie. The Impossible Knife of Memory
Haley tries to make her way through school and a first romance, while trying to help her father, a veteran with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Anderson, Laurie. Speak
Melinda is a friendless outcast, because she busted a party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party.
Andrews, Jesse. Me, Earl & the Dying Girl
Greg Gaines has only one friend, Earl, and together they spend their time making movies, their own incomprehensible versions of Coppola and Herzog cult classics.Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel.
Bauer, Joan. Hope Was Here
When Hope and her aunt move to small-town Wisconsin to take over the local diner, Hope’s not sure what to expect. But what they find is that the owner, G.T., isn’t quite ready to give up yet – in fact, he’s decided to run for mayor against a corrupt candidate. And as Hope starts to make her place at the diner, she also finds herself caught up in G.T.’s campaign – particularly his visions for the future.
Brashares, Ann. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
Nobody knows why, but the pants fit everyone perfectly. Over a few bags of cheese puffs, Carmen, Lina, Tibby, and Bee decide to form a sisterhood and take the vow of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. The next morning, they say good-bye and then the journey of the pants — and the most memorable summer of their lives — begins.
Cameron, Peter. Someday This Pain Will be Useful to You
James Sveck is a sophisticated, vulnerable young man with a deep appreciation for the world and no idea how to live in it. He rejects all of the assumptions around him–including the expectation that he will go to college in the fall. He would prefer to move to an old house in a small town somewhere in the Midwest, butnothing turns out how he’d expected.
Chbosky, Stephen. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Perks follows observant “wallflower” Charlie as he charts a course through the strange world between adolescence and adulthood. First dates, family drama, and new friends. Sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Devastating loss, young love, and life on the fringes.
Cormier, Robert. The Chocolate War
Refusing to sell chocolates in the annual Trinity school fund-raiser may not seem like a radical thing to do. But when Jerry challenges a secret school society called The Vigils, his defiant act turns into an all-out war. Now the only question is: Who will survive?
Creech, Sharon. Bloomability
Kidnapped! The kidnappers are actually her Aunt Sandy and Uncle Max, but that doesn’t matter to Dinnie. Dinnie is used to change-with her family constantly moving from state to state while her father searches for one new “opportunity” after another. But when her aunt and uncle whisk her away to an international school in Lugano, Switzerland, Dinnie feels that this might be one “opportunity” that isn’t right for her.
Crutcher, Chris. Ironman
Bo has been at war with his father for as long as he can remember. The rage he feels gives him the energy as a triathlete to press his body to the limit, but it also translates into angry outbursts toward his teachers. Now dangerously close to expulsion from school, Bo has been assigned to Anger Management sessions with the school “truants.”
Dessen, Sarah. Keeping the Moon
Colie expects the worst when she’s sent to spend the summer with her eccentric aunt Mira while her mother, queen of the television infomercial, tours Europe.But then she lands a job at the Last Chance Cafe and meets fellow waitresses Morgan and Isabel, best friends with a loving yet volatile relationship. Wacky yet wise, Morgan and Isabel help Colie see herself in a new way.
Dessen, Sarah. Along for the Ride
It’s been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents’ divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.She meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests.
Feinstein, John. The Walk On
Alex Myers is a quarterback, but from the first day of football practice, it’s clear that that position is very much filled by the coach’s son, Matt.Alex finally gets a chance to show what he can do when Matt is injured, but just when his star is rising, Alex gets blindsided—the state has started drug testing, and Alex’s test comes back positive for steroids.
Forman, Gayle. If I Stay
Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough choices: Stay true to her first love—music—even if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family and friends behind?Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an instant, everything changes. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. And it’s the only one that matters.
Haddix, Margaret Peterson. Takeoffs and Landings
Ever since their father’s sudden death eight years ago, Chuck and Lori’s mom has spent most of her time on the road as a motivational speaker, leaving them and their younger siblings in the care of their grandparents. But this trip is different; this time, their mother has invited Chuck and Lori along in an attempt to reconnect with her eldest — and now most distant — children.
Han, Jenny. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
Lara Jean has never openly admitted her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed. But one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters: her first kiss, the boy from summer camp, even her sister’s ex-boyfriend, Josh.
Holt, Kimberley. When Zachary Beaver Came to Town
Nothing ever happens in Toby’s small Texas town until this summer. Their sleepy town is about to get a jolt with the arrival of Zachary Beaver, billed as the fattest boy in the world. Toby is in for a summer unlike any other, a summer sure to change his life.
Kinsella, Sophie. Finding Audrey
An anxiety disorder disrupts fourteen-year-old Audrey’s daily life. She has been making slow but steady progress with Dr. Sarah, but when Audrey meets Linus, her brother’s gaming teammate, she is energized. She connects with him. As their friendship deepens and her recovery gains momentum, a sweet romantic connection develops, one that helps not just Audrey but also her entire family.
Klass, David. You Don’t Know Me
John (“My father named me after a toilet!”) wrestles with the certainty that no one really knows him not in his miserable home, and certainly not at school. His home life is not great: his father ran off years ago, so he’s being raised by his mother, who works long hours, and by her boyfriend, whom John calls “the man who is not and never will be my father.”
Lockhart, E. We Were Liars
A beautiful and distinguished family. A private island.A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.A revolution. An accident. A secret.Lies upon lies. True love.The truth.Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.
Myers, Walter Dean. Monster
Sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon is on trial for murder. A Harlem drugstore owner was shot and killed in his store, and the word is that Steve served as the lookout.Guilty or innocent, Steve becomes a pawn in the hands of “the system,” cluttered with cynical authority figures and unscrupulous inmates, who will turn in anyone to shorten their own sentences.
Nelson, Jandy. I’ll Give You the Sun
Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking.
Niven, Jennifer. All the Bright Places
When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries.
Perkins, Stephanie. Anna and the French Kiss
Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris–until she meets Étienne St. Clair.
Peters, Julie Anne. Define “Normal”
This thoughtful, wry story is about two girls–a “punk” and a “priss”–who find themselves facing each other in a peer-counseling program and discover that they have some surprising things in common.
Power, Rory, Wilder Girls
When Byatt goes missing at the Raxter School for Girls , Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence.
Rottman, S.L. Hero
15-year-old Sean’s got no one to look up to, and nothing left to lose-until he’s arrested. The only way for Sean to pay his dues is to perform community service on Mr. Hassler’s farm. He can do just what he has to, or he can confront the mess his life has become.
Rowell, Rainbow. Eleanor and Park
Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.
Rowell, Rainbow. Fangirl
Cath and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words.
Thomas, Angie. The Hate U Give
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Welch, Jenna Evans. Love & Gelato
Lina is spending the summer in Tuscany, but she isn’t in the mood for Italy’s famous sunshine and fairy-tale landscape. She’s only there because it was her mother’s dying wish that she get to know her father. But what kind of father isn’t around for sixteen years? All Lina wants to do is get back home.
Yoon, Nicola. Everything, Everything
Madeline is allergic to the world. She hasn’t left her house in seventeen years. But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door and a teenage boy appears. His name is Olly.Madeline is certain she is going to fall in love with Olly and it’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.
Yoon, Nicola. The Sun is Also a Star
It is Natasha’s last day in New York City, where she has lived for 10 years. Her family is being deported to Jamaica after her father’s arrest for drunk driving. Natasha is scouring the city for a chance to stay in the United States legally. Meanwhile, Daniel is on his way to an interview as part of his application process to Yale. He is under great pressure to get in because his parents are adamant that he become a doctor. Events slowly conspire to bring the two together.
