The reviews are in! This page is
dedicated to providing you with the best teen reads. Young
adult readers taking a huge bite out of the book market.
They are written for a general 14 to 18 year old audience,
but are enjoyed by both younger and older readers. We will
mark books as Mature (age 16 up),
Teen (mature readers 12
and up), and Appeal
(will appeal to and is appropriate for mature upper
elementary readers & up) to help you determine which books
are a good fit for different readers. Books that are
considered mature might have implied or explicit physical
relationships, extreme violence, heavy language, and / or
very mature topics. Teen books might heavy language, implied
but not explicit physical relationships,
some violence violence, and mature topics (too mature for
upper elementary children). Appeal books might have some
explicit language (usually a word or two), some violence,
and a mature (but not too mature) topic. Appeal books are
appropriate for upper elementary readers.
Appeal
Savvy by
Ingrid Law
Mibs is turning 13 and is looking
forward to discovering her "savvy" (a special inherited
talent), but when tragedy strikes, she finds herself on a
journey where she discovers her own inner strength.
Collins takes The Lord of the Flies,
The Lottery, reality TV, and a bleak future and wraps them
together in this fast paced science fiction.
Katniss volunteers to take her
sister's place in the Hunger Games where she must survive
both man and nature. In this compelling tale of a young girl
thrown into the most horrid of circumstances, readers will
face questions about society, government, community, and
values.
Mature
Graceling by Kristen Cashore
Cashore spins a world so like our
own, yet so different, you are swept into this low fantasy
with Katsa, a strong female protagonist who struggles to
find herself and a place where she can belong.
Katsa has two different colored eyes.
She is a graceling. Her gift is killing. Faced with deciding
between what is right and what is expected of her, Katsa
goes on a journey of survival where she discovers her inner
strength and the power of love.
Teen
A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
Donnelly weaves together a local
murder, love, and being true to oneself is this powerful
coming of age story set in 1906.
Mattie escapes her responsibilities
at home when she goes to work at the Glenmore Hotel. Her own
life decisions become intertwined with the fate of Grace
Brown who is found dead. Will she accept her own fate or
decide to pursue her life long dream no matter what the
cost?
Teen
The Musician's Daughter by Susanne
Dunlap
Dunlap takes the reader to 18th Century
Vienna where music, murder, and mystery send Theresa on a
personal quest to find her father's murderer.
Theresa is determined to uncover the
mystery of her father's death and finds herself caught
between Prince Nicholas Esterhazy's court and a gypsy camp
when a trail of blackmail and extortion leads her to both
love and astonishing discovery.
Mature
Ophelia by Lisa Klein
Klein brings the story of Hamlet's
Ophelia to the surface in this imaginative work that tells a
story of hidden love, dark secrets, and an astonishing
twist.
Ophelia catches the attention of the
heir to the thrown of Denmark, Prince Hamlet (Shakespeare).
She plays a role in a story never told when she embarks on a
dangerous plan to escape Elsinore and carry her greatest
secret with her.
Teen
A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn
Flinn deftly crafts a contemporary
romantic comedy when she brings together Jack, a popular
teenage boy who blows through life, with a fairy tale
princess...literally.
Merging two time periods into one
through a dreamless sleep and an accidental discovery,
readers will get a kick out of this Sleeping Beauty thrown
into a modern day world. Could Jack really be Princess
Talia's Prince Charming?
Appeal
Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
Hale recreates a Brothers Grimm story
in an astonishing tale of strength, endurance, and magic.
Princess Anidori discovers love,
magical powers, and true friendship when she is suddenly
overthrown by a conniving lady-in-waiting. Forced to survive
on her own, stop her enemy, and change the fate of a
kingdom, Ani goes into hiding as a caretaker of the royal
geese.
Appeal
Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix
There is only one thing you can do
when you finish Found , read
Sent. And of course, the newest
in the series -Sabotaged.
This science fiction page turner will
keep your kids on the edge of their seats. A mysterious
plane carrying only babies is kept under wraps by the
government. Then one day the babies, who are now adopted 12
year olds, begin to receive warning messages that they are
"one of the missing".
Appeal
11 Birthdays by Wendy Mass
Imagine waking up on your 11th
birthday...again, and again, and again. Imagine your best
friend (who you haven't spoken to in a year) also wakes up
on their 11th birthday again, which happens to be your 11th
birthday, because you were both born on the same day in the
same hospital.
Yes, it's that weird, and rather clever,
quite humorous, and perfect for making predictions. Not
normal predictions, mind you, "A-HA!" predictions. This book
is filled with collective in-takes of breath when you
realize what is happening...again.
Comprehension short answer questions,
discussion questions, and writing prompts for Savvy
by Ingrid Law
. And of course, the newest
in the series -
.
