Book Finder

Welcome to high school. Brace yourself for too much homework, too much attention from dangerous seniors, and no idea what your Spanish teacher is talking about. Or your math teacher, for that matter.

In Smartbomb, journalists Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby take the reader behind the scenes at gaming conventions, into powerhouse think tanks where new games are created, into the thick of the competition at cyberathlete tournaments, and into the homes of gamers for whom playing a role in a virtual world has assumed more relevance and reality than life in the real world.

Will Tuppence is a 14-year old who likes to be in control. Playing chess-a game at which he excels — he likes to see the entire board. Will learns that — unlike chessmen — friends, family, even protons can be beyond one’s sway, making this coming-of-age story plausible and unusual.

 This book is the sequel to P.S. Longer Letter Later and is about the relationship between two long-distance friends, Elizabeth and Tara.They used to write letters to each other, but now they’re both addicted to e-mail.

Nina is a Lipan Apache girl in our world. She’s always felt there was something more out there. She still believes in the old stories. Oli is a cottonmouth kid, from the land of spirits and monsters. Like all cottonmouths, he’s been cast from home. He’s found a new one on the banks of the bottomless lake. Nina and Oli have no idea the other exists. But a catastrophic event on Earth, and a strange sickness that befalls Oli’s best friend, will drive their worlds together in ways they haven’t been in centuries. And there are some who will kill to keep them apart. Darcie Little Badger, author of Eltasoe, draws on traditional Lipan Apache storytelling structure to weave another unforgettable tale of monsters, magic, and family. 

Betrayed by Raj, who she thought she was fated to marry, Princeton, New Jersey, high school senior Winnie Mehta teams with fellow film fan Dev Khanna to get her life back on track and find her true soul mate.

When 13-year-old Lakshmi is sold into prostitution by her stepfather, she ends up in a brothel in the slums of Calcutta, where her life becomes a nightmare from which she cannot escape. Although a novel, this story reflects a situation that many girls around the world endure today.

Based on a true story, this is a teacher’s recollection of how is life was as a teenager fighting on the side of the Germans as a Hitler Youth. At 16, Erik Brandt was made to fight on the Russian front as a Nazi because of his ability to speak Russian. It doesn’t take long for him to realize that he wants out of this war, especially after he sees the cruelty done to the Jews. After a particular brutal attack on the Germans by the Russians, Erik switches his uniform with that of a dead Russian soldier and feigns amnesia. It is as Soldier X that Erik escapes with a nurse and lives to tell about his inner torment.

Born to a legendary and chronically addicted rock star father, Blade Morrison just wants to spend some time with his girlfriend and his guitar in a drama-free zone. When a family secret is exposed, Blade’s life changes completely and sends him on a new journey.

Amara visits her father’s family in Harlem for her twelfth birthday, hoping to better understand her family and herself, but New York City is not what she expected.

Poet Sophia Thakur takes you on an intimate journey through love, loss, sacrifice, and self-discovery. In four parts—titled Grow, Wait, Break, and Grow Again—she shares her raw self and gives voice to experiences that connect people, inspiring readers to explore the tendencies of the heart.

Ben’s decision to join the military affects his entire family members, including his brother, who has autism and who announces that he, too, wishes to enlist. Ben’s convoy gets caught in an explosion, and he ends up in a coma for two months. When he wakes up, he doesn’t know where he is — or remember anything about his old life. His family and friends mourn what they see as a loss, but Ben perseveres. And as he triumphs, readers will relate to this timely novel that pairs the action and adventure of the best war stories with the emotional elements of struggle and transformation.

James hates everyone except his grandmother. Take a look at life through this brilliant and mischievous New York teen’s eyes as he tries to figure out life and his place in it.

Vince’s family is wealthy, while his new girlfriend is solidly middle class. But the bigger problem is Vince’s father is a mob boss, and his girlfriend’s father works for the FBI. Filled with colorful characters, this book is perfect for reluctant readers.

Black sisters Effie and Tavia navigate through the perils of high school’s junior year with Tavia focused on hiding her siren powers while Effie fights her own family struggles, pitted against literal demons from her past. 

The Schneider Family Book Award-winning story of a deaf girl’s connection to a whale whose song can’t be heard by his species, and the journey she takes to help him.

Have you ever wondered who your ancestors are or how their lives shaped yours? Milkman, a young, African-American man, sets out to discover his ancestry and learns how racism, injustice, and the disparities between the rich and poor have affected his life and his relatives’ lives. 

The motto of South Orange River (S.O.R.) Middle School’s sports program is “everybody plays, everybody wins.” But all that changes when a group of 11 unenthusiastic seventh graders are forced to form a soccer team. Learn the secret of the S.O.R. Losers’ success in this original sports story.

This is the true, inspirational story of a teenage girl who had her arm bitten off by a shark. While this could understandably ruin her life, her attitude and her faith bring this young girl through the tragedy.

Family sticks with family. That’s the golden rule G’ma taught Kendall. But once G’ma’s gone, Kendall has no family left-except for Aunt Janet whom she barely remembers. With child services on Kendall’s case and just 10 days to get her apartment lease renewed, Kendall sets out for Janet’s home in New Orleans to get her life in order-and her questions answered.

Ever since she called 911 from a teen party, Melinda has quieted her voice, literally and figuratively. She only finds it when its needed to prevent a reoccurrence of the same horror. This stunning look at sexual assault and peer pressure is presented in a highly readable form.

Addison ventures into the Spill Zone, a toxic wasteland filled with frightening creatures, to obtain an item for a mysterious benefactor. Is Addison a pawn in a nefarious plot? Things are not what they seem in and around the Spill Zone.

After a stranger breaks in and terrorizes a gathering, the family members learn to cope with the aftermath of the crime and their other problems. Told in alternating chapters by Jeremy and his sister Paulie, these poems fit the fast-moving, gripping plot.

As students at a special high school that trains them to be secret agents, six teenagers struggle to complete the training exercises as a team before being sent out into the field to sink or swim.