Zusak, M.
(2005). The book thief. UK: Picador.
Narrated by death in the Holocaust era, he is intrigued by Liesel a
young Jewish girl who has been adopted by a German couple in order to save her
life. She loses her brother and mother, as well as many along the way. She
finds comfort in reading, as a Jew who her parents were hiding taught her how
to read. As she continues to lose family and deals with the German army who
make their presence well known. Death discusses how on certain days and nights
he comforts many. He also talks about some grasp and beg for him.
(NYT
Bestseller) An interesting take on the Holocaust
with the narrator being death. This is a brilliant book that shows how the
survival of young children and their views of Hitler and the Nazis. How they
felt, the attachment and the resilience of these young men and women and would
help them deal with it.
DeAngelis,
C. (2015). Bones and all. UK: Macmillan Publisher.
A young woman trying to define her place in the
world and a reason why she is the way she is. A mother who is protective, but
proves too much for her and on her 16th birthday she abandons her as
her father did. Maren wants to know why she eats people; surely it has to have
something to do with her father she has never known. In an effort, to find out
who she really is she leaves on a journey to find him. Along the way she meets
several people, some like her, and a love interest. Her biggest success is of
course finding herself.
(Alex
Award) Someone who doesn’t have a parent and wants to find
where they come from or why they do certain things could definitely relate to
this. As an adolescent many children who have never met a parent can feel like
they don’t know who they really are. Naturally they will want to find him or
her so they can find themselves.
Block, F.
L. (1999). The hanged man. NY: HarperCollins.
Laurel is on a downward spiral. Her father is dying
of cancer, her mother’s sexual abuse, and she’s become anorexic. As she tries
to escape her reality by partying with a new boyfriend who doesn’t leave her
side, things only become worse, she has an abortion, does drugs, and ultimately
leads to her breakdown. She is constantly battling her personal life and her
party life. Finally she is forced to deal with all the pain and dysfunctional
life she has.
Similar to the Crank series, the Anonymous series,
all dealing with good children who get so wrapped up in the party scene that
they ultimately lose themselves. In the other books it’s too late, in this book
she breaks and then heals. This is a great book for teens to be able to have an
outside looking in view. Seeing the dangers of trying to live life in the fast
lane.
Green, J.
(2015). Paper towns. NY: Penguin Books.
A true coming of a story about Quentin who has
always enjoyed the company of Margo who is more of an acquaintance and adventurer.
It all changes when she enters his life and bringing a bit of excitement into
his life. Suddenly, she is gone and his cannot cope with the fact that she is
gone. He goes on a journey and follow clues, he feels she has specifically left
for him to follow. He is on a mission to find her, but is not prepared for the
reaction he receives from Margo.
A great book, that helps a boy find who he really is
and gets a sense of adventure. Margo trying to escape her mundane life, but
finds that many times life is what it is. Adolescents will be able to relate to
both Margo and Q in many ways. It would also be a great book for teachers to
use as a compare and contrast piece, showing that the book is better than the
movie. As well as analyzing the title and why he chose that as the title for
the book.
Telgemeier,
R., & Yue, S. (2015). Smile. NY: Graphix.
The constant battle every teen goes through except
Raina’s life is kicked up a knotch when she falls and has her two front teeth
broken. She had to deal with boys, friend drama, and a major earthquake and to
top it off major teeth reconstruction. At times it seems like too much, in this
graphic novel you not only read about her head gear, fake teeth and braces, but
you also have the privilege to see it in bright colorful pictures. She deals
with all the embarrassment of having to look different from everyone else and eventually
accepting who she is.
A great book for adolescents especially those who have
to use braces which can majorly alter the views of others. It is important that
children know many embarrassing moments in their life are only temporary and
they will get through it. As adults we need to remember that what is not that
bad to us is devastating to teens.
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