Thayer Academy Middle School Independent Reading A ward Winners 2000-2009

The pages that follow include every winner, honor book, and/or finalist for three major annual awards related to young adult fiction during the specified timespan. The books are predominantly fiction, but there are numerous nonfiction selections, as well as several graphic novels and books of poetry. This document is structured for casual browsing; there’s something for everyone, and simply looking around will help you stumble across a high quality book.

National Book Award for Young People’s Literature is an award that seeks to recognize the best of ​ ​ American literature, raise the cultural appreciation of great writing, promote the enduring value of reading, and advance the careers of established and emerging writers.

The Michael L. Printz Award is an award for a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young ​ adult literature. The award is sponsored by Booklist, a publication of the American Library Association.

YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction honors the best nonfiction book published for young ​ adults (ages 12-18) during a Nov. 1 – Oct. 31 publishing year.

Beyond what’s contained in this document, there are many other lists produced by the Young Adult Library Services ​ Association (YALSA) that should be of interest. These include Best Fiction for Young Adults, Great Graphic Novels for ​ ​ ​ ​ Teens, Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, and Teens' Top Ten, amongst others. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ YALSA is an excellent resource worth exploring.

2 009 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● Claudette Colvin: Twice toward Justice by Phillip Hoose (Nonfiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta (Fiction) ​ ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman (Nonfiction) ​ ​ ● Stitches by David Small (Graphic Novel) ​ ​ ● Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor (Graphic Novel) ​ ​ ● Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia (Fiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves by M.T. ​ Anderson (Fiction) ​ ● The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Nation by Terry Pratchett (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (Fiction) ​ ​

2 008 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell (Fiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean (Fiction) ​ ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Chains (Seeds of America Series) by Laurie Halse Anderson (Fiction) ​ ​ ● The Underneath by Kathi Appelt (Fiction) ​ ​ ​ ​ ● The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart (Fiction) ​ ​ ● The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp (Fiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● Dreamquake: Book Two of the Dreamhunter Duet by Elizabeth Knox (Fiction) ​ ​ ● One Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Repossessed by A.M. Jenkins (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath by Stephanie Hemphill (Poetry) ​ ​

2 007 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie (Fiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang (Graphic Novel) ​ ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Skin Hunger (A Resurrection of Magic Series) by Kathleen Duey (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Touching Snow by M. Sindy Felin (Fiction) ​ ​ ● The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (Fiction) ​ ​

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ● Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr (Fiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation; v. 1: The Pox Party by M. T. Anderson (Fiction) ​ ​ ● An Abundance of Katherines by John Green (Fiction) ​ ● Surrender by Sonya Hartnett (Fiction) ​ ​ ● The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Fiction) ​ ​

2 006 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation; v. 1: The Pox Party by M. T. Anderson (Fiction) ​ ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● Looking for Alaska by John Green (Fiction) ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Sold by Patricia McCormick (Fiction) ​ ​ ● The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin (Fiction) ​ ​ ● American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang (Graphic Novel) ​ ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● Black Juice by Margo Lanagan (Fiction) ​ ● I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (Fiction) ​ ● John Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth, a Photographic Biography by Elizabeth Partridge (Nonfiction) ​ ● A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson (Poetry) ​

2 005 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● The Penderwicks (Penderwicks Series) by Jeanne Birdsall (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (Fiction) ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Where I Want to Be by Adele Griffin (Fiction) ​ ● Inexcusable by Chris Lynch (Fiction) ​ ● Autobiography of My Dead Brother by Walter Dean Myers (Fiction) ​ ● Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● Airborn by Kenneth Oppel (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Chanda's Secrets by Allan Stratton (Fiction) ​ ● Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt (Fiction) ​

2 004 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● Godless by Pete Hautman (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● The First Part Last by Angela Johnson (Fiction) ​

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National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Honey, Baby, Sweetheart by Deb Caletti (Fiction) ​ ● Harlem Stomp!: A Cultural History of the Harlem Renaissance by Laban Carrick Hill (Nonfiction) ​ ● The Legend of Buddy Bush by Shelia P. Moses (Fiction) ​ ● Luna: A Novel by Julie Anne Peters (Fiction) ​

Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly (Fiction) ​ ● Keesha's House by Helen Frost (Fiction) ​ ● Fat Kid Rules the World by K.L. Going (Fiction) ​ ● The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler (Fiction) ​

2 003 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● The Canning Season by Polly Horvath (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● Postcards from No Man's Land by Aidan Chambers (Fiction) ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Breakout by Paul Fleischman (Fiction) ​ ● An American Plague: The Time and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by Jim Murphy ​ (Fiction) ● The River Between Us by Richard Peck (Fiction) ​ ● Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson (Poetry) ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (Fiction) ​ ● My Heartbeat by Garret Freymann-Weyr (Fiction) ​ ● Hole in My Life by Jack Gantos (Nonfiction) ​

2 002 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● A Step from Heaven by An Na (Fiction) ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Feed by M.T. Anderson (Fiction) ​ ● 19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East by Naomi Shihab Nye (Poetry) ​ ● This Land Was Made for You and Me: The Life and Songs of Woody Guthrie by Elizabeth Partridge (Nonfiction) ​ ● Hush by Jacqueline Woodson (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● The Ropemaker by Peter Dickinson (Fiction) ​ ● Heart to Heart: New Poems Inspired by Twentieth-Century American Art by Jan Greenberg (Poetry) ​ ● Freewill by Chris Lynch (Fiction) ​ ● True Believer by Virginia Euwer Wolff (Fiction) ​ Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

2 001 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● True Believer by Virginia Euwer Wolff (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● Kit’s Wilderness by David Almond (Fiction) ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo (Fiction) ​ ● We Were There Too! Young People in U.S. History by Phillip Hoose (Nonfiction) ​ ● A Step from Heaven by An Na (Fiction) ​ ● Carver: A Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson (Nonfiction) ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● Many Stones by Carolyn Coman (Fiction) ​ ● The Body of Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci (Fiction) ​ ● Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison (Fiction) ​ ● Stuck in Neutral by Terry Trueman (Fiction) ​

2 000 National Book Award Winner: ​ ● Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan (Fiction) ​ Printz Award Winner: ​ ● Monster by Walter Dean Myers (Fiction) ​

National Book Award Finalists: ​ ● Forgotten Fire by Adam Bagdasarian (Fiction) ​ ● The Book of the Lion by Michael Cadnum (Fiction) ​ ● Many Stones by Carolyn Coman (Fiction) ​ ● Hurry Freedom: African Americans in Gold Rush California by Jerry Stanley (Nonfiction) ​ Printz Award Honor Books: ​ ​ ● Skellig by David Almond (Fiction) ​ ● Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (Fiction) ​ ● Hard Love by Ellen Wittlinger (Fiction) ​

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C harles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman (Nonfiction) ​ ​ ● YALSA’s Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Winner, 2010 ​ ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2009 ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2010 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, his revolutionary tract on evolution and the fundamental ​ ​ ideas involved, in 1859. Nearly 150 years later, the theory of evolution continues to create tension between the scientific and religious communities. Challenges about teaching the theory of evolution in schools occur annually all over the country. This same debate raged within Darwin himself, and played an important part in his marriage: his wife, Emma, was quite religious, and her faith gave Charles a lot to think about as he worked on a theory that continues to spark intense debates. Deborah Heiligman's new biography of Charles Darwin is a thought-provoking account of the man behind evolutionary theory: how his personal life affected his work and vice versa. The end result is an engaging exploration of history, science, and religion for young readers.”

C laudette Colvin: Twice toward Justice by Phillip Hoose (Nonfiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2009 ​ ​ ● YALSA’s Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist, 2010 ● Phillip Hoose is also the author of Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great ​ Survivor B95, YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist in 2013, and We ​ ​ Were There Too! Young People in U.S. History, a National Book Award Finalist in ​ ​ 2001 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Common Sense Media: ​ “Claudette Colvin stood up to the unfairness of the Jim Crow laws months before Rosa Parks, yet history has largely forgotten all about her. Before Parks refused to give up her seat, 15-year-old Colvin stood firm and was dragged off the bus, handcuffed, and thrown into adult prison. Her story should have been a rallying point for the civil rights movement, but Colvin was instead largely criticized and labeled "emotional" because of her stand. Despite personal problems, alienation from peers and adults, and intimidation Colvin did whatever she could to stand up for her rights and the rights of African Americans.”

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T he Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P.T. Barnum by ​ Candace Fleming (Nonfiction) ​ ● YALSA’s Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist, 2010 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “The award-winning author of The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and ​ Mary, Amelia Lost, and Our Eleanor brings us the larger-than-life biography of ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ showman P. T. Barnum. Known far and wide for his jumbo elephants, midgets, and three-ring circuses, here’ s a complete and captivating look at the man behind the Greatest Show on Earth. Readers can visit Barnum’s American Museum; meet Tom Thumb, the miniature man (only 39 inches tall) and his tinier bride (32 inches); experience the thrill Barnum must have felt when, at age 60, he joined the circus; and discover Barnum’s legacy to the 19th century and beyond. Drawing on old circus posters, photographs, etchings, ticket stubs—and with incredible decorative art by Ray Fenwick—this book presents history as it’s never been experienced before—a show-stopping event!”

W ritten in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland by Sally M. Walker ​ (Nonfiction) ● YALSA’s Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist, 2010 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “How did the colonists of Jamestown and Maryland live and die? Forensic anthropology provides an incredible array of answers. Scientists can look into a grave and determine the skeleton's gender, age at time of death, nationality, and sometimes even economic standing within minutes. Laboratory studies can provide cause of death information. Once these details are known, some skeletons can even be matched with a name via the historical record. Sibert-winning author Sally M. Walker worked side by side with archaeologists and forensic anthropologists in her research for this uniquely appealing book.”

S titches by David Small (Graphic Novel) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2009 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “David Small, a best-selling and highly regarded children's book illustrator, comes forward with this unflinching graphic memoir. Remarkable and intensely dramatic, Stitches tells the story of a fourteen-year-old boy who awakes one day from a supposedly harmless operation to discover that he has been transformed into a virtual mute―a vocal cord removed, his throat slashed and stitched together like a bloody boot. From horror to hope, Small proceeds to graphically portray an almost unbelievable descent into adolescent hell and the difficult road to physical, emotional, and artistic recovery.”

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L ips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor (Graphic Novel) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2009 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “In the style of Stephenie Meyer, three tales of supernatural love that all hinge on a life-changing kiss. Three tales of supernatural love, each pivoting on a kiss that is no mere kiss, but an action with profound consequences for the kissers' souls: Goblin Fruit: In Victorian times, goblin men had only to offer young girls sumptuous fruits to tempt them to sell their souls. But what does it take to tempt today's savvy girls? Spicy Little Curses: A demon and the ambassador to Hell tussle over the soul of a beautiful English girl in India. Matters become complicated when she falls in love and decides to test her curse.”

J umped by Rita Williams-Garcia (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2009 ● Rita Williams-Garcia is also the author of One Crazy Summer, a National Book Award ​ ​ ​ Finalist in 2010 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Acclaimed author Rita Williams-Garcia gives readers an intimate, gritty portrayal of three very different teens on the day when everything collides.Trina: "Hey," I say, though I don't really know them. It's okay if they don't speak. I know how it is. They can't all be Trina.Dominique: Some stupid little flit cuts right between us and is like, "Hey." I slam my fist into my other hand because she's as good as jumped.Leticia: Girl fights are ugly. Girl fights are personal. And who's to say I wasn't seeing it from the wrong angle?”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ J ellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2009 ​ ​ ● Melina Marchetta's acceptance speech ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “In this lyrical, absorbing, award-winning novel, nothing is as it seems, and every clue leads to more questions. At age eleven, Taylor Markham was abandoned by her mother. At fourteen, she ran away from boarding school, only to be tracked down and brought back by a mysterious stranger. Now seventeen, Taylor's the reluctant leader of her school's underground community, whose annual territory war with the Townies and visiting Cadets has just begun. This year, though, the Cadets are led by Jonah Griggs, and Taylor can't avoid his intense gaze for long. To make matters worse, Hannah, the one adult Taylor trusts, has disappeared. But if Taylor can piece together the clues Hannah left behind, the truth she uncovers might not just settle her past, but also change her future.”

T he Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves by M.T. Anderson (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2009 ● M.T. Anderson is also the author of Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri ​ Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad, a YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction ​ Finalist in 2016, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation; v. 1: ​ The Pox Party, the National Book Award Winner in 2006, and Feed, a National Book ​ ​ ​ ​ Award Finalist in 2002 ● Read M.T. Anderson's acceptance speech ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Fearing a death sentence, Octavian and his tutor, Dr. Trefusis, escape through rising tides and pouring rain to find shelter in British-occupied Boston. Sundered from all he knows — the College of Lucidity, the rebel cause — Octavian hopes to find safe harbor. Instead, he is soon to learn of Lord Dunmore's proclamation offering freedom to slaves who join the counterrevolutionary forces. In Volume II of his unparalleled masterwork, M. T. Anderson recounts Octavian's experiences as the Revolutionary War explodes around him, thrusting him into intense battles and tantalizing him with elusive visions of liberty. Ultimately, this astonishing narrative escalates to a startling, deeply satisfying climax, while reexamining our national origins in a singularly provocative light.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ T he Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2009 ● National Book Award Finalist, 2008 ● Read E. Lockhart's acceptance speech ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:Debate Club. Her father's "bunny rabbit." A mildly ​ ​ geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school. Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15: A knockout ​ ​ figure. A sharp tongue. A chip on her shoulder. And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston. Frankie Landau-Banks. No longer the kind of girl to take "no" for an ​ ​ answer. Especially when "no" means she's excluded from her boyfriend's all-male secret society. Not when her ex-boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places. Not when she knows she's smarter than any of them. When she knows Matthew's lying to her. And when there are so many, many pranks to be done. Frankie ​ Landau-Banks, at age 16: Possibly a criminal mastermind. This is the story of how she got that way.” ​

N ation by Terry Pratchett (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2009 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “When a giant wave destroys his village, Mau is the only one left. Daphne—a traveler from the other side of the globe—is the sole survivor of a shipwreck. Separated by language and customs, the two are united by catastrophe. Slowly, they are joined by other refugees. And as they struggle to protect the small band, Mau and Daphne defy ancestral spirits, challenge death himself, and uncover a long-hidden secret that literally turns the world upside down.”

T ender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2009 ● Read Margo Lanagan's acceptance speech ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Tender Morsels is a dark and vivid story, set in two worlds and worrying at the border ​ ​ between them. Liga lives modestly in her own personal heaven, a world given to her in exchange for her earthly life. Her two daughters grow up in this soft place, protected from the violence that once harmed their mother. But the real world cannot be denied forever—magicked men and wild bears break down the borders of Liga’s refuge. Now, having known Heaven, how will these three women survive in a world where beauty and brutality lie side by side?”

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W hat I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2008 ​ ​ ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “When Evie's father returned home from World War II, the family fell back into its normal life pretty quickly. But Joe Spooner brought more back with him than just good war stories. When movie-star handsome Peter Coleridge, a young ex-GI who served in Joe's company in postwar Austria, shows up, Evie is suddenly caught in a complicated web of lies that she only slowly recognizes. She finds herself falling for Peter, ignoring the secrets that surround him . . . until a tragedy occurs that shatters her family and breaks her life in two.”

C hains (Seeds of America Series) by Laurie Halse Anderson (Fiction) ​ ​ ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2008 ● Since the summer of 2015, Chains is required summer reading for rising 8th graders at ​ ​ Thayer ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “As the Revolutionary War begins, thirteen-year-old Isabel wages her own fight...for freedom. Promised freedom upon the death of their owner, she and her sister, Ruth, in a cruel twist of fate become the property of a malicious New York City couple, the Locktons, who have no sympathy for the American Revolution and even less for Ruth and Isabel. When Isabel meets Curzon, a slave with ties to the Patriots, he encourages her to spy on her owners, who know details of British plans for invasion. She is reluctant at first, but when the unthinkable happens to Ruth, Isabel realizes her loyalty is available to the bidder who can provide her with freedom.”

T he Underneath by Kathi Appelt (Fiction) ​ ​ Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2008 ● Kathi Appelt is also the author of The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp, a National Book Award Finalist ​ ​ in 2013 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “A calico cat, about to have kittens, hears the lonely howl of a chained-up hound deep in the backwaters of the bayou. She dares to find him in the forest, and the hound dares to befriend this cat, this feline, this creature he is supposed to hate. They are an unlikely pair, about to become an unlikely family. Ranger urges the cat to hide underneath the porch, to raise her kittens there because Gar-Face, the man living inside the house, will surely use them as alligator bait should he find them. But they are safe in the Underneath...as long as they stay in the Underneath. Kittens, however, are notoriously curious creatures. And one kitten's one moment of curiosity sets off a chain of events that is astonishing, remarkable, and enormous in its meaning. For everyone who loves Sounder, Shiloh, and The Yearling, for everyone who loves the haunting beauty of writers such as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Flannery O'Connor, and Carson McCullers, Kathi Appelt spins a harrowing yet keenly sweet tale about the power of love -- and its opposite, hate -- the fragility of happiness and the importance of making good on your promises.”

T he Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2008 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “SUTTER KEELY. HE’S the guy you want at your party. He’ll get everyone dancing. He’ ll get everyone in your parents’ pool. Okay, so he’s not exactly a shining academic star. He has no plans for college and will probably end up folding men’s shirts for a living. But there are plenty of ladies in town, and with the help of Dean Martin and Seagram’s V.O., life’s pretty fabuloso, actually. Until the morning he wakes up on a random front lawn, and he meets Aimee. Aimee’s clueless. Aimee is a social disaster. Aimee needs help, and it’s up to the Sutterman to show Aimee a splendiferous time and then let her go forth and prosper. But Aimee’s not like other girls, and before long he’s in way over his head. For the first time in his life, he has the power to make a difference in someone else’s life—or ruin it forever.”

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T he White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2008 ​ ​ ● Hear Geraldine McCaughrean's Printz Award Acceptance Speech given at the Michael L. ​ ​ Printz Program and Reception in Anaheim, California, on June 30 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “I have been in love with Titus Oates for quite a while now—which is ridiculous, since he's been dead for ninety years. But look at it this way. In ninety years I'll be dead, too, and the age difference won't matter. Sym is not your average teenage girl. She is obsessed with the Antarctic and the brave, romantic figure of Captain Oates from Scott's doomed expedition to the South Pole. In fact, Oates is the secret confidant to whom she spills all her hopes and fears. But Sym's uncle Victor is even more obsessed—and when he takes her on a dream trip into the bleak Antarctic wilderness, it turns into a nightmarish struggle for survival that will challenge everything she knows and loves.”

D reamquake: Book Two of the Dreamhunter Duet by Elizabeth Knox (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2008 ● Hear Elizabeth Knox's speech given at the Michael L. Printz Program and Reception in ​ ​ Anaheim, California, on June 30. ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “The dreamhunting began as a beautiful thing, when Tziga Hame discovered that he could enter the Place and share the dreams he found there with other people. But Tziga Hame has disappeared and Laura, his daughter, knows that the art of projecting dreams has turned sour. On St. Lazarus's Eve, when elite citizens gather at the Rainbow Opera to experience the sweet dream of Homecoming, Laura, determined to show them the truth, plunges them into the nightmare used to control the convict workers. The event marks the first blow in the battle for control of the Place, the source of dreams. Then, when Laura's cousin, Rose, uncovers evidence that the government has been building a secret rail line deep into the Place, Laura follows it to find out what lies at its end. As she struggles to counter the government's sinister plans, a deeper mystery surfaces, a puzzle only Laura can unravel, a puzzle having to do with the very nature of the Place. What is the Place, after all? And what does it want from her?”

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O ne Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2008 ● Hear Judith Clarke's speech at the Michael L. Printz Program and Reception in Anaheim, ​ ​ California, on June 30. ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “This wholly satisfying Michael L. Printz Honor Book is told from multiple points of view. Lily Samson both loves and is embarrassed by her eccentric family. Her grandmother has an invisible friend; her grandfather is a racist (she believes); her mother brings elderly clients home from work for dinner; and her older brother keeps dropping in and out of school. Lily wishes her family could be “normal” for just one day. Then serendipity strikes. Through a series of surprising encounters, Lily’s family members all reach new understanding about themselves and make changes for the better—and Lily gets her dream of one whole and perfect day.”

R epossessed by A.M. Jenkins (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2008 ● Hear A.M. Jenkins' speech at the Michael L. Printz Program and Reception in Anaheim, ​ ​ California, on June 30. ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Don't call me a demon. I prefer the term Fallen Angel.Everybody deserves a vacation, right? Especially if you have a pointless job like tormenting the damned. So who could blame me for blowing off my duties and taking a small, unauthorized break?Besides, I've always wanted to see what physical existence is like. That's why I "borrowed" the slightly used body of a slacker teen. Believe me, he wasn't going to be using it anymore anyway.I have never understood why humans do the things they do. Like sin—if it's so terrible, why do they keep doing it?I'm going to have a lot of fun finding out!”

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Y our Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath by Stephanie Hemphill (Poetry) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2008 ● Hear Stephanie Hemphill's speech given at the Michael L. Printz Program and Reception ​ ​ in Anaheim, California, on June 30. ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Your Own, Sylvia draws on Plath’s writing and extensive nonfiction sources, chronicling Hemphill’s ​ ​ interpretation of Plath’s life from infancy to her death by suicide at age 30. The poems are arranged chronologically and each conveys an experience in Plath’s life told via the voice and perspective of family members, friends, doctors, fellow writers, etc.—as interpreted by Hemphill. Each poem is accompanied by an addendum that further explains the factual circumstances of that poem’s subject. The book also includes an Author’s Note, some photos, a section describing the source material for each poem, and suggestions for further reading.”

T he Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2007 ​ ​ ● The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is a core text of Thayer’s 7th grade ​ curriculum ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Bestselling author Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings by Ellen Forney that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he was destined to live.”

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S kin Hunger (A Resurrection of Magic Series) by Kathleen Duey (Fiction) ​ ​ ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2007 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Sadima lives in a world where magic has been banned, leaving poor villagers prey to fakes and charlatans. A "magician" stole her family's few valuables and left Sadima's mother to die on the day Sadima was born. But vestiges of magic are hidden in old rhymes and hearth tales and in people like Sadima, who conceals her silent communication with animals for fear of rejection and ridicule. When rumors of her gift reach Somiss, a young nobleman obsessed with restoring magic, he sends Franklin, his lifelong servant, to find her. Sadima's joy at sharing her secret becomes love for the man she shares it with. But Franklin's irrevocable bond to the brilliant and dangerous Somiss traps her, too, and she faces a heartbreaking decision. Centuries later magic has been restored, but it is available only to the wealthy and is strictly controlled by wizards within a sequestered academy of magic. Hahp, the expendable second son of a rich merchant, is forced into the academy and finds himself paired with Gerrard, a peasant boy inexplicably admitted with nine sons of privilege and wealth. Only one of the ten students will graduate -- and the first academic requirement is survival. Sadima's and Hahp's worlds are separated by generations, but their lives are connected in surprising and powerful ways in this brilliant first book of Kathleen Duey's dark, complex, and completely compelling trilogy.”

T ouching Snow by M. Sindy Felin (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2007 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Karina has plenty to worry about on the last day of seventh grade: finding three Ds and a C on her report card again, getting laughed at by everyone again, being sent to the principal—again. But she’s too busy dodging the fists of her stepfather and looking out for her sisters to deal with school. This is the story of a young girl coming of age amidst the violent waters that run just beneath the surface of suburbia—a story that has the courage to ask: How far will you go to protect the ones you love?”

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T he Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2007 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.”

S tory of a Girl by Sara Zarr (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2007 ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “I was thirteen when my dad caught me with Tommy Webber in the back of Tommy's ​ Buick, parked next to the old Chart House down in Montara at eleven o'clock on a Tuesday night. Tommy was seventeen and the supposed friend of my brother, Darren. I didn't love him. I'm not sure I even liked him. In a ​ moment, Deanna Lambert's teenage life is changed forever. Struggling to overcome the lasting repercussions and the stifling role of "school slut," Deanna longs to escape a life defined by her past. With subtle grace, complicated wisdom, and striking emotion, Story of a Girl reminds us of our human capacity for resilience, ​ ​ epiphany, and redemption.”

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A merican Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang (Graphic Novel) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2007 ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2006 ● Gene Luen Yang is also the author of Boxers & Saints, a National Book Award Finalist ​ ​ in 2013 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Jin Wang starts at a new school where he's the only Chinese-American student. When a boy from Taiwan joins his class, Jin doesn't want to be associated with an FOB like him. Jin just wants to be an all-American boy, because he's in love with an all-American girl. Danny is an all-American boy: great at basketball, popular with the girls. But his obnoxious Chinese cousin Chin-Kee's annual visit is such a disaster that it ruins Danny's reputation at school, leaving him with no choice but to transfer somewhere he can start all over again. The Monkey King has lived for thousands of years and mastered the arts of kung fu and the heavenly disciplines. He's ready to join the ranks of the immortal gods in heaven. But there's no place in heaven for a monkey. Each of these characters cannot help himself alone, but how can they possibly help each other? They're going to have to find a way―if they want fix the disasters their lives have become.”

T he Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation; v. 1: The Pox Party by M. T. ​ Anderson (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2006 ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2007 ● M.T. Anderson is also the author of Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri ​ Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad, a YALSA's Award for Excellence in ​ Nonfiction Finalist in 2016, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the ​ Nation, Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves, a Printz Award Honor Book in 2009, and ​ Feed, a National Book Award Finalist in 2002 ​ ​ ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Young Octavian is being raised by a group of rational philosophers known only by numbers -- but it is only after he opens a forbidden door that learns the hideous nature of their experiments, and his own chilling role them. Set in Revolutionary Boston, M. T. Anderson’s mesmerizing novel takes place at a time when Patriots battled to win liberty while African slaves were entreated to risk their lives for a freedom they would never claim. The first of two parts, this deeply provocative novel reimagines past as an eerie place that has startling resonance for readers today.”

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A n Abundance of Katherines by John Green (Fiction) ​ ● An 8th Grade Recommendation in 2016 ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2007 ● John Green is also the author of Looking for Alaska, the Printz Award Winner in 2006 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton’s type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact. On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy–loving best friend riding shotgun—but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl. Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself.” ● What Thayer students are saying: “You should read this book if you like books that you can laugh with and at the characters.”

S urrender by Sonya Hartnett (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2007 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “As life slips away, Gabriel looks back over his brief twenty years, which have been clouded by frustration and humiliation. A small, unforgiving town and distant, punitive parents ensure that he is never allowed to forget the horrific mistake he made as a child. He has only two friends - his dog, Surrender, and the unruly wild boy, Finnigan, a shadowy doppelganger with whom the meek Gabriel once made a boyhood pact. But when a series of arson attacks grips the town, Gabriel realizes how unpredictable and dangerous Finnigan is. As events begin to spiral violently out of control, it becomes devastatingly clear that only the most extreme measures will rid Gabriel of Finnigan for good.”

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T he Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2007 ● The Book Thief is a core text in Ms. Soule’s 8th grade classes at Thayer ​ ● Markus Zusak is also the author of I Am the Messenger, a Printz Award Honor Book in ​ ​ 2006 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.”

K eturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2006 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Keturah, renowned for her storytelling, follows a legendary hart deep into the forest, where she becomes hopelessly lost. Her strength diminishes until, finally, she realizes that death is near—and learns then that death is a young lord, melancholy and stern. She is able to charm Lord Death with a story and gain a reprieve, but he grants her only a day, and within that day she must find true love. A mesmerizing love story, interweaving elements of classic fantasy and high romance.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ S old by Patricia McCormick (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2006 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Lakshmi is a thirteen-year-old girl who lives with her family in a small hut on a mountain in Nepal. Though she is desperately poor, her life is full of simple pleasures, like playing hopscotch with her best friend from school, and having her mother brush her hair by the light of an oil lamp. But when the harsh Himalayan monsoons wash away all that remains of the family's crops, Lakshmi's stepfather says she must leave home and take a job to support her family. He introduces her to a glamorous stranger who tells her she will find her a job as a maid in the city. Glad to be able to help, Lakshmi journeys to India and arrives at "Happiness House" full of hope. But she soon learns the unthinkable truth: she has been sold into prostitution. An old woman named Mumtaz rules the brothel with cruelty and cunning. She tells Lakshmi that she is trapped there until she can pay off her family's debt-then cheats Lakshmi of her meager earnings so that she can never leave. Lakshmi's life becomes a nightmare from which she cannot escape. Still, she lives by her mother's words-Simply to endure is to triumph-and gradually, she forms friendships with the ​ ​ other girls that enable her to survive in this terrifying new world. Then the day comes when she must make a decision-will she risk everything for a chance to reclaim her life?”

T he Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin (Fiction) ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2006 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “For Matt and his sisters, life with their cruel, vicious mother is a day-to-day struggle for survival. But then Matt witnesses Murdoch coming to a child’s rescue in a convenience store, and for the first time, he feels a glimmer of hope. When, amazingly, Murdoch begins dating Matt?s mother, life is suddenly almost good. But the relief lasts only a short time. When Murdoch inevitably breaks up with their mother, Matt knows he needs to take action. But can he call upon his hero? Or will he have to take measures into his own hands? A heart-wrenching portrait of a family in crisis, this is Nancy Werlin’s most compulsively readable novel yet.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ L ooking for Alaska by John Green (Fiction) ​ ● A 7th and 8th Grade Recommendation in 2016 ● Printz Award Winner, 2006 ​ ​ ● John Green is also the author of An Abundance of Katherines, a Printz Award Honor ​ ​ Book in 2007 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Common Sense Media: ​ “Miles, tired of his friendless, dull life in Florida, convinces his parents to send him away to boarding school in Alabama so that he can seek "the Great Perhaps." There he meets his roommate and soon-to-be best friend, Chip, called the Colonel, and Alaska Young, the moody, gorgeous, wild girl who instantly becomes the object of his lust. Miles is quickly enlisted in their war against the Weekday Warriors, the rich kids who go home every weekend, and they bond over elaborate pranks, studying, and assorted rule-breaking. About halfway through the book a tragedy occurs, and those left spend the rest of the book trying to make sense of it, to solve the mystery it leaves behind, and to pull off one last, greatest-ever prank.” ● What Thayer students are saying: “You should read this book if you like adventure with a bit of romance.” “You should read this book if you like realistic fiction, with intelligent, humorous banter, mixed with mystery.”

B lack Juice by Margo Lanagan (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2006 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “As part of a public execution, a young boy forlornly helps to sing his sister down. . . . A servant learns about grace and loyalty from a mistress who would rather dance with Gypsies than sit on her throne. . . . A terrifying encounter with a demonic angel gives a young man the strength he needs to break free of his oppressor. . . . On a bleak and dreary afternoon a gleeful shooting spree leads to tragedy for a desperate clown unable to escape his fate.In each of Margo Lanagan's ten extraordinary stories, human frailty is put to the test by the implacable forces of dark and light, man and beast. black juice offers glimpses into familiar, shadowy worlds that push the boundaries of the spirit and leave the mind haunted with the knowledge that black juice runs through us all.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2006 ● Markus Zusak is also the author of The Book Thief, a Printz Award Honor Book in 2007 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Ed Kennedy is an underage cabdriver without much of a future. He's pathetic at playing cards, hopelessly in love with his best friend, Audrey, and utterly devoted to his coffee-drinking dog, the Doorman. His life is one of peaceful routine and incompetence until he inadvertently stops a bank robbery. That's when the first ace arrives in the mail. That's when Ed becomes the messenger. Chosen to care, he makes his way through town helping and hurting (when necessary) until only one question remains: Who's behind Ed's mission?”

J ohn Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth, a Photographic Biography by Elizabeth Partridge ​ (Nonfiction) ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2006 ● Elizabeth Partridge is also the author of This Land Was Made for You and Me: The ​ Life and Songs of Woody Guthrie, a National Book Award Finalist in 2002 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Award-winning biographer Elizabeth Partridge dives into Lennon’s life from the night he was born in 1940 during a World War II air raid on Liverpool, deftly taking us through his turbulent childhood and his rebellious rock’n’roll teens to his celebrated life writing, recording, and performing music with the Beatles. She sheds light on the years after the Beatles, with Yoko Ono, as he struggled to make sense of his own artistic life—one that had turned from youthful angst to suffocating fame in almost a split second. Partridge chronicles the emotional highs and paralyzing lows Lennon transformed into brilliant, evocative songs. With striking black-and-white photographs spanning his entire life, John Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth is the unforgettable story of one of rock’s biggest ​ ​ legends.”

A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson (Poetry) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2006 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “In 1955 people all over the United States knew that Emmett Louis Till was a fourteen-year-old African American boy lynched for supposedly whistling at a white woman in Mississippi. The brutality of his murder, the open-casket funeral held by his mother, Mamie Till Mobley, and the acquittal of the men tried for the crime drew wide media attention. In a profound and chilling poem, award-winning poet Marilyn Nelson reminds us of the boy whose fate helped spark the civil rights movement.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ T he Penderwicks (Penderwicks Series) by Jeanne Birdsall (Fiction) ​ ​ ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2005 ​ ​ ● National Book Foundation Link ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “This summer the Penderwick sisters have a wonderful surprise: a holiday on the grounds of a beautiful estate called Arundel. Soon they are busy discovering the summertime magic of Arundel’s sprawling gardens, treasure-filled attic, tame rabbits, and the cook who makes the best gingerbread in Massachusetts. But the best discovery of all is Jeffrey Tifton, son of Arundel’s owner, who quickly proves to be the perfect companion for their adventures. The icy-hearted Mrs. Tifton is not as pleased with the Penderwicks as Jeffrey is, though, and warns the new friends to stay out of trouble. Which, of course, they will—won’t they? One thing’s for sure: it will be a summer the Penderwicks will never forget. Deliciously nostalgic and quaintly witty, this is a story as breezy and carefree as a summer day.”

W here I Want to Be by Adele Griffin (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2005 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “As children, sisters Jane and Lily were inseparable. But as Lily grew up, older sister Jane wanted to forever stay in the makebelieve worlds they had created when they were young. For Jane, the line between fantasy and reality had always been blurred. Then tragedy strikes, and Lily is forced to take on the role of the big sister. But will she be able to carry on and live her life in real time when Jane is forever stuck in a world that is different from reality? With two voices and a haunting narrative, Adele Griffin tells a tale of two sisters whose bond is so strong that it ties them together even after death.”

I nexcusable by Chris Lynch (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2005 ● Chris Lynch is also the author of Freewill, a Printz Award Honor Book in 2002 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Keir Sarafian may not know much, but he knows himself. And the one thing he knows about himself is that he is a good guy. A guy who’s a devoted son and brother, a loyal friend, and a reliable teammate. And, maybe most important of all, Keir is a guy who understands that when a girl says no, she means it. But that is not what Gigi Boudakian, childhood friend and Keir’s lifelong love, says at all. What Gigi says seems impossible to Keir—something inexcusable—the worst thing he can imagine, the very opposite of everything he wants to be. As Keir recalls the events leading up to his fateful night with Gigi, he realizes that the way things look are definitely not the way they really are…and that it may be all too easy for a good guy to do something terribly wrong. Chris Lynch has written a no-holds-barred story about truth, lies, and responsibility—a story that every good guy needs to hear.”

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A utobiography of My Dead Brother by Walter Dean Myers (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2005 ● Walter Dean Myers is also the author of Lockdown, a National Book Award Finalist in ​ ​ 2010, and Monster, the Printz Award Winner in 2000 ​ ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “The thing was that me and Rise were blood brothers, but sometimes I really didn't know him. . . .As Jesse fills his sketchbook with drawings and portraits of Rise, he tries to make sense of the complexities of friendship, loyalty, and loss in a neighborhood plagued by drive-bys, vicious gangs, and abusive cops.”

E ach Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2005 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Ten-year-old Comfort Snowberger has attended 247 funerals. But that's not surprising, considering that her family runs the town funeral home. And even though Great-uncle Edisto keeled over with a heart attack and Great-great-aunt Florentine dropped dead--just like that--six months later, Comfort knows how to deal with loss, or so she thinks. She's more concerned with avoiding her crazy cousin Peach and trying to figure out why her best friend, Declaration, suddenly won't talk to her. Life is full of surprises. And the biggest one of all is learning what it takes to handle them. Deborah Wiles has created a unique, funny, and utterly real cast of characters in this heartfelt, and quintessentially Southern coming-of-age novel. Comfort will charm young readers with her wit, her warmth, and her struggles as she learns about life, loss, and ultimately, triumph.”

H ow I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2005 ​ ​ ● Meg Rosoff is also the author of Picture Me Gone, a National Book Award Finalist in ​ ​ ​ 2013 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she’s never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy. As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it’s a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy’s uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ A irborn by Kenneth Oppel (Fiction) ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2005 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Sailing toward dawn, and I was perched atop the crow's nest, being the ship's eyes. We were two nights out of Sydney, and there'd been no weather to speak of so far. I was keeping watch on a dark stack of nimbus clouds off to the northwest, but we were leaving it far behind, and it looked to be smooth going all the way back to Lionsgate City. Like riding a cloud. . . . Matt Cruse is a cabin boy on the Aurora, a huge airship that sails hundreds of feet above the ocean, ferrying wealthy passengers from city to city. It is the life Matt's always wanted; convinced he's lighter than air, he imagines himself as buoyant as the hydrium gas that powers his ship. One night he meets a dying balloonist who speaks of beautiful creatures drifting through the skies. It is only after Matt meets the balloonist's granddaughter that he realizes that the man's ravings may, in fact, have been true, and that the creatures are completely real and utterly mysterious. In a swashbuckling adventure reminiscent of Jules Verne and Robert Louis Stevenson, Kenneth Oppel, author of the best-selling Silverwing trilogy, creates an imagined world in which the air is populated by transcontinental voyagers, ​ pirates, and beings never before dreamed of by the humans who sail the skies.”

C handa's Secrets by Allan Stratton (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2005 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Chanda’s mother is not herself, her younger sister is acting out, and her best friend needs help. A powerful story set amid the African HIV/AIDS pandemic. In this sensitive, swiftly paced story, readers will find echoes of To Kill a Mockingbird as Chanda, a 16-year-old, astonishingly perceptive girl living in the small city of Bonang in Africa, must confront the undercurrents of shame and stigma associated with HIV/AIDS. Through his artful style and dramatic storytelling, Allan Stratton captures the enduring strength of loyalty, the profound impact of loss, and a fearlessness that is powered by the heart. Above all, it is a story about living with truth. Proceeds from the sale of this book will be used to support organizations working to better the lives of Africans living with HIV/AIDS.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ L izzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2005 ● Gary D. Schmidt is also the author of Okay for Now, a National Book Award Finalist in ​ ​ 2011 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “It only takes a few hours for Turner Buckminster to start hating Phippsburg, Maine. No one in town will let him forget that he's a minister's son, even if he doesn't act like one. But then he meets Lizzie Bright Griffin, a smart and sassy girl from a poor nearby island community founded by former slaves. Despite his father's-and the town's-disapproval of their friendship, Turner spends time with Lizzie, and it opens up a whole new world to him, filled with the mystery and wonder of Maine's rocky coast. The two soon discover that the town elders, along with Turner's father, want to force the people to leave Lizzie's island so that Phippsburg can start a lucrative tourist trade there. Turner gets caught up in a spiral of disasters that alter his life-but also lead him to new levels of acceptance and maturity. This sensitively written historical novel, based on the true story of a community's destruction, highlights a unique friendship during a time of change.”

G odless by Pete Hautman (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2004 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “"Why mess around with Catholicism when you can have your own customized religion?" Fed up with his parents' boring old religion, agnostic-going-on-atheist Jason Bock invents a new god -- the town's water tower. He recruits an unlikely group of worshippers: his snail-farming best friend, Shin, cute-as-a-button (whatever that means) Magda Price, and the violent and unpredictable Henry Stagg. As their religion grows, it takes on a life of its own. While Jason struggles to keep the faith pure, Shin obsesses over writing their bible, and the explosive Henry schemes to make the new faith even more exciting -- and dangerous. When the Chutengodians hold their first ceremony high atop the dome of the water tower, things quickly go from merely dangerous to terrifying and deadly. Jason soon realizes that inventing a religion is a lot easier than controlling it, but control it he must, before his creation destroys both his friends and himself.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ H oney, Baby, Sweetheart by Deb Caletti (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Ruby McQueen is a sixteen-year-old high school student with the name, she thinks, of a rodeo cowgirl porn star, or, maybe worse, a Texas beauty queen runner-up. Her mother, Ann, one of the town librarians, was reading too much Southern literature before Ruby was born, and Chip, Ruby's father, who was already dreaming of Nashville stardom, thought it would make a great stage name someday. Soon after Chip Jr. was born, Chip left to try his luck in the music business and ended up at the Gold Nugget Amusement Park one state over. He returns occasionally for visits that turn Ann's heart upside down, and Ruby's stomach inside out. It is summer in the northwest town of Nine Mile Falls, a place where brown bears sometimes show up in the shopping mall and people in hang gliders soar down the mountains and sometimes get stuck dangling from the trees. Ruby, ordinarily dubbed The Quiet Girl, finds herself hanging out with gorgeous, rich, thrill-seeking Travis Becker. With Travis, Ruby can be someone she's never been before: Fearless. Powerful. But Ruby is in over her head, and finds she is risking more and more when she's with him. In an effort to keep Ruby occupied and mend her own broken heart, Ann drags Ruby to the weekly book club she runs for seniors. At first Ruby can't imagine a more boring way to spend an afternoon, but she is soon charmed by the Casserole Queens (named, quite ironically, after women who bring casseroles to new widowers' homes in hopes of snagging a husband). When the group discovers one of their own members is the subject of the tragic love story they are reading, Ann and Ruby ditch their respective obsessions to spearhead a reunion between the long-ago lovers. But this mission turns out to be more than just a road trip. Somewhere along the way Ruby and her mother learn the true meaning of love and freedom from it, individual purpose, and the real ties that bind. This lyrical, multigenerational story of love, loss, and redemption speaks to everyone who has ever been in love -- and lived to tell the tale.”

H arlem Stomp!: A Cultural History of the Harlem Renaissance by Laban Carrick Hill ​ (Nonfiction) ● National Book Award Finalist, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “When it was released in 2004, Harlem Stomp! was the first trade book to bring the ​ ​ Harlem Renaissance alive for young adults! Meticulously researched and lavishly illustrated, the book is a veritable time capsule packed with poetry, prose, photographs, full-color paintings, and reproductions of historical documents. Now, after more than three years in hardcover, three starred reviews and a National Book Award nomination, Harlem ​ Stomp!is being released in paperback.” ​

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ T he Legend of Buddy Bush by Shelia P. Moses (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “The day Uncle Goodwin "Buddy" Bush came from Harlem all the way back home to Rehobeth Road in Rich Square, North Carolina, is the day Pattie Mae Sheals' life changes forever. Pattie Mae adores and admires Uncle Buddy -- he's tall and handsome and he doesn't believe in the country stuff most people believe in, like ghosts and stepping off the sidewalk to let white folks pass. He unsettles the dust and brings fresh ideas to Rehobeth Road. But when Buddy's deliberate inattention to the protocol of 1947 North Carolina lands him in jail for a crime against a white woman that he didn't commit, Pattie Mae and her family are suddenly set to journeying on the long, hard road that leads from loss and rage to forgiveness and pride. Shelia P. Moses tells a moving and lyrical story in The Legend of Buddy Bush that introduces the ​ ​ remarkable and memorable character of Pattie Mae Sheals -- a girl whose sense of humor, ability to get into "grown folks business," and determination to know the truth will endear her to readers everywhere.”

L una: A Novel by Julie Anne Peters (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Regan's brother Liam can't stand the person he is during the day. Like the moon from whom Liam has chosen his female namesake, his true self, Luna, only reveals herself at night. In the secrecy of his basement bedroom Liam transforms himself into the beautiful girl he longs to be, with help from his sister's clothes and makeup. Now, everything is about to change-Luna is preparing to emerge from her cocoon. But are Liam's family and friends ready to welcome Luna into their lives? Compelling and provocative, this is an unforgettable novel about a transgender teen's struggle for self-identity and acceptance.”

T he First Part Last by Angela Johnson (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2004 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Bobby is your classic urban teenaged boy -- impulsive, eager, restless. On his sixteenth birthday he gets some news from his girlfriend, Nia, that changes his life forever. She's pregnant. Bobby's going to be a father. Suddenly things like school and house parties and hanging with friends no longer seem important as they're replaced by visits to Nia's obstetrician and a social worker who says that the only way for Nia and Bobby to lead a normal life is to put their baby up for adoption. With powerful language and keen insight, Johnson looks at the male side of teen pregnancy as she delves into one young man's struggle to figure out what "the right thing" is and then to do it. No matter what the cost.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Sixteen-year-old Mattie Gokey has big dreams but little hope of seeing them come true. Desperate for money, she takes a job at the Glenmore, where hotel guest Grace Brown entrusts her with the task of burning a secret bundle of letters. But when Grace's drowned body is fished from the lake, Mattie discovers that the letters could reveal the grim truth behind a murder. Set in 1906 against the backdrop of the murder that inspired Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy, Jennifer Donnelly's astonishing debut novel effortlessly weaves ​ ​ romance, history, and a murder mystery into something moving, and real, and wholly original.”

K eesha's House by Helen Frost (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Keesha has found a safe place to live, and other kids gravitate to her house when they just can't make it on their own. They are Stephie – pregnant, trying to make the right decisions for herself and those she cares about; Jason – Stephie's boyfriend, torn between his responsibility to Stephie and the baby and the promise of a college basketball career; Dontay – in foster care while his parents are in prison, feeling unwanted both inside and outside the system; Carmen – arrested on a DUI charge, waiting in a juvenile detention center for a judge to hear her case; Harris – disowned by his father after disclosing that he's gay, living in his car, and taking care of himself; Katie – angry at her mother's loyalty to an abusive stepfather, losing herself in long hours of work and school. Stretching the boundaries of traditional poetic forms – sestinas and sonnets – Helen Frost's extraordinary debut novel for young adults weaves together the stories of these seven teenagers as they courageously struggle to hold their lives together and overcome their difficulties.”

F at Kid Rules the World by K.L. Going (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Troy Billings is seventeen, 296 pounds, friendless, utterly miserable, and about to step off a New York subway platform in front of an oncoming train. Until he meets Curt MacCrae, an emaciated, semi-homeless, high school dropout guitar genius, the stuff of which Lower East Side punk rock legends are made. Never mind that Troy’s dad thinks Curt’s a drug addict and Troy’s brother thinks Troy’s the biggest (literally) loser in Manhattan. Soon, Curt’s recruited Troy as his new drummer—even though Troy can’t play the drums. Together, Curt and Troy will change the world of punk, and Troy’s own life, forever.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ T he Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2004 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Fifteen-year-old Virginia Shreves has a larger-than-average body and a plus-size inferiority complex. She lives on the Web, snarfs junk food, and follows the "Fat Girl Code of Conduct." Her stuttering best friend has just moved to Walla Walla (of all places). Her new companion, Froggy Welsh the Fourth (real name), has just succeeded in getting his hand up her shirt, and she lives in fear that he’ll look underneath. Then there are the other Shreves: Mom, the successful psychologist and exercise fiend; Dad, a top executive who ogles thin women on TV; and older siblings Anaïs and rugby god Byron, both of them slim and brilliant. Delete Virginia, and the Shreves would be a picture-perfect family. Or so she’s convinced. And then a shocking phone call changes everything. With irreverent humor, insight, and surprising gravity, Carolyn Mackler creates an endearingly blunt heroine whose story will speak to every teen who struggles with family expectations - and serve as a welcome reminder that the most impressive achievement is to be true to yourself.”

T he Canning Season by Polly Horvath (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2003 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “One night out of the blue, Ratchet Clark's ill-natured mother uproots her from Florida without a second thought. Ratchet is on a train to Maine for a summer with relatives within the blink of an eye. But these aren't just any relatives. Ratchet's ninety-two-year old great-aunts, twins Penpen and Tilly, live life in their secluded home on their own terms. They were born together, they grew up together, they live together, and they plan to die together. Through thick wilderness, down forgotten, bear-ridden roads, a plethora of strange family history, and a slew of unwelcome guests, Ratchet may just learn what a family can be after all. Unwelcome guests might just bring the greatest gifts of all. By turns dark and humorous, Polly Horvath offers readers enough quirky characters and outrageous situations to leave them reeling!”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ B reakout by Paul Fleischman (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2003 ● Paul Fleischman is also the author of Seedfolks, Thayer’s all-school summer reading book ​ ​ in 2015, and Whirligig, a core text of Thayer’s 7th grade curriculum ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Del's lived in Los Angeles for seventeen years, bouncing among foster homes. Smart, sharp-tongued, and a master mimic, she's fed up with her world and with being Del. So she's changing her name and leaving both herself and L.A. behind -- until her escape lands her in an all-day traffic jam. Fast-forward eight years. It's opening night for the one-woman show Del has written and is starring in -- a show called Breakout about a Los Angeles traffic jam. As the novel flashes ​ ​ between Del's present and future, we get a backstage pass into this young playwright's psyche, watching her life being transformed into art, heartache into comedy, solitude into connection. And, finally, anger giving way to acceptance.”

A n American Plague: The Time and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by ​ Jim Murphy (Fiction) ● National Book Award Finalist, 2003 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “1793, Philadelphia. The nation's capital and the largest city in North America is devastated by an apparently incurable disease, cause unknown . . . In a powerful, dramatic narrative, critically acclaimed author Jim Murphy describes the illness known as yellow fever and the toll it took on the city's residents, relating the epidemic to the major social and political events of the day and to 18th-century medical beliefs and practices. Drawing on first-hand accounts, Murphy spotlights the heroic role of Philadelphia's free blacks in combating the disease, and the Constitutional crisis that President Washington faced when he was forced to leave the city--and all his papers--while escaping the deadly contagion. The search for the fever's causes and cure, not found for more than a century afterward, provides a suspenseful counterpoint to this riveting true story of a city under siege.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ T he River Between Us by Richard Peck (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2003 ● Richard Peck is also the author of A Long Way from Chicago, a core text of Thayer’s 7th ​ ​ grade curriculum ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link ● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “The year is 1861. Civil war is imminent and Tilly Pruitt's brother, Noah, is eager to go and fight on the side of the North. With her father long gone, Tilly, her sister, and their mother struggle to make ends meet and hold the dwindling Pruitt family together. Then one night a mysterious girl arrives on a steamboat bound for St. Louis. Delphine is unlike anyone the small river town has even seen. Mrs. Pruitt agrees to take Delphine and her dark, silent traveling companion in as boarders. No one in town knows what to make of the two strangers, and so the rumors fly. Is Delphine's companion a slave? Could they be spies for the South? Are the Pruitts traitors? A masterful tale of mystery and war, and a breathtaking portrait of the lifelong impact one person can have on another.”

L ocomotion by Jacqueline Woodson (Poetry) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2003 ● Jacqueline Woodson is also the author of Brown Girl Dreaming, a National Book Award ​ ​ ​ Winner in 2014, and Hush, a National Book Award Finalist in 2002 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “When Lonnie was seven years old, his parents died in a fire. Now he's eleven, and he still misses them terribly. And he misses his little sister, Lili, who was put into a different foster home because "not a lot of people want boys-not foster boys that ain't babies." But Lonnie hasn't given up. His foster mother, Miss Edna, is growing on him. She's already raised two sons and she seems to know what makes them tick. And his teacher, Ms. Marcus, is showing him ways to put his jumbled feelings on paper. Told entirely through Lonnie's poetry, we see his heartbreak over his lost family, his thoughtful perspective on the world around him, and most of all his love for Lili and his determination to one day put at least half of their family back together. Jacqueline Woodson's poignant story of love, loss, and hope is lyrically written and enormously accessible.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ P ostcards from No Man's Land by Aidan Chambers (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2003 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Seventeen-year-old Jacob Todd is about to discover himself. Jacob's plan is to go to Amsterdam to honor his grandfather who died during World War II. He expects to go, set flowers on his grandfather's tombstone, and explore the city. But nothing goes as planned. Jacob isn't prepared for love or to face questions about his sexuality. Most of all, he isn't prepared to hear what Geertrui, the woman who nursed his grandfather during the war, has to say about their relationship. Geertrui was always known as Jacob's grandfather's kind and generous nurse. But it seems that in the midst of terrible danger, Geertrui and Jacob's grandfather's time together blossomed into something more than a girl caring for a wounded soldier. And like Jacob, Geertrui was not prepared. Geertrui and Jacob live worlds apart, but their voices blend together to tell one story a story that transcends time and place and war. By turns moving, vulnerable, and thrilling, this extraordinary novel takes the reader on a memorable voyage of discovery.”

T he House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2002 ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2003 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Matteo Alacrán was not born; he was harvested. His DNA came from El Patrón, lord of a country called Opium--a strip of poppy fields lying between the United States and what was once called Mexico. Matt's first cell split and divided inside a petri dish. Then he was placed in the womb of a cow, where he continued the miraculous journey from embryo to fetus to baby. He is a boy now, but most consider him a monster--except for El Patrón. El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself, because Matt is himself. As Matt struggles to understand his existence, he is threatened by a sinister cast of characters, including El Patrón's power-hungry family, and he is surrounded by a dangerous army of bodyguards. Escape is the only chance Matt has to survive. But escape from the Alacrán Estate is no guarantee of freedom, because Matt is marked by his difference in ways he doesn't even suspect.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ M y Heartbeat by Garret Freymann-Weyr (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2003 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Ellen loves Link and James. Her older brother and his best friend are the only company she ever wants. She knows they fight, but she makes it a policy never to take sides. She loves her brother, the math genius and track star. She is totally, madly in love with James, his face full of long eyelashes and hidden smiles. “When you grow out of it,” James teases her, “you will break my heart.” Ellen knows she’ll never outgrow it. She’ll always love James just the way she’ll always love Link. Then someone at school asks if Link and James might be in love with each other. A simple question. Link refuses to discuss it. James refuses to stay friends with a boy so full of secrets. Ellen’s parents want Link to keep his secrets to himself, but Ellen wants to know who her brother really is. When is curiosity a betrayal? And if James says he loves her, isn’t that just another way of saying he still loves Link? My Heartbeat is a fast, furious story in which a quirky triangle learns to change its shape and Ellen, at least, learns the limits of what you can ever know about whom you love.”

H ole in My Life by Jack Gantos (Nonfiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2003 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “In the summer of 1971, Jack Gantos was an aspiring writer looking for adventure, cash for college tuition, and a way out of a dead-end job. For ten thousand dollars, he recklessly agreed to help sail a sixty-foot yacht loaded with a ton of hashish from the Virgin Islands to New York City, where he and his partners sold the drug until federal agents caught up with them. For his part in the conspiracy, Gantos was sentenced to serve up to six years in prison. In Hole in My Life, this prizewinning author of over ​ ​ thirty books for young people confronts the period of struggle and confinement that marked the end of his own youth. On the surface, the narrative tumbles from one crazed moment to the next as Gantos pieces together the story of his restless final year of high school, his short-lived career as a criminal, and his time in prison. But running just beneath the action is the story of how Gantos – once he was locked up in a small, yellow-walled cell – moved from wanting to be a writer to writing, and how dedicating himself more fully to the thing he most wanted to do helped him endure and ultimately overcome the worst experience of his life.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ F eed by M.T. Anderson (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2002 ● M.T. Anderson is also the author of Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri ​ Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad, a YALSA's Award for Excellence in ​ Nonfiction Finalist in 2016, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the ​ Nation, Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves, a Printz Award Honor Book in 2009, ​ and The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation; v. 1: The Pox ​ Party, the National Book Award Winner in 2006 ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “For Titus and his friends, it started out like any ordinary trip to the moon - a chance to party during spring break and play with some stupid low-grav at the Ricochet Lounge. But that was before the crazy hacker caused all their feeds to malfunction, sending them to the hospital to lie around with nothing inside their heads for days. And it was before Titus met Violet, a beautiful, brainy teenage girl who has decided to fight the feed and its omnipresent ability to categorize human thoughts and desires. Following in the footsteps of George Orwell, Anthony Burgess, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr., M. T. Anderson has created a not-so-brave new world — and a smart, savage satire that has captivated readers with its view of an imagined future that veers unnervingly close to the here and now.”

1 9 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East by Naomi Shihab Nye (Poetry) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2002 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “"Tell me how to live so many lives at once ..." Fowzi, who beats everyone at dominoes; ​ ​ Ibtisam, who wanted to be a doctor; Abu Mahmoud, who knows every eggplant and peach in his West Bank garden; mysterious Uncle Mohammed, who moved to the mountain; a girl in a red sweater dangling a book bag; children in velvet dresses who haunt the candy bowl at the party; Baba Kamalyari, age 71; Mr. Dajani and his swans; Sitti Khadra, who never lost her peace inside. Maybe they have something to tell us. ​ Naomi Shihab Nye has been writing about being Arab-American, about Jerusalem, about the West Bank, about family all her life. These new and collected poems of the Middle East -- sixty in all -- appear together here for the first time.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ T his Land Was Made for You and Me: The Life and Songs of Woody Guthrie by Elizabeth ​ Partridge (Nonfiction) ● National Book Award Finalist, 2002 ● Elizabeth Partridge is also the author of John Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth, a ​ ​ ​ Photographic Biography, a Printz Award Honor Book in 2006 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Before Springsteen and before Dylan, there was Woody Guthrie. With "This Machine Kills Fascists," scrawled across his guitar in big black letters, Woody Guthrie brilliantly captured in song the experience of twentieth-century America. Whether he sang about union organizers, migrant workers, or war, Woody took his inspiration from the plight of the people around him as well as from his own tragic childhood. From the late 1920s to the 1950s, Guthrie wrote the words to more than three thousand songs, including "This Land Is Your Land," a song many call America's unofficial national anthem. With a remarkable ability to turn any experience into a song almost instantaneously, Woody Guthrie spoke out for people of all colors and races, setting an example for generations of musicians to come. But Woody didn't have the chance to find everything he was looking for. He was ravaged by Huntington's disease, just like his mother, and died in a mental institution at the age of fifty-five.”

H ush by Jacqueline Woodson (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2002 ● Jacqueline Woodson is also the author of Brown Girl Dreaming, a National Book Award ​ ​ ​ Winner in 2014, and Locomotion, a National Book Award Finalist in 2003 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Evie Thomas is not who she used to be. Once she had a best friend, a happy home and a loving grandmother living nearby. Once her name was Toswiah. Now, everything is different. Her family has been forced to move to a new place and change their identities. But that's not all that has changed. Her once lively father has become depressed and quiet. Her mother leaves teaching behind and clings to a new-found religion. Her only sister is making secret plans to leave. And Evie, struggling to find her way in a new city where kids aren't friendly and the terrain is as unfamiliar as her name, wonders who she is. Jacqueline Woodson weaves a fascinating portrait of a thoughtful young girl's coming of age in a world turned upside down.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ A Step from Heaven by An Na (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2002 ​ ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2001 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “In this first novel, a young girl describes her family's bittersweet experience in the United States after their emigration from Korea. While going up and up into the sky on the flight from Korea to California, four-year-old Young Ju concludes that they are on their way to heaven - America is heaven! After they arrive, however, Young Ju and her parents and little brother struggle in their new world, weighed down by the difficulty of learning English, their insular family life, and the traditions of the country they left behind. An Na's striking language authentically reflects the process of acculturation as Young Ju grows from a child to an adult.”

T he Ropemaker by Peter Dickinson (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2002 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Tilja has grown up in the peaceful Valley, which is protected from the fearsome Empire by an enchanted forest. But the forest’s power has begun to fade and the Valley is in danger. Tilja is the youngest of four brave souls who venture into the Empire together to find the mysterious magician who can save the Valley. And much to her amazement, Tilja gradually learns that only she, an ordinary girl with no magical powers, has the ability to protect her group and their quest from the Empire’s sorcerers.”

H eart to Heart: New Poems Inspired by Twentieth-Century American Art by Jan Greenberg ​ (Poetry) ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2002 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “What do we feel when we look at a great work of art/ What does a poet feel/ Heart to Heart offers an original way to approach poetry and art—with new works by distinguished American poets, specially commissioned for this book by editor Jan Greenberg. Prompted by paintings, sculpture, prints, and photographs by American artists working in the 20th century, these poems lend a new meaning to “art appreciation” and make each page of Heart to Heart an exciting discovery. Join such poets as Jane Yolen, Nancy Willard, X. J. Kennedy, Naomi Shihab Nye, David Mura, and Angela Johnson as they reveal a personal, heartfelt response to works by Thomas Hart Benton, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, Grandma Moses, Faith Ringgold, Man Ray, Georgia O’Keeffe, and many others. Whether the poems are playful, challenging, tender, mocking, humorous, sad, or sensual, each work of art, seen through the eyes of a poet, allows readers to look at the world with new insight.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ F reewill by Chris Lynch (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2002 ● Chris Lynch is also the author of Inexcusable, a National Book Award Finalist in 2005 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “A rash of teen suicides haunts a teen with a murky history in this Printz Honor–winning novel. Will was destined to be a pilot, to skim above surfaces. So why is he in woodshop class? He doesn’t know—or maybe he just doesn’t want to admit the truth. When local teens begin committing suicide, their deaths all have one thing in common: beautifully carved wooden tributes that appear just after or before their bodies are found. Will’s afraid he knows who’s responsible. And lurking just behind that knowledge is another secret, so explosive that he might not be able to face it and live…”

T rue Believer by Virginia Euwer Wolff (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2001 ​ ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2002 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “LaVaughn is fifteen now, and she's still fiercely determined to go to college. But that's the only thing she's sure about. Loyalty to her father bubbles up as her mother grows closer to a new man. The two girls she used to do everything with have chosen a path LaVaughn wants no part of. And then there's Jody. LaVaughn can't believe how gorgeous he is...or how confusing. He acts like he's in love with her, but is he?”

T he Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2001 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Walking through the misty Florida woods one morning, twelve-year-old Rob Horton is stunned to encounter a tiger—a real-life, very large tiger—pacing back and forth in a cage. What’s more, on the same extraordinary day, he meets Sistine Bailey, a girl who shows her feelings as readily as Rob hides his. As they learn to trust each other, and ultimately, to be friends, Rob and Sistine prove that some things—like memories, and heartache, and tigers—can’t be locked up forever. Featuring a new cover illustration by Stephen Walton.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ W e Were There Too! Young People in U.S. History by Phillip Hoose (Nonfiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2001 ● Phillip Hoose is also the author of Claudette Colvin: Twice toward Justice, the National ​ ​ ​ Book Award Winner in 2009, and Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great ​ Survivor B95, YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist in 2013 ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “From the boys who sailed with Columbus to today's young activists, this unique book brings to life the contributions of young people throughout American history. Based on primary sources and including 160 authentic images, this handsome oversized volume highlights the fascinating stories of more than 70 young people from diverse cultures. Young readers will be hooked into history as they meet individuals their own age who were caught up in our country's most dramatic moments-Olaudah Equiano, kidnapped from his village in western Africa and forced into slavery, Anyokah, who helped her father create a written Cherokee language, Johnny Clem, the nine-year-old drummer boy who became a Civil War hero, and Jessica Govea, a teenager who risked joining Cesar Chavez's fight for a better life for farmworkers. Throughout, Philip Hoose's own lively, knowledgeable voice provides a rich historical context-making this not only a great reference-but a great read. The first U.S. history book of this scope to focus on the role young people have played in the making of our country, its compelling stories combine to tell our larger national story, one that prompts Howard Zinn, author of A People's History of the United States, to comment, "This is an ​ ​ extraordinary book-wonderfully readable, inspiring to young and old alike, and unique."”

C arver: A Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson (Nonfiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2001 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “George Washington Carver was born a slave in Missouri about 1864 and was raised by the childless white couple who had owned his mother. In 1877 he left home in search of an education, eventually earning a master's degree. In 1896, Booker T. Washington invited Carver to start the agricultural department at the all-black-staffed Tuskegee Institute, where he spent the rest of his life seeking solutions to the poverty among landless black farmers by developing new uses for soil-replenishing crops such as peanuts, cowpeas, and sweet potatoes. Carver's achievements as a botanist and inventor were balanced by his gifts as a painter, musician, and teacher. This Newbery Honor Book and Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book by Marilyn Nelson provides a compelling and revealing portrait of Carver's complex, richly interior, profoundly devout life.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ K it’s Wilderness by David Almond (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2001 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Written in haunting, lyrical prose, Kit’s Wilderness examines the bonds of family from ​ ​ one generation to the next, and explores how meaning and beauty can be revealed from the depths of darkness. The Watson family moves to Stoneygate, an old coal-mining town, to care for Kit’s recently widowed grandfather. When Kit meets John Askew, another boy whose family has both worked and died in the mines, Askew invites Kit to join him in playing a game called Death. As Kit’s grandfather tells him stories of the mine’s past and the history of the Watson family, Askew takes Kit into the mines, where the boys look to find the childhood ghosts of their long-gone ancestors.”

M any Stones by Carolyn Coman (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2001 ● National Book Award Finalist, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “On a two-week pilgrimage to South Africa from Rockville, Maryland, 16-year-old Berry and her estranged father attempt to come to terms with the murder, a year earlier, of Berry's sister Laura when she was volunteering at a Capetown school. Angry, sour, and ferociously cynical, Berry struggles with the concept of "truth and reconciliation," both for South Africa and in her personal life. Her father's efforts to educate his daughter about the country's political climate in the wake of apartheid are met with cold resistance: "He makes whatever is inside me catch fire. I hate everything. And I feel ashamed, which, for all I know, is why my father brought me here--Mr. Expense Account himself..." The delicious oblivion she finds underwater when doing laps on the swim team back home--or kissing her boyfriend Josh--or in the comforting stones she likes to pile on her chest when she's in her room don't seem to help her move beyond her despair and anger.”

T he Body of Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2001 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Chris Creed grew up as the class freak—the bullies’ punching bag. After he vanished, the weirdness that had once surrounded him began spreading. And it tore the town apart. Sixteen-year-old Torey Adams’s search for answers opens his eyes to the lies, the pain, and the need to blame someone when tragedy strikes, and his once-safe world comes crashing down around him.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ A ngus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise ​ Rennison (Fiction) ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2001 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Angus: My mixed-breed cat, half domestic tabby, half Scottish wildcat. The size of a small Labrador, only mad. Thongs: Stupid underwear. What's the point of them, anyway? They just go up your bum, as far as I can tell. Full-Frontal Snogging: Kissing with all the trimmings, lip to lip, open mouth, tongues ... everything. Her dad's got the mentality of a Teletubby (only not so developed). Her cat, Angus, is trying to eat the poodle next door. And her best friend thinks she looks like an alien -- just because she accidentally shaved off her eyebrows. Ergghhhlack. Still, add a little boy-stalking, teacher-baiting, and full-frontal snogging with a Sex God, and Georgia's year just might turn out to be the most fabbitty fab fab ever!”

S tuck in Neutral by Terry Trueman (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2001 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Shawn McDaniel's life is not what it may seem to anyone looking at him. He is glued to his wheelchair, unable to voluntarily move a muscle—he can't even move his eyes. For all Shawn's father knows, his son may be suffering. Shawn may want a release. And as long as he is unable to communicate his true feelings to his father, Shawn's life is in danger. To the world, Shawn's senses seem dead. Within these pages, however, we meet a side of him that no one else has seen—a spirit that is rich beyond imagining, breathing life.”

H omeless Bird by Gloria Whelan (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Winner, 2000 ​ ​ ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Like many girls her age in India, thirteen–year–old Koly faces her arranged marriage with hope and courage. But Koly's story takes a terrible turn when in the wake of the ceremony, she discovers she's been horribly misled; her life has been sold for a dowry. In prose both graceful and unflinching, this powerful novel relays the story of a rare young woman, who even when cast out into a brutal current of time–worn tradition, sets out to forge her own remarkable future.Inspired by a newspaper article about the real thirteen–year–old widows in India today, this universally acclaimed best–selling novel, characterized by spare, lyrical language and remarkable detail, transports readers into the heart of a gripping tale of hope.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ F orgotten Fire by Adam Bagdasarian (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “In 1915 Vahan Kenderian is living a life of privilege as the youngest son of a wealthy Armenian family in Turkey. This secure world is shattered when some family members are whisked away while others are murdered before his eyes. Vahan loses his home and family, and is forced to live a life he would never have dreamed of in order to survive. Somehow Vahan’s incredible strength and spirit help him endure, even knowing that each day could be his last.”

T he Book of the Lion by Michael Cadnum (Fiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Edmund, a young apprentice, is awaiting punishment as a counterfeiter when a knight intervenes on his behalf--and compels Edmund to join Richard Lionheart's forces in the Holy Land. There, amidst the savagery of the twelfth-century Crusades, Edmund learns both courage and compassion, and discovers that cruelty is sometimes considered the will of Heaven. Set in medieval England and the war-torn shores of the Middle East, Cadnum's tale weaves together a rich tapestry of storms at sea, the brutality of hand-to-hand combat, and one of the classic horse and lance battles in recorded history--the Battle of Arsuf.”

H urry Freedom: African Americans in Gold Rush California by Jerry Stanley (Nonfiction) ​ ● National Book Award Finalist, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Among the thousands drawn west by the California Gold Rush were many African Americans. Some were free men and women in search of opportunity; others were slaves brought from the slave states of the South. Some found freedom and wealth in the gold fields and growing cities of California, but all faced the deeply entrenched prejudices of the era. To tell this story Hurry Freedom! focuses on the life of Mifflin ​ ​ Gibbs, who arrived in San Francisco in 1850 and established a successful boot and shoe business. But Gibbs's story is more than one of business and personal success: With other African American San Franciscans, he led a campaign to obtain equal legal and civil rights for Blacks in California.”

Back to Top 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004 - 2003 - 2002 - 2001 - 2000 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ M onster by Walter Dean Myers (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Winner, 2000 ​ ​ ● Walter Dean Myers is also the author of Autobiography of My Dead Brother, a ​ ​ National Book Award Finalist in 2005, and of Lockdown, a National Book Award ​ ​ ​ Finalist in 2010 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “This New York Times bestselling novel and National Book Award nominee from acclaimed author Walter ​ ​ Dean Myers tells the story of Steve Harmon, a teenage boy in juvenile detention and on trial. Presented as a screenplay of Steve's own imagination, and peppered with journal entries, the book shows how one single decision can change our whole lives. Fade In: Interior: Early Morning In Cell Block D, Manhattan Detention Center. Steve (Voice-Over) Sometimes I feel like I have walked into the middle of a movie. Maybe I can make my own movie. The film will be the story of my life. No, not my life, but of this experience. I'll call it what the lady prosecutor called me ... Monster.”

S kellig by David Almond (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Ten-year-old Michael was looking forward to moving into a new house. But now his baby sister is ill, his parents are frantic, and Doctor Death has come to call. Michael feels helpless. Then he steps into the crumbling garage. . . . What is this thing beneath the spiders' webs and dead flies? A human being, or a strange kind of beast never before seen? The only person Michael can confide in is his new friend, Mina. Together, they carry the creature out into the light, and Michael's world changes forever. . . .”

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S peak by Laurie Halse Anderson (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Common Sense Media Link

● ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “"Speak up for yourself--we want to know what you have to say." From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. 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: she was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and is still a threat to her. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter with him. But this time Melinda fights back, refuses to be silent, and thereby achieves a measure of vindication. In Laurie Halse Anderson's powerful novel, an utterly believable heroine with a bitterly ironic voice delivers a blow to the hypocritical world of high school. She speaks for many a disenfranchised teenager while demonstrating the importance of speaking up for oneself.”

H ard Love by Ellen Wittlinger (Fiction) ​ ● Printz Award Honor Book, 2000 ● Amazon Link ● Synopsis, via Amazon.com: ​ “Since his parents' divorce, John's mother hasn't touched him, her new fiancé wants them to move away, and his father would rather be anywhere than at Friday night dinner with his son. It's no wonder John writes articles like "Interview with the Stepfather" and "Memoirs from Hell." The only release he finds is in homemade zines like the amazing Escape Velocity by Marisol, a self-proclaimed "Puerto Rican Cuban Yankee Lesbian." ​ Haning around the Boston Tower Records for the new issue of Escape Velocity, John ​ ​ meets Marisol and a hard love is born. While at first their friendship is based on zines, dysfuntional families, and dreams of escape, soon both John and Marisol begin to shed their protective shells. Unfortunately, John mistakes this growing intimacy for love, and a disastrous date to his junior prom leaves that friendship in ruins. Desperately hoping to fix things, John convinces Marisol to come with him to a zine conference on Cape Cod. On the sandy beaches by the Bluefish Wharf Inn, John realizes just how hard love can be. With keen insight into teenage life, Ellen Wittlinger delivers a story of adolescence that is fierce and funny -- and ultimately transforming -- even as it explores the pain of growing up.”

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