Young Adult
Shut up, this is serious
Carolina Ixta
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Ixta Carolina
Young Adult
Belen Dolores Itzel del Toro wants the normal stuff: to experience love or maybe have a boyfriend or at least just lose her virginity. But nothing is normal in East Oakland. Her father left her family. She's at risk of not graduating. And Leti, her super-Catholic, nerdy-ass best friend, is pregnant--by the boyfriend she hasn't told her parents about because he's Black and her parents are racist.
Accountable : the true story of a racist social media account and the teenagers whose lives it changed
Dashka Slater
371.829 /Slater
Young Adult
"When a high school student started a private Instagram account that used racist and sexist memes to make his friends laugh, he thought of it as "edgy" humor. Over time, the edge got sharper. Then a few other kids found out about the account. Pretty soon, everyone knew. Ultimately no one in the small town of Albany, California, was safe from the repercussions of the account's discovery. Not the girls targeted by the posts. Not the boy who created the account. Not the group of kids who followed it. Not the adults--educators and parents--whose attempts to fix things too often made them worse. In the end, no one was laughing. And everyone was left asking: Where does accountability end for online speech that harms? And what does accountability even mean?" -- Page [2] of cover.
As adults, we can guide our teens at home, teachers can intervene in the classroom, but what about on social media, and even more difficult, private accounts? In her latest non-fiction work, Slater (author of the fantastic 57 Bus,) recounts in meticulous journalistic detail a racist Instagram account that was established at a high school and the fallout it created. She shines a light on past trauma, blatant racism, the students who have to deal with the repercussions, and asks, who is accountable? While personally, the book felt a little too lengthy in parts, this is an important read that could be used to foster conversations in book clubs and beyond! -Victoria
Last chance dance
Lakita Wilson
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Wilson Lakita
Young Adult
"Leila is crushed when Dev, her boyfriend of four years, breaks up with her right before graduation. Just when she's thinking she wasted her entire high school experience on a dead-end relationship, her best friend Bree reminds her that Last Chance Dance is just around the corner. A high school tradition, the Last Chance Dance gives all the students one last opportunity to find love before they graduate. All Leila has to do is submit three unrequited crushes to the dance committee and if any of her crushes list her too, they'll get matched. Presto: new relationship, just like that. To her utter amazement, Leila is matched with all three of her choices--and with someone she never expected, Tre Hillman, her chemistry partner and low-key nemesis. But as graduation and the dance approaches, and each date seems to change her mind (and her heart)--Leila must figure out what--and who--she really wants. It's her last chance, right?"--
Not usually one for the romance genre (with the exception of Eleanor and Park, Heartstopper, and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe,) this one will be added to a small but growing list. Leila was a great character and I found myself rooting for her to find someone new to fulfill her dreams. This is a great back to school read; not too heady, but fun, touching, and relatable. -Victoria
Lore
Alexandra Bracken
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Bracken Alexandr
Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult
Every seven years there is a hunt offering mortal descendants of gods the opportunity to claim their divinity by killing any of nine immortals made mortal for one night. Lore Perseous has no desire to participate in the Agon, embittered because her family was killed by a rival who then ascended to godhood. When a childhood friend asks her to help, and a wounded god offers an alliance, Lore overlooks the steep cost of this decision in exchange for vengeance.
I chose this book to take on a recent trip to Greece, and it was perfect! A little mythology, but very up-to-date in terms of scenario and personalities involved. This book is suitable for adults and high-level YA, and made for a great beach read. Dialogue is snappy and the main characters are likable, and very human even while being, well, not entirely human (or mortal, I guess). The action takes place in New York, but those of you looking for an exciting, modern take on what Greek myth might look like today won't be disappointed. -Candice
I kick and I fly
Ruchira Gupta
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Gupta Ruchira
Young Adult
"On the outskirts of the red-light area in Bihar, India, Heera is living on borrowed time until the day her father decides to sell her into the sex trade to repay his loans. It is, as she's been told, the fate of all women in Girls Bazaar to end up there. But what if she can learn to fight back against 'fate'? When a local hostel owner presents her with the opportunity to practice kung fu, Heera begins to learn that her body isn't an object to be preyed upon, but a vessel through which she can protect herself. She will face unimaginable barriers -- expulsion from school, the unapologetic forces of nature, and a local trafficker who won't take his sights off her. But fate can change, and heroics are contagious. As Heera starts to piece together the whereabouts of a missing friend through a pen pal in the United States, and a competition takes her to New York, the desire to ensure her friend's survival might just lead her to make the ultimate risk" -- Page 2 of cover.
This is an incredibly insightful and powerful book. It tells a story of the caste system, and the how the peoples (namely women,) from the Nat tribes have endured the worst the system affords. This story is about fate, family but mostly destiny carved out by looking beyond what has been pre-ordained for you. Parts of this book are obviously difficult to read, but it is a necessary and wonderful debut. Author Ruchira Gupta is the founder-president of Apne Aap Women Worldwide and Apne Aap International, an organization committed to ending sex trafficking in India. -Victoria
Firekeeper's daughter
Boulley, Angeline, author.
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Boulley, Angeline
Young Adult, Fiction
Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, either in her hometown or on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. When Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, she reluctantly agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source of a new drug. How far will she go to protect her community, if it threatens to tear apart the only world she's ever known? -- adapted from jacket
With the next title set in this community, Warrior Girl Unearthed, coming out soon, Firekeeper's Daughter might have to be my next read. -Casey
The last true poets of the sea
Drake, Julia, author.
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Drake Julia
Fiction, Young Adult, Literary Fiction
Inspired loosely by Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, teenaged Violet is shipped off to Maine after her brother's hospitalization, where she searches for the lost shipwreck that her great-great grandmother survived and for answers about her family's long struggle with mental illness, all while falling in love.
I'm always in for a Shakespeare retelling, and Twelfth Night is one of my favorites. I've heard The Last True Poets of the Sea is really good, but have yet to get to it. Maybe this year! -Casey
Me (Moth)
McBride, Amber, author.
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Mcbride Amber
Fiction, Young Adult
Moth, who lost her family in an accident, and Sani, who is battling ongoing depression, take a road trip that has them chasing ghosts and searching for ancestors, which helps them move forward in surprising, powerful and unforgettable ways.
Added by Casey
I Must Betray You
Ruta Sepetys
OverDrive Audiobook
Historical Fiction, Young Adult
A #1 New York Times and National Bestseller! A gut-wrenching, startling historical thriller about communist Romania and the citizen spy network that devastated a nation, from the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray. Romania, 1989. Communist regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren’t free to dream; they are bound by rules and force. Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu in a country governed by isolation and fear, Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He’s left with only two choices: betray everyone and everything he loves—or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe. Cristian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom? Master storyteller Ruta Sepetys is back with a historical thriller that examines the little-known history of a nation defined by silence, pain, and the unwavering conviction of the human spirit. Praise for I Must Betray You: “As educational as it is thrilling...[T]he power of I Must Betray You [is] it doesn’t just describe the destabilizing effects of being spied on; it will make you experience them too.” –New York Times Book Review “A historical heart-pounder…Ms. Sepetys, across her body of work, has become a tribune of the unsung historical moment and a humane voice of moral clarity.” –The Wall Street Journal * "Sepetys brilliantly blends a staggering amount of research with heart, craft, and insight in a way very few writers can. Compulsively readable and brilliant." –Kirkus Reviews, starred review * "Sepetys once again masterfully portrays a dark, forgotten corner of history." –Booklist, starred review * "Sepetys’s latest book maintains the caliber readers have come to expect from an author whose focus on hidden histories has made her a YA powerhouse of historical fiction…Sepetys is a formidable writer, and her stories declare the need to write about global issues of social injustice. For that reason and her attention to detail, this is a must-read." –School Library Journal, starred review * "Cristian’s tense first-person narrative foregrounds stark historical realities, unflinchingly confronting deprivations and cruelty while balancing them with perseverance and hope as Romania hurtles toward political change." –Publishers Weekly, starred review “Sepetys keeps readers riveted to this vivid, heartbreaking and compelling novel, locked into every meticulously researched detail. I Must Betray You demands a full investment from its audience—through poetic writing, sympathetic characters, revolutionary plot and pacing, it grips the heart and soul and leaves one breathless.” –Shelf Awareness, starred review "A master class in pacing and atmosphere." –BookPage
I would recommend listening to this wonderfully detailed, young adult, historical fiction novel. Edoardo Ballerini does an excellent job narrating the story and conveying the language and pronunciations. At the end is an enlightening afterword from the author., which I always appreciate getting more information about the writing of a story that deals with history. Sepetys shows us all about a little known, taught or remembered part of communism in Romania in 1989 and the fall of the regimen. All of this and more through the eyes of teenage Cristian, in historical accuracy. Cristian's story is intense, beautiful, tragic, and heartbreaking and Sepetys brings his life and fight and those during this time in Romania, out in the open. -Angie
The Agathas
Kathleen Glasgow
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Glasgow Kathleen
Mystery, Young Adult, Fiction
Alice Ogilvie's disappearance last summer is the biggest scandal at Castle Cove High School--until her ex-boyfriend is accused of murdering his new girlfriend, and Alice must pair up with her tutor Iris Adams to clear his name by relying on the wisdom of Agatha Christie.
Give me a mystery any day, but one that pays homage to Agatha Christie and has total Veronica Mars and Nancy Drew vibes, say no more! Great whodunit storyline, that was well paced and kept you along for all the twists and turns. I was hooked and can't wait for the sequel to come out this summer. -Angie
This one drew me in from the beginning! Belén, one of the main characters is a sound narrator astute in her intuition and just a lovely character to share space with. Leti is a character we've all known in some form where the best laid plans often go off the rails and we're there watching how that all plays out. This is a story about the love of friendship, how families shape us, how images (good and bad) of our bodies are forged, and how to try to make sense of ourselves and our place in the world in our teen years. The story is set in Oakland, where the author grew up and this setting really brings it all together. A fantastic debut for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo! -Victoria