The Girls of No Return by Erin Saldin

The Girls of No Return by Erin Saldin
345 pages

Most of the time when I finish a book, I judge the overall experience by how much I wanted to sneak it in to work with me, or if I felt it necessary to be late coming back from lunch in order to finish it. This book stayed in my purse for two days so I could steal a couple of pages even in the weirdest places, like in line at Wal-Mart. Loved Lida's story, even as it spiraled out of control. In a wilderness camp for misfit girls, she must choose between a friendship with the fierce, scary, but true, Boone, or the fabulous, but fake Gia. And in the middle of all of the drama, she must face the truth that her mother is not in fact dead, and that she feels better when she cuts herself to release the pain. Very stirring book, you cannot walk away untouched by this one!

Harmless by Dana Reinhardt



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Harmless by Dana Reinhardt
229 pages

Emma, Anna, and Mariah would do anything to not get caught. They all lied to their parents, and headed over to a party at an boy's house. They start out with what feels like a harmless little lie (as an adult reading this, their little lie completely blew me away) and it snowballs until it changes everybody's lives, and it might even send an innocent man to jail.

The Beast by Walter Dean Myers



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The Beast by Walter Dean Myers
170pages

Not one of his better books, but definitely worth the couple of hours. Spoon gets away from his Harlem neighborhood when he gets the chance to go off to prep school, but when he returns home during Christmas break, he sees things in a completely different light. His friends, who before seemed like harless delinquents, are getting into serious trouble, and his girl, Gabi, has started using drugs. Would any of this happened if he had stuck around, and can he leave behind the people he cares about in order to not fall into the same hole.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews



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Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
295 pages

Greg has perfected the art of blending into every social order his senior year of high school. He can hand with the jocks, the nerds, the goths, pretty much anyone. The only problem with the ability to blend with anyone, is that he has no real friends.
His mother approaches him with a request to hang with an old friend that Greg had left behind years ago. Rachel has leukemia, and needs a friend more than ever. But more and more, Greg is losing the position in school that he fought for. And he never really knows what to say to Rachel when all that races through his mind is that she is dying.
This is a hysterical book, told like the voice inside Greg's own mind.

How It's Done by Christine Kole MacLean



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How It's Done by Christine Kole MacLean
332 pages

Eighteen-year-old Grace has grown up in an extremely religious home. Will her secret affair with a college professor help break her out into the real world, or will it all come crashing down around her?

Try Not to Breathe by Jennifer R. Hubbord



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Try Not to Breathe by Jennifer R. Hubbord
233 pages

Incredible story...sixteen-year-old Ryan is back home after a stay in a mental institution after trying to kill himself. But his healing has only started when Nicki barges into his life, asking questions he hasn't even answered for himself.

The View from the Top by Hillary Frank



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The View from the Top by Hillary Frank
232 pages

Tobin, Matt, Lexi, Jonah, and Mary-Tyler are all high school kids, most of who are deciding what to do with their lives after high school. And Anabelle is the girl who holds them together. Anabelle feels so very alone while everyone vies for her attention in their own ways. And while she know that it is a very minor ordeal in the grand scheme of things, she also feels that there is no one who feels quite the way she does.

Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick

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Gateway Nominee

Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick

355 pages

This was hard to get into for a bit. Amber talks a lot to herself, and is ALWAYS saying 'True? True.' and 'Word.' I found it grating on my nerves quite a bit. But then, surprisingly, I fell in love with Amber Appleton and her quirky sidekicks. Amber and her mother live in a school bus at night that her mother drives by day. Mom is always drinking heavily at night, 'fishing for men,' leaving Amber alone in a dark scary school bus to fend for herself in the night. But Amber has hope...that by helping others that Jesus will help her get into a good school on a scholarship, just like her hero, Donna. She visits the old folks home and creates the Korean Divas for Christ at the Korean Catholic Church. But when an unexpected death occurs, Amber's hope is seriously rocked. Can she burst back into life, or will she become like so many of the people she tries to help? My favorite quote from the book come from Friedrich Nietzshe: "We should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once. And we should call every truth false which was not accompanied by at least one laugh." Beautiful. Definitely a must read book.

Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

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Gateway Nominee

Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

326 pages

Carlose and Kiara are two teens falling for each other. But Carlos is on the run from his drug and gang ties, and Kiara is a ambitious girl headed to college. How can their love ever work out?

Stay With Me by Paul Griffen

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Stay With Me by Paul Griffen

288 pages

Cece and Mack are young and just know that the other is the one that they are meant to be with forever. But Mack is a very angry man, and Cece can't be with him all the time when he hears the static in his head that makes him want to act out. So, of course, Mack ends up in prison after a man poisons his dog and he kills him in a fit of rage. As an adult, I really liked the way this book ended, although I am not sure teens will see it like I do.

BAD by Jean Ferris

BAD by Jean Ferris

182 pages

This is a very sad, very realistic look at life in a juvenile delinquency facility. Dallas lands herself in lockup after her father decided he cannot handle her and refuses to take her back home on probation after she and her friends stick up a convenience store. The voice of this is so real, I would have thought I was sitting right in the cell with her. It was no surprise to learn that this book came about after the author visited a rehabilitation center...this book was the product of several interviews with the youth there.

Camo Girl by Kekla Magoon



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Camo Girl by Kekla Magoon
218 pages

Before there was Ella and Bailey, there was Z, Ella, and Millie. The once inseparable trio has broken up. Millie is now popular, and has the equivalent of the time it takes the school bus to get to school to talk to Ella. Ella and Z are still friends, but Ella becomes more and more aware that Z's personality is getting a little weird for even her. Z escapes into fantasies more and more, and gets to the point where he never reaches for reality. But, Z is the only friend she has, that doesn't care about her color mottled skin, the only one who doesn't call her camo face. How can she turn her back on him?