Teensite  Tags: teensite teens young_adult teenagers summer_reading  

*Adams, Douglas.  The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.  Science Fiction. Even though the plot is sort of mixed up, it is easy to follow. Arthur Dent gets pulled into an alien ship; and Earth is literally destroyed so an outer space highway can be built. A fun read! -- Corry Straathof, Davis Library

*Adams, Richard.  Watership Down.  Fantasy/Adventure. Hazel’s best friend, Fiver, (both are rabbits) feels that the warren that they live in is in danger so the two recruit other rabbits and leave. They find a good home but face yet another problem—they are all males. So they must travel to a horrible colony and devise a hopeful plan to establish a new home. Will this plan work?  -- Olivia Lewis, Silver Spring Library

Allison, Jennifer.  Gilda Joyce: The Ladies of the Lake.  Mystery.  Gilda Joyce, Psychic Investigator, is up to her old tricks, this time in a Catholic school. The uniform itself would be hard to get over, but there’s also the tale of the Lady of the Lake: an unfortunate soul who wandered out onto the lake, fell through the ice and died. It would seem to be just a terrible accident, but then why is everyone acting so strangely?  --Amanda Vane, Kensington Park Library

*Armstrong, Kelley.  The Summoning (Darkest Powers, #1).  Horror. Chloe’s life turns upside-down when she starts seeing ghosts. Diagnosed with schizophrenia, she is sent to a place for disturbed teens. But soon, as if things couldn’t get worse, Chloe’s life turns to the supernatural and things begin to go wrong. -- Jack, Quince Orchard Library

Azuma, Kiyohiko.  Yotsuba To! 5.  Graphic Novel. This hilarious graphic novel tells the story of a young and curious girl named Yotsuba and the adventures she has with her dad and her friends, from meeting a cardboard robot to finding fun on a rainy day. -- Cindy, Quince Orchard Library

Barnes, Jennifer Lynn.  The Squad: Perfect Cover.  Adventure. Toby Klein is your average computer-hacking, third-degree-black-belt-cheerleader-hating, crotch-kicking loner. But when she starts getting coded notes in her locker telling her to attend the varsity cheer squad auditions, Toby can’t help but be curious. And when she’s blackmailed into joining them, the roller coaster of her life gets noticeably bumpier.  --Kimberly Joseph, Wheaton Library

Bartoletti, Susan Campbell.  The Boy Who Dared.  Historical Fiction. Helmuth, a 17 year-old anti-Nazi, lives in Germany during World War II. Surrounded on all sides by Nazi spies, Helmuth can only confide his thoughts with a few trusted friends. But when he becomes bold and tries to expose the Nazis as frauds, he risks everything and is sent to jail. Will Helmuth survive? -- Dustin Kang, Olney Library

*Bauer, Joan.  Squashed.  Realistic Fiction.  Ellie Morgan, 16, is sure that her life could be perfect if she could lose 20 pounds and get her potentially prizewinning pumpkin, Max, to put on another 200 pounds. Then Ellie could become a local celebrity, plus rub it in that disgusting Cyril Pool’s face once and for all. She might even consider approaching Wes, the new boy in town. -- Kimberlee Green, Damascus Library

*Bertagna, Julie.  Exodus.  Fantasy. In the year 2100, the Earth’s ice caps have melted to the point where most of the land has been swallowed. On the island of Wing, Mara, 15, knows that the island doesn’t have much time left before it too becomes engulfed by the ocean. She has to find a way of moving her people into a new world. -- Heather Liu, Rockville Library

Bosch, Pseudonymous.  The Name of This Book Is Secret.  Fantasy. This fantastic and gripping story told by an eccentric narrator follows the quest of Cass and Max-Ernest, two oddballs who try to discover if and why the mysterious Dr. L and Ms. Mauvais are kidnapping talented children. -- Carly Meyers, Kensington Park Library

*Bruchac, Joseph.  Code Talker. Historical Fiction. An American Indian endures racism at a white-run school, where he is told his native Navajo language has no purpose. During World War II, he learns that Navajos are being recruited by the military to translate secret messages into the Navajo language so the Japanese cannot understand Marine communications. -- Justin Liu, Davis Library

*Buchan, John.  The Thirty-Nine Steps.  Adventure. Richard Hannay is a South African adventurer living in London in the early 1900s. Finding town life boring, he decides to leave England, but gets entangled in a murder plot. Follow Hannay through rural Scotland as he tries to simultaneously clear his name, and get to the heart of the plot. --    Arjuna, Silver Spring Library

Butcher, Jim.  Furies of Calderon.  Fantasy. Think of the author as a mix of Tolkien, Rowling and Colfer. In this brilliant start to the epic, The Codex Alera, Alera is a nation of people who exist solely with the help of “furies,” elementals that vary in strength and skill, each with a different power. When war threatens, Ravi, raised by his uncle and aunt and lacking any fury, is tasked with finding a way to stop the threat with only his wits and unexpected allies. -- Ren Allard, Bethesda Library

Byrd, A.J.  Chasing Romeo.  Realistic Fiction. Tyler, Kierra, and Anjenai just became high school freshmen, and they are very happy. They get in trouble the first day of school by breaking a girl’s nose, which actually makes them popular. They are “best friends forever” who always “have each other’s back” until they all end up liking an athletic guy, Romeo. Will Romeo’s choice affect their friendship . . . or not? -- Bilen Tenna, Gaithersburg Library

Cabot, Meg.  Being Nikki.  Fantasy/SF.  Em had brain surgery and is now in the body of a superstar model, Nikki. Being Nikki isn’t an easy job--ex-boyfriends come out of nowhere and someone is spying on her wherever she goes. The whole situation doesn’t get any easier when her long-lost brother comes back. -- Kavya Rallabhandi, Bethesda Library

*Cabot, Meg.  Moving Day (Allie Finkel’s Rules for Girls, #1).  Realistic Fiction. When Allie’s parents announce that they are moving to a new house, Allie is really upset. On the plus side, she will get to go to Dairy Queen and get a new kitten. But on the negative side, she will be moving into a possibly haunted, old Victorian house. How will Allie survive? --  Lena Bakalian, Kensington Park Library

*Cabot, Meg.  Pants on Fire.  Romance.  Katie Ellison is making out with a drama club hottie behind her football player boyfriend’s back. She hates quahogs but she’s running for Quahog Princess in her hometown’s annual Quahog Festival. She tells lies after lies, but no one knows that until Tommy Sullivan comes back to town. Will he ruin her or save her life? -- Xinran Zneng, Twinbrook Library

Carter, Ally.  Don’t Judge a Girl by Her Cover.  Suspense. Cammie “The Chameleon” Morgan is not a normal teenager. She goes to a school…for spies. But Cammie soon finds herself facing the dangers of the real world. Stuck in the middle of a kidnapping attempt, she and her roommates try to protect a friend on the campaign trail. -- Trisha Patel, Germantown Library

Chase, Paula.  Don’t Get it Twisted (A Del Rio Bay Clique Novel, #2). Realistic Fiction. Sweet little Kelly is dating fast-talking hustler Angel. JZ is “ballin” on the varsity basketball team but struggling to keep her grades up. Jacinta’s boyfriend feels she’s losing touch with her roots by going to rich DRB High instead of Sam-Well. And, Mina is finally asked out by her crush, but her parents won’t let her go out with him. -- Vera Damanka, Gaithersburg Library

*Chevalier, Tracy.  Girl with a Pearl Earring.  Historical Fiction. Griet has no idea what is coming when she agrees to become a maid for the famous painter, Johannes Vermeer. Through his eyes she finds love, jealousy, good and evil in her beloved home town. Over time, Griet realizes that the most important thing is to remain yourself. --  Elayne Deelen, Chevy Chase Library

Chima, Cinda Williams.  The Warrior Heir.   Fantasy. A boy finds out that his life will be turned upside down because he is part of a tribe called Weir. He is a warrior and there is a fight where two warriors must fight to the death so that the wizards do not have to fight for power. -- Crista Campbell, Twinbrook Library

*Choldenko, Gennifer.  If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period.  Realistic Fiction. Kirsten McKenna and Walker Jones are on separate journeys that lead them to the same conclusion. Kirsten’s parents have been fighting, and Walker’s mom starts acting weird. Kirsten and Walker are brought even closer to each other, despite racial and family issues.  --  Emma Bassin, Bethesda Library

*Clare, Cassandra.  City of Bones.  Fantasy. This book is one of the best things I’ve read since Twilight. Clary gets pulled into a world of demons and fair folk when she goes to a club with her best friend Simon and sees a murder of what she thinks is a boy until he starts to disintegrate before her eyes. When her mother is kidnapped, Clary must go looking for her without getting herself killed by demons.  -- Kashmir, Gaithersburg Library

Clements, Andrew.  Extra Credit.  Realistic Fiction. Abby is failing sixth grade. To pass onto seventh, she needs to get B+’s on all her tests and do an extra credit report. For her report, she has to find a pen pal in another country. Simple, right? Well, this pen pal project does not turn out to be simple. Abby’s pen pal Amira is not who she appears to be.  -- Melyssa Cave, Wheaton Library

Cole, Stephen.  Thieves Like Us.  Adventure. A team of teen vigilante outlaws who happen to be experts at stealing ancient artifacts, has a new addition - Jonah Wish, a brilliant computer hacker who has just busted out of jail. Their newest mission is to find, acquire, and keep safe the one element of “eternal life”—the “flesh of the gods.” The team has difficulty staying together because of their boss’s treachery.  -- Eyobed Seifu, Gaithersburg Library

Colfer, Eoin.  The Supernaturalist.  Fantasy. Cosmo Hill lives in a facility with hundreds of other kids who are forced to test products meant for the public. When Cosmo escapes from the facility, he meets a group of teens who call themselves “The Supernaturalists.” As Cosmo and his new friends hunt for the truth, they soon find out that nothing is what it seems.  -- Jack, Rockville Library

Collins, Suzanne.  Gregor and the Prophecy of the Bane (The Underland Chronicles, #2).  Fantasy/Adventure.  Gregor has fallen into the Underland, an underground world, where creatures are 15 times their normal size and the rats are seven feet tall. Gregor undertakes a quest to destroy the rat leader (the Bane.) To do so, he and his friends must travel by water, facing man-eating mites, treacherous whirlpools, 12,000-year-old deadly serpents, and a labyrinth.  -- Conor Moore, Little Falls Library

*Collins, Suzanne.  The Hunger Games.  SF. In the future, North America combines to form Panem, a nation with the Capitol at its center. In order to ensure the obedience of its citizens, Panem forces each of its 12 districts to sacrifice a male and a female teenager every year. The youths must then compete to the death. When Katniss, a 16-year-old girl, sacrifices herself, the 74th Hunger Game begins.  -- Niki Maheshwari, Gaithersburg Library

*Cooper, Susan.  Victory.  Fantasy. Sam is a boy who sailed on the HMS Victory with Admiral Nelson in Britain’s battle against France in 1805. Molly is a girl in the 21st century who has been relocated by her mother and stepfather from Britain to America. Although 200 years separate the two, both find themselves struggling with the misery of homesickness, as well as grateful for the unlikely friends they find. -- Jenny, Twinbrook Library

*Corbett, Sue.  Free Baseball.  Adventure. Felix doesn’t know anything about why his dad didn’t leave Cuba and come to America with his mother and him. He decides to find out and becomes the bat boy for a baseball team with several Cuban players. Will Felix find out what happened to his father? -- Parth Talwar, Germantown Library

Creech, Sharon.  The Castle Corona.   Fantasy. Pia and Enzio, two orphaned peasants, dream of living in the amazing and wonderful Castle Corona. When the King hears of a thief poisoning a nearby kingdom, he calls for tasters. Pia and Enzio are swept away from their boring life, and given a beautiful home and delicious food just to taste the royal family's meals before they eat them. And soon they find out that they might actually have family - very close by. --  Kate Gannon, Little Falls Library  

 *Creech, Sharon.  Heartbeat. Realistic Fiction. Annie is discovering many mysteries in life. Her mother's "alien" baby, her grandfather losing his memory, and her best friend changing give her a whole new way of looking at the world.  -- Raina, Quince Orchard Library

*Crichton, Michael.  The Andromeda Strain.  SF. A satellite crashes into Earth with an alien organism on board and is recovered by people from a nearby small Arizona town, who die seconds later. Scientists must bring the satellite to a lab, figure out how the alien organism works and discover a cure. -- Will Ford, Chevy Chase Library

*Cummings, Priscilla.  The Red Kayak.  Realistic Fiction. Braden, who lives on the Chesapeake Bay, is a member of a crabbing and oystering family. When wealthier families begin to move into the area and build mansions, his parents and friends become bitter. Braden befriends one of the new families, the DiAngelos, who take over the farm belonging to his friend Digger's family. Unfortunately, Brady doesn't realize how deep Digger's anger runs.  -- Sarah Kimball, Chevy Chase Library

Dean, Zoey.  Talent.  Realistic Fiction. Mackenzie Little Armstrong meets Emily Mungler when she tries to crash a Hollywood party. Emily wants to see her crush Davey Woodward so she pretends she’s his sister. Mac notices that she has talent, so with help from her best friends, Mac helps Emily to be a superstar and act in Davey’s next movie. But Emily finds out the real reason that Mac wants to help her be a superstar. -- Samina Musa, Twinbrook Library

Dessen, Sarah.  Along for the Ride.  Realistic Fiction. Auden has never had the time to be a child; as soon as her parents started fighting she stopped sleeping at night and started throwing herself into school. Then, Auden goes to visit her father, his young wife, and their baby at the beach town of Colby the summer before her freshman year in college. In Colby, Auden has the childhood she’ll never forget. --  Kimberly Lartz, Poolesville Library

Dessen, Sarah.  The Truth About Forever.  Realistic Fiction. Macy’s first clue that her boyfriend’s no good is his issue with the word “love.”  Macy likes making lists and check marks. She has her whole life planned out. She digs in her heels and does all she can to pull her family back together after the death of her dad.  All it takes is a catering crew to spin things up and put it all in perspective. -- Mythili, Rockville Library

*Dicamillo, Kate.  Tiger Rising.  Realistic Fiction.  Rob bottles his feelings because of the loss of his mother but two people enter his life who are nice but who sometimes can get mean towards him: Beauchamp, who has a caged tiger and lets Rob keep him, and Sistine, who implores Rob to let the tiger free. -- Samson Girma, Silver Spring Library

*Dickens, Charles. Oliver Twist. Adventure. Oliver Twist, an orphan, is compelled to work; but, he hates it. Although he meets a gang of thieves after he runs away, he eventually finds love in a family, but the thieves do not forget Oliver. -- H. J. Won, Davis Library

*Duncan, Lois.  Down a Dark Hall.  Mystery. Kit’s mother and new stepfather are going on vacation, so Kit has to go to a weird boarding school with only six students. She doesn’t know what is going to happen to her and her friends—or the evil that is approaching. -- Jaime Fleishman, Kensington Park Library

Durst, Sarah Beth.  Out of the Wild.  Fantasy/Adventure. Her mom is Rapunzel and her brother is Puss-in-Boots. When her mom turns into a pumpkin, how does Julie Marchen know that her dad’s kiss won’t finish the story - with all of them in it? -- Emma Bearman, Aspen Hill Library

Ewing, Lynne.  Divine One-The Sisters of Isis, Book 2.  Fantasy/Adventure/Romance. Meri and her two friends, Sudi and Dalila, discover they have magical powers of transformation and can cast spells. Meri finds out that she is one of the heirs to the throne of ancient Egypt. She learns the truth about her past and her true identity, while her overprotective mother runs for U.S. Senator. Together the three girls fight evil, find love, and accept their strange fates.  -- Priya Angamuthu, White Oak Library

*Face Relations.  Edited by Marilyn Singer.  Realistic Fiction. This is an amazing collection of 11 short stories about seeing beyond color. They include stories about accepting people for who they are and not judging a person’s character by the color of their skin. -- Feevan Megersa, Silver Spring Library
 
Flanagan, John. Ranger’s Apprentice Book 5: The Sorcerer of the North.  Fantasy. Will has finally become a full-fledged ranger and his assignment is to go to the North. He disguises himself as a wandering minstrel. While discovering rumors of a sorcerer, he also discovers a plot of betrayal.  -- Malek Brown, Twinbrook Library

Friend, Natasha.  Perfect.  Realistic Fiction. Isabelle Lee, 13, has many problems. She has a little sister, April, known as “Ape Face,” who is a tattletale. She and her family are still trying to deal with her father’s death. Isabelle has another problem, a bulimia problem. She is forced to go to group therapy but little does she know that the most popular girl in her school, Ashley Barnum, is there too and with the same problem! --  Nicole Cheng, Gaithersburg Library

*Funke, Cornelia Caroline.  Inkdeath.  Fantasy. A family got read into a book named Inkheart, and now they live there. The dad, Mortimer, is a bookbinder and made a book for an evil ruler to make him immortal. Now, Mortimer is a robber named the Bluejay and is on a quest to destroy the book to save his and his daughter’s lives. -- Radhika Sood, Gaithersburg Library

Gauthier, Gail.  Happy Kid.  Realistic Fiction. Kyle’s mom thinks he has changed for the worse over the summer, so she gets him a self-help book called “Happy Kid” to change his attitude. He plans to use the advice and warnings in the book to get closer to his crush. His bad boy reputation makes it harder and he has real bad boy, Jake Rodgers, stalking him. What will he do to make this all better?  -- Kemi Ajayi, White Oak Library

*Grogan, John.  Marley: A Dog Like No Other.  Non-fiction. John and Jenny Grogan decide to get a dog before having children, to learn to care. They fall in love with a little lab with too much energy, named Marley. His pure heart makes his family joyful, and he shows them what truly matters in life. --  Esther Li, Potomac Library

*Haddix, Margaret Peterson.  Just Ella.  Romance. In this fresh twist on a classic story, Ella is a beautiful young girl who goes to a ball and steals the heart of Prince Charming, only to realize he’s a total dud. Now she’s stuck with a failure of a fiancé and a never-ending supply of lessons and rules. With the help of a friendly servant and her sweet, young history teacher, she must find a way to escape. -- Kate Weishaar, Germantown Library

Halam, Ann.  Dr. Franklin’s Island.  SF. Three science students are stranded on an island—but not a deserted one. Dr. Franklin is looking for volunteers for his revolutionary gene-splicing program—one that could turn humans into animals. How does it feel to count down your remaining days as a human without knowing what you’ll be next? This is a beautiful, thought-provoking story about the bounds of humanity and friendship. -- Bernadette Cannon, Damascus Library

*Hale, Shannon.  Princess Academy.  Fantasy. Miri lives a simple life in her mountain village until she is swept away to train at a princess academy. She becomes a contender to marry the prince and makes a few friends along the way. But Miri misses her little village. Does she really want the prince?  -- Melyssa Cave, Wheaton Library

Hall, Megan Kelley.  Sisters of Misery.  Mystery. Maddie Crane is part of a clique called “The sisters of Misery.” Her cousin, Cordelia, comes to live with her. Cordelia meets the ever-so popular Kate Endicott, who tries to get rid of her because she is stealing her boyfriend. --  Naina Thangada, Twinbrook Library
 
Harris, Alex and Brett Harris.  Do Hard Things.  Non-fiction/Inspirational. “Do hard things” is the heartbeat message of the Rebelution, a “teenage rebellion against low expectations.” Rebelution founders Alex and Brett Harris challenge teens to stop goofing off and wasting their teen years; they argue that teens are capable of much more than is expected of them. Join the ranks of the rebelutionaries! -- Jessica Hooker, Wheaton Library

Harrison, Emma.  The Best Girl.  Realistic Fiction. Jane’s brother is getting married, and although the wrong gender, Jane is declared best man. Can Jane handle her mother and super-active twin brothers? What happens when she runs across her crush at the wedding place?  -- Esther Li, Potomac Library
 
*Hautman, Pete.  Stone Cold.  Realistic Fiction. Denn Doyle gets addicted to poker. He obtains a fake I.D. and starts playing in a casino but soon finds himself in a game with more than money at stake and, playing against the best of the best. Will he be able to pull through?  -- Jared Liscinsky, Damascus Library

Holt, Simon.  The Devouring.  Horror/Suspense. “Your body is here but not your soul…” A horrific novel of supernatural, immortal beings. If you are in the middle of this book and you want to stop reading because you are afraid- don’t! You will be missing out on an awesome ending. -- Priya Angamuthu, White Oak Library

Hopkins, Ellen.  Crank.  Realistic Fiction. Kristina is a shy, well-mannered, perfect grades girl with a normal life until she goes to visit her long-absent father. During her visit, she meets Adam, who persuades her to try “the monster,” meth. After her addiction to the drug, her life changes forever. This great book shows how life sometimes really is. -- Kevin Iglesias, Wheaton Library

Hornby, Nick.  Songbook.  Non-fiction. Songbook is, fittingly, a book of essays about Hornby’s favorite songs. While on the surface the book is a collection of musings on music, the author also focuses on life and the passage of time. It reads like a playlist, and leaves you feeling as though you have just discovered your new favorite album. -- Bianca Datta, Potomac Library

*Horowitz, Anthony.  Ark Angel.  Adventure. Alex Rider is a teenage spy who works for MI6. In this book, he has a bullet injury one inch above his heart. While at St. Dominic’s he meets Paul Drevin (the son of Nikolei Drevin, a multimillionaire). Alex discovers that four people are there to kidnap Paul. He does save Paul, but he starts to get suspicious of Nikolei Drevin’s hospitality.  --  Kevin Liu, Gaithersburg Library

*Horowitz, Anthony.  Raven’s Gate.  Horror. When 14-year-old Matt is punished for a crime he did not commit, he is sent to live with an old woman in the small village of Lesser Malling. At first, the town seems peaceful enough, but after Matt’s arrival, strange things start happening. Now Matt must stop an evil that has existed since the beginning of time.  --  David Zhang, Germantown Library

Horowitz, Anthony.  Scorpia.  Suspense. Alex Rider, a teenage spy, goes to Venice to find details about the infamous crime organization, Scorpia. While he is there, he finds out that his father used to work for them. Now Alex has a choice of helping Scorpia with their newest plan, code-named “Invisible Sword,” or dismantling it before it is too late.  -- Adam Cunningham, Wheaton Library

*Horowitz, Anthony.  Stormbreaker.  Adventure. Alex Rider has his doubts when police tell him that his Uncle Ian has died in a car accident. Why are there bullet holes in the windshield? His search for the truth leads to an even bigger mystery. -- Nehemiah Siyoum, Chevy Chase Library

*Hulme, John and Michael Wexler.  The Split Second.  Adventure/SF. This incredibly imaginative and creative story is about a young boy, a Fixer named Becker Drane, who has the fate of the entire world in his hands. This all starts when the “split second” is stolen and created into a TIME BOMB! Can Fixer Drane be able to save the world, or will his time run out? -- Lipi Agrawal, Germantown Library

*Hunter, Erin.  Into the Wild (Warriors, #1).  Fantasy. A housecat named Rusty joins a fierce and different world of cats, the ThunderClan. Rusty will have to leave all his comforts behind, even his best friend, Smudge, to be a true warrior. Along the way will be hard work, dedication, action, and death. -- Isaac Avon, Damascus Library

Hunter, Erin.  Starlight. (Warriors, The New Prophesy, #4).  Fantasy. After their long journey, the four Clans have finally found their new home. But what dangers lie ahead in this new land? Will the Clans ever be the same again?  -- Grace Goetcheus, Kensington Park Library

Teen2Teen Reading Recommendations 2009 - Page 2