Young Adult Books to Check Out

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Alexis, S. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian. NY. Little Brown.

Junior lives on the reservation and attends high school with high life long friend. Everyone on the reservation is tough and macho and not concerned with learning or much about their later life. Junior decides to go to the white school and feels the hate from his own community, and all the while not being fully accepted in the white school. Junior loses his best friend from the reservation, but gains a girlfriend and some other friends. Junior suffers losses of close family members and proves everyone wrong when it comes to what he accomplishes at the white school. 

    This was a great read and a great look into the life of a young man on an Indian reservation and his outlook on his future. It gives a great insight into a person trapped between two cultures and not being fully accepted by either culture. Sherman Alexie is a Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Native American writer. He grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation and used his experiences as a Indigenous American with ancestry from several tribes to influence his writing. Other works by Alexie are Reservation Blues and Ten Little Indians. 

Speak

Anderson, L. H. (1999). Speak. NY. Penguin 

This book had me hooked at the first two sentences. As you read you uncover the truth about the main character, Mel, and why she has changed so drastically and does not speak. It is a thought provoking story where Mel wants to speak and speak out, but cannot find the strength. She is suffering from the inside out, lost all of her friends, and has even disconnected from her family. This story is a powerful talking point regarding how adolescent relationships grow and change. It also brings to light the importance of  speaking to the right people in order to get help. Speak shows the truth in the saying that you don't know what everyone is going through. 

    Laurie Halse Anderson is an American writer known for titles like Catalyst and Chains. Her books are written for young readers, teens, and adults. She received the Margaret E. Edwards Award in 2010 for her contribution to literature. 

Lucky Broken Girl

Behar, R. (2017). Lucky broken girl. NY. Delacorte

This book tells the story of a young Cuban refugee in New York with her family and gets into a devastating car accident. Ruthie ends up in a body cast for about a year. She battles guilt, anger, and loneliness. She encounters kind and encouraging people who help and inspire her in her darkest time. The community she and the others create are due to the commonality of their different cultures, food, music, art, literature, and family values. This is based on a true story of the author. Lucky Broken Girl captures the variety of people and cultures in New York. 

    There is a theme of male dominance and a different set of expectations and rules based on gender. This theme is apparent across the cultures and the younger characters challenge the standard set of expectations based on gender. Ruth Behar is a Cuban-American anthropologist and writer. Some of Behar's other works are Letters from Cuba and An Island Called Home. 

Annie on My Mind

Garden, N. (1982). Annie on my mind. NY. FSG.

Liza is a high school senior who meets and befriends Annie, also a senior in high school. The two find themselves intrigued and fascinated by each other and soon find themselves falling in love. Liza lies to herself and her parents about her feelings for Annie, but soon discovers she is in love and Annie shares the same feelings. A scandal erupts at Liza's private school about her personal life and the personal lives of two of her teachers. Liza spends her freshman year of college contemplating her experiences with Annie all the while receiving letters from Annie. Liza finally realizes her love for Annie is real and true. This story touched my heart because you could feel the love, admiration, and attraction the two characters have for each other. This book was published in 1982, where there were still many people unaccepting of two women in love. I enjoyed the many characters sprinkled throughout the story letting Liza and Annie know that love is natural.

    Nancy Garden is American writer whose works are for children and young adults. More titles by Nancy Garden include Nora and Liza and Nancy's Family. Annie on My Mind  is her best known title which brought her much acclaim and the 2003 Margaret Edwards Award and was also widely banned in many schools and libraries across America.

Celebrate Your Body 2

Leff, C. (2019). Celebrate your body 2. Rockingridge.

     Celebrate Your Body 2 is a comprehensive informational text on a female, her body, changes to her body, and choices she has concerning her body written by two doctors. I am in utter delight to find this book. I am so sad there was nothing even close to this when I was a young girl questioning everything. The information is given in a straight forward factual manner, all the while reminding young girls they are normal and to love themselves no matter what. The topics range from menstruation, breasts, talking to your parents, and several more. I found the text incredibly well written in scientific and easy to understand terms. I definitely plan to use this for my 8 year old daughter and find the other version for my son. What a great guide for parents and kids. 

    Dr. Carrie Leff practices internal medicine and pediatrics, while Dr. Lisa Klein is a pediatrician. If you enjoyed this book or found the material helpful, check out other titles from the publisher, like; Celebrate Your Feelings and Growing Up Great!

Monster

Myers, W. D. (1999). Monster. NY. Harper.

Monster is written like a movie script, giving camera directions and scene set up. The young character, a sixteen year old boy named Steve, is starting a trial for a crime he did not commit. The movie tells the story of his family, his neighborhood, and how he became caught up in a botched robbery. Monster is a theme throughout the story. Other convicts, the  boys accused of the crime with Steve, and anyone who does not have a moral compass. Steve wanted to capture his life during the trial so he took notes and made it a screen play for a movie. 

    Walter Dean Myers was a popular children's author. He grew up with a tough childhood in Harlem and was encouraged by his teachers to write. Some other works by Walter Dean Myers are The Get Over and Fallen Angels.

The Knife of Never Letting Go

Ness, P. (2008). The knife of never letting go. Boston, MA. Candlewick Press.

A boy who is almost 13 lives in a town of only men. There is so much Noise in this town, because they can hear each others thoughts. Even the dog can hear their thoughts and he can hear theirs. This town was new when Todd was a baby and the people were told there was a war with the Spackle that killed everyone else. Todd finds a void in the swamp where there is no Noise, and he is forced to escape with the help of some others in town. When he returns to the void with his dog he discovers a girl whose shipped has crashed. In the end Todd learns women cannot get the Noise germ. He gives himself back over to the mayor to save the girl.

    To be honest, I had a very difficult time getting through this science fiction novel. I picked the book up and put it back down countless times. There is a lot to keep track of in this novel and I felt like I almost needed a flow chart to understand. Patrick Ness is a British-American author, journalist, lecturer, and screen writer. If you liked this science fiction work then you should also check out Chaos Walking and A Monster Calls.

Gabi: A Girl in Pieces

Quintero, I. (2014). Gabi: A girl in pieces. TX. Cinco Puntos.

Gabi, A Girl in Pieces is the story of Gabi, a self described Mexican girl who is starting her senior year in high school. She has pieces of her life that are not connected and confuse her; a new love of writing and poetry, boyfriends, self-image issues, using food as a coping mechanism, strict rules from her mother, a drug addicted mostly absentee father, a pregnant friend, and a gay friend. When Gabi stops trying to balance all this parts separately she discovers her true self and shares it with strength and determination. 

    Interesting aspects of the book are the discussions of great authors and literature and how it connected to Gabi on a level that helped her grow as a person. There is a strong theme of family and culture. You can have a traditional family and culture, or you may even cultivate your own family and culture. A theme which was very apparent was that girls are told to be good, virtuous, and their goal is to have and care for a husband and family. This is a sharp contrast from the "boys will be boys" attitudes of almost everyone around Gabi. This was an easy read due to the fact it is written as if you are reading Gabi's journal.