Planet Pregnancy

Title:Planet Pregnancy

Written by:Linda Oatman High

Publisher:Front Street

Summary:

If you’re a mom / can you still / go to the prom? Pregnant at 16, Sahara, a former Dixie Queen pageant winner, considers her choices in her small Texas town: adoption, abortion, or keeping the child. No way will she marry the baby’s father: He’s a bum. / He doesn’t work. / He’s a jerk. / He’d be / a bad dad, just like the dad / I never had. She lies to her mom and says her pregnancy resulted from date rape, but Mom is not supportive, at least at first, and Sahara worries that her religious best friend will reject her as a knocked-up sleaze. There is too little about what it is like to go to school after a pregnancy begins to show. But true to the teen’s voice, the gripping narrative, written in very short lines of free verse with occasional rhyme, makes for a roller-coaster read. Even teens who do not agree with Sahara’s final choice will be caught up in the rising tension as she copes with her guilt, regret, despair, and hope.

Suckerpunch

Title:Suckerpunch

Written by:David Hernandez

Publisher:HarperTeen

Summary:

In the summer before his senior year, Marcus and his friends escape their troubles at parties involving sex, drugs, and alcohol (all detailed in some explicit passages). At the background of Marcus’ angst is the physical abuse that his younger brother suffered from their father, who then left the family. Now, Dad wants to come back, and Marcus’ mother is considering the possibility. This sends Marcus, his brother, and his brother’s girlfriend on a road trip to track down their father in San Francisco, where they hope to exact their own psychological revenge on Dad. The episodic, first-person narration powerfully captures Marcus’ scattered, adolescent thoughts, and many young readers will recognize his raw, unvarnished voice. The end provides a rather heavy-handed symbol of Marcus coming to terms with his past, but this is only a minor quibble about this otherwise realistic, affecting coming-of-age debut from a poet known for his adult works.

Poison Ink

Title:Poison Ink

Written by:Christopher Golden

Publisher:Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Summary:

SAMMI, TQ, CARYN, Letty, and Katsuko are floaters. None of them fits in with any particular group at Covington High School—except each other. One night, to cement their bond, the girls decide to get matching, unique tattoos. But when Sammi backs out at the last minute, everything changes. Faster than you can say “airbrush,” Sammi is an outcast, and soon, her friends are behaving like total strangers. When they attack Sammi for trying to break up a brawl, Sammi spies something horrible on her friends’ backs: the original tattoo has grown tendrils, snaking and curling over the girls’ entire bodies. What has that creepy tattoo artist done to her friends? And what—if anything—can Sammi do to get them back? This deliciously creepy psychological thriller is the perfect summer read.

Right Behind You

Title:Right Behind You

Written by:Gail Giles

Publisher:Little, Brown Young Readers

Summary:

After setting his seven-year-old neighbor in Alaska on fire, Kip McFarland spends four years in a facility for violent juvenile offenders. When he is released at the age of 14, he, his father, and his new stepmother move to Indiana, with new names. For a while, Wade enjoys a normal life. Eventually, however, despite the warnings of his therapist, he sabotages his happiness in a drunken fit of rage. After he reveals his identity, the town turns on him and his family. Now, a coastal Texas town is their final shot at starting over. The cozy community appears to be a perfect haven, but Wade feels compelled to reveal his past to Sam, the beautiful and mysterious neighbor who is winning his heart—and has a story of her own. Will she still accept him once she finds out he is a murderer? This quick read has a compelling story line, but the characters, especially the adults, are at times one-dimensional, with voices that are somewhat indistinguishable from one another. Reluctant readers will be drawn to the story's accessibility, and many teens will be pulled in by the larger questions the novel poses about innocence and acceptance. Despite its flaws, this book will be a hit with Giles's fans.

My Father's Son

Title:My Father's Son

Written by:Terri Fields

Publisher:Roaring Brook Press

Summary:

WHAT IF YOUR FATHER ISN’T WHO YOU THOUGHT HE WAS?

“I turn up the volume as a woman at a news desk announces, ‘This just in…the alleged DB25 monster has been arrested.’ Good. The camera switches from the anchor to a mug shot…and it is my face—or at least my face as it will look thirty years from now…A new image replaces the full-screen mug shot as I see two cops hustling my handcuffed father into the back of a police car.” Kevin has to face the worst imaginable possibility: that his father may be the man responsible for a series of vicious killings. How much does he really know about his father?

The Unspoken

Title:The Unspoken

Written by:Thomas Fahy

Publisher:Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Summary:

Teeth-clenchingly suspenseful at times and deliciously creepy at others, Fahy (Night Visions) delivers a classic horror story with his YA debut, about a religious cult destroyed by a fire and the six teens who escape. He pulls out all the necessary stops as he constructs the terrifying story of what comes to pass five years later as the surviving teens are being murdered one by one, according to the cult leader's prophecy. The author gives readers gory visual descriptions of the crime scenes, tension-building cliffhangers and the type of unexpected surprises that if translated to film would make moviegoers scream, and he nails each device beautifully. An element of genre-specific camp attaches to some of the scenes; for example, the main character, Allison, has epileptic seizures during which she envisions each murder before it happens; and in a pivotal sequence, Allison assumes the killer is dead, but readers know otherwise. Executed with panache, these familiar elements only add to the overall thrill. A page-turner that just might keep readers up at night--especially given the loosely resolved ending.

Lady J (Drama High)

Title:Lady J (Drama High)

Written by:L. Divine

Publisher:Dafina

Summary:

For South Bay High's bold, beautiful Jayd Jackson, drama has reached record-breaking heights as she finds herself on the defensive at home, work, and school. Maybe it's time to take her destiny--and her power--into her own hands...

Her relationship with now-ex boyfriend Jeremy behind her, Jayd realizes drama is just a never-ending part of daily life. Even so, she's reached her limit, battling with her new boss, jealousies at school, and tensions at home. To deal with it all, Jayd is ready to give some attention to her legacy as one in a long line of conjure women. But that legacy comes with a line of rivals too--and a couple of them are much too close to home. 

First, there's Misty, Jayd's enemy #1 and current girlfriend of Jayd's other ex, KJ. Then there's Jayd's neighbor, Esmeralda, a conjurer from Louisiana whose crystal-clear blue eyes are said to be deadly. When Jayd spots Misty's mom visiting Esmeralda, she knows something's up and it's time for Mama to fill her in. Turns out there's a history between these families, and if Jayd wants to keep the drama under control, she'll have to learn to use her power like never before--and become the woman she was born to be.

The Hunger Games

Title:The Hunger Games

Written by:Suzanne Collins

Publisher:Scholastic Press

Summary:

This is a grand-opening salvo in a new series by the author of the Underland Chronicles. Sixteen-year-old Katniss poaches food for her widowed mother and little sister from the forest outside the legal perimeter of District 12, the poorest of the dozen districts constituting Panem, the North American dystopic state that has replaced the U.S. in the not-too-distant future. Her hunting and tracking skills serve her well when she is then cast into the nation’s annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death where contestants must battle harsh terrain, artificially concocted weather conditions, and two teenaged contestants from each of Panem’s districts. District 12’s second “tribute” is Peeta, the baker’s son, who has been in love with Katniss since he was five. Each new plot twist ratchets up the tension, moving the story forward and keeping the reader on edge. Although Katniss may be skilled with a bow and arrow and adept at analyzing her opponents’ next moves, she has much to learn about personal sentiments, especially her own. Populated by three-dimensional characters, this is a superb tale of physical adventure, political suspense, and romance.

Kendra

Title:Kendra

Written by:Coe Booth

Publisher:Push


Summary:
Kendra's mom, Renee, had her when she was only 14 years old. Renee and her mom made a deal -- Renee could get an education, and Kendra would live with her grandmother. But now Renee's out of grad school and Kendra's in high school ... and getting into some trouble herself. Kendra's grandmother lays down the law: It's time for Renee to take care of her daughter. Kendra wants this badly -- even though Renee keeps disappointing her. Being a mother isn't easy, but being a daughter can be just as hard. Now it's up to Kendra and Renee to make it work.

The Compound (Hardcover)

Title:The Compound (Hardcover)

Written by:S. A. Bodeen

Publisher:Feiwel & Friends

Summary:

Ever since their world was destroyed by a nuclear attack, 15-year-old Eli and his family have lived in the Compound, a state-of-the-art bomb shelter built by his billionaire father. Despite having every comfort, Eli is haunted by the fact that his twin and his grandmother were left behind. He also begins to question his father’s sanity after an inventory miscalculation threatens their survival, and his dad hatches a morally corrupt plan to “enhance their food supply.” Eli’s worst suspicions are confirmed when he discovers a live Internet signal using an old laptop. Did the world really end six years ago? Why else would Eli’s father want to keep his family underground? Debut novelist Bodeen effectively builds the claustrophobic suspense with each chapter as readers slowly discover the Compound is not the refuge it seems..