Book picks similar to
Last Chance by Lesley Choyce
conflict
fast-fiction
hi-lo
inner-conflict
Cuts Like a Knife
Darlene Ryan - 2012
She's smart, funny, loyal and fiercely independent. The only problem is, when life gets too hard for Mac, she runs away. But she always comes back. Except now Mac's grandmother is dead, their house is about to be torn down and she's been humiliated in front of the entire school. When Daniel finds out Mac has been saying goodbye to her friends, he realizes she's planning on leaving for good. Getting more and more desperate as he searches the city, Daniel finds an unexpected and unlikely ally. But can he find Mac before he loses her forever?
Strange Relations
Sonia Levitin - 2007
That's all Marne wants. That's all she can think of when she asks her parents permission to spend the summer in Hawaii with Aunt Carole and her family.But Marne quickly realizes her visit isn't going to be just about learning to surf and morning runs along the beach, despite the cute surfer boy she keeps bumping into. For one thing, Aunt Carole isn't even Aunt Carole anymore—she's Aunt Chaya, married to a Chasidic rabbi and deeply rooted in her religious community. Nothing could be more foreign to Marne, and fitting into this new culture—and house full of kids—is a challenge. But as she settles into her newfound family's daily routine, she begins to think about spirituality, identity, and finding a place in the world in a way she never has before.This rich novel is a window into a different life and gets to the very heart of faith, identity, and family ties.
Mad Dogs And An Englishwoman
Polly Evans - 2008
Her mission: to learn to drive sled dogs. But when she arrives, she finds there's more to this unspoilt wilderness than deathly cold.In a pristine landscape patrolled by wolves and caribou, Polly takes her first bruising lessons in the art of mushing. But before the snows melt in spring, she hones her skills and becomes infatuated with this brutal, beautiful land where jagged gems of hoar frost glisten on the spruce boughs and the northern lights weave green and red across the skies. Above all, she discovers a deep affection for the loving, mischievous huskies who with such courage and enthusiasm escort her through the lone white trails of the unforgiving north.
Me, In Between
Lauren Baratz-Logsted - 2008
But Lacey's problems are very real and they are exactly two: her breasts. Twelve years old and in eighth grade, Lacey has developed faster than everyone else around her. The other girls -- even her own best friend -- are jealous, and boys won't stop teasing her. Then Chad, a high school boy, starts talking to her at the mall, assuming she's older, and for the first time Lacey sees a positive side to her appearance. She keeps the flirtation -- and the lie -- going. Meanwhile, a childhood guy pal resurfaces and Lacey does all she can to hide her "developments" from him. Suddenly in every part of her life Lacey's torn between trying to look older and trying to look younger, trying to grow up and trying hard not to. How long will Lacey stay stuck in between?
Red Wolf
Jennifer Dance - 2014
Starving and lonely, an orphaned timber wolf is befriended by a boy named Red Wolf. But under the Indian Act, Red Wolf is forced to attend a residential school far from the life he knows, and the wolf is alone once more. Courage, love and fate reunite the pair, and they embark on a perilous journey home. But with winter closing in, will Red Wolf and Crooked Ear survive? And if they do, what will they find?
Rock My World: A Novel of Thongs, Spandex, and Love in G Minor
Liza Conrad - 2005
Surrounded by lots of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, she's been on the road for as long as she can remember. With a father who was the lead singer of the popular band The Babydolls, and an ex-groupie for a mother, she had no choice but to grow up fast. Now at seventeen, Livy is finally close to having a normal life-until she lands an internship at the music magazine Rock On. Her first assignment? Follow the now-sober, more mature Babydolls across the globe on their reunion tour. It won't be easy to work alongside her dad, who's just now trying to be a responsible father. Armed with a pen, earplugs, and her best friend, Cammie, Livy's back on the road again. To complicate this already-too-complicated situation, her "musicians need not apply" dating rule is getting harder to obey-thanks to the lead singer of her Dad's opening band, who's hot enough to make Livy forget how much she wanted to leave the rock 'n' roll life behind.
Metamorphosis: Junior Year
Betsy Franco - 2009
But can he fix his own fate? Acclaimed author Betsy Franco and her talented son collaborate on a hip YA novel of "epic" proportions.Life. Love. Death. Identity. Ovid’s got a lot on his mind, and he pours it all — as confessions, observations, narrative poems, and drawings — into the pages of a notebook. Inspired by his namesake, he wryly records his classmates’ dramas as modern-day Roman mythology. There’s Sophie and Caleb, the Psyche and Cupid of cyber-couples; poetic Paula, who pursues filmmaker Franny like Apollo chasing Daphne; and graphic novelist Duwayne, a Proserpina shuttling between divorced parents. Meanwhile, Ovid hides his own Olympian struggles: his meth addict sister Thena has run off, leaving him with a suffocating home life and a disturbing secret. In her striking YA debut, Betsy Franco introduces an expressive soul with a heartbreakingly authentic voice. Fantastical ink illustrations by her son Tom Franco enhance the intimate tone, delving deep into one intriguing teen’s imagination.
Where Nests the Water Hen
Gabrielle Roy - 1950
Set in the remote wilderness of northern Manitoba, this sunny, tender idyll of daily frontier life captures, as few novels ever have, the spirit and the surroundings of the pioneers – not the adventurers and trailblazers who make the headlines, but rather the humble folk who follow after and remain, living out their lives in obscurity to keep the trails open.Where Nests the Water Hen, Gabrielle Roy’s second novel, is a sensitive and sympathetic tale that captures both the innocence and the vitality of a sparsely populated frontier.
The Haunting of Apartment 101
Megan Atwood - 2012
When a popular, pretty classmate asks best friends Jinx and Jackson, high school sophomores, to investigate a haunting at her father's apartment, Jackson is sympathetic and convinces Jinx to trust him, despite her skepticism about Emily's true intentions.
The Hero and His Elf Bride Open a Pizza Parlor in Another World (light novel)
Kaya Kizaki - 2017
A swordsman; 2. A magician; or 3. A hero who saves the world with pizza. When the first two options are quickly taken, Kaito is forced to live his second life as a hero endowed with the power of pizza, in a land of an herbivorous race of elves...one of whom happens to be his new wife! What kinds of pizza-related adventures lie ahead for our "High-Calorie Hero" and his food-obsessed elf bride?
Paranoid Mage
Inadvisably Compelled - 2022
There are monsters and beasts living among people, but he learned very early not to admit such things, not if he didn’t want people to think him crazy.It turns out that the supernatural is real, but at thirty Callum has no desire to be part of that secret. Not that he has a choice when it turns out he is a mage, albeit one that hasn’t cast any spells in all his life. There are requirements, duties, and education that the powers that be insist he be subject to.To hell with that.---An Urban Fantasy and Magical Realism story with a healthy dash of genre subversion.
The Kayla Chronicles
Sherri Winston - 2008
She is auditioning for the Lady Lions dance team to prove they discriminate against the not-so-well endowed. But when she makes the team, her best friend and fellow feminist, Rosalie, is not happy.Now a Lady Lion, Kayla is transformed from bushy-haired fashion victim to glammed-up dance diva. But does looking good and having fun mean turning her back on the cause? Can you be a strong woman and still wear really cute shoes? Soon Kayla is forced to challenge her views, coming to terms with who she is and what girl power really means.Narrated with sharp language and just the right amount of attitude, The Kayla Chronicles is the story of a girl's struggle for self-identity despite pressure from family, friends and her own conscience. Kayla's story is snappy, fun and inspiring, sure to appeal to anyone who's every questioned who they really are.
Margaux with an X
Ron Koertge - 2003
Margaux (with an x) is the dream catch of every teenage male within her radar. Encouraged by her caustic friend Sara, she's perfected the art of the sarcastic tease, while keeping her sweaty-palmed suitors just far enough at bay. It's a dreary game, but at least she's not home with Mom, the shopping channel addict, Dad, the professional gambler, and a certain haunting secret from her past. Then along comes Danny Riley — a scrawny, weak-chinned, animal-loving oddball with a quaint chivalrous streak, a kindhearted kid who can match her banter to the polysyllable and who harbors a few painful memories of his own.Only in the hands of Ron Koertge would such an unlikely pair find each other — and reward the reader with such satisfying, straight-shooting repartee, full of angst and wisdom, humor and heart.
Something Noble
William Kowalski - 2012
When she learns that her son Dre needs a kidney transplant, her family's already precarious financial situation takes a turn for the worst. Then she discovers that the only one who can help Dre is his half-brother LeVon, a drug-dealing gangbanger who thinks only of himself. Somehow Linda must get through to LeVon in order to save her son.Though she is deathly afraid of LeVon and the world he lives in, Linda knows she must conquer her fear and meet him on his own turf if she is to have any hope of success. Linda is finally able to teach LeVon the value of doing something noble with his life. And to her surprise, she learns she has room in her heart for one more kid, a boy from the streets who never had a chance.
Drawing a Blank: Or How I Tried to Solve a Mystery, End a Feud, and Land the Girl of My Dreams
Daniel Ehrenhaft - 2006
Who's been kidnapped. Because of a feud that started in medieval times. Or something. Suffice it to say, I never paid too much attention because I thought the whole thing was some twisted figment of my dad's imagination.Now my only company is a wannabe cop who just might be my superhero dream girl. And if I don't deliver some piece of mysterious "proof" to the kidnappers, my dad is toast. I've got my fair share of issues with my dad, but I don't really want to see him burned to a crisp.Anyway, you in?This is not the first time I've been wrong about something.