Book picks similar to
Paralyzed by Jeff Rud


sports
classroom-library
realistic-fiction
young-adult

Lost in the Backyard


Alison Hughes - 2015
    Always has. He barely pays attention in his Outdoor Ed class. He has no interest in doing a book report on Lost in the Barrens. He doesn’t understand why anybody would want to go hiking or camping. But when he gets lost in the wilderness behind his parents’ friends’ house, it’s surprising what he remembers—insulate your clothes with leaves, eat snow to stay hydrated, build a shelter, eat lichen—and how hopelessly inept he is at survival techniques.

The Book of David


Anonymous - 2014
    A riveting, first-person tale in the tradition of Go Ask Alice and Lucy in the Sky.The author of this fictional diary began writing for a class assignment, but soon it became much more to him. As the star player of his high school football team, he faces a lot of pressure and expectation. Not to mention the secret that he’s harboring inside. The secret that could change everything.And as David quickly learns, nothing stays secret forever.His innermost thoughts and feelings are chronicled in the diary he left behind.

Last Shot: A Final Four Mystery


John Feinstein - 2005
      When Stevie wins a writing contest for aspiring sports journalists, his prize is a press pass to the Final Four in New Orleans. While exploring the Superdome, he overhears a plot to throw the championship game. With the help of fellow contest winner Susan Carol, Stevie has just 48 hours to figure out who is blackmailing one of the star players . . . and why.   John Feinstein has been praised as “the best writer of sports books in America today” (The Boston Globe), and he proves it again in this fast-paced novel.   “A page-turning thriller and a basketball junkie’s bonanza.” —USA TodayFrom the Hardcover edition.

All the Forever Things


Jolene Perry - 2017
    “Don’t you mean how many times have we saved each other?”Nothing is forever. Gabe knows that more than most girls. After all, she lives in a funeral home (it’s the family business), and she gets that everything in the world dies eventually – people, rumors, fashion trends, the nickname “Graveyard Gabe.” But her best friend, Bree, has been a constant in her life; it’s always been the two of them together. Until Bree starts seeing a guy who stands for everything Gabe thought they were against. How could Bree change her mind and go for someone like Bryce Johnson?Now Gabe doesn’t know who her friend is anymore. And the only person who seems to have time for her is Hartman, the new guy, who is somehow not weirded out by the funeral home stuff (well, a little). Still, Gabe doesn’t want to lose her mind over a guy the way Bree has, so she holds back.But a very strange prom night (driving the family hearse instead of a limo) will change what Gabe knows about friendship, love, life, and everything that comes after – forever and otherwise.

Keep My Heart in San Francisco


Amelia Diane Coombs - 2020
    But her dad wrecks those plans when he asks her to spend vacation working the counter at Bigmouth’s Bowl, her family’s failing bowling alley. Making things astronomically worse, Chuck finds out her dad is way behind on back rent—meaning they might be losing Bigmouth’s, the only thing keeping Chuck’s family in San Francisco. And the one person other than Chuck who wants to do anything about it? Beckett Porter, her annoyingly attractive ex-best friend. So when Beckett propositions Chuck with a plan to make serious cash infiltrating the Bay Area action bowling scene, she accepts. But she can’t shake the nagging feeling that she’s acting irrational—too much like her mother for comfort. Plus, despite her best efforts to keep things strictly business, Beckett’s charm is winning her back over...in ways that go beyond friendship. If Chuck fails, Bigmouth’s Bowl and their San Francisco legacy are gone forever. But if she succeeds, she might just get everything she ever wanted.

Under the Baseball Moon


John H. Ritter - 2006
    Born into a family of musicians, Andy wants to take his unique fusion of Latin jazz, rock, and hip-hop straight to the top. But when he crosses paths with Glory Martinez, a softball pitcher who has Olympian dreams of her own, the mysterious fusion of their athletic and musical skills changes everything. Or is that due to the elegant, but eerie man in black?

The Summer of Broken Things


Margaret Peterson Haddix - 2018
    Sixteen-year-old Kayla Butts is known as “butt-girl” at school. The two girls were friends as little kids, but that’s ancient history now. So it’s a huge surprise when Avery’s father offers to bring Kayla along on a summer trip to Spain. Avery is horrified that her father thinks he can choose her friends—and make her miss soccer camp. Kayla struggles just to imagine leaving the confines of her small town.But in Spain, the two uncover a secret their families had hidden from both of them their entire lives. Maybe the girls can put aside their differences and work through it together. Or maybe the lies and betrayal will only push them—and their families—farther apart.

Stripped


Brooklyn Skye - 2013
    I look away, down the rutted parking lot.“Don’t... waste those words on me.”He touches my cheek. “You just need someone to show you.”“No.” I ease back again. “I don’t. So please, Torrin, stop trying to swoop in and save me. I don’t need saving.” College freshman, Quinn Montgomery, will do anything to avoid the mistake her sister made — killing herself over a boy. But when she is forced into nude modeling at a local college to support her family after a bankruptcy, she begins to crack, just enough to let Torrin, the university’s top varsity oarsman, see that the real Quinn is not as feisty and unapproachable as she wants everyone to think. But letting someone in comes at a steep cost and, it turns out, Torrin is connected to Quinn’s family in more ways than she could ever imagine.

Set You Free


Jeff Ross - 2015
    Lauren knows her brother would never harm anyone, but the police don’t agree. Ben’s stepbrother doesn’t agree. The mayor certainly doesn’t agree. To some people in Resurrection Falls, Tom is the freak who, rumor has it, once tried to lure a kid into the woods. But if Tom is innocent, why was he lurking around outside the mayor’s house the night Ben disappeared? And why has he also vanished? After teaming up with Tom’s friend, Grady, a computer enthusiast and part-time hacker, Lauren decides that rather than try to prove Tom’s innocence, they should simply give the police some more options. Because everyone, even the mayor’s apparently perfect family, has secrets.

Sister North


Jim Kokoris - 2003
    Newly addicted to watching Sister North, a nun with a popular television show, Sam embarks on a trip to Lake Eagleton, Wisconsin, to see the nun personally, seeking forgiveness and spiritual guidance. In Lake Eagleton, he finds out much more about Sister North, himself, and falling in love than he ever expected. "Sister North" is a novel of forgiveness and hope that takes a poignant and humorous look at what passes for love and faith in the twenty-first century.

Hate Notes


Gracie Graham - 2021
    Disgustingly rich. Blond-haired. Eyes the color of a clear, blue sky. And muscles for days.He also happens to be enemy #1, the bane of my existence.Only, now my scholarship is in jeopardy and, like the peasant I am, I must tutor the king himself if I want to graduate.Still, if I have to be around him, I might as well make it worth my while. So I send him a scathing text, telling him exactly what I think about him. But he mistakes me for someone else. That’s when I hatch a plan: get dirt on the king, and watch his reign crumble.It’s about time someone made the king come tumbling down.

The Duke of Bannerman Prep


Katie A. Nelson - 2017
    Facts can be manipulated. And nothing is absolute—especially right and wrong.Tanner McKay is at Bannerman Prep for only one reason: the elite school recruited him after he brought his public school’s debate team to victory last year. Bannerman wants a championship win. Debate is Tanner’s life—his ticket out of his poor-as-dirt life and family drama, straight to a scholarship to Stanford and the start of a new, better future.But when he's paired with the Duke, his plans for an easy ride seem as if they’ve hit the rails. The Duke is the quintessential playboy, beloved by everyone for his laissez-faire attitude, crazy parties, and seemingly effortless favors.And a total no-show when it comes to putting in the work to win.But as Tanner gets sucked into the Duke’s flashy world, the thrill of the high life and the adrenaline of existing on the edge becomes addictive. A small favor here and there seems like nothing in exchange for getting everything he ever dreamed of.But the Duke’s castle is built on shady, shaky secrets, and the walls are about to topple down.A contemporary retelling of The Great Gatsby, Katie Nelson’s taut debut is perfect for fans of John Green’s Looking for Alaska, Kate Brian’s Private series, and anyone who’s encountered the cut-throat world of competitive high school.

The Haven


Carol Lynch Williams - 2014
    It has always been this way, ever since the hospital was established in the year 2020. But The Haven is more than just a hospital; it is their home. It is all they know. Everything is strictly monitored: education, exercise, food, and rest. The rules must be followed to keep the children healthy, to help control the Disease that has cast them as Terminals, the Disease that claims limbs and lungs—and memories. But Shiloh is different; she remembers everything. Gideon is different, too. He dreams of a cure, of rebellion against the status quo. What if everything they’ve been told is a lie? What if The Haven is not the safe place it claims to be? And what will happen if Shiloh starts asking dangerous questions?

Damage


A.M. Jenkins - 2001
    Lay your head down on the steering wheel and quit sneezing, quit breathing, quit trying.The problem is, you can't . Just quit, that is. When people want to quit, they have to choose. Make a decision. Take action.

#TheRealCinderella


Yesenia Vargas - 2018
    Grab it for 75% off now! A modern-day teenage Cinderella. An all-star varsity basketball player. Will the chemistry disappear when they go from anonymous to face-to-face? Geeky Ella Reyes is at the bottom of the totem pole at Westwood High. Her ultra-popular stepsisters refuse to be seen with her at school, and every day she comes home to a mountain of chores. Ella’s only friend (and maybe crush) lives on the other side of her phone’s screen. She and Baller929 know everything about each other, except their real names. When they have a chance to meet at her school’s Halloween ball, Ella must figure out a way to get there without her stepmom or stepsisters finding out. Is revealing her identity to Baller929 worth risking the one good thing left in her life? Or is he too good to be true? Fans of Cinder & Ella by Kelly Oram and the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books will fall in love with this new coming-of-age series. Start the first book now. This is a clean young adult contemporary romance.