Book picks similar to
Comeback by Vicki Grant


40-book-challenge
realistic-fiction
young-adult
ebooks

Cellular


Ellen Schwartz - 2010
    Terrified and convinced that no one understands what he is going through, Brendan faces chemotherapy alone, until he meets Lark. She is also in treatment, although her condition is much worse, and yet she remains positive and hopeful. Brendan is torn between feeling sorry for himself and the love for life that Lark brings to even the simplest thing. Through Lark, he discovers the strength to go on, to fight for survival and to love.

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?

Bull's Eye


Sarah N. Harvey - 2007
    Forced to face the fact that her mother is not who she thought she was, Emily tries to find the truth about her past and make sense of her future. Turning to graffiti and vandalism as a way to deal with her anger, she comes to realize that there is more to a family than shared DNA.Also available in Spanish.

Picture This


Norah McClintock - 2009
    Involved in a photography program for at-risk kids, he finds himself threatened again and again by someone who wants his camera. What does Ethan know? And what is on his camera that someone is willing to kill for? Struggling to stay out of trouble and solve the mystery, he discovers he has all the answers. He just has to figure out the questions.Also available in French.

Second Skin


Jessica Wollman - 2009
    Popularity goes much deeper. . . .Appearances can be deceiving. Sam Klein’s found that out firsthand. All she wanted was to be popular. But sometimes what we want is the absolute worst thing for us.Sam discovers that Kylie, It-girl of Woodlawn High, owes her popular status not to her expensive clothes, highlighted hair, and spot on the cheerleading squad but to a magical second skin. Nobody can actually see it—but they can feel it. And if you’re wearing the skin, you feel incredible. Invincible. Popularity is yours.So Sam stole the skin from Kylie. Now she’s the most popular girl at school, while Kylie’s social life takes a serious hit. Sam can barely recognize herself. Her old geek clique is history—but are her new friends really people she can count on? The skin is clinging tighter to her each day . . . can Sam get it off before it’s too late?

In the Woods


Robin Stevenson - 2009
    A stroke of luck that he just happened to be there, riding his bike along that trail, and heard the baby's cry. But Cameron has a secret: It wasn't just luck. He was there because his twin sister Katie begged him to go. Did Katie know about the baby? Is she covering for someone? At first Cameron just wants some answers but once he knows the truth he has to decide what to do with it.Also available in Spanish.

Special Edward


Eric Walters - 2009
    He's got better ways to spend his time than toiling over homework, and as long as he gets passing grades he's happy. When his fifty percent average is threatened he has to find a way to pull up his grades without applying himself. Edward discovers that special education students get more time to complete tests, and he thinks he's found the perfect scam. Little does he know that manipulating everyone around him will take more work than he ever imagined.Also available in French.

Kicked Out


Beth Goobie - 2002
    Her parents don't like the way she dresses, her boyfriend, her attitude. Her older brother Darren was paralyzed in an accident she walked away from, and Dime is sure her parents wish she were the one in the wheelchair. When the fights and accusations finally become too much, Dime moves in with her brother. At first she is overjoyed with the change of scenery and lack of parental control. But when her troubles follow her she finds that maybe it isn't everyone else who is the problem, and realizes that she has to start taking some responsibility for her actions.Also available in Spanish.

The Great Wide Sea


M.H. Herlong - 2008
    Tensions flare between Ben and his father, but they gradually learn to live together in close quarters. But one morning, the boys wake up to discover their father has disappeared--and they are lost. What happened to him? Where are they? And what will they do when a treacherous storm looms on the horizon? M. H. Herlong spins a gripping tale of adventure, survival, and the bonds of brotherhood in The Great Wide Sea.

Truth


Tanya Lloyd Kyi - 2003
    Jen was there and saw the body and she has her own ideas about who is responsible. As a reporter for the school TV show, she decides to try and uncover the truth and discover if a classmate's increasingly violent behavior is to blame. When she and others begin digging too deeply, violence flares in the small community. Finally, Jen is forced to take a stand, one that may cost her more than she could imagine.

Hannah's Touch


Laura Langston - 2009
    She wants to stay with them. They say no. She must go back. There's something she must do.But Hannah can't figure out what it is. Nor can she make sense of the weird things happening around her. Since the sting, she seems to have the ability to heal. Hannah doesn't know what to think. And then she faces another challenge: Logan has a purpose in mind for her new gift. And it's a purpose Hannah can't bear to face.

Charmed


Carrie Mac - 2004
    Angry at her mother and trying to deal with school, friends and the attentions of charismatic Cody Dillon, Izzy finds her life swirling out of control. Coerced into putting out to help Cody, Izzy finds she is one in a long line of girls ensnared in prostitution, with no way to escape. Believing that her mother will come for her, Izzy manages to fight back and, when the chance appears, make a run for it.

Knifepoint


Alex Van Tol - 2010
    She didn't realize that the money was terrible, the hours long and the coworkers insufferable. After a blow-up with her boss, she takes a single man into the mountains for a ride, only to find that he is a dangerous killer. When Jill fights back and manages to escape, she is in a desperate race to survive and make it to safety.Also available in Spanish.

The Summer I Learned to Fly


Dana Reinhardt - 2011
    She has a pet rat, her dead dad's Book of Lists, an encyclopedic knowledge of cheese from working at her mom's cheese shop, and a crush on Nick, the surf bum who works behind the counter. It's the summer before eighth grade and Drew's days seem like business as usual, until one night after closing time, when she meets a strange boy in the alley named Emmett Crane. Who he is, why he's there, where the cut on his cheek came from, and his bottomless knowledge of rats are all mysteries Drew will untangle as they are drawn closer together, and Drew enters into the first true friendship, and adventure, of her life.From the Hardcover edition.

Lockdown


Diane Tullson - 2008
    Adam has been slacking off lately, but today he stuck around to see his girlfriend. When Josh, who has been bullied mercilessly, brings a gun to school, the building is locked down and Adam is forced to risk everything to save himself and to find Zoe before Josh does. Calling on reserves he didn't know he had, Adam could end up a hero--or a victim.