Book picks similar to
Nearby by Elizabeth Yates


fiction
young-adult
the-good-and-the-beautiful
historical-fiction

The Madman's Daughter Trilogy


Megan Shepherd - 2015
    Wells, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Mary Shelley, is perfect for fans of Libba Bray, Leigh Bardugo, and classic horror and science fiction. This collection also contains a sneak peek of The Cage, the first book in Megan Shepherd's gripping new series about teens held captive in a human zoo by an otherworldly race.The Madman's Daughter, inspired by The Island of Dr. Moreau, is the story of Dr. Moreau's daughter Juliet, who travels to her estranged father's island only to encounter murder, madness, and a scintillating love triangle.Her Dark Curiosity: Inspired by The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, this tantalizing sequel explores the hidden natures of those we love and how far we'll go to save them from themselves.A Cold Legacy: With inspiration from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, this breathless conclusion to the Madman's Daughter trilogy explores the things we'll sacrifice to save those we love . . . even our own humanity.

Bus Stop Baby


Fleur Hitchcock - 2016
    It's wrong, just like when Mum walked out on Amy and her sister ten years ago - so she tries to fix it, by finding the baby's mother. But as Amy searches, she uncovers another story, a secret even closer to home.A thought-provoking story exploring the complexities of family, friends and making difficult choices.

The Invention of Wings: Exclusive Free Chapter Sampler


Sue Monk Kidd - 2014
    The one her mother calls difficult and her father calls remarkable. On Sarah's eleventh birthday, Hetty 'Handful' Grimké is taken from the slave quarters she shares with her mother, wrapped in lavender ribbons, and presented to Sarah as a gift. Sarah knows what she does next will unleash a world of trouble. She also knows that she cannot accept. And so, indeed, the trouble begins ... A powerful, sweeping novel, inspired by real events, and set in the American Deep South in the nineteenth century, THE INVENTION OF WINGS evokes a world of shocking contrasts, of beauty and ugliness, of righteous people living daily with cruelty they fail to recognise; and celebrates the power of friendship and sisterhood against all the odds.

Three Minutes More


Edward R. O'Dell - 2010
    Severely injured, he does not know if he will survive the night. Reflecting on the evening's dreadful events, wondering if he could have done anything to alter them, his thoughts begin to drift. He begins to contemplate his remarkable life, his dysfunctional family, and the unfortunate prospect that he may have to soon answer for his life to God. While vividly recalling the most amusing, distressing, bizarre, and disturbing events of his life, he soon comes to realize "the monster you know is far easier to deal with than the monster you don't!" Will he get the miracle he needs to make it through the night? If so, will he finally find peace? Author's Note: This book deals with sensitive topics, and is intended for mature audiences only.

Twilight


Stephanie Meyer
    

The Potential Hazards of Hester Day


Mercedes Helnwein - 2008
    Apprehensive about spending the rest of her existence in a void of nothingness in Nowheresville, Florida, where she currently lives with her painfully intrusive family, she decides to tip her life over into any kind of surrealism she can lay her hands on. Shortly after graduation and a heated fight with her mother featuring an airborne toaster, Hester's life takes a turn for the better when she notices a billboard with two wide-eyed children and the catchy phrase "All they want for Christmas is a family." What better way to drive a chainsaw through her placid existence? But when the adoption agency rejects her application to adopt a child, she realizes she must do something more drastic to derail the mediocre life threatening to spread out before her. Having found herself stuck in a camper named Arlene with Fenton Flaherty, her nemesis from the library (who, through a series of interesting events is now also Hester's husband), Jethro, Hester's ten-year-old cousin, and Duncan Clyde, a.k.a. "Jesus Freak," who is traveling along the side of the road asking passersby to sign his life-sized cross, Hester is quickly freed from anything even remotely mediocre (or normal, for that matter) about her life. Preposterously dysfunctional, side-splittingly funny, and surprisingly touching, The Potential Hazards of Hester Day is an adventure that you'll want to experience again and again.

Maniac Magee By Jerry Spinelli A Novel Teaching Pack


Margaret Whisnant - 2007
    Also suitable for home school programs and independent study. Reproductible. 85 Pages

Rex Electi


W.P. Kimball - 2016
    He soon learns that every aspect of his life so far, including the staged deaths of his parents, has been arranged by the Senate Tribunal in an attempt to mold him into the perfect leader. Now there are only thirty candidates, including Caius, left competing to be the Emperor's heir. Success in a series of Trials will reunite him with his family and make him the most powerful man in the world, but failure will lead to a life of isolation and imprisonment hidden in the eaves of the palace. As Caius enters the trials, it becomes apparent that the tests themselves are not the problem: it is the twenty nine other candidates willing to do whatever it takes to win, including maim or kill their top competitors. Can Caius navigate the pitfalls of imperial politics and cutthroat competition, all while performing well enough to succeed in the trials fair and square?

The Chronicles of Neffie


A.L. Gibson - 2018
    Loosely based on true life events, Neffie takes readers on a tumultuous journey as she navigates her day to day life as a slave in Colbert County, Alabama. Told from the perspective of a fifteen year old slave girl, Neffie’s experiences are heart wrenching and riveting.The Chronicles of Neffie is a harrowing account full of twists and turns that will have readers anxiously waiting to see what will happen next. What will come of Neffie? Only time will tell. This is only the beginning. Let the journey begin.

The Phryne Fisher Mysteries, Vol. 1 : Cocaine Blues / Flying Too High


Kerry Greenwood - 2004
    She collects men, fast cars and designer dresses. But no matter how delicious the distractions, Phryne never takes her eyes off the main prize: bringing down villains.

The Hazel Wood: Chapter Sampler


Melissa Albert - 2017
    This excerpt from The Hazel Wood—Melissa Albert's fiercely stunning contemporary fantasy perfect for fans of The Magicians—contains the first six chapters.Everyone is talking about The Hazel Wood!“Thoroughly, creepily captivating.” —Kristin Cashore, author of Graceling and Jane, Unlimited “This book is pure imagination candy.” —Stephanie Garber, author of Caraval “Destined to be a classic.” —Kami Garcia, author of The Lovely Reckless “Absolutely breathtaking.” —Seanan McGuire, author of Every Heart a Doorway “Terrifying, magical, and surprisingly funny.” —Jennifer Niven, author of All the Bright Places “Unlike anything else I’ve ever read before.” —Evelyn Skye, author of The Crown’s Game “A part of me will never leave The Hazel Wood.” —Heidi Heilig, author of The Girl from Everywhere “An elegant dark fairy tale, full of the power of story.” —Kat Howard, author of Roses and Rot

Texas Rich / Texas Heat / Texas Fury / Texas Sunrise


Fern Michaels
    There’s Moss, living in his father’s shadow; Jessica, the doomed mother; Moss and Billie’s children, trying to live up to insurmountable expectations; and the grandchildren, heirs to a tarnished empire. Most of all this is the triumphant story of Billie Ames Coleman, who holds them all together.Texas Heat: The magnificent Austin empire now belongs to Moss and Billie’s daughter Maggie. She has invited the whole family to a Fourth of July barbecue in celebration of a renewed sense of family pride. But as loved ones gather, they bring along old resentments and new temptations destined to generate more than a little heat.Texas Fury: For Amelia Coleman Assante, the last surviving child of a legendary tycoon, it is a time of transition. As her family’s kingdom faces new challenges on the horizon, she starts a fateful journey that recalls a troubled past controlled by a father’s iron will.Texas Sunrise: Billie Coleman Kingsley, beloved matriarch of the clan, is dying. As her family gathers together, the indomitable Billie offers new hope to heal the rifts that separate them. Even as her own strength fails, Billie instills courage, fortitude, and her conviction that life goes on after tragedy.

Striking Out


Will Weaver - 1900
    Never been to a movie. Never played baseball with a real team. Never got over feeling guilty for the loss of his brother. But change is in the air. Billy discovers he has a natural talent for baseball, especially as a pitcher. Maybe, just maybe, there's more in store for him than life on the farm. But can Billy convince his father of that? Or is he destined to spend the rest of his life pitching nothing but hay?Teenager Billy Baggs is desperately needed on his family's struggling dairy farm, but he's also an extraordinarily gifted natural baseball player. How he struggles to reconcile his father's desire to keep him on the farm with his coach's interest in getting him on the field is at the heart of this ‘meaty story.… The complex characters grow and change in profoundly real ways.''K. ‘[With] flashes of humor, a wealth of lovingly recounted details evokes the difficult daily life on a small dairy farm.''Publishers Weekly. 1994 Best Books for Young Adults (ALA)1994 Books for the Teen Age (NY Public Library)1993 "Pick of the Lists" (ABA)

Leaving Blythe River


Catherine Ryan Hyde - 2016
    Not only is he small, scrawny, and skittish but he’s barely speaking to the man after a traumatic betrayal. Yet when his father vanishes from their remote cabin and rangers abandon the rescue mission, suddenly it’s up to Ethan to keep looking. Angry or not, he’s his father’s only hope.With the help of three locals—a fearless seventy-year-old widow, a pack guide, and a former actor with limited outdoor skills—he heads into the wild. The days that follow transform Ethan’s world. Hail, punishing sun, swollen rapids, and exhausting pain leave him wondering if he’s been fooled yet again: Is his father out here at all? As the situation grows increasingly dire, Ethan realizes this quest has become about more than finding his dad.From the bestselling author of Pay It Forward comes a story of nature revealing human nature—the trickiest terrain. Navigating an unforgiving landscape, Ethan searches himself for the ability to forgive his father—if he finds him alive.

Safe Harbour


Marita Conlon-McKenna - 1995
    Their mother is seriously injured and their Dad is away fighting, so the children are sent to their grandfather in Ireland. Sophie is scared - they have never met grandfather but his letters cause such trouble in the house, and their Dad never speaks of him.How will they live in a strange country, with a man who probably hates them - and will the family ever be together again?