Graffiti Knight by Karen Bass
Summary: In Germany after World War II, Wilm and his family live under Soviet rule. It’s essentially a police state, and payback for Germany’s role in the war is harsh, affecting innocent citizens who weren’t responsible for the atrocities that took place. When sixteen year-old Wilm finds out his sister Anneliese was raped by Soviet soldiers, he uses the knowledge as motivation to fight back against the Soviets and the Germans they have placed in control of the community. His stunts start out relatively harmless but escalate with time until it is difficult to tell what...
Read MoreDrummer Girl by Karen Bass
Summary: Setting her sights on becoming the drummer of The Fourth Hand (THF) after she loses her place in her brother’s band when he goes off to university, Sid is all about the music. But THF is an all guy band sending Sid mixed messages. Some members think a girl member will break up the band, and others want her to dress more provocatively for the audience at their gigs. She’s competing against a fellow student named Wes for the spot, and even though she is clearly the more skilled drummer Sid decides to change her wardrobe to become what they want and hopefully snag the spot....
Read MoreThe Comic Book War by Jacqueline Guest
Summary: Living in 1943 with three older brothers fighting in World War II, Robert finds solace in reading his comic book adventures. An encounter with a meteorite leads to Robert carrying around a piece of an exploded star, and it seems to have magical powers as meteorites start appearing in his favourite comics. Convinced the superheroes he reads about are connected to his brothers, Robert uses his allowance to follow their adventures. But when wartime rationing causes his mother to use his allowance to buy war stamps, Robert must find another way to purchase his monthly comics and do what...
Read MoreChin Music by Gregory Roberts
Summary: Brook Gunderson is a teenage boy with two great loves: baseball and pranks. But when the pranks get him into trouble with his new baseball coach, Brook finds himself benched for upcoming games. Struggling to get back in his coach’s good graces, Brook learns to take a hit from the ball when he’s up at bat. But his pitching career seems to be cut short when a day of fun and another stunt injures him in a way that means he will never regain his fastball. Faced with a choice to let this new turn take him down or to get creative, Brook comes across an article about a pitch...
Read MoreOld Man by David A. Poulsen
Summary: When Nate’s estranged father phones out of the blue, he changes Nate’s summer plans of turning his life around and winning over the attentions of his local crush. Instead Nate and his father whom he refers to as Old Man embark on a journey to Vietnam, revisiting the Old Man’s past as a soldier in the Vietnam War. Separated from his father for years, Nate gets a chance to know and see him as he truly is, someone deeply affected by the choices of the past. Not everything he learns about his father is pretty, but their travels together give Nate a different...
Read MoreAbout Amy
Amy Mathers has been passionate about reading from a very young age, and hopes others will share her enthusiasm for funding a teen book award. Read more Follow Amy
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