Thunder Over Kandahar by Sharon E. McKay
Summary: Yasmine’s parents have moved her to Afghanistan with idealistic hopes of helping to change the country. Their outsider ways and liberal beliefs attract unwanted attention, and put all of their lives in serious danger from the Taliban. Along the way Yasmine’s parents hire Tamanna to be her companion and the two become the best of friends since going to school is not an option. When the situation turns deadly, their friendship is put to the test as they are forced to make a perilous journey, but the kindness of strangers and family persistence will pull them through....
Read MoreWar Brothers: The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay, illustrated by Daniel Lafrance
Summary: Jacob and a couple of his friends are taken captive by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda. Some are forced to be soldiers; all are threatened with death if they do not obey Commander Opiro. Holding on to the hope that their parents will find a way to save them, they form a brotherhood to take care of each other until that happens. When rescue isn’t possible, they decide to try and find a way to save themselves, and a girl named Hannah they meet at the camp. Number of Pages: 176 Age Range: 13-14 Review: I liked the visual cues of the black and white pages –...
Read MoreA Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk by Jan L. Coates
Summary: Caught in a war between North and South Sudan, seven year-old Jacob Akech is driven from his home and separated from the rest of his family. Jacob, his nephew Monyroor, and his friend Oscar join thousands of other boys in the same predicament. Known as “The Lost Boys” to the world at large, they make their way to a refugee camp in Ethiopia and then to one in Kenya when the first is dismantled. Jacob grows up on his feet, finding family in the boys he travels with and surviving dehydration, starvation, and animal attacks. Caught between being encouraged to become a...
Read MoreEmily for Real by Sylvia Gunnery
Summary: Emily’s breakup with her boyfriend Brian comes right before the sudden death of her grandfather. Circumstances conspire to leave Emily without a boyfriend or a best friend to confide in when her grandfather’s will turns out to have some surprises. Enter Leo, a guy who thinks Shakespeare is a pervert and is dealing with challenges of his own. The two strike up an unlikely friendship that supports Leo through family conflicts and Emily through the revelation of a secret that will change her life. Number of Pages: 202 Age Range: 14-16 Review: Through Emily For Real, Sylvia...
Read MoreAshes, Ashes by Jo Treggiari
Summary: Lucy is a sixteen year-old surviving on her own after a plague has wiped out her entire family and most of the world’s population. A stranger named Aiden rescues her from a wild dog attack and invites her to live with his community of survivors at a place called Hell’s Gate. Reluctant, but forced to abandon her shelter by a tsunami, Lucy joins the community and has to adjust to living with others again. Turns out the community is being regularly culled by scientists with questionable motives involving plague research, and Lucy herself is the object of their desire due to...
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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