This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki
Summary: Up at her family’s cottage for the summer, Rose and her friend Windy are inseparable, watching horror movies, checking out the local guy at the corner store, spying on the older teens in town and talking about growing up. Often overlooked, Rose is an observer, watching her parents struggle with their marriage in the face of her mother’s depression, and witnessing local girl Jenny try to make her boyfriend take responsibility for the fact that she’s pregnant. Being a woman is more complicated than Rose and Windy originally thought, and this one summer will show them...
Read MoreThis Dark Endeavour by Kenneth Oppel
Summary: In the untold story of Victor Frankenstein’s early years, Victor is constantly competing with his older by two minutes twin, Konrad. Raised by liberal parents, Victor is taught to believe in science above all, but when Konrad falls suddenly falls ill and is close to death, Victor turns to alchemy for a cure. Seeking the help from an alchemist rumoured to have saved others, Victor and his friends gather ingredients for an elixir of life that he hopes will save his brother. Things are complicated by Victor’s inferiority complex and the love triangle that exists between...
Read MoreSwimming in the Monsoon Sea by Shyam Selvadurai
Summary: Living with his mother’s best friend Bundle and her family since his parents died when he was six, fourteen year-old Amrith is left to piece together the mysteries of his past. Although his new family is very supportive, Amrith is still drawn to connect with his blood relatives when the uncle and cousin he never knew he had come visit Sri Lanka from Canada. Being around his older cousin Niresh opens up the past for Amrith, and also ends up revealing surprising truths about himself. Amrith’s anger over his sisters taking up Niresh’s precious time grows, but figuring...
Read MoreSomewhere in Blue by Gillian Cummings
Summary: After the Sandy’s father dies of cancer, Sandy is left with her mother, the usually absent part of their little family. Drowning in grief and depression, Sandy begins to pull away from school and her friends, isolating herself in her misery until she reaches her breaking point when she finds out some startling news from her mother. Sandy’s best friend Lennie does her best to reach her and support her through the grieving process, but when Lennie’s mother’s brother shows up in town, a lot of family issues come to the surface. Suddenly there’s an...
Read MoreGive Up the Ghost by Megan Crewe
Summary: Sixteen year-old Cass sees dead people. In fact, after she becomes a social outcast, she begins to prefer ghosts to the breathers who were formerly her friends. Being friends with ghosts has its advantages though, as they are willing to spy on the living and report back to her the deep, dark secrets of her classmates. As a result Cass becomes feared in the halls of her high school, as her approach usually means the revelation of something no one wants to talk about. When a classmate named Tim figures out Cass is getting her information from ghosts, he seeks her help in finding her...
Read MoreAs She Grows by Lesley Anne Cowan
Summary: Fifteen year-old Snow is mature beyond her years. Girlfriend of an eighteen year-old with his own apartment and caretaker of her grandmother who may have mental health issues but is definitely an alcoholic, she reaches her breaking point when her grandmother’s boyfriend tries to molest her in the middle of the night. For her own safety and protection, Snow moves into a group home and is determined to finish high school, until she learns the devastating news that she is pregnant. As her world slowly crumbles around her, she learns truths about her family history that leave her...
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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