This Side of the Sky by Marie-Francine Hebert
Summary: Living with apathetic parents, Mona is the one who is responsible for her younger sister, Angélique (Bird). Bird is an eight year-old with a five year-old’s mind, and a desire to fly that makes her difficult to keep on the ground. Even though Mona complains about taking care of Bird, she loves her, filling a void left by the lack of their parents’ love. Interactions with neighbours on both sides lead to complications, and Mona and Bird are faced with decisions about facing their fears, connecting with others, and doing what is right, even without of the support of their...
Read MoreSplit by Lori Weber
Summary: Living with her reclusive father after her mother walks out on them both, Sandra is trying to sort out what direction her life should take upon her graduation from high school. Sandra feels abandoned by her mother who left no contact information, but at the same time feels she can hardly blame her for wanting to get away from Sandra’s father and his dark memories of living in Germany before and during World War II. Aided at first by her boyfriend Danny, Sandra begins a search for her mother, finding clues to where she went in unexpected places. Sandra intends to tell her...
Read MoreSon of Interflux by Gordon Korman
Summary: Simon Irving is starting over in a new place again, thanks to his father’s job as Senior Vice-President at Interflux, the world’s largest corporation. He ends up getting into the local arts school with his talent for painting, and finally starts to make some friends who don’t hate him because of who his father is. When an opportunity comes up to stick it to Interflux due to an oversight, Simon jumps at it, sparking a school-wide teenage rebellion that launches his popularity and an epic battle between him and his father. Number of Pages: 282 Age Range: 13-15...
Read MoreSo Much It Hurts by Monique Polak
Summary: Cast as Ophelia in her school play, seventeen year-old Iris follows in Ophelia’s shoes when she falls for a man who is fourteen years her senior. Taken in by his attentions to her, Iris finds herself thankful that such a man would be attracted to her. What she doesn’t see at first is that the longer their relationship continues, the more isolated she becomes from her family and friends. When Mick’s uncontrollable anger turns violent, Iris takes the blame for his actions on herself, becoming smaller and smaller to avoid further outbursts. Eventually she finds...
Read MoreThe Saver by Edeet Ravel
Summary: 17 year-old Fern reacts to her mother’s sudden death by trying to take control of her life. Remembering something her fourth grade teacher said about being able to save a million dollars in about fifteen years by cutting out major expenses like rent and food, Fern attempts to do just that. She takes a job as a janitor in apartment building for free rent and utilities, and finds other jobs to help her out with food and making money. Fern pours out her heart about her experiences in letters to an imaginary, alien friend named Xanoth, wishing that her world could be more like the...
Read MoreRough Magic by Caryl Cude Mullin
Summary: When Sycorax discovers at an early age that she is a magical prodigy, she uses her powers to protect her father’s kingdom as she grows. Soon though she begins to crave more power, but a miscalculation in her plans leaves her stranded on a magical island about to give birth. Sycorax extracts the magic from the island for herself, but ends up leaving her son Caliban all alone after harnessing the power eventually kills her. Caliban lives by himself on the mysterious island until one day Prospero and his daughter Miranda arrive, and getting to know them will affect the rest of...
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
Sponsors
