Posts Tagged «high schools»
Friday, June 3rd, 2011
by Eileen Cook 256 pages grades 7 and up
Hailey Kendrick got the whole school on probation; no one can leave campus because of her. She has gone from popular to outcast in one night.
Hailey attends a fancy boarding, so fancy, in fact, children of movie stars, and teen stars themselves, are her classmates. She has no money worries, obviously, she is popular and is dating one of the most handsome guys in the school. Her life seemed pretty perfect until she got everyone on probation.
What is going on? Has Hailey lost her mind, or was there something already boiling beneath the surface that just had to burst free? And, how is she going to manage life when everyone she knows has dumped her?
Other fun realistic fiction with teen girl central characters are: Heist Society, by Ally Carter, Rules of the Road, by Joan Bauer, and a fantasy with a teen girl central character is Matched, by Ally Condie.
Tags: friendship, girls, high schools, identity, realistic fiction, romance, teens
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Friday, November 19th, 2010
by Mark Shulman p. 230 Grades 7 and up.
Tod Munn has a bad reputation; he has been known to steal the wimps’ lunch money, push his way into the front of the lunch line and shove people into the lockers when they least expect it. He is not someone you want to mess with if you don’t want to get hurt. Naturally Tod has landed himself in detention, and this time it is for something really bad, but he is not outside raking leaves with his “droogs,” instead he is spending time one-on-one with the school counselor, Mrs. Woodrow.
For detention he has to write in a journal every day after school. He spends weeks with the counselor in a hot school room writing and writing until it feels like his hand might fall off. Tod thinks the counselor is trying to “fix the bad guy,” and he doesn’t think it is going to work, either. Who do you think is right; is the bully really a bad guy, or is there more to the story than meets the eye?
Connections: If you like books about tough kids you might like Small Steps by Louis Sachar or if you enjoy books written in journal form you might also enjoy Absolutely Normal Chaos by Sharon Creech.
Tags: coming of age, family life, family problems, friends, high schools, identity, misunderstanding, outsiders, realistic fiction, teens, Young Adult
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Friday, April 30th, 2010
by Robin Brande p. 327 Young adult
No exploding volcanoes for seventeen-year-old Cat (Catherine) Locke’s science fair project! Instead, the smart, competitive overweight teen makes herself the guinea pig for her project. Her goal is to live for seven months as a Homo erectus, an early prehistoric human, which means no technology (cars, cell phones, computers except for school work) and no processed foods including sugar. Cat is determined to win the science fair, mostly to get revenge on her former best friend and rival Matt McKinney, whom she believes betrayed her most terribly in seventh grade. All the walking and healthy eating causes her to lose weight and feel better, and after her best friend Amanda takes her shopping for stylish clothes, Cat starts drawing a lot of male attention. This young adult novel is filled with funny, clever teen conversation and portrays friendship at its best.
Connections: These young adult novels also deal with weight and weighty issues: Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen, Life in the Fat Lane by Cherie Bennett, Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher and Dough Boy by Peter Marino.
Tags: diet, eating, fiction, friendship, high schools, hominins, Homo erectus, love stories, relationships, science experiments, self-perception, sustainable foods, teenagers, teens, Young Adult
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Sunday, November 15th, 2009
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. p. 274 Grades 7-8
What a summer! Fifteen-year-old D.J. Schwenk of Red Bend, Wisconsin, works dawn to dusk on her family’s dairy farm after her father has hip surgery. Life is pretty dismal until the coach from her high school’s rival team asks D.J to coach his budding quarterback, the gorgeous Brian Nelson. While training and doing farm chores, the two teenagers become friends, but things get complicated when D.J. tries out for her high school’s football team.
Connections: The sequel is Off Season. Running Loose by Chris Crutcher is another football romance.
Tags: family problems, farm life, farms, fathers and daughters, football, friendship, high schools, love stories, realistic fiction, romance, teenagers, Wisconsin
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Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
by Tonya Hurley, p.328 – Grades 7 & Up
It is the first day of her junior year and Charlotte is geared up to shift from ignored wallflower to part of the in-crowd. When she gets dream-guy Damen as her physics lab partner, she thinks that the stars have finally aligned. As they leave the classroom with Damen asking her to be his tutor, Charlotte chokes on a gummy bear and dies. Caught in the world between life and eternity, Charlotte and her new Dead Ed. classmates find out that they have some unfinished business before they can really move on.
Connection: For another book about high school and struggles with popularity try reading, She’s So Money by Cherry Cheva –CRW
Tags: death, fantasy, friendship, ghosts, high schools, popularity, teens, Tonya Hurley
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Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
by Michael Laser, p. 231 – Grades 7 & Up
Karl always gets straight A+s and is tired of being labeled a geek. He is offered the chance to join the “in” crowd when super-popular, Blaine asks him if he would like to join their high-tech organization of cheaters. He flatly refuses until the super-strict vice principal sets up harsh new anti-cheating consequences and makes an example of one of Karl’s childhood friend. Karl then sees joining the cheaters is his chance to be the hero.
Connection: For another book that deals with the issue of peer pressure, try reading Jake, Reinvented by Gordon Koman –CRW
Tags: cheating, high schools, high-tech, Michael Laser, peer pressure, teens
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