VCL Young Adult Reading Suggestions: Ms. Birro's Picks for Summer 2019

A young girl in Harlem discovers slam poetry as a way to understand her mother’s religion and
her own relationship to the world. Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem
neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do
the talking. But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto
the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches
feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about.

People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing
ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago
by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe
tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national
semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on
the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, sixteen-year-old half-Hindu/half-Parsi Zarin Wadia is the class
troublemaker and top subject for the school rumor blogs, regularly leaving class to smoke cigarettes in
cars with boys, but she also desperately wants to grow up and move out of her aunt and uncle's house,
perhaps realizing too late that Porus, another non-Muslim Indian who risks deportation but remains
devoted to Zarin, could help her escape.

This is the remarkable story of one endearing dog's search for his purpose over the course of
several lives. More than just another charming dog story, this touches on the universal quest for an
answer to life's most basic question: Why are we here?
Surprised to find himself reborn as a rambunctious golden haired puppy after a tragically short
life as a stray mutt, Bailey's search for his new life's meaning leads him into the loving arms of 8 year old
Ethan. During their countless adventures Bailey joyously discovers how to be a good dog. But this life as a
beloved family pet is not the end of Bailey's journey. Reborn as a puppy yet again, Bailey wonders, will he
ever find his purpose?

Rachel, the daughter of a Danish mother and a black G.I., becomes the sole survivor of a family
tragedy after a fateful morning on their Chicago rooftop. Forced to move to a new city, with her strict
African American grandmother as her guardian, Rachel is thrust for the first time into a mostly black
community, where her light brown skin, blue eyes, and beauty bring a constant stream of attention her
way. It’s there, as she grows up and tries to swallow her grief, that she comes to understand how the
mystery and tragedy of her mother might be connected to her own uncertain identity.

Rivalry between rich and poor gangs in 1960s Oklahoma leads to the deaths of three teenagers
and intense soul-searching for one of the kids involved, a sensitive fourteen-year-old writer named
Ponyboy.

Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than
Persian ones. He's about to take his first-ever trip to Iran, and it's pretty overwhelming--especially when
he's also dealing with clinical depression, a disapproving dad, and a chronically anemic social life. In Iran,
he gets to know his ailing but still formidable grandfather, his loving grandmother, and the rest of his
mom's family for the first time. And he meets Sohrab, the boy next door who changes everything.

Jonas himself is soon to be a Twelve, an important age because each year at the annual Ceremony
all the 12-years-olds in the community receive their life assignments from the Elders. Jonas is named to
the most prestigious and unusual job in the community--the Receiver of Memory. There is only one
Receiver, and when he grows old, he trains his successor. Jonas is both puzzled and frightened by his job,
which requires him to receive all the memories of their world and the land that lies beyond their
community, Elsewhere.

Justyce McAllister is a good kid, an honor student, and always there to help a friend—but none of
that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. Despite leaving his rough neighborhood
behind, he can't escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates. Justyce looks
to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a
journal to Dr. King to find out.

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives
and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered
when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer.
Khalil was unarmed. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only
person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Starr does-or does not-say could upend her
community. It could also endanger her life.

Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least make it out of
her neighborhood one day. As the daughter of an underground rap legend who died before he hit big,
Bri’s got big shoes to fill. But now that her mom has unexpectedly lost her job, food banks and shutoff
notices are as much a part of Bri’s life as beats and rhymes. With bills piling up and homelessness staring
her family down, Bri no longer just wants to make it—she has to make it.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames,
Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls. But everything changed the
night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a
mother and her people without hope.
Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a
rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for
good. Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet
the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings
for an enemy.

Quentin Coldwater is brilliant but miserable. A senior in high school, he’s still secretly preoccupied
with a series of fantasy novels he read as a child, set in a magical land called Fillory. Imagine his surprise
when he finds himself unexpectedly admitted to a very secret, very exclusive college of magic in upstate
New York, where he receives a thorough and rigorous education in the craft of modern sorcery.

The first time the Nightmares came, it nearly cost Alice her life. Now she's trained to battle
monstrous creatures in the dark dream realm known as Wonderland with magic weapons and hardcore
fighting skills. Yet even warriors have a curfew.
Life in real-world Atlanta isn't always so simple, as Alice juggles an overprotective mom, a
high-maintenance best friend, and a slipping GPA. Keeping the Nightmares at bay is turning into a
full-time job. But when Alice's handsome and mysterious mentor is poisoned, she has to find the antidote
by venturing deeper into Wonderland than she’s ever gone before. And she'll need to use everything she's
learned in both worlds to keep from losing her head...literally.

Arlo Brodie loves being at the heart of the action on the football field, getting hit hard and hitting
back harder. That’s where he belongs, leading his team to championships, becoming “Starlo” on his way
to the top. Arlo’s dad cheers him on, but his mother quotes head injury statistics and refuses to watch
games. Arlo’s girlfriend tries to make him see how dangerously he’s playing; when that doesn’t work, she
calls time out on their relationship. Even Arlo’s coaches begin to track his hit count, ready to pull him off
the field when he nears the limit. But Arlo’s not worried about tallying collisions. The winning plays, the
cheering crowds, and the adrenaline rush are enough to convince Arlo that everything is OK—in spite of
the pain, the pounding, the dizziness, and the confusion.

Jessica thinks her life is over when she loses a leg in a car accident. She's not comforted by the
news that she'll be able to walk with the help of a prosthetic leg. Who cares about walking when you live
to run?
As she struggles to cope with crutches and a first cyborg-like prosthetic, Jessica feels oddly both in
the spotlight and invisible. People who don't know what to say, act like she's not there. Which she could
handle better if she weren't now keenly aware that she'd done the same thing herself to a girl with CP
named Rosa. A girl who is going to tutor her through all the math she's missed. A girl who sees right into
the heart of her.

Growing up in New Jersey as the only African American Muslim at school, Ibtihaj Muhammad
always had to find her own way. When she discovered fencing, a sport traditionally reserved for the
wealthy, she had to defy expectations and make a place for herself in a sport she grew to love.
From winning state championships to three-time All-America selections at Duke University,
Ibtihaj was poised for success, but the fencing community wasn't ready to welcome her with open arms
just yet. As the only woman of color and the only religious minority on Team USA's saber fencing squad,
Ibtihaj had to chart her own path to success and Olympic glory

Ronda Rousey, the Olympic medalist in judo, reigning UFC women's bantamweight champion, and
Hollywood star charts her difficult path to glory.
Marked by her signature charm, barbed wit, and undeniable power, Rousey’s account of the
toughest fights of her life—in and outside the Octagon—reveals the painful loss of her father when she
was eight years old, the intensity of her judo training, her battles with love, her meteoric rise to fame, the
secret behind her undefeated UFC record, and what it takes to become the toughest woman on Earth.
Rousey shares hard-won lessons on how to be the best at what you do, including how to find fulfillment
in the sacrifices, how to turn limitations into opportunities, and how to be the best on your worst day.

Jose Antonio Vargas was born in the Philippines. At age twelve, his mother sent him to the United
States to live with her parents. It wasn’t until he was applying for a driver’s permit that he found out his
papers were fake. More than two decades later, he still lives in the United States, illegally, and with no
clear path to American citizenship. This is not a book about the politics of immigration. It is about
homelessness, not in a traditional sense, but about the unsettled, unmoored psychological state in which
undocumented immigrants find themselves.

A Time Magazine 100 Best YA Books of All Time Selection The tour de force that set the gold standard for dystopian YA fiction -- in a compelling paperback edition. For Titus and his friends, it started out like any ordinary trip to the moon -- a chance to party during spring break. But that was before the crazy hacker caused all their feeds to malfunction, sending them to the hospital to lie around with nothing inside their heads for days. And it was before Titus met Violet, a beautiful, brainy teenage girl who has decided to fight the feed and its ever-present ability to categorize human thoughts and desires. M. T. Anderson's not-so-brave new world is a smart, savage satire that has captivated readers with its view of an imagined future that veers unnervingly close to the here and now.

When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something
frightening enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that got her
sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious
disease that had killed most of America’s children, but she and the others emerged with something far
worse: frightening abilities they could not control.

In the year 2045, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is
when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the
puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession
with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock
them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take
this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real
world he's always been so desperate to escape.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things,
and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are
commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control. Citra and Rowan are
chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking
life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.

On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention. Bronwyn, the brain, is
Yale-bound and never breaks a rule. Addy, the beauty, is the picture-perfect homecoming princess. Nate,
the criminal, is already on probation for dealing. Cooper, the athlete, is the all-star baseball pitcher. And
Simon, the outcast, is the creator of Bayview High's notorious gossip app.
Only, Simon never makes it out of that classroom. Before the end of detention, Simon's dead. And
according to investigators, his death wasn't an accident. On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he'd
planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his high-profile classmates, which makes all four of them
suspects in his murder. Or are they the perfect patsies for a killer who's still on the loose?

Claire Takata has never known much about her father, who passed away when she was a little girl.
But on the anniversary of his death, not long before her seventeenth birthday, she finds a mysterious
letter from her deceased father, addressed to her stepfather. Claire never even knew that they had met.
Claire knows she should let it go, but she can’t shake the feeling that something’s been kept from
her. In search of answers, Claire combs through anything that will give her information about her father...
until she discovers he was a member of the yakuza, the Japanese mafia. The discovery opens a door that
should have been left closed.

Max Cantrell has never been a big fan of the truth, so when the opportunity arises to sell forged
permission slips and cover stories to his classmates, it sounds like a good way to make a little money and
liven up a boring senior year. With the help of his friends Preston and Parvati, Max starts Liars, Inc.
Suddenly everybody needs something and the cash starts pouring in. Who knew lying could be so
lucrative?
When Preston wants his own cover story to go visit a girl he met online, Max doesn’t think twice
about hooking him up. Until Preston never comes home. Then the evidence starts to pile up—terrifying
clues that lead the cops to Preston’s body. Terrifying clues that point to Max as the murderer.

Kacey is the new girl in Broken Falls. When she moved in with her father, she stepped into a
brand-new life. A life with a stepbrother, a stepmother, and strangest of all, an adoring younger half
sister. Kacey’s new life is eerily charming compared with the wild highs and lows of the old one she lived
with her volatile mother. And everyone is so nice in Broken Falls—she’s even been welcomed into a tight
new circle of friends. Bailey and Jade invite her to do everything with them. Which is why it’s so odd
when they start acting distant. And when they don’t invite her to the biggest party of the year, it doesn’t
exactly feel like an accident. But Kacey will never be able to ask, because Bailey never makes it home from
that party. Suddenly, Broken Falls doesn’t seem so welcoming after all—especially once everyone starts
looking to the new girl for answers.