ALA Best Book for Young Adults ∙ School Library Journal Best Book ∙ Publishers Weekly Best Book ∙ IRA/CBC Children's Choice ∙ NCTE Notable Children's Book in the Language Arts

A Vietnamese girl plants six lima beans in a Cleveland vacant lot. Looking down on the immigrant-filled neighborhood, a Romanian woman watches suspiciously. A school janitor gets involved, then a Guatemalan family. Then muscle-bound Curtis, trying to win back Lateesha. Pregnant Maricela. Amir from India. A sense of community sprouts and spreads.

Newbery-winning author Paul Fleischman uses thirteen speakers to bring to life a community garden's founding and first year. The book's short length, diverse cast, and suitability for adults as well as children have led it to be used in countless one-book reads in schools and in cities across the country.

Seedfolks has been drawn upon to teach tolerance, read in ESL classes, promoted by urban gardeners, and performed in schools and on stages from South Africa to Broadway.

The book's many tributaries--from the author's immigrant grandfather to his adoption of two brothers from Mexico--are detailed in his forthcoming memoir, No Map, Great Trip: A Young Writer's Road to Page One.

The size of this slim volume belies the profound message of hope it contains. --Christian Science Monitor

And don't miss Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices, the Newbery Medal-winning poetry collection!

Jesse is a sneakerhead without the sneakers.

After his parents were killed in an accident three years ago, Jesse went to live with his grandfather, and it wasn't long before the insurance money ran out. That meant no money for new threads or fresh kicks. Now with summer in swing, Jesse has been saving for new sneakers. He'll finally be able to keep up with the rest of the kids at his school, especially his best friend, Tay Matthews, whose sneaker collection could be housed in a museum. But then his grandpa's WiFi is cut off and Jesse has to hand over his savings to pay the bill. It looks like Jesse's plan for new shoes is trashed. That's until nineteen-year-old smooth-talking Derick rolls into town. With new threads and a fresh ride, Derick shows the boys there's more than one way to get what you want. And Jesse must decide how much he is willing to pay.

This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for teen readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don't like to read! The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than in proper manners--and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish...everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but they also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage--in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.

It's time for you as a young African-American male to put an end to the negative statistics and media portrayals of your doomed future. The King Inside: Practical Advice for Young African-American Males, aims to give you a foundation on several areas in life where your decision-making will be challenged. Topics such as family, education, mentorship, friendship, and finances are included to give you an introductory understanding of these critical life issues. No one book can cover everything, but let this one be the start of further research, initiative, and discussions with your parents, teachers, and others to help you succeed. Get ready to unleash the King Inside

In this hilarious and thought-provoking contemporary teen standalone that's perfect for fans of Moxie, a bookworm finds a way to fight back when her school bans dozens of classic and meaningful books.

Clara Evans is horrified when she discovers her principal's prohibited media hit list. The iconic books on the list have been pulled from the library and aren't allowed anywhere on the school's premises. Students caught with the contraband will be sternly punished.

Many of these stories have changed Clara's life, so she's not going to sit back and watch while her draconian principal abuses his power. She's going to strike back.

So Clara starts an underground library in her locker, doing a shady trade in titles like Speak and The Chocolate War. But when one of the books she loves most is connected to a tragedy she never saw coming, Clara's forced to face her role in it.

Will she be able to make peace with her conflicting feelings, or is fighting for this noble cause too tough for her to bear?

Suggested Reading is a beautiful reminder that there is nothing simple about loving a book. --David Arnold, New York Times bestselling author of Mosquitoland

BOOK ONE OF THE AWAED-WINNING ARI ARA SERIE

In an exciting blend of action, adventure, and fantasy author Rivera Sun boldly takes the reader in a new direction . . . that of waging peace, active nonviolence, and nonviolent struggle. Challenging war cultures and military societies, The Way Between brings the skills of resolving conflict, anti-bullying, and ending violence into a coming of age story for a new generation of readers.

Between flight and fight lies a mysterious third path called The Way Between, and young shepherdess and orphan Ari Ara must master it . . . before war destroys everything she loves She begins training as the apprentice of the great warrior Shulen, and enters a world of warriors and secrets, swords and magic, friendship and mystery. She uncovers forbidden prophecies, searches for the lost heir to two thrones, and chases the elusive forest-dwelling Fanten to unravel their hidden knowledge. Full of twists and turns and surprises, The Way Between is bound to carve out a niche on bookshelves everywhere

This novel should be read aloud to everyone, by everyone, from childhood onward. Rivera Sun writes in a style as magical as Tolkien and as authentic as Twain. - Tom Hastings, Director of PeaceVoice, Professor of Conflict Studies at Portland State University

The Way Between is a compelling and wise articulation of the human sojourn . . . a dispatch from a mythic dimension of archaic longing and potential that calls us to our truest selves. - Ken Butigan, Pace e Bene/Campaign Nonviolence

A beautiful story that expands the imagination into the possibilities of peace and active nonviolence . . . this book will prepare our children and ourselves for the real-life world we so desperately need. - David Hartsough, Founder Nonviolent Peaceforce, author of Waging Peace

Nonviolence is a treasure hidden right under our noses that can help solve--not just some-- all of the challenges the world is facing. Imagine the sheer wonder of making this great discovery. Rivera Sun skillfully shows us The Way. -Stephanie N. Van Hook, Director of the Metta Center for Nonviolence; author of Gandhi Searches for Truth: A Practical Biography for Children.

Rivera Sun has, once again, used her passion for nonviolence, and her talent for putting thoughts into powerful words on a page, to recreate life, to show us the possibilities that can be, if we dedicate ourselves to The Way Between. -Robin Wildman, Fifth Grade Teacher, Nonviolent Schools Movement, and Nonviolence Trainer

Generations of young adults will be helped to find this way in the adventures of Ari Ara; and we will all be so greatly in Rivera's debt. - Michael Nagler, author of Search for a Nonviolent Future; founder of Metta Center for Nonviolence

A wonderful book It is so rare to find exciting fiction for young people and adults that shows creative solutions to conflict and challenges violence with active nonviolence and peace. Ari Ara is a delightful character and this story is a gem. - Heart Phoenix, River Phoenix Center for Peacebuilding

All it took was one night and one bad decision for fifteen-year-old Violetta Chen-Samuels' life to go off the rails. After driving drunk and causing the accident that kills her little sister, Violetta is incarcerated. Under the juvenile justice system, her fate lies in the hands of those she's wronged--her family. With their forgiveness, she could go home. But without it? Well . . .

Denied their forgiveness, Violetta is now left with two options, neither good--remain in juvenile detention for an uncertain sentence or participate in the Trials. The Trials are no easy feat, but if she succeeds, she could regain both her freedom and what she wants most of all: her family's love. In her quest to prove her remorse, Violetta is forced to confront not only her family's grief, but her own--and the question of whether their forgiveness is more important than forgiving herself.

Two boys, separated by the canyons of time and two vastly different cultures, face the challenges by which they will become men.
Coyote Runs, an Apache boy, takes part in his first raid. But he is to be a man for only a short time.
More than a hundred years later, while camping near Dog Canyon, 15-year-old Brennan Cole becomes obsessed with a skull that he finds, pierced by a bullet. He learns that it is the skull of an Apache boy executed by soldiers in 1864. A mystical link joins Brennan and Coyote Runs, and Brennan knows that neither boy will find peace until Coyote Runs' skull is carried back to an ancient sacred place.
In a grueling journey through the canyon to return the skull, Brennan confronts the challenge of his life.

New York Times bestselling author Walter Dean Myers tackles the social contract from a teen's perspective in his novel All the Right Stuff. In one of his most thought-provoking novels to date, Myers weaves together political philosophy, basketball, and making soup in Harlem, with the depth that defines his writing career.

After his father is shot and killed, Paul Dupree finds a summer job at a Harlem soup kitchen. Elijah, the soup man, questions Paul about tough life choices, even though Paul would rather be playing basketball. Over the summer, Paul begins to understand the importance of taking control of your life.

All the Right Stuff includes a Q&A between Walter Dean Myers and Ross Workman, coauthor of Kick.

Mike is in love with his best friend, Lindsay. And he's pretty sure she feels the same way...until a misunderstanding destroys Lindsay's trust.

Devastated, Lindsay leaves town for the summer. When she returns in the fall, she has reinvented herself, dressing differently and hanging with the in crowd. And she wants nothing to do with Mike.

When a video of a very intoxicated Lindsay goes viral, Mike has to figure out a way to be there for his friend when she needs him most.

This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for teen readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don't like to read! The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Would you defend the indefensible?

That's what seniors Logan March and Cade Crawford are asked to do when a favorite teacher instructs a group of students to argue for the Final Solution--the Nazi plan for the genocide of the Jewish people.

Logan and Cade decide they must take a stand, and soon their actions draw the attention of the student body, the administration, and the community at large. But not everyone feels as Logan and Cade do--after all, isn't a school debate just a school debate? It's not long before the situation explodes, and acrimony and anger result.

Based on true events, The Assignment asks: What does it take for tolerance, justice, and love to prevail?

An important look at a critical moment in history through a modern lens showcasing the power of student activism. --SLJ

Then Ophelia James, the beautiful and daring new girl in town, suggests that they use the power to do good, to save others at risk of death. But with every heroic act, the power grows into the specter of a curse. How to decide who lives and who dies? And why does darkness seem to be chasing them? Jacob only has thirteen days to figure out how to harness this terrifying power... and the answer is chilling: What if he has to kill the one he loves to save her?

In the context of a dark, unconventional superhero story, Patrick Carman has envisioned a high concept tale of intrigue, romance, friendship and adventure that probes deep into what teens face as they enter young adult years: navigating increasingly complex choices with greater consequences, as well as the gray areas blurring the definitions of right and wrong.

I'd never had a friend, and he was my friend; I'd never really, except for a shadowy memory, had a father, and he was my father. I'd never known an adult I could communicate with or trust, and I communicated with him all the time, whether I was actually talking to him or not. And I trusted him ......

Fourteen-year-old Charles desperately wants two things: a father and a way out. Little love has come his way until the summer he befriends a mysterious scarred man named Justin McLeod, nicknamed The Man Without a Face. Charles enlists McLeod's help as tutor for the St. Matthew's school entrance exams, his ticket away from the unpleasant restrictions of his home life. But more important than anything he could get out of a book, that summer Charles learns from McLeod a stirring life lesson about the many faces of love.

1972 Best Books for Young Adults (ALA)
Best of the Best Books (YA) 1970-1983 (ALA)
Outstanding Children's Books of 1972 (NYT)

She's aching to belong.

He's desperate to keep his kingdom a secret.

Torn between reality and make-belief, Eden Thomas has never really fit in. Fifteen years of believing in werewolves will do that to a person. But when she encounters a wolf in the forest and gets taken into a secret kingdom, she finds there's more to the forest than she expected. Ancient languages, a looming threat from an age-old shapeshifter, and a growing relationship with the three royal siblings, Eden will find belonging in a place beyond her wildest dreams.

Silas--that is King Silas--assumed the throne of Arcadia after his father's untimely death. Now with the responsibility for an ancient and powerful group of shapeshifters and dealing with the return of his prodigal brother, not to mention the pesky Seer with ominous warnings, Silas must decide if it's more important to keep his kingdom safe or follow tradition. And it's much more difficult with a human in tow and his growing feelings for her.

Join Eden and Silas in an atmospheric tale set in the mountains of Appalachia, deep in the forests in the magical kingdom of Arcadia.

Fire Starters: a Confirmation story. Book 6 in the West Brothers contemporary Catholic fiction series for teens.

The moment Peter Brandt discovers archenemy Jarret West is a Confirmation candidate, the ceiling of St. Michael's Church caves in. He soon learns none of the West brothers have received the sacrament: Keefe is looking forward to it, Roland hates drawing attention to himself, and Jarret doesn't think he's worthy.Before Peter gets over his shock, whispers of bad news surround him. Parishioners suspect that the parish will soon close and be merged with a neighboring, newly remodeled church.

Peter's friend Caitlyn is anxious to help, but her life comes crashing down when her mother leaves to aid her aged parents. Now Caitlyn is homeschooling with a neighboring family and caring for her younger siblings, and she can't see her friends at school. Peter and Caitlyn soon suspect that someone might be behind the potential closing of their church. Not one to give up easily, Caitlyn suggests the Fire Starters help with preparing the West brothers and saving the church.

Story threads address questions teens have before and even after Confirmation.

By 2035 the rich have gotten richer, the poor have gotten poorer, and kidnapping has become a major growth industry in the United States. The children of privilege live in secure, gated communities and are escorted to and from school by armed guards.

But the security around Charity Meyers has broken down. On New Year's morning she wakes and finds herself alone, strapped to a stretcher, in an ambulance that's not moving. If this were a normal kidnapping, Charity would be fine. But as the hours of her imprisonment tick by, Charity realizes there is nothing normal about what's going on. No training could prepare her for what her kidnappers really want . . . and worse, for who they turn out to be.