Double or Nothing by
Kip is a typical teenager, trying to catch the Buzz. It is not drugs or alcohol that are going to get him there, but the pure adrenaline rush that hits when you are playing for high stakes: the risks, the thrill - throw in some money and the fun really begins. Double or Nothing follows Kip's ride as he gets more and more involved in high-stakes gambling. Although he is a good kid, does well in school and works at his uncle's restaurant to save for college, his rush comes from betting. What begins as ten-dollar wagers with his buddy quickly escalates. Kip constantly makes bets with himself - what wine will his next customer order? Will it be a glass or a bottle? He has the attitude, knows the odds and has done his research. The thrill comes only when money is laid down. To increase the thrill just raise the stakes. If smell is the strongest sense, imagine the smell of victory, the smell of money. Who could resist? When Kip meets the enticing and wonderful Joey, things couldn't be better. She is unlike any girl he has known. They begin hanging out and then Kip meets Joey's father, King Hewitt, Master Illusionist. Nothing could be cooler. A magician plays the margins like no other. Unfortunately, King turns out to be a compulsive gambler, and takes his young charge to places he has never been before: the races to bet on horses and casinos to play the slots. After winning their first big race on a tip, Kip thinks King is a genius. Despite the spectacle of King losing fifty bucks in less than four minutes on the slots, Kip only becomes more hooked. Can he really feel the energy emanating from the machine? Kip starts skipping school, missing work, diving into his college fund. The buzz is still increasing, but so are his debts. He knows he needs just one more big win to get it all back. Then King hits a losing streak and disappears. Joey's home is crashing down around her and the repo men are turning up. Can Kip keep lying to her and his mom? Can he beat the odds and turn things around before he hits bottom?
The Grave by
Thirteen-year-old Tom, an unhappy foster child in Liverpool, falls into a massive open grave and is transported to Ireland in 1847, where he finds himself in the midst of the deadly potato famine.
Dancing Naked by
Kia is sixteen and pregnant. Her world crumbles as she attempts to come to terms with the life growing inside her and what she must do. Initially convinced that abortion is her only option, Kia comes to understand that for her, the answers are not always black and white. As the pregnancy progresses, Kia discovers who her real friends are and where their loyalties lie. It is through her relationship with the elderly Grace that she learns what it means to take responsibility for one's life and the joy that can come from trusting oneself. Faced with the most difficult decision of her life, Kia learns that the path to adulthood is not the easily navigable trail she once thought, but a twisting labyrinth where every turn produces a new array of choices, and where the journey is often undertaken alone.
Graveyard Girl by
In June of 1982 a group of high school students in the town of Lee re-enact the previous summer's glitzy royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. Organized by their teachers, the group receives extensive coverage in the town newspaper and the school yearbook. In this set of twelve linked short stories, each of the participants in the "Wedding of the Century" seeks out his or her own truth in the years that follow. We learn about the network of love, fear and intrigue that bind young people who shared this fairy-tale event. And we learn about the real-life demons they subsequently confront, the advantages they celebrate, the disadvantages they endure, and the temptations they face. For Tish, life is never the same after the tragic death of her best ex-friend Alex. Derek, the mock wedding's prince, ends up as a hockey star while Jewel, Diana in the mock wedding, has her own romance to play out with tougher consequences. And Naylor, who had the second-banana role of Prince Edward, meets up with an extraordinary stranger whose flight to freedom lifts Naylor from a hum-drum existence. The last word comes from the wry voice of Ginger - always the outsider - who snapped the mock royal photograph and who, years later, contemplates the lives of her one-time classmates from the vantage of the Lee town cemetery.
Up All Night by
Up All Night is the result of Thistledown's latest young adult short story competition, which in the past has produced the best-selling, award-winning collections. Edited by R.P. MacIntyre, one of Canada's foremost editors and writers of young adult fiction, this collection represents a range and depth of theme and style that ensures there is something for all readers to enjoy.
Over the Edge by
"The death of a boy at Chloe's high school looks like an accident... until Chloe discovers that he was blackmailing several other students. Was it accident--or murder? Chloe's job as a newshound for her high school paper helps her uncover some startling truths. First, it looks like Daria, the school's high-profile poet, might have plagarized some of her award-winning poems. And then it appears that Peter, the writer of the paper's astronomy column--a boy recently found dead from an accidental fall over a cliff--was blackmailing Daria. And she wasn't the only one." -Website
Dead Water Zone by
"Set in the very near future, in a world where the haves and have nots are segregated by their neighbourhood's level of environmental degradation, Dead Water Zone is the haunting story of 15-year-old Paul, who leaves his orderly suburban home to search for his younger brother, Sam. Sam has disappeared in the murky slum of Watertown, and Paul believes that he knows something dangerous about the toxic waters surrounding the shantytown. Can Paul find the truth? Or does the dead water zone devour anyone who dares to enter it?
Seven for a Secret by
In Cook's Cove, a small outport village on the west coast of Newfoundland, summers are short but sweet, and fifteen-year-old Melinda expects this one to be no different. She's looking forward to two idyllic months of garden parties, socials and long talks into the night with her cousins Rebecca and Kate. The cousins have spent summers together ever since they can remember. Rebecca's the goody-goody homemaker. Studious Kate, who lives in the city, is determined not to let a boyfriend get in the way of her plans for the future. Then there's outspoken Melinda, who loves to scandalize the village biddies. The girls are like sisters; they watch out for each other, and nothing can ever come between them. But when a stranger comes to the village and invites Rebecca to go to Boston to develop her artistic talent, the cousins are suddenly exposed to the possibilities of the outside world and the chance to fulfil their latent dreams.
Leslie's Journal by
In this novel, Stratton takes us into a teen world that reverberates with the emotion and tension of a relationship gone wrong. Here is a book that examines the adolescent girl's deep need for affirmation as a sexually attractive being and how the drive for that affirmation can lead to unimaginable consequences. For Leslie, grade nine was trouble-filled and grade ten is worse. The V.P. is constantly on Leslie's case for skipping or wearing 'inappropriate' clothes. Enter Jason McCready, new at school and ultra-cool. He gives her a wink the first time they bump into each other. When Leslie approaches Jason to prove to the girls they have met, he gives her a kiss -- in front of everyone! Leslie is in love! She is the envy of all the girls when Jason asks her out, but on their first date he takes her to his place instead of to the movies. He explains that his parents are away and begins pouring scotches, then beers. The lights get dimmer, the music louder, and things get fuzzy. Time seems to stop for Leslie, when suddenly Jason is throwing her clothes at her, stuffing money for a cab in her hand and telling her to get going because his parents are on their way home. It isn't until later that she realizes what has happened. So begins Leslie's first relationship. Telling Leslie he loves her one minute and teaching her some hard life lessons the next, Jason begins to control Leslie's every move. How is it possible to be so lonely when you are in love? Thank god she has her English-class journal, where she can record everything. It helps to get her feelings on paper. But when Ms. Graham gets ill and the substitute reads the private journals, Leslie's world collapses. Words like rape and abuse surface. Jason's behavior becomes even darker, and he has pictures he is threatening to show. The principal doesn't believe her anyway and there is no way she will tell her parents. Leslie's nightmare keeps growing. In the end, she must find the strength to fight back to set things right.
The Game by
Dani Webster had played The Game with her sister, Kelly, for as long as she could remember. It was a secret quest to vanquish evil. The Game is now a hazy memory as Dani looks up from the floor of the isolation room at Riverwood Clinic. God, how did she get here? She remembers the vodka and pills. Slowly Dani emerges from the painful effects of substance abuse, and begins to adapt to life at Riverwood, a psychiatric treatment facility for "teens with problems." As she recovers from her physical trauma, Dani must confront a deeper emotional trauma, which at the moment she can neither explain nor recognize. There's the cool aloofness of her mother. Her father's abusive perfectionism. Kelly's refusal to answer her letters. Fragmented memories of the last Game. She can't fit all the pieces together. The Game is an extraordinary story of betrayal, anger, guilt, confusion and dread, and their brutal effects on the mind. It also a tribute to the healing effects of compassion and friendship, and to the strength we can summon, even in our weakest moments.
Dancing Naked by
Kia is sixteen and pregnant. Her world crumbles as she attempts to come to terms with the life growing inside her and what she must do. Initially convinced that abortion is her only option, Kia comes to understand that for her, the answers are not always black and white. As the pregnancy progresses, Kia discovers who her real friends are and where their loyalties lie. It is through her relationship with the elderly Grace that she learns what it means to take responsibility for one's life and the joy that can come from trusting oneself. Faced with the most difficult decision of her life, Kia learns that the path to adulthood is not the easily navigable trail she once thought, but a twisting labyrinth where every turn produces a new array of choices, and where the journey is often undertaken alone.