And in the Morning by
In this novel by John Wilson, Jim Hay is fifteen, thinks war is a glorious adventure and cannot wait for his turn to fight. But as his father boldly marches off to battle in August, 1914, Jim must be content to record his thoughts and dreams in his journal. Gradually, Jim's simple life begins to unravel. His father is killed in action, his mother suffers a breakdown, and when he does at last join up, it is as much to find a refuge as it is to seek glory. What Jim discovers in the trenches of France is enough to dispel any romantic view of war. And while his longing for adventure is replaced by a basic need to survive, the final tragic outcome is one he never dreamed of.
The First Stone by
REEF IS AN EMBITTERED YOUNG OFFENDER, hardly able to contain his anger at the world over the death of his grandmother, the only person who had shown him any love. Seventeen-year-old Leeza is mourning the death of her older sister. A stone hurled in rage shatters both their lives and throws them together in the most unexpected way--and offers them a chance at healing.
The Lottery by
Every student at Saskatoon Collegiate knew that all the most important aspects of school life were controlled by a secret club called Shadow Council. Each fall, Shadow held a traditional lottery during which a single student#65533;s name was drawn. The rest of the student body called the student the lottery winner. But Shadow Council knew better; to them the winner was the lottery victim. Whatever the label, the fated student became the Council#65533;s go-fer, delivering messages of doom to selected targets. In reponse, the student body shunned the lottery winner for the entire year. This year#65533;s victim was fifteen-year-old Sally Hanson.
No Escape by
"When Caleb Darke is released from prison, nobody in town wants him back. Nobody will give him a chance--except Chloe. She's sure he didn't commit the crime he was convicted of. The trouble is, how is she going to prove it? And if Caleb didn't do it, who did? Because that person is going to do everything possible to keep Chloe from finding out." --P. [4] of cover
Search of the Moon King's Daughter by
Gentle Emmaline loves nothing more than books and flowers and her little brother Tommy. Sadly, her idyllic country life in Victorian England comes to an abrupt end when her father dies of cholera. The family is forced to move to a mill town, where Emmaline's mother is dreadfully injured in a factory accident. To ease her pain she takes laudanum and is soon addicted, craving the drug so badly that she sells Tommy into servitude as a chimney sweep in London. Emmaline knows that a sweep's life is short and awful. Small boys as young as five are forced to climb naked into dark chimneys, their bare feet prodded by nail-studded sticks to keep them working. If Tommy is to survive, it is up to Emmaline to find him. Linda Holeman brings a bygone period to life in a book of serious historical fiction for young adults.
Shoulder the Sky by
Martin Emerson's family, friends, and even his therapist have trouble figuring him out. He never showed much of a reaction to the death of his mother, and his behaviour of late has been getting more and more bizarre. And yet, his website - Emerso.com - has made him something of a cult figure to followers who believe that, if not having all the right answers, "Emerso" at least has all the right questions. Shoulder the Sky is a rarity among young adult novels - it challenges the reader with philosophical thought and complex observations.
Skud by
In Skud, four intense young men -- Tommy, Brad, Andy, and Shane -- are on four distinct paths as they struggle through their last year of high school and prepare for very different futures. Tommy, a model student, is headed for the military; Brad is looking at a hockey career; Andy, who has just secured an agent, may or may not break into the movies. These three have shared a common friendship that is challenged when Andy turns to a new kid -- Shane -- to teach him how to be a punk for an acting audition. While Andy is learning the code of rough, tough, and dangerous from Shane, Brad goads Tommy into a confrontation when Tommy suspects that Andy has stolen his girlfriend. As the foursome squares off, they face their individual demons and their most authentic selves. Can they stand up to the impending tragedy?Will they be able to move beyond it?
Theories of Relativity by
Dylan is living on the streets, not through any choice of his own; he's been cut loose by his unstable mother, and lost most contact with his two younger brothers. Disturbing, gritty, painful, hopeful--this is a story of a 16-year-old determined to survive against all odds.
Throwaway Daughter by
A dramatic and moving YA novel by Ting-xing Ye, the internationally acclaimed author of A Leaf in the Bitter Wind, working with her husband, William Bell, author of the award-winning novels for young adults Forbidden City, Zack, and Stones. . Throwaway Daughter tells the dramatic and moving story of Grace Dong-mei Parker, a typical Canadian teenager until the day she witnesses the Tiananmen massacre on television. Horrified, she sets out to explore her Chinese ancestry, only to discover that she was one of the thousands of infant girls abandoned in China since the introduction of the one-child policy, strictly enforced by the Communist government. But Grace was one of the lucky ones, adopted as a baby by a loving Canadian couple. With the encouragement of her adoptive parents, she studies Chinese and travels back to China in search of her birth mother. She manages to locate the village where she was born, but at first no one is willing to help her. However, Grace never gives up and, finally, she is reunited with her birth mother, discovering through this emotional bond the truth of what happened to her almost twenty years before.
Tom Finder by
This riveting story is about a fifteen-yearold boy who, as the story opens, realizes he has no idea who he is-beyond his first name-or what has led to his loss of memory. From the outset, he's on the run, a street kid thrust out on his own, living by his wits and involved in a quest to find another lost teenager whose First Nations father is desperate for news of his son. In the process, he learns to survive and begins to get a sense of his strengths and character.
The First Stone by
REEF IS AN EMBITTERED YOUNG OFFENDER, hardly able to contain his anger at the world over the death of his grandmother, the only person who had shown him any love. Seventeen-year-old Leeza is mourning the death of her older sister. A stone hurled in rage shatters both their lives and throws them together in the most unexpected way--and offers them a chance at healing.