Forest of Reading®, 7 to 12 Programs

After River by Donna Milner Her idyllic teen years on a British Columbia dairy farm with her mother and brother irrevocably changed by the arrival of a draft dodger, Natalie Ward remembers years later the impact he had on the morals and believes of their community.

Chanda's Wars by Allan Stratton Listen to Allan Stratton reading from  Chanda's Wars. Allan Stratton won the Michael L. Printz Honor and the Children's Africana Book Award for Chanda's Secrets, his searing novel set against the African AIDS pandemic. Now comes Chanda's Wars, a stand-alone novel that continues Chanda's story. After the death of her mother, Chanda knows she alone is responsible for her five-year-old brother and six-year-old sister. Despite a strained relationship with her grandparents, Chanda turns to them for support, travelling to their remote rural village. But refuge is not what she finds. Without warning, rebels from across the border attack the village, kidnapping the children to serve as soldiers in a brutal civil war. Desperate, Chanda turns to a troubled young neighbour for help. Together, the two of them face miles of desolate bushland and a national park swarming with predators-- animal and human. Chanda's Wars--like its award-winning predecessor--is an unforgettable story of love, courage and inspiration, as told by a master storyteller with a boundless passion for life.

The Corps of the Bare Boned Plane by Polly Horvath "When an accident leaves teenage cousins Meline and Jocelyn parentless, they come to live with their unknown and eccentric Uncle Marten on his private island. They soon discover that the island has a history as tragic as their own: it was once an air force training camp, led by a mad commander whose crazed plan to train pilots to fly airplanes without instruments sent eleven pilots to their deaths. Jocelyn, Meline, and Uncle Marten are soon joined on this island of wrecked plans and wrecked men by an elderly Austrian housekeeper, with a very mysterious butler, a cat, and a dog. But to Jocelyn and Meline, being in a strange new place around strange new people only underscores the fact that the world they once knew has ended."

Daughter of War by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch Teenagers Kevork and his betrothed Marta are the lucky ones. They have managed so far to survive the Armenian genocide in Turkey, and both are disguised as Muslims. But Marta is still in Turkey, pregnant with another man's child. And Kevork is living as an Arab in Syria. Kevork yearns to get back into Turkey and search for Marta, but with the war raging and the genocide still in progress, the journey will be impossibly dangerous. Meanwhile, Marta worries that even if Kevork has survived and they are reunited, will he be able to accept what she has become? And what has happened to her sister, Mariam, who was sold as a slave to the highest bidder? Daughter of War is a gripping story of enduring love and loyalty set against the horrors of Turkey during World War I.

Gotcha! by Shelley Hrdlitschka It's "bead season" at slippery rock high. This year the bead-snatching grad game called "Gotcha" has been banned as an official school activity because the teachers have decided to put an end to a dangerous tradition. After paying an entry fee the players are given a bead and someone's name. The object of the game is snatch the bead of your victim and take their name. The winner ends up with all the beads--and all the money. After the game is banned it becomes even more appealing. The game goes underground and more grads than ever are participating. Katie is reluctant to join in, but as a member of grad council she feels she has to go along. The game quickly spins out of control. Katie finds herself losing friends and falling victim to her classmates' obsession with the game. She considers dropping out of the game but then devises a better way of getting even with her classmates. Katie finds herself sliding further and further down the chute that leads to disaster. Can she bring a safe end to this deadly game?

Gravity Journal by Gail Sidonie Sobat Life is very grave for Anise. Hospitalized for anorexia, she wonders about the point of it all. Her frigid mother and ineffectual father seem oblivious to her struggle. Her beloved brother is too busy screwing up his own life to take note of hers. Living on the loony ward seems not to be making any difference at all, and Anise feels like a prisoner. Her only free choice is to turn to her journal - the place where she can dream, and where she can decide whether to live or die.

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow Marcus, a.k.a "w1n5t0n," is only seventeen years old, but he figures he already knows how the system works-and how to work the system. Smart, fast, and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting his high school's intrusive but clumsy surveillance systems. But his whole world changes when he and his friends find themselves caught in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco. In the wrong place at the wrong time, Marcus and his crew are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret prison where they're mercilessly interrogated for days. When the DHS finally releases them, Marcus discovers that his city has become a police state where every citizen is treated like a potential terrorist. He knows that no one will believe his story, which leaves him only one option: to take down the DHS himself.

Mountain Girl, River Girl by Ting-Xing Ye "Pan-pan and Shui-lan, two teenage girls born miles apart in modern-day rural China, leave homes with dreams of a better future in Beijing or Shanghai. As dreams turn slowly into nightmares, they cross paths and decide to face their challenges together. This is a powerful tale of friendship and a stark, authentic portrait of modern China." -Publisher's website

Tweaked by Katherine Holubitsky Sixteen-year-old Gordie Jessup is a good kid but he's living a nightmare. His eighteen-year-old brother Chase's two-year addiction to crystal meth has left their family emotionally and financially drained. And just when Gordie thinks he can no longer stand the manipulating, the lying and the stealing, things get even worse. Chase is arrested for aggravated assault, released on bail and sent home to his family. But his dealers are after him and Chase appeals to Gordie for help. Gordie, disgusted with his brother and fully aware that it's a gamble, risks everything he has in the hope of bringing his family some peace.