YA Contemporary Fiction
COME FIND ME by Megan Miranda
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Ever since the chilling tragedy that shattered her world, Kennedy has been trying to keep her brother, Elliot’s, work alive. She sneaks back to her old house (the one her uncle and now guardian Joe is intent on selling) and takes the readings from Elliot’s radio telescope, continuing his search for messages from extraterrestrial beings. But she isn’t the expert that Elliot was, and when she gets a strange reading–a negative frequency that shouldn’t exist–she has to turn to the Internet message boards to ask for advice on how to interpret the results. The consensus is that there must be something wrong with the telescope or the computer program. The frequency cannot exist. But one other user has somehow detected the same pattern of negative frequencies. Nolan has been searching for his older brother ever since he mysteriously disappeared. Although his parents have turned their house into a call center to search for missing children, Nolan is convinced that the explanation for Liam’s disappearance is not so simple. After all, Nolan had a strange premonition the night before that Liam would disappear. And there was that night when Nolan had the high fever that he was so sure he saw Liam in the living room–like he was trying to communicate with Nolan from another dimension. That was when Nolan got the EMF meter and started taking readings in the woods where Liam disappeared. When his path crosses with Kennedy, they realize that the two tragedies that took their brothers might be connected, and that the frequency they’ve discovered might hold the key to solving both of the mysteries.
I would classify this book as a truly character-driven thriller. While the tantalizing mysteries thread through the story, it is the emotional plot of these two teens finding one another and helping each other process the tragedies that truly drives the book forward and makes it impossible to put down. It is a masterful piece of writing that will appeal to fans of thrillers, mysteries, and even realistic fiction. (The sci-fi elements actually turn out to be very light.) Highly recommend it! The audiobook is very good, as well.
MARIAM SHARMA HITS THE ROAD by Sheba Karim
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As soon as Mariam sees the billboard in Times Square, she knows that Ghazala is in big trouble. It’s not surprising that Ghaz signed up for the modeling gig, but did she know that those images would be appearing in public where someone was bound to see? It’s not long before word gets around the Pakistani community, and Ghaz is labeled a “slut,” and locked in her room by her parents who are threatening to send her to Pakistan to find a husband. So Mariam and Umar do the only thing good friends can do. They help Ghaz sneak out in the middle of the night and take off on an epic summer road trip from New Jersey to New Orleans. But the trip turns out to be more than just a rescue mission for Ghaz or a wild way to spend a college summer vacation. Mariam learns new things about her father and must come to terms with her family’s past. Umar wrestles with how his homosexuality fits in with his devout Muslim faith. The fallout from Ghaz’s billboard and her family’s reactions continue to follow her. And all three of them are have their own assumptions challenged as they face various levels of racism throughout their journey into the Deep South.
This coming-of-age story features strong and engaging characters grappling with serious issues against the fun backdrop of a road trip plot. This novel will certainly appeal to older teen readers of realistic fiction.
GRIT by Gillian French
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Rhiannon’s disappearance is still leaving its mark this summer. There’s an air of suspicion, especially around Darcy. It makes sense. Everyone’s always suspicious of the town “slut,” whatever that means. And Darcy does have a secret–one she’s keeping for someone else. But when someone nominates both Darcy and her cousin Nell for Bay Festival Princess, Darcy can’t help but wonder who is out to get her. Is it a joke meant to humiliate her? Does someone know Darcy’s secret? Or does it all come back to Rhiannon and the town’s darkest secret of all?
I thoroughly loved the voice of this novel. Darcy is an authentic, flawed character who really gripped me from the opening pages. And the suspenseful plot made it difficult to put down. I highly recommend this book to teen fans of realistic fiction and suspense.
If you liked E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars, definitely check this one out.
CHARM AND STRANGE by Stephanie Kuehn
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Andrew has felt dead inside for a long time. He couldn’t explain exactly why he smashed that kid in the face with a tennis racket when he was nine, and he can’t explain why he would rather be alone in the forest than talking to the new girl at his boarding school. But something about Jordan draws him out in a way that his other classmates have not. He finds himself at a party with Jordan and his former roommate, Lex, on the night of the full moon. Which is a bad idea because he is certain that tonight will be the night that he changes. He has known it would happen, ever since that summer in New Hampshire when his older brother, Keith, told him that the wolf lived inside all of them. As he waits for the change, memories of Keith and their sister, Siobhan, intertwine with Jordan and Lex’s attempts to break through his shell.
This book is intense. Suspenseful, horrifying, and beautifully written. Did I mention intense? Kuehn weaves hints of fantasy through the novel, enough to make a reader hope that maybe it is a fantasy. Maybe the wolf is real. All the while, the fantasy echoes heighten the horror of the real story and help the reader find herself in the mindset of a traumatized child. If you like dark realistic fiction, this book is excellent. But be forewarned: intense. (Trigger alert: CSA)
A FIERCE AND SUBTLE POISON by Samantha Mabry
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Lucas has always been an outsider to San Juan: the rich white developer’s kid who only visits in the summers. But all his life he has soaked up the culture, especially the stories the old women tell about the scientist’s house and the supposed witch-girl who lives there. As Lucas gets older, the stories begin to seem less real. Until the summer that the island girls begin to disappear and everything leads Lucas back to the old house and the mysterious girl shrouded in the trees.
A poetic literary thriller nestled somewhere between realistic and science fiction, this novel gripped me from the start. I actually read it in one sitting, a rare occurrence for me. Mabry immerses readers in a vivid setting of blended reality and folklore as Lucas struggles to define himself, caught between two worlds and a disappointing relationship with his father. One of the best written books I’ve read this year and a stunning debut novel. I highly recommend it!
HOUSE ARREST by K. A. Holt
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Timothy wouldn’t be writing in a journal if the court hadn’t ordered it. He’s supposed to show that he’s sorry. Only he’s not sorry he stole the wallet to buy his baby brother’s medicine–just sorry he got caught. And that they took the medicine away. Now he’s on house arrest, which is better than juvie. In fact, it’s not that different from his life before–staying home, helping change the bandages on Levi’s trach, wishing his mother didn’t have to work overtime, that they could afford a nurse more than two days a week, that his father hadn’t left. But he had better get things right this year, or else he’ll end up in juvie after all.
Through poetry, Holt reveals Timothy’s evolving relationships with family, friends, and authority figures, and his own transformation. His love and care for his brother is beautiful, and his resentments toward his father and probation officer believable and complex. The ending left me waffling back and forth between depression and hope. I highly recommend this nuanced novel to teen and adult readers who enjoy realistic fiction!
SAINT ANYTHING by Sarah Dessen
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Sydney has always lived in her older brother’s shadow. But when Peyton winds up in prison after driving drunk and crippling a young bicyclist, Sydney feels more ignored and isolated than ever. Her parents seem to be treating Peyton as the victim in the tragedy, and Sydney feels like she is shouldering all of the guilt for her entire family. But when she transfers to a new school, Sydney meets Layla and her brother Mac and through their friendship begins to discover who she really is, independent of her brother and her parents. As Sydney grows in self confidence, her relationship with her family begins to evolve as well.
This is probably the best book I’ve posted lately. It is well written, with strong, realistic characters, and an engaging premise. I would recommend it to teen readers who enjoy realistic fiction.
WE WERE LIARS by E. Lockhart
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They called themselves the Liars–Cadence, her cousins Mirren and Johnny, and their friend Gat. They had been coming with their families to their grandfather’s private island every summer since forever. Although they didn’t see one another all year long, in the summers they were confidantes, co-conspirators, best friends. But everything changed in summer fifteen when Cadence had her accident. It left her with crippling migraines and took almost all of her memories of that summer and the accident itself. All she remembers is Gat and the beach roses and holding hands under the stars. Since her mother won’t tell her what happened, and the Liars seem to be doing their best to ignore her questions, it is up to Cady to piece together her memories of summer fifteen. What was so horrific the her brain won’t let her remember? How did her relationship with Gat change so much in so short a time? And is there really such a thing as a second chance?
I didn’t figure this book out before the big reveal. I actually ended up reading it twice to find all the clues I missed. This suspenseful novel starts off deceivingly light, but be prepared for an intense read. I’m still thinking about it. I would recommend this book to teens who like heavy realistic fiction.
If you liked We Were Liars, you might like If I Stay by Gayle Forman, The Book of Lies by Mary Horlock, and Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson.
IF I STAY by Gayle Forman
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The day started out like an ordinary, happy snow day for Mia. She, her mom, her dad, and her brother pile into the car to visit her grandparents. But suddenly, Mia is standing on the side of the road staring at the mangled remains of the car. She sees her parents lying in the road and realizes their bodies are so damaged that they must be dead. She searches for her brother in the wreckage, and instead finds herself–her own body half buried in destroyed car parts. But Mia is not dead. As the paramedics whisk her off to the hospital, Mia follows, watching her body go through surgery, hearing the word “coma,” trying to process what has happened. As her grandparents sit by her bedside in the ICU, the nurse tells them to encourage Mia, because really it is up to her whether she wakes or not. Mia realizes she has a choice. As her extended family, her boyfriend, and her best friend struggle with their grief and fears, Mia wrestles with whether or not she should stay in world without the people she loved most.
This heartbreaking novel is sad but hopeful. Mia’s internal debate in the hospital is intermingled with memories from her past, stories of the friendships and relationships that have shaped her life. Readers can relate to Mia’s experiences of growing up, which encourages them to step into Mia’s shoes. What would you choose? Mia’s choice emphasizes both the incredible pain and beauty of life. A great novel for teen readers who enjoy heavy realistic fiction.
ELEANOR AND PARK by Rainbow Rowell
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When the new girl with the weird clothes sits next to him on the bus, Park does his best to ignore her and hopes it is a one time thing. If she wants to draw attention to herself by dressing oddly, that’s her business, but the last thing he needs is for Steve and the other kids at the back of the bus to start picking on him, too. He’s done a good job of keeping his head down so far. When Eleanor gets on the bus for the first time, she knows the school year is going to suck. Everyone makes it clear that they don’t want her to sit with them, so she takes an open seat next to an Asian kid and does her best not to bother him. This is what she has come back to after her year of sleeping on a friend’s couch: a creepy stepfather who still hates her guts and a bus full of hateful high schoolers.
But as the year progresses, Eleanor and Park start to lower their barriers. They begin to acknowledge one another, to read comics together, to exchange music. And as their friendship grows into romance, they hesitantly allow one another to catch a glimpse into their deeper struggles, especially in their home lives.
It is hard to describe the brilliance of this book in a summary. My mother (also a librarian) recommended it to me with no summary saying, “Just read it. It’s wonderful.” And it is. It is one of those books where the words themselves are engaging. The imagery is fresh and interesting. Every word is deliberate. Every character is nuanced and realistic. The plot lines range from sappy and heartwarming to disgusting and horrifying. Realistic fiction love stories are not usually my genre (I usually require some sort of thriller/sci-fi subplot to cut through the sap), but this book is incredibly well-written–and gets some bonus points for the very subtle Romeo and Juliet parallels (starting with the title). I recommend it to teens and adults who like love stories and literary fiction.
If you liked Eleanor and Park, you might like Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler.
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Susan the Librarian 