All Books
Synopsis: A 2016 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist
National Book Award winner M. T. Anderson delivers a brilliant and riveting account of the Siege of Leningrad and the role played by Russian composer Shostakovich and his Leningrad Symphony.
In September 1941, Adolf Hitler’s Wehrmacht surrounded Leningrad in what was to become one of the longest and most destructive sieges in Western history—almost three years of bombardment and starvation that culminated in the harsh winter of 1943–1944. More than a million citizens perished. Survivors recall corpses littering the frozen streets, their relatives having neither the means nor the strength to bury them. Residents burned books, furniture, and floorboards to keep warm; they ate family pets and—eventually—one another to stay alive. Trapped between the Nazi invading force and the Soviet government itself was composer Dmitri Shostakovich, who would write a symphony that roused, rallied, eulogized, and commemorated his fellow citizens—the Leningrad Symphony, which came to occupy a surprising place of prominence in the eventual Allied victory.
This is the true story of a city under siege: the triumph of bravery and defiance in the face of terrifying odds. It is also a look at the power—and layered meaning—of music in beleaguered lives. Symphony for the City of the Dead is a masterwork thrillingly told and impeccably researched by National Book Award–winning author M. T. Anderson.
National Book Award winner M. T. Anderson delivers a brilliant and riveting account of the Siege of Leningrad and the role played by Russian composer Shostakovich and his Leningrad Symphony.
In September 1941, Adolf Hitler’s Wehrmacht surrounded Leningrad in what was to become one of the longest and most destructive sieges in Western history—almost three years of bombardment and starvation that culminated in the harsh winter of 1943–1944. More than a million citizens perished. Survivors recall corpses littering the frozen streets, their relatives having neither the means nor the strength to bury them. Residents burned books, furniture, and floorboards to keep warm; they ate family pets and—eventually—one another to stay alive. Trapped between the Nazi invading force and the Soviet government itself was composer Dmitri Shostakovich, who would write a symphony that roused, rallied, eulogized, and commemorated his fellow citizens—the Leningrad Symphony, which came to occupy a surprising place of prominence in the eventual Allied victory.
This is the true story of a city under siege: the triumph of bravery and defiance in the face of terrifying odds. It is also a look at the power—and layered meaning—of music in beleaguered lives. Symphony for the City of the Dead is a masterwork thrillingly told and impeccably researched by National Book Award–winning author M. T. Anderson.
Publication Date: 09/22/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Historical Nonfiction
Synopsis: In a futuristic society run by an all-powerful Gov, a bender teen on the cusp of adulthood has choices to make that will change her life—and maybe the world.
Fifteen-year-old bender Kivali has had a rough time in a gender-rigid culture. Abandoned as a baby and raised by Sheila, an ardent nonconformist, Kivali has always been surrounded by uncertainty. Where did she come from? Is it true what Sheila says, that she was deposited on Earth by the mysterious saurians? What are you? people ask, and Kivali isn’t sure. Boy/girl? Human/lizard? Both/neither? Now she’s in CropCamp, with all of its schedules and regs, and the first real friends she’s ever had. Strange occurrences and complicated relationships raise questions Kivali has never before had to consider. But she has a gift—the power to enter a trancelike state to harness the “knowings” inside her. She has Lizard Radio. Will it be enough to save her? A coming-of-age story rich in friendships and the shattering emotions of first love, this deeply felt novel will resonate with teens just emerging as adults in a sometimes hostile world.
Fifteen-year-old bender Kivali has had a rough time in a gender-rigid culture. Abandoned as a baby and raised by Sheila, an ardent nonconformist, Kivali has always been surrounded by uncertainty. Where did she come from? Is it true what Sheila says, that she was deposited on Earth by the mysterious saurians? What are you? people ask, and Kivali isn’t sure. Boy/girl? Human/lizard? Both/neither? Now she’s in CropCamp, with all of its schedules and regs, and the first real friends she’s ever had. Strange occurrences and complicated relationships raise questions Kivali has never before had to consider. But she has a gift—the power to enter a trancelike state to harness the “knowings” inside her. She has Lizard Radio. Will it be enough to save her? A coming-of-age story rich in friendships and the shattering emotions of first love, this deeply felt novel will resonate with teens just emerging as adults in a sometimes hostile world.
Publication Date: 09/08/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Science Fiction
Synopsis: In a one-of-a-kind collaboration, seventeen of the most recognizable YA writers—including Shaun David Hutchinson, Neal and Brendan Shusterman, and Beth Revis—come together to share the viewpoints of a group of students affected by a school shooting.
It took only twenty-two minutes for Kirby Matheson to exit his car, march onto the school grounds, enter the gymnasium, and open fire, killing six and injuring five others.
But this isn’t a story about the shooting itself. This isn’t about recounting that one unforgettable day.
This is about Kirby and how one boy—who had friends, enjoyed reading, playing saxophone in the band, and had never been in trouble before—became a monster capable of entering his school with a loaded gun and firing on his classmates.
Each chapter is told from a different victim’s viewpoint, giving insight into who Kirby was and who he’d become. Some are sweet, some are dark; some are seemingly unrelated, about fights or first kisses or late-night parties. This is a book of perspectives—with one character and one event drawing them all together—from the minds of some of YA’s most recognizable names.
It took only twenty-two minutes for Kirby Matheson to exit his car, march onto the school grounds, enter the gymnasium, and open fire, killing six and injuring five others.
But this isn’t a story about the shooting itself. This isn’t about recounting that one unforgettable day.
This is about Kirby and how one boy—who had friends, enjoyed reading, playing saxophone in the band, and had never been in trouble before—became a monster capable of entering his school with a loaded gun and firing on his classmates.
Each chapter is told from a different victim’s viewpoint, giving insight into who Kirby was and who he’d become. Some are sweet, some are dark; some are seemingly unrelated, about fights or first kisses or late-night parties. This is a book of perspectives—with one character and one event drawing them all together—from the minds of some of YA’s most recognizable names.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Olivia, Bertucci, and Codman were the trio no one else in high school could quite figure out, an impenetrable triangle of friendship. Now they're graduating and about to start new lives away at college and without one another. Beyond their friendship, there's one thing they have in common: the Circle Cinema, a once-thriving old movie theater now reduced to a boarded up concrete box, condemned and about to be forgotten forever which is, as far as Olivia and Codman can tell, a lot like what's going to happen to them.
So in one last desperate effort to hold on to the secrets they share, Bertucci hatches a plan an experiment, really. He convinces Olivia and Codman to join him in spending their last night before graduation locked inside the cinema's concrete walls. None of them can open the box before sunrise. Over the course of the night, the trio is then forced to face one another, the events of the past year, and whatever is to come when the new day dawns.
Emily Franklin's Last Night at the Circle Cinema is the story of a friendship's end and moving rebirth.
So in one last desperate effort to hold on to the secrets they share, Bertucci hatches a plan an experiment, really. He convinces Olivia and Codman to join him in spending their last night before graduation locked inside the cinema's concrete walls. None of them can open the box before sunrise. Over the course of the night, the trio is then forced to face one another, the events of the past year, and whatever is to come when the new day dawns.
Emily Franklin's Last Night at the Circle Cinema is the story of a friendship's end and moving rebirth.
Publication Date: 09/01/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Do you know Nora Hadley? Not many people do; and more and more often these days Nora doesn't know if she even knows herself. A prude raised by strict Catholic parents to her friends, a student mature beyond her years to her teachers, a responsible daughter to her parents - all of these things fall into freefall as Nora finds herself increasingly fixated on her new literature teacher, William Summers. A desire to get to know the man behind the blackboard outside of school hours and to discuss the virtues of The Wind in the Willows and Romeo and Juliet cascades into a dangerous path of self-discovery with potentially devastating consequences for the staff and students of South Iris High.
Publication Date: 08/27/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Chick Lit
Synopsis: A New York Times Bestseller!
From Colleen Houck, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiger’s Curse, comes an epic Egyptian-inspired adventure about two star-crossed teens who must battle mythical forces and ancient curses on a journey with more twists and turns than the Nile itself!
When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification.
And she really can’t imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe.
But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world.
And don't miss new adventures with Lily in the rest of the Reawakened series: Recreated and Reunited!
Praise for the Reawakened Series:
"[A] must-read for thrill-seekers and fans of alternate worlds."—RT Book Reviews
"Rick Riordan fans who are looking for another series will delight in this fantasy."—SLJ
"Wonderfully written and…the heart-pounding adventures are topped only by the heart-melting romance."—The Deseret News
"A sparkling new novel with a fully imagined world and mythos, and crackling romance! Egyptian mythology has never been this riveting!"—Aprilynne Pike, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Wings series, on Reawakened, book one in the series
From Colleen Houck, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiger’s Curse, comes an epic Egyptian-inspired adventure about two star-crossed teens who must battle mythical forces and ancient curses on a journey with more twists and turns than the Nile itself!
When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification.
And she really can’t imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe.
But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world.
And don't miss new adventures with Lily in the rest of the Reawakened series: Recreated and Reunited!
Praise for the Reawakened Series:
"[A] must-read for thrill-seekers and fans of alternate worlds."—RT Book Reviews
"Rick Riordan fans who are looking for another series will delight in this fantasy."—SLJ
"Wonderfully written and…the heart-pounding adventures are topped only by the heart-melting romance."—The Deseret News
"A sparkling new novel with a fully imagined world and mythos, and crackling romance! Egyptian mythology has never been this riveting!"—Aprilynne Pike, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Wings series, on Reawakened, book one in the series
Publication Date: 08/11/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Series
Synopsis: Fifteen-year-old Jim Hay believes that war is a glorious adventure and cannot wait for his turn to fight. But as his father marches off to battle in August 1914, Jim must be content to record his thoughts and dreams in his journal. All too quickly, however, Jim’s life begins to unravel. His father is killed in action, his mother suffers a breakdown, and when Jim does at last join up, it is as much to find refuge as it is to seek glory. In the trenches of France, his romantic views of war are dispelled, and his longing for adventure is replaced by a basic need to survive.
Publication Date: 08/01/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Historical Fiction
Synopsis: Fiery-haired, witch-eyed Zaara Theroux has all but resigned herself to the dull life of an Asterian princess when her engagement is suddenly interrupted by the elusive Jay Sattler, who has an irresistible proposition for her: he’ll show her the world – the good, the bad, the beautiful – and free her from her royal captivity, if she promises to open her mind. Suddenly, Zaara’s quiet, boring life is shattered and she is thrown into a world where not everything is as it seems: where dragons soar and breathe fire; where people like her are gifted with affinities for water, fire, earth, or air; where a rebellion is rising, seeking a justice that involves destroying her perfect world and everything she has been raised with…including the love of her life. As Zaara joins the rebellion, she learns more than she had intended about the strange and tangled history of the world she lives in and the role she herself has to play, as keeper of the rare fifth element, in preserving that balance between order and chaos in the mythical land of Asteira.
Publication Date: 07/15/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Synopsis: A spine-tingling debut about the ultimate game of cat-and-mouse in reverse as a teen struggles to retain hope—and her sanity—while on the run from a cunning and determined killer.
Ruth Carver has always competed like her life depends on it. Ambitious. Tough. Maybe even mean. It’s no wonder people call her Ruthless.
When she wakes up with a concussion in the bed of a moving pickup trick, she realizes she has been entered into a contest she can’t afford to lose.
At a remote, rotting cabin deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Ruth’s blindfold comes off and she comes face-to-face with her captor. A man who believes his mission is to punish bad girls like Ruth. A man who has done this six times before.
The other girls were never heard from again, but Ruth won’t go down easy. She escapes into the wilderness, but her hunter is close at her heels. That’s when the real battle begins. That’s when Ruth must decides just how far she’ll go in order to survive.
Back home, they called her Ruthless. They had no idea just how right they were.
Ruth Carver has always competed like her life depends on it. Ambitious. Tough. Maybe even mean. It’s no wonder people call her Ruthless.
When she wakes up with a concussion in the bed of a moving pickup trick, she realizes she has been entered into a contest she can’t afford to lose.
At a remote, rotting cabin deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Ruth’s blindfold comes off and she comes face-to-face with her captor. A man who believes his mission is to punish bad girls like Ruth. A man who has done this six times before.
The other girls were never heard from again, but Ruth won’t go down easy. She escapes into the wilderness, but her hunter is close at her heels. That’s when the real battle begins. That’s when Ruth must decides just how far she’ll go in order to survive.
Back home, they called her Ruthless. They had no idea just how right they were.
Publication Date: 07/14/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Thomas Crowe is gone. The maniacal Captain Jack Darcy and the Order of the Blood Moon have taken the crew of the Roatán Butterfly prisoner; The Eight, a secretive band of immortal-killers, are quickly and comfortably seizing control of the British Empire, and Molly Bishop is sailing against her will into faraway waters. In Bombay, the Seventh, a powerful and mysterious woman from Molly’s recent past, waits to double-cross the Blood Moons and turn Molly and her friends over to the Bureau of Immortal Affairs. Molly must now overcome tragedy and despair to keep a promise she made to Tom, and to what end, she cannot be sure. Driven only by hope and a prophecy, she will fight to reclaim her life, her freedom, and, perhaps, even the impossible…
Publication Date: 06/18/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Synopsis: Teen Alice deals with the death of her sister by going on a summer road trip with the college age friends of her sister.
Publication Date: 06/13/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Literary Collection
Synopsis: Is there anything that electric chemistry can’t overcome? The past may be gone, but love has a way of holding on in this romantic debut novel told in alternating Before and After chapters.
The summer before freshman year, Kelsey and David became inseparable best friends—until the night a misunderstanding turned Kelsey into the school joke and everything around her crumbled, including her friendship with David. So when Kelsey’s parents decide to move away, she can’t wait to start over and leave the past behind. But David’s not quite ready to be left.
Now it’s senior year and Kelsey has a new group of friends, genuine popularity, and a hot boyfriend. Her life is perfect. That is, until David’s family moves to town. Old feelings bubble to the surface and threaten to destroy Kelsey’s second chance at happiness. The more time she spends with David, the more she realizes she never let him go. And maybe she never wants to…
The summer before freshman year, Kelsey and David became inseparable best friends—until the night a misunderstanding turned Kelsey into the school joke and everything around her crumbled, including her friendship with David. So when Kelsey’s parents decide to move away, she can’t wait to start over and leave the past behind. But David’s not quite ready to be left.
Now it’s senior year and Kelsey has a new group of friends, genuine popularity, and a hot boyfriend. Her life is perfect. That is, until David’s family moves to town. Old feelings bubble to the surface and threaten to destroy Kelsey’s second chance at happiness. The more time she spends with David, the more she realizes she never let him go. And maybe she never wants to…
Publication Date: 06/09/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Romance
Synopsis: The realities of teen prostitution are revealed in this eye-opening, heartbreaking story from the author of America, which Booklist called “a piercing, unforgettable novel” and Kirkus Reviews deemed “a work of sublime humanity.”
As a teen girl in Newark, New Jersey, lost in the foster care system, Dime just wants someone to care about her, to love her. A family. And that is exactly what she gets—a daddy and two “wifeys.” So what if she has to go out and earn some coins to keep her place? It seems a fair enough exchange for love.
Dime never meant to become a prostitute. It happened so gradually, she pretty much didn’t realize it was happening until it was too late.
But when a new “wifey” joins the family and Dime finds out that Daddy doesn’t love her the way she thought he did, will Dime have the strength to leave? And will Daddy let her?
As a teen girl in Newark, New Jersey, lost in the foster care system, Dime just wants someone to care about her, to love her. A family. And that is exactly what she gets—a daddy and two “wifeys.” So what if she has to go out and earn some coins to keep her place? It seems a fair enough exchange for love.
Dime never meant to become a prostitute. It happened so gradually, she pretty much didn’t realize it was happening until it was too late.
But when a new “wifey” joins the family and Dime finds out that Daddy doesn’t love her the way she thought he did, will Dime have the strength to leave? And will Daddy let her?
Publication Date: 05/26/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: "The blade seemed to cut the air itself apart. Before he could stop, he had created a strange, ineffable crack in the air. Then, an arm reached through ... and shortly afterwards, a body followed."
Michael Phoenix is just your ordinary misfit teenager. He lives in a New England small town, his father ran off a year ago, and he falls asleep in school every now and then. However, one night, Michael accidentally opens a portal to another world, and an alien creature invades his home. All he thought he knew about the world is shattered when he is plunged into a world of darkness, a world that's strange and alien--a world that once was home to him. Michael embarks on a journey to the darkest corners of the Earth in search for purpose, home, and vengeance. He is ready to do all it takes, even if he must go to the source of his nightmares--even if he must enter the Realm of Flesh. Along the way, he gains supernatural abilities and learns to cope with loss.
A horror journey that ramps up towards a climactic showdown in the end. There's gore, twists, and violent action galore in this dark coming-of-age story. By the end of the day, each of the three main characters will have shed their fair share of blood and learned their lesson--if they live to see the end of the day.
Michael Phoenix is just your ordinary misfit teenager. He lives in a New England small town, his father ran off a year ago, and he falls asleep in school every now and then. However, one night, Michael accidentally opens a portal to another world, and an alien creature invades his home. All he thought he knew about the world is shattered when he is plunged into a world of darkness, a world that's strange and alien--a world that once was home to him. Michael embarks on a journey to the darkest corners of the Earth in search for purpose, home, and vengeance. He is ready to do all it takes, even if he must go to the source of his nightmares--even if he must enter the Realm of Flesh. Along the way, he gains supernatural abilities and learns to cope with loss.
A horror journey that ramps up towards a climactic showdown in the end. There's gore, twists, and violent action galore in this dark coming-of-age story. By the end of the day, each of the three main characters will have shed their fair share of blood and learned their lesson--if they live to see the end of the day.
Publication Date: 05/23/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Synopsis:
End of Days is the explosive conclusion to Susan Ee’s bestselling Penryn & the End of Days trilogy. After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.
When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?
Publication Date: 05/12/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Synopsis: “Darkness only darkens when you put out fires…” Thomas Crowe and Molly Bishop walk into trouble’s open arms once again when an Atlantean sorceress, the mermaid Oi’alli, comes to Tom looking for a stolen talisman. When Tom refuses to return it, the consequences are dire. Plagued by two new foes, a demon and a mysterious octet of immortal-hunters known simply as “The Eight”, there is nothing Tom can do when the truths of his past come to surface and try to eat him alive. Molly Bishop is Tom’s only hope. Wrought by anger and confusion toward her father, the beautiful and talented magesmith must confront demons of her own if she hopes to live long enough to keep Thomas from succumbing to his end. Armed with new strength and magical powers, Molly lights the way as she and Tom make a treacherous journey east, to the heart of Romania.
Publication Date: 05/08/15
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy