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Juvenile Fiction | Page 58 | LitPick Book Reviews
Juvenile Fiction
Best Bet: A Novel (The Hallie Palmer Series)
Best Bet
Laura Pedersen
Since Hallie's father died and left behind ten children, money at the Palmer household is tighter than ever. And just when Hallie thought she was graduating from college, it turns out she's four credits short. A professor needs one more student for a project that will take her around the world, only longtime boyfriend Craig has another proposition for Hallie. Thus begins Hallie's great odyssey, for the first time she ventures outside the safety of Cosgrove County and the sixty-mile radius in which she's functioned for her entire life. But somehow, escaping home doesn't translate into leaving behind all of her problems, and, unfortunately, not all can be solved by putting her superior gambling skills to work. Eventually, it's time to return home to all the good people who are great at driving each other crazy. Hallie must finally face the biggest decision of her life. Humorous and heartfelt, Best Bet underscores the importance of friends, family, and a sense of belonging. The characters in this modest, but neighborly, small town prove that an ordinary existence made up of small but genuine moments can satisfy a soul that's hungry for life in all of its glories and disappointments.

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Counterfeit Son
Counterfeit Son
Elaine Marie Alphin
Cameron Miller is pretending to be someone he isn't. When he began presenting himself as Neil Lacey, it was the only way he could think of to distance himself from what Pop had done, to finally climb out of his nightmarish existence. He thought it would be easy--playing the rich kid, sailing his boat--but he didn't count on Cougar. Now Cougar, his father's old accomplice, has tracked Cameron down and presented an ultimatum: Share the wealth or be exposed. Will Cameron give up his new identity to protect Neil's family? Or will he let his search for a new life destroy those around him?

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Xoe: Vampires, and Werewolves, and Demons, Oh My! (Xoe Meyers Young Adult Fantasy/Horror Series) (Volume 1)
Xoe
Sara C. Roethle
Xoe Meyers had a normal life. So she was stuck going to high school, and she only had a few friends to call her own. She liked her normal life. Things were about to change though, because there's a new guy in her small town, and he is anything but normal. Before Xoe can say, "Werewolf," her best friend's life is in peril, and Xoe's world is turned upside-down. Then, of course, there's Jason. Xoe doesn't trust him as far as she can throw him, and given that he's a vampire, she'd have to be able to catch him first.

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Center Field
Center Field
Robert Lipsyte
Mike has his junior year well under control. He's got a solid group of friends. He's dating Lori, one of the hottest girls in school. And Coach Cody has all but given him the starting spot as the Ridgedale Rangers' varsity center fielder. And then Oscar Ramirez shows up. Oscar is an amazing ballplayer, as talented at the plate as he is in center field, and it's not long before Mike loses control. He's on the bench, he's getting into fights, and he finds himself in weekend detention with Katherine Herold, the most mysterious, abrasive, alluring girl in school. Mike is lost, confused, and looking to Coach Cody to help him get back on track. But the coach has his own set of rules for Mike to play by, and the decisions Mike makes are going to impact more than just the starting lineup.Robert Lipsyte, one of the most celebrated writers in young adult literature, has crafted a subtly intense tale of adolescent struggle, a sports story about much more than sports—one that shows us how the moves one makes off the field matter even more than the moves one has on it.

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Snow Queen
Snow Queen
Emma Harrison
Chamberlain Ski Resort and SpaWelcome to the 10th Annual Snow Queen competition!I can't believe I got roped into this.Snow Princesses must attend all pageant rehearsals, with appropriate outfits.Well, no matter what it takes, I'm going to wipe that smirk off Layla Chamberlain's face.Our rehearsal space can be booked to practice your talent.Um, does "looking dumb in a dress" count as a talent?See Grayson Chamberlain, the assistant director, with any questions.If you insist! First question: How can someone so sweet (and hot!) be a Chamberlain?Good luck! One of you will soon be our new Snow Queen!Oh joy.Unless Grayson comes with the tiara . . .

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Three Witches
Three Witches
Paula Jolin
Three seemingly ordinary girls, studying together in the same ordinary high school. All have their own reasons to summon Trevor Saunders after his car goes over a cliff. Aliya brings the mystical seances of Syria. Gillian contributes the voodoo arts from her native Trinidad. Miya shares the secret magic of ancient Japan. Will they be able use their powers to bring him back one more time? Should they?

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Cookie
Cookie
Nick Sharratt, Jacqueline Wilson
Cookie is plain and shy, not the confident, popular girl her father wanted when he named her Beauty Cookson. Her mother helps her cook up a clever scheme to change her image--but, as usual, Dad doesn't approve, and this time his anger reaches frightening new heights. Will Cookie find the strength to stand up for herself? Honest and emotionally resonant, COOKIE faces tough issues with the unflinching directness and unflagging tenderness that make Jacqueline Wilson one of today's most admired-and popular-authors for young people.

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The Brothers Story
The Brothers Story
Katherine Sturtevant
Teenage twins Kit and Christy have grown up amid grinding poverty in their Essex village. As Christy has been “simple” from birth, Kit is literally his brother’s keeper. But the latest hardships visited upon their country home by the Great Frost of 1683–84 bring Kit to frustration and despair, and he abandons Christy to make his way to London, seeking to better himself. There he finds work as an apprentice to a struggling artist and much else to take his mind off what he has left behind. But the time comes when he can no longer ignore the problem of his brother. A fascinating portrait of a young person struggling to balance family and freedom, The Brothers Story is also a frank depiction of Restoration London in its bawdy, raucous glory.

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Cat Burglar Black
Cat Burglar Black
Richard Sala, Richard Sala
K. Westree: Teen Cat BurglarWhen K. Westree arrives at Bellsong Academy, she thinks she's left her cat-burgling past behind her. But K. soon discovers the school has a mystery of its own, a hidden treasure left behind by its founder, and she's the only one who has a hope of finding it. As she resumes her cat-burgling in an attempt to discover the school's secrets, K. begins to question if a normal life is really what she wants.

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Refresh, Refresh
Refresh Refresh
Danica Novgorodoff, Benjamin Percy, James Ponsoldt, Danica Novgorodoff
Fathers, sons, and the war that comes between them. There's nothing Josh, Cody, and Gordon want more than their fathers home safely from the war in Iraq -- unless it's to get out of their dead-end town. Refresh, Refresh is the story of three teenagers on the cusp of high school graduation and their struggle to make hard decisions with no role models to follow; to discover the possibilities for the future when all the doors are slamming in their faces; and to believe their fathers will come home alive so they can be boys again.

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