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Fade to Black by Alex Flinn
Alex Crusan is an HIV-positive teenager. So, when his family moves from Miami to Pinedale, Florida he is not exactly the most popular student. He has to deal with the whispers and taunts from students, especially Clinton Cole and his gang of jocks. So, one Monday morning when Alex goes to pick up coffee and donuts for his family he is violently attacked. Everyone suspects Clinton, especially when an eye-witness comes forward. But, did Clinton really do this? Is he really capable of this kind of violence? Each chapter alternates between the voices of Alex, Clinton and Daria, the eye-witness. As each narrator fills in the gaps of this story the reader starts to see the whole picture more clearly. Fade to Black explores issues of fear, prejudice and AIDs.Death of Artemio Cruz by Carlos Fuentes
Fuentes uses Artemio Cruz to tell the tale of Revolutionary Mexico. A young idealist with a passion for social justice, Cruz becomes corrupted by power and money. We first meet him as a rich old man on his deathbed struggling with the inevitability of encroaching death. As the old man relives his life, we see the many facets of the individual, and we also come to view him as a symbol of Mexico. Cruz and the Mexican Revolution began as advocates for the rights of the common people, the working class and the peasants, only to be co-opted by the lures of luxury. This is a powerful literary tour-de-force by one of the modern masters of fiction; don't miss it.Private Peaceful by Michel Murpurgo
At 15, Thomas Peaceful, like many other English soldiers in World War I, is too young to fight, but he lies about his age. Now at the front in France with his older brother Charlie he stands a lonely nighttime vigil for reasons that are not explained until the book's end, watching the minutes tick by and reflecting on his past. While readers see the events through Tommo's eyes, the author does not lose sight of the war's effects on the teen's friends and family. This thoughtful novel touches on themes of humanity and duty, and features brilliant characters whose personal decisions have earned them their very own badges of honorBeast by Donna Jo Napoli
Thisunique retelling of the "Beauty and the Beast" tale is told from the perspective of the Beast. Orasmyn is a prince of ancient Persia who accidentally angers a djinn and finds himself transformed into a lion. As he struggles to survive as a lion while maintaining his humanity, Orasmyn flees to France in a desperate attempt to find a maiden to love him and reverse the curse. He takes up residence in an abandoned castle, obsessively tending his rose garden in the hopes that the right woman will notice. Napoli's lyrical writing and imaginative storyline makes this a magical read.
Luna: A Novel by Julie Anne Peters.
Regan struggles to support her brother, Liam, in his decision to go public as a transsexual and to undergo a remarkable transition into his true self, Luna.
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate -- a life and a role that she has never challenged...until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister -- and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman
Lyra overhears a murder being plotted and foils it, but is soon drawn into a web of intrigue that will expose shocking state secrets, force her into alliance with outcasts, and reveal the truth about her parents' identity and fate. Along the way she learns how to use a golden compass that gives figurative as well as literal directions. Just when Lyra things she's gotten to the bottom of the mystery, immense new complications develop. Author Philip Pullman sets the story in a world much like our own, but different in significant ways. Most interestingly, every person in this world has his or her own daemon - an animal spirit that can advise, comport, and befriend its human companion. Pullman's imaginative tale has only just begun.I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
I Capture the Castle tells the story of seventeen-year-old Cassandra and her family, who live in not-so-genteel poverty in a ramshackle old English castle. Here she strives, over six turbulent months, to hone her writing skills. She fills three notebooks with sharply funny yet poignant entries. Her journals candidly chronicle the great changes that take place within the castle's walls, and her own first descent into love. By the time she pens her final entry, she has "captured the castle"--and the heart of the reader--in one of literature's most enchanting entertainments.The Gospel According to Larry By Janet Tashjian
Josh Swensen is not your average 17-year-old. At the age of two, he was figuring out algebraic equations with colored magnetic numbers. He is a prodigy who only wants to make the world a better place. Josh's wish comes true when his virtual alter ego, Larry, becomes a huge media sensation. Larry has his own Web site where he posts sermons on anti-consumerism and has a large following of adults and teens. Meanwhile, Larry's identity is a mystery to everyone. While it seems as if the whole world is trying to figure out Larry's true identity, Josh feels trapped inside his own creation. What will happen to the world, and to Larry, if he is exposed?Rats Saw God by Rob Thomas
Steve York is writing his life story to earn the make-up credit he needs to graduate from high school. He recounts many of his high school experiences including his adventures as a charter member of the iconoclastic Grace Order of Dadaists, his first ever romance with a girl nicknamed Dub, and his difficult relationship with his distant father, a former football star and famous astronaut who wants Steve to be more like him. In writing his story, Steve confronts past feelings of anger and resentment and learns that life's situations are not always black and white. Rob Thomas' writing is intelligent, irreverently funny, and truly evocative of the teenage spirit and voice. A must for any teen who swims outside the mainstream.Stuck in Neutral by Terry Trueman
Because Shawn has cerebral palsy, he is unable to communicate, though he is a keen observer of the world around him. Most people see him as a "total retardate". But Shawn is really brilliant, bright and full of insight, though he is unable to control any of his muscles--his fingers, hands, even his eyelids. Amazingly, Shawn's sudden seizures don't bring him suffering, but moments of ecstatic release. How could anyone ever understand this, especially his father, who takes on a personal campaign that supports "ending the suffering" of kids like Shawn? This book will challenge your thoughts on what it really means to be alive.Double Helix by Nancy Werlin
Eli Samuels' mother is dying of Huntington's Disease and he is aware that it might be in his own future. Yet his father seems certain Eli does not have the fateful genetic marker and maintains a secretive silence. An excellent science student, Eli is hired to work at the famed Dr. Quincy Wyatt's lab, foregoing college and defying his father. In some way, Wyatt is tied to Eli's parents and to their genetic mystery. Thus Nancy Werlin has set the stage for a suspenseful thriller whose seamless boundary between science and fiction keeps readers totally involved.I Am the Messenger by Mark Zusak
Nineteen-year-old cabbie Ed Kennedy has little in life to be proud of: his dad died of alcoholism, and he and his mom have few prospects for success. He has little to do except share a run-down apartment with his faithful yet smelly dog, drive his taxi, and play cards and drink with his amiable yet similarly washed-up friends. Then, after he stops a bank robbery, Ed begins receiving anonymous messages marked in code on playing cards in the mail, and almost immediately his life begins to swerve off its beaten-down path. Usually the messages instruct him to be at a certain address at a certain time. So with nothing to lose, Ed embarks on a series of missions as random as a toss of dice: sometimes daredevil, sometimes heartwarmingly safe. You will enjoy trying to figure who the messages are from and what their motive might be.All of these are good books, so I don't think we can go wrong in June! We'll use the "non-winners" for future meetings.
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