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Staff Picks Young Adult

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October 2021

Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish

Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish

by Pablo Cartaya

Marcus is facing suspension from eighth grade after he punches a kid at school. His mother decides to take him and his brother to Puerto Rico to visit some relatives and have a change of scenery. Marcus, however, is determined to reconnect with the father who left them behind ten years ago. 

Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

The Violent Season

The Violent Season

by Sara Walters

A debut young adult novel that keeps the heart rate and interest up through the entire book. Wolf Ridge, Vermont is a little town where every November violent deaths happen. Is it bad luck, a sickness, or people choosing to be bad?

After the murder of Wyatt’s mother the previous November, she decides to get to the causes of the killings and specifically who is her mother’s murderer. Along with high school angst involving Cash, her best friend forever, and a new love interest in Porter, Wyatt begins confronting the memories of that day.

Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian I

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

Polaris

Polaris

by Michael Northrop

All the young deckhands of the ship named Polaris are left alone on board after a mutiny. When one of them disappears the others must band together to determine what has happened to him. Their discovery both horrifies and fascinates them. 

Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

September 2021

In the Wild Light

by Jeff Zentner

Just like all of Zentner’s books, this book will hit all of your feels. Cash’s mother died of a drug overdose so he’s mostly been raised by his Grandparents. He spends his days living in a small run down town dodging drug dealers, taking care of his sick Papaw, and hanging out with his best friend Delaney. When Delaney manages to secure them both scholarships to one of the top private High Schools in the country Cash has to make the tough decision on whether or not to go. Should he leave his Grandparents to fend for themselves and everything he’s ever known? Or should he jump at the chance to create a better future and go to the new school with Delaney? A new school where they might not fit in and where he thinks he doesn’t deserve to be. This book with make you laugh and cry in all the best ways. Pick it up today.

Recommended by: Erin Faxel, Youth Services Teen Librarian

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

Dig

Dig

by A.S. King

Dig is a book of several perspectives. We are quickly introduced to a vast cast of characters with the help of a cast list at the beginning of the early chapters. Elderly Marla and Gottfried prepare their home for an Easter celebration with the help of The Shoveler, a teen boy who is new to town, who is painting their home. Malcolm is on his way to his grandparents’ (Marla and Gottfried), house while his father goes through another round of chemotherapy. Loretta escapes the abuse of her living situation by managing her flea circus. Can I Help You ignores her racist mother and focuses on her job at Arby’s and dealing drugs. The Freak visits all of them and more with her ability to zap herself all around the world. King weaves an intense story that connects them all with a writing style that is both hypnotic and uncomfortable. Dig is a book that may not be for every reader, but is a must-read for others.
This book is available at the library and on OverDrive/Libby as an ebook and e audiobook.
Recommended by: Brandi Smits, Youth Services Manager

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

All Thirteen: the Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team

All Thirteen: the Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team

by Christina Soontornvat

A fascinating account of the rescue of thirteen people from a flooded cave in Thailand. Experts in different fields from all around the world worked together, against incredible odds, to successfully rescue all thirteen. 

Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager

Posted in: Young Adult Nonfiction

August 2021

Dancing at the Pity Party

Dancing at the Pity Party

by Tyler Feder

Tyler Feder describes, in poignant detail, how it felt to live through her mother’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent death. The graphic novel style lends itself to both humor and pathos.  

Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

Ashfall Legacy

Ashfall Legacy

by Pittacus Lore

By the author of the series, I Am Number Four, comes a new novel, sure to be a series about Syd, a half alien young man. After discovering a locator that indicates his father is still alive, he is determined to try and locate his father who went missing many years ago in the vastness of space. One big problem, if earthlings leave Earth they become super strong but die when they return to Earth. Syd heads out with his uncle to the planet Denza, where lots of action and adventure and monsters and magic rings keep the pages turning.

Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Reference Librarian 1

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

Defy the Night

Defy the Night

by Brigid Kemmerer

This book will be released in September of 2021 and I’m recommending that you put a hold on it right away to be one of the first ones to read it! A sickness is running rampage through the kingdom of Kandala. Outlaws Tessa and Wes are doing everything they can to help the people who can’t afford medicine, even if that means breaking the law. Meanwhile Prince Corrick the Cruel is doing everything he can to protect his brother the king, all while trying to stop a revolution from happening. In a kingdom where no one can be trusted can the outlaws and royalty find a common ground to save everyone? Or is the kingdom doomed to fall? If you’re a fan of Brigid Kemmerer’s Cursebreaker series, I highly recommend picking up this book as your next read!

Recommended by: Erin Faxel, Youth Services Teen Librarian

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction

A Lesson in Vengeance

A Lesson in Vengeance

by Victoria Lee

Felicity Morrow has been away from the boarding school she has called home for a year now ever since the death of her girlfriend on campus grounds. Now she’s back for her senior year, just wanting to focus on her thesis and graduate. Felicity tries to turn a blind eye to the schools dark past dealing with witchcraft and mysterious deaths. If only the new girl, a prodigy writer named Ellis Haley would let her forget. When Ellis asks Felicity to help her research the Dalloway Five for her second book, she can’t say no. And given Felicity’s past history with the arcane that makes her the perfect source. But when history begins to repeat itself on the grounds of Dalloway, Felicity will have to now face the darkness that haunts the school and that lurks within herself. This dark, atmospheric, twisty thriller is the perfect read to start getting you in the mood for spooky season.
Recommended by: April Balasa, Patron Services Clerk

Posted in: Young Adult Fiction


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