• City of Bones (Mortal Instruments Series Book 1) by Cassandra Clare. This book uses an urban paranormal story of shadow hunters, vampires, demons, faeries, and warlocks to present themes of acceptance and unity, a message that is important in an increasingly divisive and judgmental society.
• An Abundance of Katherines by John Green. This book was an honorable mention for the ALA's Michael Printz award in 2007 and extols the virtues of true friendship and self-acceptance within the story of quirky boy "genius" Colin Singleton.
• Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale. Hale reinvents a classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale in a mythological Asian landscape that addresses issues of the power of young people to decide their fate and to determine their worth as individuals.
• Slam by Nick Hornby. This best-selling author branches into YA fiction with this tale of an avid skateboarder who experiences the supernatural and seeks answers to life's tough questions about growing up and becoming an adult.
• The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga. Misfits come to understand their place in the world in this story of an "outsider" comic book artist and the girl who shows him how to fit into the world. This story will be highly relatable to many teens and will spark discussions about cliques and fads that are rampant in high schools.
• Twilight (Twilight Saga Book 1) by Stephenie Meyer. Although this book is light on symbolism and thin in areas of dialogue, book groups can use this book to broach deeper subjects, such as denial of the id and a comparison of literary heroes with the hardships faced in real-life relationships.
• Converting Kate by Beckie Weinheimer. This novel of a young teen who escapes a strict religious community deals with the problems that many teens face--divorce, death, loss of friends, and loss of community in an honest and emotional tale.
• The Pigman by Paul Zindel. This classic piece of young adult literature leads readers on a story of self-discovery as they wrestle with the impact they make on the world and their own significance. Compelling characters make this an easy and enjoyable read.
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. A reinvention of themes prevalent in Fahrenheit 451, this book is set in Nazi Germany and will allow young adult readers to understand the pressures of that time through the eyes of a 13-year-old looking to literature for escape and hope.

Fiction

* Alexie, Sherman. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. Illus. by Ellen Forney.
Junior leaves the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white high school, where the only other Native American is the school mascot. Is he choosing his own destiny or betraying his heritage?

Alexie, Sherman. Flight.Just as a cop’s bullet stops his wild shooting spree, Zits, an orphan who is half Native American, finds himself transported through space and time and into another body.

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Twisted.
Tyler begins his senior year transformed on the outside, going from geeky video gamer to buff hottie, but he still struggles internally with problems at home.

Asher, Jay. Thirteen Reasons Why. When Clay receives a package of cassette tapes that explain his classmate’s suicide, he is forced to consider how his own actions, and those of others, may have contributed to her decision.

Brande, Robin. Evolution, Me, and Other Freaks of Nature.Timely, explosive issues come to the fore when Mena Reece, shunned by her church’s fundamentalist Christians, finds a kindred spirit in her quirky, brilliant lab partner.

Brooks, Martha. Mistik Lake. Seventeen-year-old Odella, an Icelandic Canadian, struggles to unlock the secrets behind her mother’s abandonment in this lyrical coming-of-age novel.

Burgess, Melvin. Bloodsong. The heroic Sigurd slays a dragon, descends into the underworld, and rules over a tenuous peace in a post-Apocalyptic Britain peopled with genetic mutants.

Cameron, Peter. Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You. Jaded, aloof James is tired of almost everything in his life. His perspective shifts when he attempts to connect with a co-worker and makes a grave error in judgment.

Carey, Janet Lee. Dragon's Keep. Princess Rosalind’s atrocity—a dragon’s claw where her finger should be—makes her beautiful to Lord Faul, the fierce dragon who enslaves her in exchange for her people’s safety.

Carey, Mike. The Re-Gifters. Panels that explode with martial arts power energize this graphic novel about Dixie, who almost lets her killer crush on a boy in her hapkido studio ruin her shot at tournament glory.

Cassidy, Anne. Looking for JJ. Recently released murderer JJ, a British teen whose childhood crime stirred a media frenzy, fears that her past will be discovered despite her new identity.

Castellucci, Cecil. Beige. Prim, proper Katy relaxes into a new identity when she is forced to live in L.A. with her father, a punk rocker and recovering addict.

Murdock, Catherine Gilbert. The Off Season. In this standalone sequel to Dairy Queen, female linebacker DJ struggles to balance school, romance, and family responsibilities as she starts her junior year.

Nonfiction

Beah, Ishmael. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier.
A former child soldier in Sierra Leone recalls the heart-wrenching experiences that transformed him from an innocent 12-year-old into a cold-blooded killer. A 2008 Alex Award winner.
The Deep: The Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss. Amazing photographs and essays by scientists introduce the strange, beautiful, and sometimes terrifying deep-sea creatures that live in the largest, most mysterious ecosystem on the planet.
Fradin, Judith Bloom and Dennis Brindell Fradin.
Jane Addams: Champion of Democracy. In a time when women had little control over their lives, Addams became a powerful force for good by helping the poor and disadvantaged and fighting for peace.

Helfer, Andrew. Malcolm X: A Graphic Biography. The events and controversies of Malcolm X’s life, culminating in his assassination, are presented with unblinking realism in a bold, graphic-novel format.

Marrin, Albert. The Great Adventure: Theodore Roosevelt and the Rise of Modern America. Roosevelt rides to life in this intimate yet historically revealing book about the man who redefined the United States presidency.

* Polly, Matthew. American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New China. On a quest to transform himself from a scrawny weakling into a kung-fu master, Polly drops out of Princeton and journeys to the legendary Shaolin Temple. A 2008 Alex Award winner.

Raddatz, Martha. The Long Road Home A Story of War and Family. An investigative journalist contrasts the physical brutality of the Iraq War with homefront loved ones’ stress when an American platoon is trapped in a firefight.

Reef, Catherine. e.e. cummings: a poet's life. This well-rounded portrait skillfully examines the culture in which poet e. e. cummings lived as he developed his craft.

Sis, Peter. The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain. Through spare text and bold, powerful illustrations, Sis tells of his life in communist Czechoslovakia, especially his yearning for freedom, his attraction to Western pop culture, and his determination to embrace his creativity. The 2008 Sibert Award winner and a Caldecott Honor book
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Tammet, Daniel. Born on a Blue Day: A Memoir: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant. Recounting his long struggle to emotionally connect with others, Tammet vividly describes his childhood and adolescence as an austistic savant.