*And other books in this series.

 

Anderson, Laurie Halse.  Chains.  2008.  (Historical Fiction; Best Books for Young Adults; Booklist Books for Older Readers; Notable Books for a Global Society; Notable Children's Books; Publisher's Weekly's Best Books of the Year; Teachers Choices)

After being sold to a cruel couple in New York City, a slave named Isabel spies for the rebels during the Revolutionary War.

Armstrong, Jennifer.  Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World:  the Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance.  1998.  (Nonfiction)

Describes the events of the 1914 Shackleton Antarctic expedition when, after being trapped in a frozen sea for nine months, their ship, Endurance, was finally crushed, forcing Shackleton and his men to make a very long and perilous journey to reach inhabited land.

Austen, Jane.  Emma.   1815.  (Classic; Love Story; Humorous Story) 

Emma, a self-assured young lady in Regency England, is determined to arrange her life and the lives of those around her into a pattern dictated by her romantic fancy. 

Austen, Jane.  Pride and Prejudice.  1813.  (Classic; Love Story) 

In early nineteenth-century England, a spirited young woman copes with the courtship of a snobbish gentleman as well as the romantic entanglements of her four sisters. 

Austen, Jane.  Sense and Sensibility.  1811.  (Classic; Love Story; Humorous Story) 

Two sisters of opposing temperments share the pangs of tragic love. Their mutual suffering brings a closer understanding between the two sisters, and true love finally triumphs. 

*Barry, Dave and Ridley Pearson. Peter and the Starcatchers.  2004.  (Fantasy; Humorous Story; First Book in the Starcatchers Trilogy) 

Peter, an orphan boy, and his friend Molly fight off thieves and pirates in order to keep the secret safe away from the diabolical Black Stache and his evil associate Mister Grin. 

Bernall, Misty.  She Said Yes:  the Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall.  1999.  (Christian biography) 

Misty Bernall, mother of one of the teenagers killed at Columbine High School, tells the story of her daughter's life, describing how Cassie had, at one point, started down a troubled path before dedicating her life to God, and sharing the details of the moment when Cassie's affirmation of faith resulted in her death. 

Bloor, Edward.  Tangerine. 1997.  (Soccer) 

Twelve-year-old Paul, who lives in the shadow of his football hero brother Erik, fights for the right to play soccer despite his near blindness and slowly begins to remember the incident that damaged his eyesight. 

Bradbury, Ray.  The Martian Chronicles. 1946.  (Science Fiction) 

The first Earth people to attempt the colonization of Mars try to build their new world in the image of the civilization they left behind. 

Bradley, James; adapted for young people by Michael French.  Flags of our Fathers:  Heroes of Iwo Jima.  2001.  (Nonfiction; U.S. Marine Corps Biography; World War II) 

James Bradley examines the lives of the six young men who raised the American flag over Iwo Jima in February 1945 and were immortalized by a famous photograph--one of whom was Bradley's father. 

Bronte, Charlotte.  Jane Eyre.  1847.  (Classic; Love Story) 

A young governess who suffered a violently abusive childhood finds love unexpectedly with her new employer, but secrets from his past--involving madness and old passions--may prove to destroy her happiness. 

Bronte, Emily.  Wuthering Heights.  1847.  (Classic) 

In early nineteenth-century Yorkshire, the tumultuous relationship between a headstrong girl and a foundling boy raised in the same home wreaks havoc on them and those around them, even into the next generation. 

Brouwer, Sigmund.  Cyberquest.  2000.  (Science Fiction; Christian Fiction) 

A group of Christians, forced to live with the poverty-stricken Welfaros on the bombed-out island of Old Newyork after the government outlaws Christianity, search for a leader to guide them in resistance to a plot that threatens to destroy them all. 

Brouwer, Sigmund.  Tyrone's Story.  2003.  (Christian Fiction; Part of the Degrees of Guilt Series) 

Eighteen-year-old Tyrone Larson ponders the events of his life that led to his part in the death of a high school friend from a drug overdose.  

Budhos, Marina.  Ask Me No Questions.  2006.  (Fiction; Illegal Immigration) 

Fourteen-year-old Nadira, her sister, and their parents leave Bangladesh for New York City, but the expiration of their visas and the events of September 11, 2001, bring frustration, sorrow, and terror for the whole family. 

Buck, Pearl S.  The Good Earth.  1931.  (Classic) 

The story of a Chinese peasant and his passionate, dogged accumulation of land during famine, drought, and revolution. 

Cather, Willa.  My Antonia.  1918.  (Frontier and Pioneer Life; Classic) 

A successful lawyer remembers his boyhood in Nebraska and his friendship with an immigrant Bohemian girl. 

Clements, Andrew.  Things Hoped For.  2006.  (Children's Books of the Year) 

Seventeen-year-old Gwen, who has been living with her grandfather in Manhattan while she attends music school, joins up with another music student to solve the mystery when her grandfather suddenly goes missing. 

Collins, Suzanne.  The Hunger Games.  2008.  (Science Fiction; Best Books for Young Adults; Best Books of the Year; Best Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror; Notable Books of the Year; Notable Children's Books; Publisher's Weekly's Best Books of the Year; Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers)

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen accidentally becomes a contender in the annual Hunger Games, a grave competition hosted by the Capitol where young boys and girls are pitted against one another in a televised fight to the death.   

Colson, Charles. Born Again.  1976.  (Christian Autobiography; History) 

Chuck Colson, confidant to Richard Nixon, recounts Nixon's landslide presidential victory in 1972 and the ensuing Watergate Scandal as well as Colson's conversion to Christianity and time spent in a federal prison for his part in the Watergate Scandal. 

Cooney, Caroline B.  A Friend at Midnight.  2008.  (Christian Fiction) 

After rescuing her younger brother abandoned at a busy airport by their divorced father, fifteen-year-old Lily finds her faith in God sorely tested as she struggles to rescue herself from the bitterness and anger she feels. 

Cooper, James Fenimore.  Deerslayer. 1841.  (Historical Fiction; Classic) 

"Set in the 1740’s just as the French and Indian wars have begun, the novel opens as Natty Bumppo—known as Deerslayer—and his friend Hurry Harry travel to Tom Hutter’s house in upstate New York. Hurry plans to marry Tom’s beautiful daughter Judith, while Deerslayer has come to help his close friend Chingachgook save his bride-to-be, Wah-ta-Wah, from the Huron Indians. When war breaks out, and Hurry and Tom are captured by Indians, Deerslayer must go on his first warpath to rescue them.One of the earliest novels to be considered truly “American," The Deerslayer is a masterpiece of suspense, adventure, and romance."

(From Publisher description at http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0711/2005920752-d.html) 

Covey, Sean.  The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens:  The Ultimate Teenage Success Guide.  1998.  (Nonfiction) 

Describes seven habits teenagers can cultivate to help them improve their self-images, build friendships, resist peer pressure, achieve goals, get along with parents, and make other positive changes in their lives. 

Crane, Stephen.  Red Badge of Courage.  1895.  (Classic; Historical Fiction) 

During his service in the Civil War a young Union soldier matures to manhood and finds peace of mind as he comes to grips with his conflicting emotions about war. 

Davis, Sampson . . . et. al.  We Beat the Street:  How a Friendship Pact Helped Us Succeed.  2005.  (Nonfiction; Collective Autobiography) 

Shares anecdotes from the childhoods, teen years, and young adult lives of three men from Newark, New Jersey, who made a pledge to each other in high school to stay safe from drugs, gangs, and crime, and work to become doctors--a goal they have successfully achieved. 

Dickens, Charles. The Adventures of Oliver Twist.  1838.  (Classic) 

In nineteenth-century England, a young orphan boy lives in the squalid surroundings of a workhouse until he becomes involved with a gang of thieves. 

Douglas, Lloyd C.  The Robe.  1942.  (Classic; Historical Fiction) 

The story of Christ's robe and the influence it had on the wealthy young Roman soldier who won it at dice. 

Doyle, Arthur Conan.  The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.  1892.  (Classic; Mystery) 

A collection of Sherlock Holmes mystery adventures. 

Dumas, Alexandre.  The Three Musketeers.  1844.  (Historical Fiction; Classic) 

Alexandre Dumas's classic novel about the nobleman D'Artagnan who, along with three Musketeers, defend the honor of Anne of Austria against the plots of Cardinal Richeliu during the reign of France's King Louis XIV. 

Dungy, Tony.  A Quiet Strength:  the Principles, Practices & Priorities of a Winning Life..  2007.  (Football; Christian literature; Autobiography; Nonfiction) 

NFL football coach Tony Dungy reflects on his personal and professional life; discussing his childhood, family, religious beliefs, coaching practices, Super Bowl victory, and more. Includes photographs. 

Elliot, Elisabeth.  Through Gates of Splendor.  1981.  (Christian Biography; Missions) 

Recounts the events surrounding the 1955 murder of five missionaries who were killed after making contact with a Stone Age tribe deep in the jungles of Ecuador. 

Elliot, Laura.  Under a War-Torn Sky.  2001.  (War; Historical Fiction) 

After his plane is shot down by Hitler's Luftwaffe, nineteen-year-old Henry Forester of Richmond, Virginia, strives to walk across occupied France, with the help of the French Resistance, in hopes of rejoining his unit. 

Fitzgerald, F. Scott.  The Great Gatsby.  1925.  (Classic) 

Tells the tragic love story of Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan, a dashing, enigmatic millionaire obsessed with an elusive, spoiled young woman. 

Golding, William.  Lord of the Flies.  1954.  

Shipwrecked children turn to primitive savagery in a portrayal of the collapse of social order into chaos. 

Gordon, Sheila.  Waiting for the Rain.  1987.  (Historical Fiction) 

Chronicles nine years in the lives of two South African youths--one black, one white--as their friendship ends in a violent confrontation between student and soldier. 

*Hale, Shannon.  Enna Burning.  2004.  (Fairy Tales) 

Sequel to: The goose girl. Enna hopes that her new knowledge of how to wield fire will help protect her good friend Isi--the Princess Anidori--and all of Bayern against their enemies, but the need to burn is uncontrollable and puts Enna and her loved ones in grave danger. 

*Hale, Shannon.  Goose Girl.  2003.  (Fairy Tales) 

Prequel to:  Enna Burning.  Princess Anidori, on her way to marry a prince she has never met, is betrayed by her guards and her lady-in-waiting and must become a goose girl to survive until she can reveal her true identity and reclaim the crown that is rightfully hers. 

*Hale, Shannon.  River Secrets.  2006.  (Fairy Tales) 

Continues the story begun in Goose Girl and Enna Burning.  Young Razo travels from Bayern to Tira at war's end as part of a diplomatic corps, but mysterious events in the Tiran capital fuel simmering suspicions and anger, and Razo must spy out who is responsible before it is too late and he becomes trapped in an enemy land. 

Hamilton, Bethany.  Soul Surfer:  A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board.  2004.  (Nonfiction;  Christian Autobiography) 

Bethany Hamilton shares the story of her lifelong love of surfing, and tells how she was able to recover and return to competition with the help of her family, friends, and faith, after losing her arm in a shark attack at the age of thirteen. 

Hamilton, Josh, with Tim Keown.  Beyond Belief:  Finding the Strength to Come Back.  2008.  (Nonfiction; Christian Autobiography; Sports)

Josh Hamilton chronicles his comeback from drug and alcohol addiction to playing baseball in the major leagues.

Hampton, Wilborn. War in the Middle East:  Black September and the Yom Kippur War:  A Reporter's Story.  2007.  (Nonfiction; Military history) 

News correspondent Wilborn Hampton relates his experiences covering two civil wars in the Middle East and discusses the important issues that have plagued the region for decades. 

Hansberry, Lorraine.  A Raisin in the Sun. 1959. (Classic) 

A three-act play concerned with the tensions in a middle-class African American family living on Chicago's Southside in the 1950s. 

Hawthorne, Nathaniel.  The House of Seven Gables.  1851. (Classic; Historical Fiction) 

A prominent New England family suffering under a curse is plagued by greed, vengeful acts, and violent death. 

Hemingway, Ernest.  The Old Man and the Sea.  1952.  (Pulitzer Prize; Classic) 

An old fisherman battles the sea and sharks to bring home the giant marlin he caught. 

Herlong, M.E.  The Great Wide Sea.  2008.  (Adventure; Survival)

Still mourning the death of their mother, three brothers go with their father on an extended sailing trip off the Florida Keys and have a harrowing adventure at sea.

*Herriot, James.  All Creatures Great and Small. 1971.  (Nonfiction; Autobiography) 

An English veterinarian reminisces about his life, career, and animal patients in a small village. 

Hilton, James.  The Lost Horizon.  1933.  (Fantasy; Survival; Classic) 

On the northwestern frontier of India, Conway was a passenger on a plane taken over by a native pilot and never heard of again. What Conway found in Shangri-La makes the story. 

Hope, Anthony.  The Prisoner of Zenda.  1894.  (Classic; Adventure) 

Young Rudolf Rassendyll, an English ne'er-do-well, is the living image of a distant relative, Rudolf, the new king of Ruritania. Having never seen his near-twin, Rassendyll heads for the coronation--only to encounter a fantastic plot to deprive Rudolf of his throne. 

Keller, Bill.  Tree Shaker:  The Story of Nelson Mandela.  2008.  (Biography; Nonfiction) 

Explores the life and accomplishments of Nelson Mandela, discussing his political protests, imprisonment, selection as president of South Africa, and more. 

Kidd, Sue Monk.  The Secret Life of Bees.  2002.  (Historical Fiction) 

Fourteen-year-old Lily and her companion, Rosaleen, an African-American woman who has cared for Lily since her mother's death ten years earlier, flee their home after Rosaleen is victimized by racist police officers, and find a safe haven in Tiburon, South Carolina, at the home of three beekeeping sisters, May, June, and August. 

LaHaye, Tim and Jerry B. Jenkins.  Left Behind.   1995.  (Christian Fiction; First Book in the Left Behind Series) 

Sequel:  Tribulation Force.  Airline captain Rayford Steele, stunned when over one hundred passengers vanish from his plane in the blink of an eye, quickly realizes the Rapture his wife had been telling him about--an event in which Jesus would return to take his followers to Heaven before they die--has happened and he has been left behind. 

*Lawhead, Stephen. Scarlet.  2007  (Fantasy; Historical Fiction; Christian Fiction; Second book in the King Raven Trilogy; Christy Award Winner 2008) 

Prequel:  Hood.  Forester Will Scarlet, stripped of everything he owns, joins King Raven's band of men in eleventh-century Wales, but faces a life-or-death choice when he is falsely charged with murdered and sentenced to hang--a decree that can only be reversed if he agrees to deliver Raven and his cohorts. 

Lee, Harper.  To Kill a Mockingbird.  1960. (Classic) 

Scout Finch, the young daughter of a local attorney in the Deep South during the 1930s, tells of her father's defense of an African-American man charged with the rape of a white girl. 

*Lewis, C. S.  Out of the Silent Planet.  1938.  (Classic; Science Fiction; First Book in the Space Trilogy) 

Dr. Ransom, kidnapped by a megalomaniacal physicist and his assistant, and taken to the red planet of Malacandra as a human sacrifice, escapes and sets out on an adventure in a land very different from Earth. 

*Lewis, C. S.  Perelandra.  1944.  (Classic; Science Fiction; Second Book in the Space Trilogy) 

Dr. Ranson faces evil when the planet Perelandra is invaded by a dark force who strives to create a new world order.  

*Lewis, C. S.  That Hideous Strength:  A Modern Fairy-tale for Grown-ups.  1945.  (Classic; Science Fiction; Third Book in the Space Trilogy) 

The brilliant and brave philologist Dr. Elwin Ranson amasses forces to fight against a sinister technocratic organization, secretly controlled by humanity's mortal enemies, that is plotting to "recondition" society. 

London, Jack.  Call of the Wild.  1903.  (Classic) 

Buck, who is half St. Bernard and half Scotch shepherd, is abducted and taken to the Klondike where he reverts to the wild and becomes a leader of a pack of wolves. 

Mackall, Dandi Daley.  Eva Underground. 2006.  (Historical Fiction) 

In 1978, a high school senior is forced by her widowed father to move from their comfortable Chicago suburb to help with an underground education movement in communist Poland. 

Marshall, Catherine.  Christy.  1967.  (Christian Fiction; Love Story) 

Chronicles the experiences of a young woman after she arrives to teach school in a small town in the Great Smoky Mountains in 1912. 

Miller, Sarah.  Miss Spitfire:  Reaching Helen Keller.  2007.  (Best Books for Young Adults; Historical Fiction) 

At age twenty-one, partially-blind, lonely but spirited Annie Sullivan travels from Massachusetts to Alabama to try and teach six-year-old Helen Keller, deaf and blind since age two, self-discipline and communication skills 

Mitchell, Margaret.  Gone with the Wind.  1936.  (Pulitzer Prize; Historical Fiction; War, Classic) 

Morley, David.  Healing Our World:  Inside Doctors Without Borders.  2007.  (Nonfiction) 

Presents excerpts from the author's journals depicting his experiences and those of other volunteers as they travel the globe bringing medicines and treatment to those in war-torn areas of the world. 

Orczy, Emmuska Orczy, Baroness.  The Scarlet Pimpernel.  1905.  (Classic; Historical Fiction; Action) 

Sir Percy Blakeney defies the French revolutionaries in order to save innocent men and women from being put to death in the guillotine. 

Orwell, George. Animal Farm:  A Fairy Story.   1944.  (Classic; Politcal Satire) 

Animals take over running a farm but find their utopian state is turning into a dictatorship. 

*Paolini, Christopher. Eldest.  2005.  (Fantasy; Second Book in the Inheritance Trilogy) 

Sequel to:  Eragon.  After successfully evading an Urgals ambush, Eragon is adopted into the Ingeitum clan and sent to finish his training so he can further help the Varden in their struggle against the Empire. 

*Paolini, Christopher.  Eragon. 2002.  (Fantasy; First Book in the Inheritance Trilogy) 

Prequel to:  Eldest.  In Aagaesia, a fifteen-year-old boy of unknown lineage called Eragon finds a mysterious stone that weaves his life into an intricate tapestry of destiny, magic, and power, peopled with dragons, elves, and monsters. 

Paton, Alan.  Cry the Beloved Country.  1948.  (Classic) 

Accused of murdering a white man, a young black man in South Africa is helped by his minister father and by a white attorney, but racism prevents justice from being done. 

*Pelzer, David.  A Child Called "It":  One Child's Courage to Survive.  1993.  (Nonfiction; Autobiography) 

David Pelzer, victim of one of the worst child abuse cases in the history of California, tells the story of how he survived his mother's brutality and triumphed over his past. 

Peretti, Frank.  This Present Darkness.  1986.  (Christian Fiction) 

After a reporter and a prayerful pastor begin to compare notes on the town of Ashton, they find themselves fighting a New Age plot to subjugate the townspeople, and eventually the entire human race. 

Poe, Edgar Allen.  The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings.  1982. (Classic American Literature) 

Contains sixteen short stories, one novel, and fifteen poems. 

Potok, Chaim.  The Chosen.  1967.  

Story of Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders, one an orthodox Jew the other the son of a Hasidic rabbi, living their adolescent lives in Brooklyn. 

Richardson, Don.  Peace Child.  1974.  (Christian literature; Missions) 

Describes the author and his wife's fifteen-year ministry among the Sawi people of New Guinea, headhunters and cannibals; and how they risked their own lives in order to change a value system based upon treachery.   

Richter, Conrad.  The Light in the Forest. 1953. (Classic) 

After being raised as an Indian for eleven years following his capture at the age of four, John Butler is forcibly returned to his white parents but continues to long for the freedom of Indian life. 

Rivers, Francine.  Redeeming Love.  2007.  (Christian fiction; Historical Fiction; Love Story) 

Retells the story from the Bible book of Hosea, set in California's gold country in 1850, in which Angel, sold into prostitution as a child, cannot accept that her husband truly cares for her, and must make peace with God before she feels free to take the love Michael offers. 

Shakespeare, William.  Any play except Hamlet, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, or Romeo and Juliet. 

Sheth, Kashmira.  Keeping Corner.  2007. (Historical Fiction; Children's Books of the Year 12 & up; Notable Books for a Global Society) 

In India in the 1940s, thirteen-year-old Leela's happy, spoiled childhood ends when her husband since age nine, whom she barely knows, dies, leaving her a widow whose only hope of happiness could come from Mahatma Ghandi's social and political reforms. 

Stevenson, Robert Louis.  Kidnapped:  The Adventures of David Balfour.  1886.   (Classic; Adventure; Survival; History) 

In 1751, David Balfour, a Scottish boy, is cheated out of his inheritance by his uncle, who has him kidnapped, sold as a slave, and thrown onto a ship--but with the help of a fugitive, David fights his captors, makes a daring escape amidst a shipwreck, and hopes to survive a treacherous journey home. 

Stevenson, Robert Louis.  Treasure Island.   1883.  (Classic; Adventure) 

While going through the possessions of a deceased guest who owed them money, the mistress of the inn and her son find a treasure map that leads them to a pirate's fortune. 

Stowe, Harriet Beecher.  Uncle Tom's Cabin. 1852.  (Political Fiction; Classic) 

Harriet Beecher Stowe offers an indictment of the pre-Civil War South through the story of Uncle Tom, an elderly slave who maintains his human dignity in the face of cruelty, suffering, and death. 

Twain, Mark.  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.  1884.  (Classic) 

Huckleberry Finn, the son of the town drunk, and Jim, an escaped slave, make a break for freedom down the Mississippi River on a raft, sharing many adventures along the way. 

Tyers, Kathy. Firebird Trilogy.  2004. (Fantasy; Christian Fiction) 

Firebird -- Fusion fire -- Crown of fire. 

Verne, Jules.  20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.  1869.  (Classic; Science Fiction) 

Jules Verne's classic nineteenth-century science-fiction tale about a French professor and his companions who are trapped aboard a futuristic submarine with a mad sea captain and come face to face with exotic ocean creatures and strange sights hidden from the world above. 

Wolf, Allan.  New Found Land:  A Novel.  2004.  (Historical Fiction) 

The letters and thoughts of Thomas Jefferson, members of the Corps of Discovery, their guide Sacagawea, and Captain Lewis's Newfoundland dog, all tell of the historic exploratory expedition to seek a water route to the Pacific Ocean.