When required reading stops, reading for fun begins. Here are a few books for teens to get lost in this summer:
Eleanor and Park by Rowell Rainbow (2013): Eleanor isn't the type of girl who would fall in love on a school bus - but she does. Eleanor has just returned home. Kicked out a year ago by her mother's abusive boyfriend, Eleanor has good reasons to want to keep her head down. Park is a half-Korean teen in a predominantly white neighbourhood. He does well at school, diligently goes to karate practice but can't seem to live up to his father's expectations. Every day, Eleanor and Park sit side-by-side on the bus without saying a word until Park notices Eleanor reading his comics over his shoulder. Soon, their daily ritual of reading together becomes much more. This sweet and heartbreaking romance will win the interest of any romance-loving teen.
Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (2011): Life in the small community on Thisby island revolves around the races. Each fall, the bravest islanders try to capture a water horse and survive the training to ride in the race. Water horses are dangerous, unpredictable and carnivorous but the prize for the fastest rider is more money than most islanders make during an entire year. Four-time winner Sean Kendrick doesn't take his skill for granted. He's focused on winning while keeping an eye on inexperienced riders; this group includes Kate Connelly. Kate needs the money, badly. Despite a promise to her late parents to never race, Kate enters hoping to keep herself and her brothers in their home. Stivfvater's thrilling take on the myth of the kelpie, a Celtic folk-tale, will keep readers racing to keep up to the powerful beasts.
Flip by Martyn Bedford (2011): One morning, Alex wakes up in another boy's body six months in the future. Gradually, Alex finds out more about the boy whose body he is inexplicably inhabiting. Philip - or Flip, as he's known - is athletic, handsome and popular. Alex is at once enjoying it and terrified. As Flip, Alex's asthma is gone, he's taller, leaner and has two girlfriends. In his old body, Alex had never kissed a girl and now they're lining up. Despite these perks, he has to get back to his old life. But how? And who will believe him? At times funny and sad, this is a refreshing telling of a familiar tale.
Boy21 by Matthew Quick (2012): Living in Bellmont, a Philadelphia neighbourhood plagued by gangs, drugs and racial tensions, Finley stays sane in an otherwise insane world thanks to basketball. All summer, he has been working out and shooting hoops, preparing for his last year on the varsity basketball team. Russ, a teen from California, used to be a basketball star until the gruesome murder of his parents caused him to have a psychotic break. Now, Russ is living with his grandparents in Bellmont. Russ withdraws from reality and answers only to the name Boy21, his former basketball number. Finley's basketball coach has asked Finley to help Russ, hoping that Russ will be able to carry the team to the championship. Finley can hardly keep his own life under control - how can the coach expect him to take on a tragic nut-case like Boy21?
The Diviners by Libba Bray (2012): Set in America in the 1920s, The Diviners is the story of a typical teenager with an unusual gift. Pretty and outspoken, Evie O'Neil is an easy object for the affection of others, especially men. Her parents have had enough. To teach Evie a lesson, they send her to live with her uncle in Manhattan. Although her parents meant this as a punishment, Evie is thrilled. Exploring the city's speakeasies, dance-halls and movie houses will be so thrilling compared to her life in Ohio. Evie's carefree existence comes to a halt when Evie and her uncle are implicated in a series of murders in New York. Evie's special power could solve the murder but will exposing herself lead to more trouble? Teens will get lost in this jaunty, supernatural mystery.
Ask at your local public library for these books and other suggestions.
A Good Read is a column by Tri-City librarians that is published every Wednesday. Dana Ionson is a librarian and summer reading club coordinator at Port Coquitlam's Terry Fox Library.
