WRITTEN BY EMMA DAKIN
GRAPHICS CREATED BY CODY DELONG
Turtles All the Way Down
by John Green
Young Adult
Sixteen-year-old Aza, who struggles with anxiety and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, teams up with her best friend Daisy to investigate a mystery surrounding a fugitive billionaire. Both heartbreaking and humorous in its storytelling, this novel is a powerful and insightful look into the mind of someone struggling with mental illness. (Dutton Books for Young Readers)
The Leavers
by Lisa Ko
Fiction
After the disappearance of his immigrant mother, Deming Guo is adopted into a white family and given a new American name, “Daniel.” Struggling to reconcile his Chinese culture with his new life, “The Leavers” is a moving coming-of-age story as Daniel seeks a sense of belonging. (Algonquin Books)
The Hate U Give
by Angie Thomas
Young Adult
After her friend is shot by a police officer, 16-year-old Starr Carter struggles with loss, identity and her future in a racially-divided America. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, “The Hate U Give”explores tough and timely issues through Starr’s authentic and emphatic narrative. (Balzer + Bray)
Sing, Unburied, Sing
by Jesmyn Ward
Fiction
A character-driven drama, “Sing, Unburied, Sing” centers around several generations of a Mississippi family: cancer-stricken Mam and stoic Pop, their addict daughter Leonie and her children, JoJo and Kayla. The novel tackles both the ugliness and beauty of family and rural 21st-century America. (Scribner)
The Stranger in the Woods
by Lisa Ko
Non-fiction
“The Stranger in the Woods” is a deep and thought-provoking look at the life of Christopher Knight, who lived without human contact for 27 years in the forests of Maine. Based on extensive interviews with Knight himself, this novel offers a detailed account of the man who chose solitude over society. (Knopf)
We Were the Lucky Ones
by Georgia Hunter
Historical Fiction
Based on a true story, “We Were the Lucky Ones” tells the incredible story of a family of Polish Jews during World War II. Separated from one another over the course of the war, the family is determined to survive and reunite against all odds. (Viking)
