Hurricane Song by Paul Volponi.

Miles has been living with his father for a few months in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina hits.  He and his father, a jazz musician who often pays more attention to his music than his son, and his uncle try to drive out of New Orleans before the storm but when their car breaks down they are forced to head to the Superdome.  They spend the length of the storm there, in stifling heat, among crowds of people, and with broken toilet facilities and little food and water.  As the situation deteriorates and gangs of thugs appear in the Superdome, Miles and his family must decide whether to just take care of themselves or to risk themselves to help strangers.

I saw this on several best books of the year lists and had to try it.  My synopsis above barely scratches the surface of this novel.  It is taut with the tensions between a teen son and his father even before Katrina arrives.  Take that tension and place it under even more pressure and you have this book which magnificently captures the racial divide during the crisis, the dire situation people found themselves surviving in, and yet also the hope, the community and the strength of people.  Volponi also weaves music through the story as well as choices.  The voices of his characters are real, individual and ring raw and true. 

Ideal reading for teen boys, some people may be turned off by the strong (but very accurate) language in the book.  Appropriate for ages 14-17.

The Compound by S. A. Bodeen

When the US was attacked with nuclear weapons, Eli and most of his family were the lucky ones with an underground compound where they were safe.  To be safe, they had to stay in the compound for 15 years.  Six years have now passed and Eli has grown into a solitary teen who hates to be touched.  His twin brother Eddy and his grandmother had both been accidentally left out of the compound when the door was shut.  Though he tries not to think of his brother, he finds himself often dwelling on him.  His other siblings who are in the compound with him and his parents are either ignored or heaped with abuse.  The pace of life in the compound is slow and steady, with everyone relying on their routines to keep sane.  Something is about to happen to shatter that complacency and make them question everything.

Bodeen has written a taut thriller that male teen readers will enjoy.  The dynamic between Eli and his family rings true as does his desperation to be separate and alone.  As the truth about their life is revealed to the reader in tantalizingly brief glimpses, readers will be unable to put the book down.  Bodeen’s pacing is masterfully crafted from the slow, almost claustrophobic early part of the novel to the breakneck speed as their world changes.  Eli is a distasteful protagonist who is neither kind nor interested in others, one might think this would make him less effective, but instead it makes the book even more gripping and fascinating as the reader deals with this unreliable narrator.

Highly recommended for teen readers who enjoy Scott Westerfeld’s dystopian fiction.

Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle

Three masters of the teen novel come together and create a holiday wealth of great writing.   The book begins with Maureen Johnson’s story where a girl named Jubilee (yes, Jubilee) is forced to travel on Christmas Eve on a train into a blizzard because her parents are arrested for participating in a riot at a Christmas store.  Jubilee’s train is stopped by the snow, she finds herself in a Waffle House, and then is rescued by a quite nice boy who is not impressed by the cheerleaders who were on Jubilee’s train.  John Green’s story comes next and we see the same storm from a different perspective as three friends (two boys and a girl) enter the blizzard to make their way to the Waffle House lured by the promise of cheerleaders and hash browns.  The book finishes with Lauren Myracle’s story that mainly takes place the day after the storm and we see Addie trying to move ahead with her life after she cheated on her boyfriend and he didn’t come to Starbucks on Christmas Eve to make up.  The reader by this point knows who her boyfriend is and the backstory of his dismal Christmas, the joy is in watching Addie discover herself and the truth.

The writing here is pure perfection.  Jubilee is a wonderful, cynical protagonist who has a boyfriend that she adores but who is not worthy of her.  Readers will enjoy the chemistry between Jubilee and her rescuer far before the pair realize what they have.  John Green’s three characters are written in his classic style with lots of snarkiness and inside jokes.  As with all of his characters, readers will wish they had them as friends or that they were clever enough to pun like them.  The final story loses the cynicism and snark and pulls all of the stories together.  The self-discovery of Addie will keep readers entranced and the mystical qualities add a real sense of Christmas miracles to the entire book.

Highly recommended for teens looking for good romance paired with great writing.  A perfect Christmas gift for teen girls on your list.  Appropriate for ages 13-16.

Skinned by Robin Wasserman

Lia had the perfect life, beautiful, popular and rich, she and her friends ruled the school, dictating fashion and status.  When Lia is in a horrible accident, she awakens to find that her memory has been downloaded to a new body, a robotic one.  Lia still looks completely human, but she has to relearn how to do everything.  When she re-enters society, she discovers that her boyfriend is distant and unable to even force himself to do more than touch her, her little sister has taken her place in Lia’s group of friends, and society as a whole is questioning whether she is human or not.  Lia has to learn to live in her new body and new life which is entirely different than the one she lost. 

Wasserman’s writing is enticing and a great deal of fun to read.  She perfectly captures the angst of being a teen and couples it beautifully with the dystopian science fiction setting.  Lia is a great protagonist: complex, often self-absorbed, and completely "human."  It is a treat to find such a complicated character at the center of a teen novel.

Highly recommended for fans of Scott Westerfeld, this book has a fabulous cover that will get it flying off library shelves.  The book is obviously the start to a series, and I look forward to reading more about Lia.  Appropriate for ages 14-16.

Foundation by Mercedes Lackey

Return to Lackey’s vivid world of Valdemar and a new Herald trainee.  Mags was taken as a child to work in gem mines.  He was routinely starved and abused, not realizing that his existence differed from that of other people.  Told that his parents were criminals and he had Bad Blood, Mags never questioned that this life was his due.  All of that changed when Dallen, his Companion, comes for him and carries him away on his broad white back.  The Companions in Valdemar are sentient horses who have certain powers.  Mags’ Gift is Mind Speech, which helps Dallen teach him the niceties of the real world and aid him in slowly adapting to a new life where he is fed, clothed, and taught to be a Herald.  From his life in the mines, Mags brings certain talents and perspectives that will find a unique niche in the emerging world of the Herald’s Collegium.

Lackey’s first Valdemar book in about five years is very teen friendly, despite being published as an adult fantasy novel.  Mags is an intriguing protagonist whose uneducated perspective on the Heralds and his role with them allows readers new to the series a great entry point.  Lackey excels at writing accessible books filled with enough action and intrigue to keep them moving briskly.  Her detailed touches fill her world with life and depth.

This book makes a perfect entry point to the lengthy Valdemar series.  It is the first in a new trilogy within the series and the ending will have readers gasping for more.  Expect demand for the next in the series where this one is enjoyed.  This novel is appropriate for middle school and high school aged students. 

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott.

This is one of the most gripping and brutal novels for teens I have ever read.  It is the story of Alice, who was abducted as a 10-year-old by Ray, who has sexually and emotionally abused her for five years.  Alice knows that if she tries to escape, her entire family will be killed.  Now Ray has started starving her to try to maintain her childlike body, not allowing her to get over 100 pounds.  His violence is also increasing as are his death threats.  Alice has long wanted to die, but death eludes her time and again though she wishes for it often.  Ray now wants a new little girl to join them, so Alice is allowed to head to a park and start scouting for what she can only hope will be her replacement.

This is a book that makes you want to scream.  It’s depictions of the horrors of Alice’s life are so plainly laid out, unflinchingly documented, and horribly vivid.  Scott’s writing can be poetic at times, underlining the brutality and desperation of the book.  Her pacing is perfection, leaving readers gasping for air as the oppressive nature of the story becomes too much.  This is a book that you will set down, only to return to immediately.  It is a book that will linger in your mind, enter your dreams, and change the way you see.  It is a book that is brutal truth that we often turn away from.  It is suffocating, dreadful, horrific and supremely, magically human all at the same time.

Heart-wrenching in its honesty, this book will appeal to many teens.  Hand it to the fans of A Child Called It.  Appropriate for ages 16-18.