Special Collections
High Interest Y. A. Novels
Description: High Interest, Low Vocabulary books are for teenagers looking to advance their reading capabilities. Perfect for emerging teen readers. #teens
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Death on the River
by John WilsonSurviving prison camp is one thing, but can Jake survive his trip home?
Death Wind
by William BellAllie's life has just taken a turn for the worse; not only do her parents fight all the time, but she is failing more classes than not and now she thinks she might be pregnant. Unable to face up to her parents she decides to run away. She hooks up with her old friend Razz, a professional skateboarder, and goes on the road. Razz is ranked number one but constant confrontations with the challenger Slash put Allie in some dangerous situations. With the rivalry heating up, Razz and Allie head toward home--right into the path of a fierce tornado. To survive in the horror and destruction that follow the storm, Allie has to call on an inner strength she didn't know she had. Also available in Spanish.
Delaying the Game
by Lorna Schultz NicholsonFor the first time, Kaleigh is playing on an all-girls hockey team. Never a "girlygirl," she misses her former teammates, has trouble following the different rules of girls' hockey, and gets frustrated when her fellow players get distracted from their game. That is, until Shane comes along. Soon the attention of this older boy is taking up too much of her time, and Kaleigh finds herself unsure whether she can balance hockey, her friendships, and this new dating-life.
Dog Days
by Becky CitraBrady is a dreadful card player and he doesn't like dogs. His mother has moved him across the country to be near to his grandfather who insists on playing (and winning) endless games of Crazy Eights and whose ornery, ancient dog makes Brady's life miserable. Abra, next door, is nice to him, but she dresses like a witch and she's a girl. The only way that Brady can see to make real friends in his new home is to enter the upcoming dog show, but how is he going to do that without a dog?
Dog Walker
by Karen Spafford-FitzTurk needs cash, but he's allergic to his own sweat, so getting a job is out of the question. Then Turk makes an important discovery: Girls love dogs. And Turk's friends will do anything to meet girls. So Turk starts a dog walking business. His friends walk the dogs and Turk collects half the money. In an attempt to impress dog-loving Carly, Turk brags about his business in front of the school tough guy, Chuck. But when Chuck learns the true nature of the business and wants in on the action, Turk risks losing his business and, more important, Carly's respect. This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read! The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.
Dominion
by Shane ArbuthnottMolly grew up hearing the tales of Haviland Stout, her ancestor who discovered the dangerous magical spirits that inhabit the far corners of the world. Now, on the edge of the New World, in the British Dominion of Terra Nova, Molly and her family collect spirits aboard their airship, the Legerdemain. But when Molly captures a spirit that can speak and claims to have been Haviland's friend, her entire life is upended. What if everything she knows about the spirits, and her own history, is a lie? In her hunt for the truth, Molly will have to challenge the most powerful company in Terra Nova and find the courage to reshape her world.
Down (Orca Soundings)
by Norah McclintockAfter serving time for assault, Remy must learn to control his anger.
Dream Racer (SideStreets)
by Jacqueline GuestZoë's caught the racing bug. Not only is she following in the tire tracks of her older brother as a rally racer, she thinks she might even have the stuff to become a race car engineer one day. But Zoë's mother has another dream for her daughter, and it's called "Zoë Kendall, M.D."
The Dream Where Losers Go
by Beth GoobieNo one knows why she hurt herself, least of all Skey. After five long months in treatment for self-destructive behavior, Skey continues to dream of dark tunnels with mysterious designs carved into their stone walls, a place where she is safe and alone. Then she encounters another dreamer, a boy her own age, dreaming the same dream, wandering the same tunnels. A boy with secrets much like her own. While trying desperately to remember what happened that sent her away and who the boy is that she met in the dream tunnels, Skey's life plummets farther out of control. When she realizes her friends do not have her best interests at heart and they may be the reason she is lost, Skey must face her fears and the truth of the dream tunnels, and find her way back to solid reality.
Dunces Anonymous
by Kate JaimetJosh Johnson's mother wants him to run for class president. Josh just wants to run and hide. If only there were a club to help downtrodden eleven-year-olds escape their parents' ambitions! But since no such club exists, Josh has to invent one—he calls it Dunces Anonymous, and before he knows it, the membership is up to three. Magnolia and Wang help Josh lose the school presidential election, but that's just the beginning of the club's activities. Magnolia, pressured by her mom into trying out for the role of Juliet in the school's play, finds herself fending off the advances of an overly amorous Romeo. Wang's father has forced him to join the school chess club, but Wang desperately wants to take fencing lessons instead. As the three friends try to free Magnolia from the school play, liberate Wang from the chess club and get rid of horrible Stacey Hogarth, who has vowed to become the new president of Dunces Anonymous, they realize that they all have talents—if only their parents could see them.
The Enforcer
by Bill SwanCan Jack's hockey team adapt to his Grandpa P.J.'s old-school methods when he becomes their coach?
Escalate
by Sigmund BrouwerTeam Retribution has been contacted by a teen who is being blackmailed into handing over secrets from the family business. Jace, with the help of his brother, Bentley, start to investigate and soon learn that the teen's family, like his own, is not what it appears to be. Jace, after learning he was switched at birth, then sets out to track down his birth family. The Retribution series is made up of six books, the original three, Burned, Exposed and Unleashed, and the three sequels, Terminate, Infiltrate and Escalate, by authors Natasha Deen, Judith Graves and Sigmund Brouwer. The RETRIBUTION series: "These interconnected narratives are page-turning reads, offering adventure, intrigue, and satisfying retribution. Jace, Josie, and Raven are fiercely independent, clever, and intelligent protagonists; each has a rich backstory and an engaging narrative voice that hooks readers from the beginning. Will appeal to a wide range of readers, including reluctant readers who need a quick hook." - VOYA
Every Move
by Peter McpheeEdgy and suspenseful young adult fiction that explores topics teens want to read about. It begins with a chance encounter: teenage Emily and her friends come to the aid of a stranger who is being bullied by a gang. Emily forgets about the incident, but the young man she helped becomes fixated on her. Only when her real love interest is attacked does she begin to understand that the stranger's interest in her has become a full-blown obsession. Every Move is a realistic but chilling look at this threatening and all-too-common form of harassment.
Explore
by Christy GoerzenWhen Mike Longridge gets himself in trouble yet again, he is given a choice: juvenile detention or an outdoor program called Explore. He opts for Explore, but soon finds himself wondering how he is going to survive ten months with the hippies and keeners in the program. He's never felt so out of place and is certain he will never get the hang of the outdoor activities. Will Mike go back to his old trouble-making ways or will he finally find a place to belong? This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read! The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.
Exposure
by Patricia MurdochJulie is tired of being tormented at school, tired of not fitting in and being the butt of jokes. When her brother brings home a camera with images of her chief tormentor in a compromising situation, she sees a way to level the playing field. When her attempt at turning the tables goes wrong, she is left even more on the outside and struggling to do the right thing. Also available in Spanish.
Falling Star
by Robert RaynerThe Brunswick Valley kids are back, and this time they're taking it on the road. In order to secure the top spot in the league, the gang is playing a series of away-games at schools around the province. With their teenage coach, Ice, at the wheel of the van, victory, hilarity, and complications are sure to follow!
False Start
by Sandra DierschCaitlynn is no fan of the water, but after breaking her ankle playing soccer, swimming is the safest sport for her. She makes a deal with her grandfather to join a swim team if he'll stay and watch all of her practices. But after Grandpa has a stroke and can no longer tag along, Caitlynn doesn't want to keep up her end of the deal. In False Start, overcoming obstacles requires more than hard work -- it takes a positive attitude.
FastBack Beach
by Shirlee S. MathesonOn probation for car theft, Miles has to stand up to his friends and do the right thing. ( Orca Soundings)
Feral (Orca Books)
by Bev CookeA street kid and a small cat experience fear, hunger and pain in a dangerous subterranean world.
Fighting for Gold
by Lorna Schultz NicholsonCanada is recognized as a leader in men's and women's hockey - but in 2006 Canada had yet to conquer the world of sledge hockey, the Paralympic version of ice hockey played by athletes with a physical disability in the lower part of the body.
Finding Elmo
by Monique PolakFifteen-year-old Tim loves his job at his dad's pet store, partly because he gets to spend time with his best friend, a black cockatoo named Elmo. But things at work have been tense since the store moved to a larger, more expensive location. To make extra money his father rents out the store's exotic birds for parties and Tim is furious at this exploitation of his friend. When Elmo is stolen from one of the parties, the police are unconcerned about the theft. Tim and his new human friend, Sapna, set out to find Elmo and discover that Elmo is more valuable than they'd ever imagined. This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for middle-grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!
First Descent
by Pam WithersMontana-born Rex loves nothing more than to take his kayak out on a river, the faster and more powerful the better. When he gets the opportunity to tackle the well-named El Furioso in southwest Colombia, he is thrilled. He anticipates the river's challenges, but finds himself in a situation where the real danger is human. In Colombia, he meets Myriam Calambás, an indígena, who has lived along the El Furioso all her life. Though she loves its rushing waters, she dreams of leaving to get an education so that she can help her people. Her dreams, and her very survival, are in the balance when she and Rex are caught up in the clash between paramilitaries, working for rich landowners, and guerillas, who are supposed to be protecting the poor.Pam Withers' skill at writing about extreme adventures combines with a compelling story about an endangered world and a people struggling for their very right to exist.From the Hardcover edition.
First Time
by Meg TillyHaley and Lynn are best friends. When Lynn meets Chad, a player several years older, Haley feels left out. She tries to be happy for her friend, but when her mother's new boyfriend starts making unwanted advances, Haley finds she has no one to tell. Not wanting to upset her mother's happiness and finding that Lynn is drifting away, Haley has to face her tormentor alone and face up to some very hard truths.
Flip Turn
by Monique PolakVictoria is a hard-working member of a Montreal swim team. Other swimmers are spurred on by their parents - but not hers. Her mother doesn't seem to be interested in much of anything these days.