New Fiction for July

Austen, Jane. Emma. YA/ AUS
The most perfect of Jane Austen’s perfect novels begins with twenty-one-year-old Emma Woodhouse comfortably dominating the social order in the village of Highbury, convinced that she has both the understanding and the right to manage other people’s lives—for their own good, of course. Her well-meant interfering centers on the aloof Jane Fairfax, the dangerously attractive Frank Churchill, the foolish if appealing Harriet Smith, and the ambitious young vicar Mr. Elton—and ends with her complacency shattered, her mind awakened to some of life’s more intractable dilemmas, and her happiness assured.

Buck, Pearl S. The Good Earth. YA/ BUC
Set in China, this is a drama about a simple peasant farmer who grows rich with the help of his faithful wife. Tragedy follows as he betrays his family and neglects the earth he had worshipped.

Crane, Stephen. The Red Badge of Courage. YA/ CRA
In the spring of 1863, while engaged in the fierce battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia, a young Union soldier matures to manhood and finds peace of mind as he comes to grips with his conflicting emotions about war.

Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. YA/ TWA
This is Mark Twain's first novel about Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer, and it has become one of the world's best-loved books. It is a fond reminiscence of life in Hannibal, Missouri, an evocation of Mark Twain's own boyhood along the banks of the Mississippi during the 1840s. "Most of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred," he tells us. This is a book one never forgets: Tom whitewashing Aunt Polly's fence, Tom and Huck's dreadful oath, their cure for warts ("spunk water" and dead cats), Tom's puppy love for Becky Thatcher, the boys playing "pirate" on Jackson's Island. This Mark Twain Library text is the only edition since the first (1876) to be based directly on the author's manuscript.

Twain, Mark. Life on the Mississippi. YA/ TWA
Life on the Mississippi is a memoir by Mark Twain detailing his days as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River before the American Civil War. A good portion of the work also deals with his post-war visit to the old haunts. Contains the complete text of the first edition published in 1883 with illustrations.

Barnes, John. Tales of the Madman Underground. YA/ BAR
In September 1973, as the school year begins in his depressed Ohio town, high-school senior Kurt Shoemaker determines to be "normal," despite his chaotic home life with his volatile, alcoholic mother and the deep loyalty and affection he has for his friends in the therapy group dubbed the Madman Underground.

Friedman, Aimee. Sea Change. YA/ FRI
When her estranged grandmother dies and leaves her mother the family home on Selkie Island, seventeen-year-old Miranda meets her mother on the Georgia island, where she discovers mysterious family secrets and another side to her logical, science-loving self.

Pike, Aprilynne. Wings. YA/ PIK
When a plant blooms out of fifteen-year-old Laurel's back, it leads her to discover the fact that she is a faerie and that she has a crucial role to play in keeping the world safe from the encroaching enemy trolls.

Pon, Cindy. Silver Phoenix. YA/ PON
With her father long overdue from his journey and a lecherous merchant blackmailing her into marriage, seventeen-year-old Ai Ling becomes aware of a strange power within her as she goes in search of her parent.

Smiley, Jane. Ordinary Love and Good Will. Two Novellas. YA/ SMI
ORDINARY LOVE: At a reunion with her grown children, a woman recalls the long-ago affair that ended her relationship with their father--and changed all their lives irrevocably.
GOOD WILL: Despite the carefully self-sufficient life he has designed for his small family, a man discovers that even the right choices have unexpected consequences--sometimes heart-breaking ones.

Steinbeck, John. The Red Pony. YA/STE
Traces a boy's journey into manhood after his father gives him a pony to train and care for.

Strasser, Todd. Boot Camp. YA/ STR
After ignoring several warnings to stop dating his teacher, Garrett is sent to Lake Harmony, a boot camp that uses unorthodox and brutal methods to train students to obey their parents.


Garsee, Jeannine. Say the Word. YA/ GAR
After the death of her estranged mother, who left Ohio years ago to live with her lesbian partner in New York City, seventeen-year-old Shawna Gallagher's life is transformed by revelations about her family, her best friend, and herself.

Henry, April. Torched. YA/HEN
In order to save her parents from going to jail for possession of marijuana, sixteen-year-old Ellie must help the FBI uncover the intentions of a radical environmental group by going undercover.

Mitchell, Saundra. Shadowed Summer. YA/MIT
In the small town of Ondine, Louisiana, fourteen-year-old Iris uncovers family secrets when she conjures up the ghost of a boy missing for decades and decides to solve the mystery of his disappearance.

Ryan, Carrie. The Forest of Hands and Teeth. YA/RYA
Through twists and turns of fate, orphaned Mary seeks knowledge of life, love, and especially what lies beyond her walled village and the surrounding forest, where dwell the unconsecrated, aggressive flesh-eating people who were once dead.

Valentine, Jenny. Broken Soup. YA/VAL
A photographic negative and two surprising new friends become the catalyst for healing as fifteen-year-old Rowan struggles to keep her family and her life together after her brother's death.


Abrahams, Peter. Reality Check. YA/ ABR
After a knee injury destroys sixteen-year-old Cody's college hopes, he drops out of high school and gets a job in his small Montana town, but when his ex-girlfriend disappears from her Vermont boarding school, Cody travels cross-country to join the search.

Herrick, Steven. Cold Skin. YA/HER
In a rural Australian coal mining town shortly after World War II, teenaged Eddie makes a startling discovery when he investigates the murder of a local high school girl.

Hoban, Julia. Willow. YA/ HOB
Sixteen-year-old Willow, who was driving the car that killed both of her parents, copes with the pain and guilt by cutting herself, until she meets a smart and sensitive boy who is determined to help her stop.

Peck, Dale. Sprout. YA/ PEC
Moving from Long Island to Kansas after his mother dies, a teenaged boy nicknamed Sprout is surprised to find new friends, a fascinating landscape, and romantic love.

Testa, Dom. The Comet’s Curse. YA/ TES
Desperate to save the human race after a comet's deadly particles devastate the adult population, scientists create a ship that will carry a crew of 251 teenagers to a home in a distant solar system.

Whitman. Radiant Darkness. YA/ WHI
Persephone runs off to the Underworld with Hades, with whom she has fallen in love, but when her mother Demeter threatens to destroy the earth to save her, Persephone finds a way to come back once a year, bringing spring.

New Music for July

Eminem. Relapse. YA CD MUSIC EMI

Moby. Wait for Me. YA CD MUSIC MOB


Eels. Electro- shock blues. YA CD MUSIC EEL

Foo Fighters. The colour and the shape. YA CD MUSIC FOO

PJ Harvey. Rid of Me. YA CD MUSIC HAR

Rage Against the Machine. YA CD MUSIC RAG

R.E.M. Green. YA CD MUSIC REM

Sonic Youth. Daydream Nation. YA CD MUSIC SON

New Non-Fiction for July

Weinstein, Ph.D, Bruce. Is It Still Cheating If I Don’t Get Caught? YA/ 170/ WEI
Advice for teens based on five simple principles: do no harm, make things better, respect others, be fair, and be loving. Drawing examples from teen life, the nationally syndicated columnist offers specific questions, sample responses, and explanations of the ethical responses using his principles. His wide-ranging topics range from everyday matters of friendship, bullying, athletics, drugs, dating, social networking, and downloading intellectual property to larger issues such as dealing with grief. The text is direct and accessible, frequently broken up by black-and-white cartoons and changes in typography. He makes the important point that ethics require paying special heed to both oneself as well as others; it’s a matter of balance.

Hafiz, Dilara, Yasmine Hafiz and Imran Hafiz. The American Muslim teenager’s handbook. YA/ 297.5/ HAF
Everything you ever wanted to know, but were too afraid to ask.

Burton, Bonnie. Girls Against Girls. YA/ 305.2352/ BUR
This guide for teenage girls explains why girls can sometimes be mean to each other, what to do if you are a victim of bullying, and the importance of treating other girls with respect.

Benson, Michael. Beyond. A solar system voyage. YA/ 523.2/ BEN
Presents the solar system from the perspective of the space probes sent to explore the heavens.

Horne, Richard and Tracey Turner. 101 Things You Wish You’d Invented- and some you wish no one had. YA/ 609/ HOR

Monaque, Mathilde. Trouble in My Head. A young girl’s fight with depression. YA/ 616.8527/ MON
Mathilde Monaque developed severe depression when she was just 14. The eldest in a family of six and an exceptionally bright and gifted little girl, the discovery shook her family to the core. "Trouble in My Head" is Mathilde's tender and illuminating account of her struggle to surface from a disease that could have taken her life. With remarkable sensitivity and lucidity she describes her experience of depression, her days in the teenage hospital and her battle to conquer the disease. Mathilde's perspective as a sufferer of teenage depression is unique. Unlike adult depression which involves feelings of guilt, Mathilde describes teenage depression as a breaking down of certainties, the fear of being oneself, the fear of not loving and of not being loved. Adults and teenagers alike will find inspiration and insight in her touching and remarkable account.