Best Books Sharing Session - YA
A Conversation @ #GoLibraries 2023
Erin Dietsch
Teacher Librarian
Russell Middle School
emdietsch@mpsomaha.org
Stephanie Burdic
Teacher Librarian
Millard North High School
saburdic@mpsomaha.org
Share your favorite reads from 2022!
Add to the Google Spreadsheet:�#GoLibraries 2023 Best Books of 2022
Link to the 2021
Best Books List
Burdic’s Best Bets of 2022 High School
When Springville residents--at least the ones still alive--are questioned about what happened on prom night, they all have the same explanation . . . Maddy did it.
A dark young adult comedy about four unlikely friends dealing with the messy side of grief who embark on a road trip to Graceland.
Louisa, a teenage Metis girl living on the Canadian prairie, expects to spend her summer before university scooping ice cream at her family's shop, but things quickly become complicated as former friends resurface, family secrets are revealed, and the father she wanted to stay behind bars forever begins to contact her.
Calliope’s search for answers about her mother's mysterious death leads to a powerful secret society at her new boarding school--and a dangerous game of revenge that will leave her forever changed.
Jay discovers that mountain resort where he lives and works with his friends and family is also a doomsday oasis for the rich and powerful who expect top-notch customer service even as the world outside the resort's walls disintegrate.
After getting rejected from her dream college, sixteen-year-old Filipino American Perla Perez forges her own acceptance and commits to living a lie at university.
The Weight of Blood
When Springville residents--at least the ones still alive--are questioned about what happened on prom night, they all have the same explanation . . . Maddy did it.
An outcast at her small-town Georgia high school, Madison Washington has always been a teasing target for bullies. And she's dealt with it because she has more pressing problems to manage. Until the morning a surprise rainstorm reveals her most closely kept secret: Maddy is biracial. She has been passing for white her entire life at the behest of her fanatical white father, Thomas Washington.
After a viral bullying video pulls back the curtain on Springville High's racist roots, student leaders come up with a plan to change their image: host the school's first integrated prom as a show of unity. The popular white class president convinces her Black superstar quarterback boyfriend to ask Maddy to be his date, leaving Maddy wondering if it's possible to have a normal life.
But some of her classmates aren't done with her just yet. And what they don't know is that Maddy still has another secret . . . one that will cost them all their lives.
Very Bad People
Six years ago, Calliope Bolan's mother drove the family van into a lake with her three daughters inside. The girls escaped, but their mother drowned, and the truth behind the "accident" remains a mystery Calliope is determined to solve. Now sixteen, she transfers to Tipton Academy, the same elite boarding school her mother once attended. Tipton promises a peek into the past and a host of new opportunities--including a coveted invitation to join Haunt and Rail, an exclusive secret society that looms over campus like a legend.
Calliope accepts, stepping into the exhilarating world of the "ghosts," a society of revolutionaries fighting for social justice. But when Haunt and Rail commits to exposing a dangerous person on campus, it becomes clear that some ghosts define justice differently than others.
As the society's tactics escalate, Calliope uncovers a possible link between Haunt and Rail and her mother's deadly crash. Now, she must question what lengths the society might go to in order to see a victory--and if the secret behind her mother's death could be buried here at Tipton.
Summer of Bitter and Sweet
An Indigenous teen’s journey to self-discovery, community, and acceptance. Change is coming for Métis 18-year-old Lou whether she likes it or not. Her mom is away selling her beadwork at powwows, and her uncles are arguing about their ice cream business. She’ll be spending her summer running the Michif Creamery alongside her best friend, Florence, and her coercive newly ex-boyfriend (both White). Former friend King returns to town three years after their falling out, but she can’t decide if she’s ready to rebuild their relationship. When her White biological father is released following his prison sentence for the violent sexual assault of Lou’s mother when she was 16, he begins harassing her and threatening the family business. Lou must decide if she will keep this to herself or seek support in her community. Bisexual Jamaican Canadian King gently helps Lou navigate the intersections of her trauma and her sex repulsion, introducing her to the concepts of asexuality and demisexuality, identities in which she finds clarity and hope. Their tender romance is just one of several kinds of connection and care that are given equal weight by Lou’s compelling first-person narration. Debut author Ferguson, who is Métis and White, touches on intergenerational family suffering at the hands of the state, mental health, substance abuse, racism, sexual harassment and assault, and missing and murdered Indigenous women—all with nuance and care.
Heart-rending and healing; a winning blend that will leave readers satisfied.
The Getaway
Welcome to the funnest spot around . . .
Jay is living his best life at Karloff Country, one of the world's most famous resorts. He's got his family, his crew, and an incredible after-school job at the property's main theme park. Life isn't so great for the rest of the world, but when people come here to vacation, it's to get away from all that.
As things outside get worse, trouble starts seeping into Karloff. First, Jay's friend Connie and her family disappear in the middle of the night and no one will talk about it. Then the richest and most powerful families start arriving, only... they aren't leaving. Unknown to the employees, the resort has been selling shares in an end-of-the-world oasis. The best of the best at the end of days. And in order to deliver the top-notch customer service the wealthy clientele paid for, the employees will be at their total beck and call.
Whether they like it or not.
Four For the Road
Asher Hunting wants revenge.
Specifically, he wants revenge on the drunk driver who killed his mom and got off on a technicality. No one seems to think this is healthy, though, which is how he ends up in a bereavement group (well, bereavement groups. He goes to several.) It's there he makes some unexpected friends: There's Sloane, who lost her dad to cancer; Will, who lost his little brother to a different kind of cancer; and eighty-year-old Henry, who was married to his wife for fifty years until she decided to die on her own terms. And it's these three who Asher invites on a road trip from New Jersey to Graceland. Asher doesn't tell them that he's planning to steal his dad's car, or the real reason that he wants to go to Tennessee (spoiler alert: it's revenge)--but then again, the others don't share their reasons for going, either.
Complete with unexpected revelations, lots of chicken Caesar salads at roadside restaurants, a stolen motorcycle, and an epic kiss at a rest stop minimart, what begins as the road trip to revenge might just turn into a path towards forgiveness.
More of Burdic’s Best Bets
As his community turns on him for siding with the enemy, Hoodie finds himself caught between his first love and the only world he's ever know.I
Sisters Cheta and Zam's paths to break free of their oppressive home diverge wildly--one moves into an aunt's luxurious home and the other struggles to survive on her wits alone--and when they finally reunite, Zam realizes how far Cheta has fallen, leaving Cheta's fate in Zam's hands.
Attending an elite prep school in Connecticut on a scholarship with his best friend (and secret love) science genius Delaney Doyle, sixteen-year-old Cash Pruitt, from a small town in East Tennessee, struggles with emotional pain and loss until his English teacher suggests writing poetry.
When a child goes missing from the Orphan House in the town of Stone-in-the-Glen, the mayor suggests the kindly Ogress is responsible, but the orphans do not believe that and try to make their deluded neighbors see the real villain among them.
Sixteen-year-old Emilie, stuck in a Groundhog/Valentine's Day nightmare where she discovers her family is splitting up and her boyfriend is cheating on her, decides to embark upon The Day of No Consequences.
This is Not a Personal Statement
At sixteen, Perla is the youngest graduating senior of the hypercompetitive Monte Verde High. Praised--and not-so-quietly bashed--as "Perfect Perlie Perez," Perla knows all the late nights, social isolation, and crushing stress will be worth it when she gets into the college of her (and her parents') dreams: Delmont University.
Then Perla doesn't get in, and her meticulously planned future shatters. In a panic, she forges her own acceptance letter, and next thing she knows, she's heading to Delmont for real, acceptance or not. Soon, Perla is breaking into dorm rooms, crashing classes, and dodging questions from new friends about her lack of a student ID. Her plan? Gather on-the-ground intel to beef up her application and reapply spring semester before she's caught.
But as her guilty conscience grows and campus security looms large, Perla starts to wonder if her plan will really succeed--and if this dream she's worked for her entire life is something she even wants.
The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen
Hoodie Rosen's life isn't that bad. Sure, his entire Orthodox Jewish community has just picked up and moved to the quiet, mostly non-Jewish town of Tregaron, but Hoodie's world hasn't changed that much. He's got basketball to play, studies to avoid, and a supermarket full of delicious kosher snacks to eat. The people of Tregaron aren't happy that so many Orthodox Jews are moving in at once, but that's not Hoodie's problem.��That is, until he meets and falls for Anna-Marie Diaz-O'Leary--who happens to be the daughter of the obstinate mayor trying to keep Hoodie's community out of the town. And things only get more complicated when Tregaron is struck by a series of antisemitic crimes that quickly escalate to deadly violence.��As his community turns on him for siding with the enemy, Hoodie finds himself caught between his first love and the only world he's ever known.
Funny, smart, moving, courageous, and so timely it almost hurts. �
How You Grow Wings
Sisters Cheta and Zam couldn't be more different. Cheta, sharp-tongued and stubborn, never shies away from conflict--either at school or at home, where her mother fires abuse at her. Timid Zam escapes most of her mother's anger, skating under the radar and avoiding her sister whenever possible. In a turn of good fortune, Zam is invited to live with her aunt's family in the lap of luxury. Jealous, Cheta also leaves home, but to a harder existence that will drive her to terrible decisions.
When the sisters are reunited, Zam alone will recognize just how far Cheta has fallen--and Cheta's fate will rest in Zam's hands.
In the Wild Light
A wonderful coming-of-age novel about two best friends whose friendship is tested when they get the opportunity to leave their impoverished small town for an elite prep school. For fans of Looking for Alaska.
Life in a small Appalachian town is not easy. Cash lost his mother to an opioid addiction and his Papaw is dying slowly from emphysema. Dodging drug dealers and watching out for his best friend, Delaney, is second nature. He's been spending his summer mowing lawns while she works at Dairy Queen. But when Delaney manages to secure both of them full rides to an elite prep school in Connecticut, Cash will have to grapple with his need to protect and love Delaney, and his love for the grandparents who saved him and the town he has to leave behind. Jeff Zentner's new novel is a beautiful examination of grief, found family, and young love.
The Ogress and the Orphans
Stone-in-the-Glen, once a lovely town, has fallen on hard times. Fires, floods, and other calamities have caused the people to lose their library, their school, their park, and even their neighborliness. The people put their faith in the Mayor, a dazzling fellow who promises he alone can help. After all, he is a famous dragon slayer. (At least, no one has seen a dragon in his presence.) Only the clever children of the Orphan House and the kindly Ogress at the edge of town can see how dire the town's problems are.���Then one day a child goes missing from the Orphan House. At the Mayor's suggestion, all eyes turn to the Ogress. The Orphans know this can't be: the Ogress, along with a flock of excellent crows, secretly delivers gifts to the people of Stone-in-the-Glen.���But how can the Orphans tell the story of the Ogress's goodness to people who refuse to listen? And how can they make their deluded neighbors see the real villain in their midst?�
The Do-Over
After living through a dumpster fire of a Valentine's Day, Emilie Hornby escapes to her grandmother's house for some comfort and a consolation pint of Ben & Jerry's. She passes out on the couch, but when she wakes up, she's back home in her own bed--and it's Valentine's Day all over again. And the next day? Another horrendous V-Day.
Emilie is stuck in some sort of time loop nightmare that she can't wake up from as she re-watches her boyfriend, Josh, cheat on her day after day. In addition to Josh's recurring infidelity, Emilie can't get away from the enigmatic Nick, who she keeps running into--sometimes literally--in unfortunate ways.
How many times can one girl passively watch her life go up in flames? And when something good starts to come out of these terrible days, what happens when the universe stops doling out do-overs?
More Middle Level…
The twelve kids in the seventh grade at Fawn Creek K-12 have been together all their lives so when graceful Orchid Mason arrives, with exotic clothes and glorious hair, the other seventh graders do not know what to think.
A heroic girl in Mumbai fights for her belief that water should be for everyone.
For Merci Suarez, eighth grade means a new haircut, nighttime football games, and an out-of-town overnight field trip. At home, it means more chores and keeping an eye on Lolo as his health worsens.
As his world turns upside down, Kofi soon ends up in a fight for his life. What happens next will send him on a harrowing journey across land and sea, and away from everything he loves.
Thirst
The riveting story of a heroic girl who fights for her belief that water should be for everyone.
Minni lives in the poorest part of Mumbai, where access to water is limited to a few hours a day and the communal taps have long lines. Lately, though, even that access is threatened by severe water shortages and thieves who are stealing this precious commodity--an act that Minni accidentally witnesses one night. Meanwhile, in the high-rise building where she just started to work, she discovers that water streams out of every faucet and there's even a rooftop swimming pool.
What Minni also discovers there is one of the water mafia bosses. Now she must decide whether to expose him and risk her job and maybe her life. How did something as simple as access to water get so complicated?
Door of No Return
11-year-old Kofi Offin dreams of water. Its mysterious, immersive quality. The rich, earthy scent of the current. The clearness, its urgent whisper that beckons with promises and secrets...
Kofi has heard the call on the banks of Upper Kwanta, in the village where he lives. He loves these things above all else: his family, the fireside tales of his father's father, a girl named Ama, and, of course, swimming. Some say he moves like a minnow, not just an ordinary boy so he's hoping to finally prove himself in front of Ama and his friends in a swimming contest against his older, stronger cousin.
But before this can take place, a festival comes to the villages of Upper and Lower Kwanta and Kofi's brother is chosen to represent Upper Kwanta in the wrestling contest. Encircled by cheering spectators and sounding drums, the two wrestlers from different villages kneel, ready to fight.
You are only fine, until you are not.
The match is over before it has barely begun, when the unthinkable-a sudden death-occurs...
The river does not care how grown you are.
As his world turns upside down, Kofi soon ends up in a fight for his life. What happens next will send him on a harrowing journey across land and sea, and away from everything he loves.
Merci Suarez Plays it Cool-
National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature (Meg Medina)
For Merci Suarez, eighth grade means a new haircut, nighttime football games, and an out-of-town overnight field trip. At home, it means more chores and keeping an eye on Lolo as his health worsens. It's a year filled with more responsibility and independence, but also with opportunities to reinvent herself. Merci has always been fine with not being one of the popular kids like Avery Sanders, who will probably be the soccer captain and is always traveling to fun places and buying new clothes. But then Avery starts talking to Merci more, and not just as a teammate. Does this mean they're friends? Merci wants to play it cool, but with Edna always in her business, it's only a matter of time before Merci has to decide where her loyalty stands.
Whether Merci is facing school drama or changing family dynamics, readers will empathize as she discovers who she can count on--and what can change in an instant--in Meg Medina's heartfelt conclusion to the trilogy that began with the Newbery Medal-winning novel.
Dietsch Picks from 2022 Middle School (Golden Sowers excluded)
�Dietsch Picks�Organized by Genre�2007-present
-Dystopian Future
-Similar to Life as We Knew It
-Protagonists were athletes
-Romance
-Dystopian Science Fiction
-Similar to The Forgetting
-Latino culture and stories spread throughout
-Rumplestiltskin fantasy re-telling
-Romance
-A little long for middle school
-Series starter
-Not as good as The Lunar Chronicles .
-Realistic fiction love story
-Dealing with anxiety & stress
-Navigating strict Bangladeshi parents
-Similar to Good Enough
-End of the world as we know it future
-Humanity on the brink of extinction
-Dense graphic novel with lots of scientific information about Ecology and Monarchs
-Not for most…would have to be pushed, potentially with the help of a beloved science teacher.
-Supernatural mystery
-Similar to the first season of Stranger Things
-Slow moving to start
Dietsch Picks from 2021 Middle School (Golden Sowers excluded)
�Dietsch Picks�Organized by Genre�2007-present
After smuggling herself onto the RMS Titanic, British-Chinese teenager Valora Luck reunites with her twin brother and tries to convince him that their acrobatic training could be their ticket to a better life.
After her best friend Jenna dies, eighteen-year-old Amelia mysteriously receives a rare edition of her favorite book and traces it back to a bookstore in Michigan where she encounters the elusive young author and begins to learn how to live without Jenna.
"An eighth grader starts a podcast to protest the unfair dress code enforcement at her middle school and sparks a rebellion"--Provided by publisher
Exactly one year after her mother died in a random public shooting, Nora and her father go on a rock-climbing trip to the desert. After they descend into a canyon, her father and all their supplies get washed away in a flash flood. Nora is left to try to find her way to safety alone, facing dehydration, dangerous desert animals, and her PTSD.