Anything but Typical

Anything But Typical
by Nora Raleigh Baskin

Jason is not your average, everyday, twelve-year-old boy.

Jason has autism.

He has been given labels like ASD, NLD, and PDD-NOS. He has IEPs.

He has been ostracized and ignored by the students around him.

He has confounded and confused his parents because of his problems.

But what else is he to do? Who else can he be?

He can only be who he is when he's around people. He can only get upset by loud noises. He can only feel stress when asked a question that he does not know how to answer in a way that will please people. He can't tell people that he loves them (because you feel feelings, you don't tell them). He can't stop the hand movements, the hair pulling, the sounds.

He is lost in the world of the "neurotypicals" and is just trying to get by. The only person who understands him is his younger brother (who also adores him) even if he can't appear to return the feelings.

And that's how it is for him until he meets PhoenixBird online in a forum for aspiring writers.

Jason has so many stories to tell and PhoenixBird seems to honestly like them. She also seems to honestly like him... but, of course, she hasn't really met him yet, so she doesn't know about his autism.

Can Jason take the risk to meet her in person? Will she be able to accept him for who and what he is?

For those people who are working with children with autism, this is an amazing read. You get right into Jason's head and you learn to empathize with his plight to fit in. If you know someone with autism and want to understand him/her better, you must try this book.

Defying the Diva

Defying the Diva
By D. Anne Love

Haley Patterson has always been normal. She had a normal family, normal friends, and a normal life.

But her life is completely flipped upside-down when the school diva decides to exact a lot of revenge for a little story Haley wrote in the school newspaper.

Over the course of just a few days, she goes from respected freshman with a good reputation to school pariah. Students gossip about her. Her "friends" won't go near her for fear of becoming gossip victims themselves. Anonymous notes show up on her desk and in her locker. Email appears telling her to kill herself.

There seems to be no end to the torture. It gets so bad Haley even has a moment when she considers suicide as a way to end the pain.

She makes it to the end of the semester and is sent by her parents to stay with her aunt, who then gets her a job at the town’s country club.

There, Haley has to re-learn how to make friends, how to trust others, and how to find herself.

She then finds out that the diva has struck again, only this time, someone got hurt and landed in the hospital. Can Haley stand up to the diva and stand up for what is right? Or will she let history repeat itself?

Wings

Wings

by E. D. Baker

Tamisin has always been a little odd. From the glittery freckles on her face to her compulsion to dance under the full moon with fairies, she's always known she didn't quite fit in.

But it isn't until she sprouts wings that she finds out that her parents adopted her when she was a baby.

As it turns out, she's half fairy, and that half has suddenly made things much more dangerous for her.

The child of the most important of all fairies makes a great ransom for goblins who want control.

Can she and the halfling, Jak, find the answers she needs to survive before it's too late? Or will the fairy kingdom be crushed by revenge?

My So-Called Family

My So-Called Family

by Courtney Sheinmel

Leah Hoffman-Ross has never had a "normal" family. She's the child of a self-assured author and a sperm donor.

That's right... One day, her mother decided to become a mom, went right out to Lyon's Reproductive Services, looked through a few books, and found "dad".

And while Leah's never missed having a father (especially since her step-dad has been around so long) it's hard to explain her parentage to friends.

Seriously! What do you say to people when they ask where your dad is?

Now that she's 13 and the family has moved to New York, she has the chance to meet new people and no longer have the nickname of "Science Experiment".

Of course, finding out that she has four siblings from the same donor opens up a whole new world for Leah, and she's determined to meet them all... Somehow.

But will her parents ever understand? And what about her new best friend?

Can she be herself and still be ok with others?

My Best Friend, the Atlantic Ocean, and Other Great Bodies Standing Between Me and My Life with Giulio

My Best Friend, the Atlantic Ocean, and Other Great Bodies Standing Between Me and My Life with Giulio

by Jane Harrington

OMG!

Your BFF comes home with the hottest Italian exchange student ever and she didn't save him for U!

Average teen relationship = 34 days

If U can hold out long enuf, he'll be urs!

But wut to do in the meantime?

How 'bout become the manager of the football team, the VP of the GNL, and maybe even learn something in class!

NO WAY!

WAY!

Boys Are Dogs

Boys Are Dogs
by Leslie Margolis

Girls! Are you having trouble understanding those creatures called "boys"?

Do they confuse you?

Terrify you?

Put fear in your heart?

Aggravate you?

Really make you want to throw something at them?

Well... Annabelle may just have the cure for you!

Puppy training!

That's right! Putting force behind your words (even when you don't feel it), becoming the leader of the pack, and positive reinforcement will help you to become the dominant person in the battle of the sexes.

A little puppy training goes a long way into making the boys of middle school do exactly what you want.

Don't believe me? Read Annabelle's tale and you'll understand it all!

The Loser's Guide to Life and Love

The Loser's Guide to Life and Love
by A. E. Cannon

Everyone has secrets.

Ed is Sergio. Or is Sergio, Ed?

Scout loves cheesy romance novels... and Ed.

Ellie had a romance that went very wrong.

Quark has never been able to see past the moon to the people around him.

All of these people come together in a realistic story of life, love, and secret identity.

Confused? Read the book!

Models Don't Eat Chocolate Cookies

Models Don't Eat Chocolate Cookies

by Erin Dionne

Celeste Harris does not have the greatest life, but that's never mattered to her. She's overweight, but ok with that. She does well in school, and she's ok with that. She has a best friend who makes annoying sounds when she sucks on Jolly Ranchers, and she's ok with that, too.

What she's not ok with is her aunt signing her up for the Miss HuskyPeach pageant, which is sponsored by the makers of clothes for plus-size girls. What she's not ok with is the most popular girl in school using her as her own personal insult target. And what she's really not ok with is when her best friend leaves her to go hang out with her worst enemy.

What's a girl to do?

Diet.

If she's not plus-sized anymore, she can't be in that embarrassing pageant. So the cookies have to go!

Schooled

Schooled

by Gordon Korman

Capricorn Anderson is not your normal teenager. He's never used a cell phone, never IM'd his friends, never tapped the keys on a computer, and never watched television. He wears tie-dye shirts and woven sandals. He believes in non-violence and the sacredness of all life. He is one of the last two people to live on a "hippie" commune run by his grandmother, Rain. The only person he's ever known is Rain and the only life he's ever known is there.

When Rain injures herself during one of her homeschooling lessons for Cap, his world turns upside-down. He's forced to live with a former member of the commune and her daughter (who makes him feel things he's never felt before). He's forced to attend middle school (where he's immediately elected class president). And he's forced to catch up to the world that left his little commune behind (whether he likes it or not).

Can Cap figure out where he fits in the world and still be true to himself? Or will he continue to be ridiculed, laughed at, and have water dumped on him while he does tai-chi on the front lawn?

The Secret Life of Sparrow Delaney

The Secret Life of Sparrow Delaney
by Suzanne Harper

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Sparrow's life has always been a little strange. As the seventh daughter of the seventh daughter in a family of psychics and mediums, it has always been believed that she will be the most powerful of her kind. But all Sparrow wants to be is normal.
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She doesn't want to hold seances. She doesn't want to talk to spirits. She doesn't want to help those who have passed on complete their unfinished business. She also doesn't want to live in a house with baboon skulls in the front yard, strange symbols painted everywhere, and the bodies of her grandmother's four dead husbands in the back.
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So all her life, Sparrow's been hiding the terrible truth: not only does she see, hear, and speak to ghosts every day, she also doesn't need any special tricks to do it. While her mother and sisters all have to focus hard to get a reading, Sparrow can just look over and see the dead any time, day or night.
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And now, all of her hiding may have to come to an end. There's a very cute boy in her class and he has a very dead boy haunting him.
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Will Sparrow have the strength to tell the truth and admit who she is? Or will she keep on hiding and force the ghost to remain in limbo forever?

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
by Kate DiCamillo

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Edward Tulane is the finest china rabbit that money can buy. He's perfect in every way. He's got the best clothes and a fine, gold watch.
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Edward Tulane is the best and he knows it.
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Unfortunately, just because you're the best, that doesn't mean that you can't become the worst.
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Follow Edward on the journey of a china rabbit's lifetime as he learns about what he really is and who he is really meant to be.
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Can he learn to love before it's too late?

Getting the Girl: A Guide to Private Investigation, Surveillance, and Cookery

Getting the Girl: A Guide to Private Investigation, Surveillance, and Cookery
by Susan Juby

Sherman Mack, lead detective of Mack Daddy Investigations (well, only detective if we're being honest), is on a mission.
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Girls at his high school are in danger. They are in danger of being D-listed.
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D for Defiled.
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If a girl's picture ends up on the school restroom mirrors with a "D" on it, then she's automatically blacklisted. She becomes a ghost. No one will talk to her. No one will look at her. No one will even acknowledge that she's there.
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And now Mack's friends have become targets.
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So, with a large imagination and very little cooking skill, Sherman Mack sets out to make the perfect meal and set the perfect trap.
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If he succeeds, he'll be a hero to all and the girls will love him (and he's always been a fan of the ladies).
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If he fails, he'll be the first boy in school ever D-listed.
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So, really... No pressure at all.

How to Ditch Your Fairy

How to Ditch Your Fairy
by Justine Larbalestier

Charlie has always had one of the worst fairies ever: the parking fairy. Her entire life seems to be one long car ride, as people "borrow" her any time they drive, even if it's just to the grocery store, just so they can get the perfect parking spot.

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Well... Charlie's tired of being used and she's doing something about it. She's going to get rid of that parking fairy, no matter what it takes!
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Of course, what it takes is months of walking absolutely everywhere, being late to all of her classes, losing time to do her homework, and missing time with her friends and family.
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When she finally gets a chance to switch with the girl who has the All-Boys-Will-Notice-You Fairy, Charlie thinks her luck has finally changed.
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Boy! Was she wrong...

The Otherworldlies

The Otherworldlies

by Jennifer Anne Kogler

Fern has always been an outsider. She talks to her dog (and he understands her), can accurately predict the weather, and she burns in any sunlight.
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Her twin brother has none of these problems and spends most of his time trying to help his sister out at school and in public. But even he can't help her when she disappears from school... literally. He was the only one to watch her fade out from her desk, while the rest of the class ignored her as always. And when she reappears on a beach miles away, she knows that this is more than a case of just being a little strange.
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Things get even more confusing when a mysterious stranger appears and offers to help. Even the most popular girl in school, who never even glanced at her before, is suddenly giving her advice. The problem is that the stranger and the popular girl don't have the same intentions. So now Fern must choose who to follow and from whom to run.

Boy Proof

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Boy Proof

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by Cecil Castellucci

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Virgina "Egg" Jurgen is the smartest girl in her class... at least she thinks so. She's different from everyone else around her... in her opinion. No one could ever understand her. No one knows her. No one is worth knowing.

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She only looks up to one person, and that person is Egg from the new sci-fi movie, Terminal Earth. She changes her name, shaves her head, and wears costumes from the movie. And she doesn't mind the fact that everyone talks about her, but few people talk to her. Boys stay away? That's ok. She's now boy proof.

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But things go awry when she meets Max, who seems to understand her like no one else does. He changes the way she sees the people around her, but will it be too late? Has she already destroyed the few friendships she had? And is being a loner the same as being lonely?

Diary of a Fairy Godmother

Diary of a Fairy Godmother

by Esme Raji Codell

Hunky Dory isn't really hunky dory. After one hundred years perfecting her badness in charm school and being the top of her class, Hunky Dory suddenly begins to feel un-witchy. After seeing some F.G.s (Fairy Godmothers) in action, she even starts to think about granting wishes instead of curses.
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What's a poor, misunderstood, confused witch to do?
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Runaway from home (or get kicked out... it's really the same thing in the end, right?) and try wish-granting (just to see what it's like).
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Will Hunky Dory be an outcast forever? Or will she be able to find a balance between wishing and witching?

I'd Tell You I Love You, but Then I'd Have to Kill You

I'd Tell You I Love You, but Then I'd Have to Kill You
by Ally Carter

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Cameron Morgan, a.k.a. Cammie the Chameleon, could be your average, ordinary, 15-year-old girl at school. She could be... if she wasn't attending the most exclusive school in the world. She could be... if that school's sole purpose wasn't to train future spies. And she could be... if her parents hadn't been the best spies in the business.
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Things really couldn't be better for Cammie. She's got the lineage. She's got the grades. And, most of all, she's got the talent to be the best spy the school has seen in generations.
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What she doesn't have is a working knowledge of the teenage boy's mind.
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So when she meets Josh -- cute, kind, cute, nice, cute, polite, and (did we mention?) cute, Josh -- all of Cammie's plans for the best sophomore year ever go quickly down the drain.
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Complicating matters are her mother, who runs the school, the new Covert Ops teacher, who is gorgeous, but seems to know little too much about Cammie and her mom, and Josh's best friend, who is determined to find out everything he can about Cammie.
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What's a future deep undercover spy to do?

Fever, 1793

Fever, 1793

by Laurie Halse Anderson

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Matilda "Mattie" Cook is living during one of the hottest summers on record in Philadelphia. Instead of being able to lounge around and try to keep cool in the heat, Mattie must help her mother and grandfather run their coffeehouse, which is the only income they have since her father died in a freak accident years before.
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It's hard work, but Mattie hasn't really known hard work until the fever starts. Over the next three months, Mattie watches as everyone around her seems to go crazy with the fear of Yellow Fever. Stores close up shop. Households pack up and run for the countryside. Families dump their sick relatives on the streets to be picked up by the wagon for the dead.

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And though she and her family live just blocks from the residence of President George Washington, even his close proximity cannot protect her and her family.

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With this book, you'll not only see the events that took place surrounding the Yellow Fever outbreak of 1793, you'll live through them and even begin to worry if you'll survive.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

by Sherman Alexie

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Arnold "Junior" Spirit has always had it rough. Born with a nearly fatal brain condition that left him physically deformed, he has seizures, brain damage, and is nearsighted in one eye, while being farsighted in the other. Because he looks a little lopsided, he's also been picked on and beat up nearly every day of his life. His dad's a drunk, his sister hides in the basement, and his best friend, the only person who doesn't beat him up every day, is violent and angry all of the time.

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On top of all of that, Arnold is destined to be a nothing because he lives on a reservation where most of the members of the tribe die early deaths related to booze.

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He's going nowhere fast and he knows it.

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Until one day, after breaking his teacher's nose with the very geometry book his mother had used at least 30 years before, he's convinced that he can be something more.

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So, with his parents' encouragement, he decides to enroll in a white high school 22 miles outside the reservation. Getting there is difficult. Staying there is even more so. And finding acceptance in the tribe, where leaving the rez is tantamount to betraying your ancestry, is going to be the most difficult thing he's ever done.

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What do you do when you're a part-time Indian?

Hunger Games

The Hunger Games
by Suzanne Collins

It's the ultimate reality show.

You versus 23 others from around the nation.

You get a stylist, coach, sponsors, and everything you could ever want.

Then it begins.

It's you versus them.

You can't trust anyone.

Even the person from your home town is dangerous.

You can't let your guard down.

It's time for... The Hunger Games.

Win and you get food and riches for the rest of your life.

Lose... and you go home in a body bag.

Can you survive?

Pawn of Prophecy

Pawn of Prophecy
by David Eddings

Garion is just your average, ordinary boy growing up on a farm just like any other farm in the world. His Aunt Pol has raised him since he was a baby and cared for him like a mother. The blacksmith, Durnik, has always been patient and answered any questions he had, just like a father. His grandfather even comes by now and again to tell amazing stories and help Garion get into trouble. Just an ordinary life.
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However, his world changes one day when he and his grandfather take a trip that shows Garion how small his farm world really is, and that maybe, just maybe, his grandfather might be more than he knows.
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Could Garion be the one the world has been waiting for?

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This is the first book in the Belgariad series.

Dragonsong

Dragonsong

by Anne McCaffrey

Menolly is gifted. She has the power to write a song that will stick in your head and carry you away. Unfortunately, she lives in a time and place where women are meant to cook, clean, and carry babies. Her parents are embarrassed by her. Her sister seems to hate her. And the only person who ever understood her, her music teacher, has died.
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She's never felt so alone.
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But one day, Menolly discovers something that no one else knows. Fire lizards are real! And these miniature dragons lead her on an adventure unlike any other.

Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature

Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature

by Robin Brande

Mena is just your typical right-wing Conservative-Christian, church-going teenager starting high school. However when she must choose between what she believes is right and what everyone else believes is necessary, she ends up alienating everyone who's ever meant anything to her. Her friends physically attack her and curse her in the halls, her parents won't talk to her, and she's been banned from the church she's attended her entire life.
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Things couldn't get much worse.
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Except...
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When the only teacher who's ever made Mena actually get interested in science becomes the next victim of her (former) pastor's plot to destroy anything he thinks the church disagrees with, can Mena again defy everything she knows to do what she thinks is right? Or will she decide that being a social outcast isn't worth the trouble?
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Oh! And don't forget that cute lab partner who Mena's not supposed to even think about dating for another year and a half (even though all she wants to do is be with him).

Breaking Dawn

Breaking Dawn

by Stephenie Meyer

The fourth and final installment of the Twilight Saga told from Bella's point of view is the largest of them all; however, it's not the best.
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All of the plot points of the first three books get tied into a nice bow in this book that has Bella getting married, having a baby, and turning into a vampire, all before the halfway point of the book. While it's fun to read about all the different vampires out in the world, there are far too many mentioned to make this book easy to understand. It's over-complicated and sometimes confusing with all the different personalities vying for face time.
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Most difficult is that the ability to relate to Bella is lost almost at the start of the book and Edward is basically a side-note. The key to the first three books was the relationship between the two, but after they are married, things shift drastically and the entire dynamic shifts with it. And while the entire idea of vampires really existing isn't realistic, the book takes it beyond vampires living in our world and makes it almost like we're living in their's. Even Bella's human friends serve only as background at the wedding and are never heard from again.
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While the first three books were appropriate for middle school, this final book isn't. There had even been talk by Meyer's own publishing company of putting a warning label on the books for parents of children under 15. It's very graphic and even a little gory. While it's good to read this book to find out the end of the story, it may not be worth the cost of purchase unless you're a die-hard fan.

Impossible

Impossible

by Nancy Werlin

Lucinda Scarborough is your average teen just trying to get ready for Prom. What she doesn't know is that she's also the victim of a curse that has haunted her family for generations. When one of her ancestors rejected the love of the Elvin King, he cursed her and her children. Now, when a Scarborough daughter turns 18, she becomes pregnant and goes insane upon the birth of her daughter. The only way to stop the curse it to perform three seemingly impossible tasks described in the song "Scarborough Fair".
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But unlike her mother, her mother's mother, and all the other Scarborough girls before, Lucy isn't alone. She has her best friend, Zach, and her foster parents, all of whom believe her and will do anything to help her break the curse.
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The story is new and original, but the characters are not well-developed. And though the book is good for a quick read, don't expect the characters to stay with you once you're done reading.