2019 PTMS Summer Reading
Read these books poolside (or inside with the AC blasting)!
The Missing Piece of Charlie O'Reilly
Ansari, Rebecca K.S. The Missing Piece of Charlie O'Reilly. Walden Pond Press, 2019.
Charlie O'Reilly is an only child. Which is why it makes everyone uncomfortable when he talks about his brother, Liam. His eight-year-old kid brother, who, up until a year ago, slept in the bunk above Charlie, took pride in being as annoying as possible, and was the only person who could make Charlie laugh until it hurt. Then came the morning when the bunk, and Liam, disappeared forever. No one even remembers him. The only person who believes Charlie is his best friend, Ana--even if she has no memory of Liam, she is as determined as Charlie is to figure out what happened to him. The search seems hopeless--until Charlie receives a mysterious note, written in Liam's handwriting.
AR Info: B.L. 4.9; Points 12
Next Great Paulie Fink
Benjamin, Ali. The Next Great Paulie Fink. Little, Brown and Company, 2019.
When Caitlyn Breen begins her disorienting new life at the rural Mitchell School it seems like nobody can stop talking about some kid named Paulie Fink. Depending on whom you ask, Paulie was either a hilarious class clown, a relentless troublemaker, a hapless klutz, or an evil genius. One thing's for sure, though: The kid was totally legendary. Now he's disappeared, and Caitlyn finds herself leading a reality-show-style competition to find the school's next great Paulie Fink. With each challenge, Caitlyn struggles to understand a person she never met...but it's what she discovers about herself that most surprises her.
AR Info: B.L. 4.9; Points 9
Trace
Cummings, Pat. Trace. Harper, 2019.
Trace Carter doesn't know how to feel at ease in his new life in New York. Even though his artsy Auntie Lea is cool, her brownstone still isn't his home. Haunted by flashbacks of the accident that killed his parents, the best he can do is try to distract himself from memories of the past. But the past isn't done with him. When Trace takes a wrong turn in the New York Public Library, he finds someone else lost in the stacks with him: a crying little boy, wearing old, tattered clothes. And though at first he can't quite believe he's seen a ghost, Trace soon discovers that the boy he saw has ties to Trace's own history--and that he himself may be the key to setting the dead to rest.
AR Info: B.L. 5.5; Points 9
A Story About Cancer (with a Happy Ending)
Desjardins, India. A Story About Cancer (with a Happy Ending). Illustrated by Marianne Ferrer, Frances Lincoln Children's Books, 2019.
A teenage girl heads towards the hospital waiting room where the doctors are going to tell her how much time she's got to live. As she walks, she thinks about her journey up to this point... the terrible decor in the hospital, wearing a headscarf, the horrible treatments, but also being with her friends, family, and her new boyfriend Victor. This is a story about cancer with a happy ending. It's about life, love, and especially, hope.
Beware the Night
Fleck, Jessica. Beware the Night. Swoon Reads, 2019.
On the island of Bellona, they worship the sun. Seventeen-year-old Veda understands that keeping the sun content ensures plentiful crops, peace and harmony, and a thriving economy. But as a member of the Basso class, she never reaps those benefits. Life as a Basso is one fraught with back-breaking work and imposing rules. Her close friendship with Nico is Veda's one saving grace in a cruel world where the division between her people and the ruling Dogio is as wide and winding as the canals that snake through their island. But when Veda's grandfather is chosen as the next sacrificial offering to keep the sun's favor, Veda is forced to see the injustice of her world. Turning away from the sun means she must join the night--and an underground revolution she's been taught to fear all her life.
Comics Will Break Your Heart
Hicks, Faith Erin. Comics Will Break Your Heart. Roaring Book Press, 2019.
Miriam's family should be rich. After all, her grandfather was the co-creator of the smash-hit comic series The TomorrowMen. But he sold his rights to the series to his co-creator in the 1960s for practically nothing, and now that's what Miriam has: practically nothing. And practically nothing to look forward to either -- how can she afford college when her family can barely keep a roof above their heads? As if she didn't have enough to worry about, Miriam's life gets much more complicated when a cute boy shows up in town..and he turns out to be the grandson of the man who defrauded Miriam's grandfather, and heir to the TomorrowMen fortune.
If You're Out There
Loutzenhiser, Katy. If You're Out There. Balzer + Bray, 2019.
After Zan's best friend moves to California, she is baffled and crushed when Priya suddenly ghosts. Worse, Priya's social media has turned into a stream of ungrammatical posts chronicling a sunny, vapid new life that doesn't sound like her at all. Everyone tells Zan not to be an idiot: Let Priya do her reinvention thing and move on. But until Zan hears Priya say it, she won't be able to admit that their friendship is finished. Then a clue hidden in Priya's latest selfie introduces a new, deeply disturbing possibility: Maybe Priya isn't just not answering Zan's emails. Maybe she can't...
Between Before & After
McQuerry, Maureen. Between Before & After. Blink, 2019.
Fourteen-year-old Molly worries about school, friends, and her parents' failed marriage, but mostly about her mother Elaine's growing depression. Molly knows her mother, who buries herself in the lives and deaths of the strangers she writes about, is nursing her own carefully-kept secret. But in Elaine's raw and fragile state, Molly knows not to pry too deeply. Until her Uncle Stephen is thrust into the limelight because of his miracle cure of a young man, and now her mother can no longer hide behind other people's stories. As Molly digs into her mother's past, she finds a secret hidden in her dresser that may be the key to unlocking a family mystery dating to 1918 New York--a secret that could save or destroy their future.
Code Girls: The True Story of the American Women Who Secretly Broke Codes in World War II
Mundy, Liza. Code Girls: The True Story of the American Women Who Secretly Broke Codes in World War II. Little, Brown and Company, 2018.
More than ten thousand women served as codebreakers during World War II, recruited by the U.S. Army and Navy. While their brothers and boyfriends took up arms, these women moved to the nation's capital to learn the top secret art of code breaking. Through their work, the "code girls" helped save countless lives and were vital in ending the war. But due to the top secret nature of their accomplishments, these women have never been able to talk about their story--until now.
AR Info: B.L. 7.7; Points 10
The Field Guide to the North American Teenager
Philippe, Ben. The Field Guide to the North American Teenager. Balzer + Bray, 2018.
Plunked into a new high school and sweating a ridiculous amount from the oppressive Texas heat, Norris finds himself cataloging everyone he meets: the Cheerleaders, the Jocks, the Loners, and even the Manic Pixie Dream Girl. Making a ton of friends has never been a priority for him, and this way he can at least amuse himself until it's time to go back to Canada, where he belongs. Yet against all odds, those labels soon become actual people to Norris. But the night of the prom, Norris screws everything up royally. As he tries to pick up the pieces, he realizes it might be time to stop hiding behind his snarky opinions and start living his life.
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