Cambridge High School Library 2024

 BY: Gabrielle Zevin Location: FIC ZEV Genre: Young Adult, Romance If Naomi had picked tails, she would have won the coin toss. She wouldn't have had to go back for the yearbook camera, and she wouldn't have hit her head on the steps. She wouldn't have woken up in an ambulance with amnesia. She certainly would have remembered her boyfriend, Ace. She might even have remembered why she fell in love with him in the first place. She would understand why her best friend, Will, keeps calling her "Chief." She'd know about her mom's new family. She'd know about her dad's fiancée. She never would have met James, the boy with the questionable past and the even fuzzier future, who tells her he once wanted to kiss her. She wouldn't have wanted to kiss him back. But Naomi picked heads. After her remarkable debut, Gabrielle Zevin has crafted an imaginative second novel all about love and second chances. A few triggers here: Amnesia & memory loss Graphic ...

 By: Gavin Extence Location: FIC EXT Genre:  ASD, Youth Fiction, Mental Health, Autism This is an adventure tale about resilience and agency—building one and realizing the other—and a survival story that will empower young people   ‘We’ll be on the ground shortly, Spence,’ he said into his headset. ‘Thanks for coming up with me. Can’t imagine a better flight companion.’ Spencer grinned at him. ‘Don’t lose it now, Dad. Get this thing back on the ground safe and sound, okay?’   Spencer Gray is 12 and finally old enough to join dad in his glider. His friends are going to be so jealous! Going up is awesome, but when disaster strikes, Spencer will need to be nothing short of amazing. Extence writes with such genuine heart and thoughtfulness. We follow Phoebe, a teenager with ASD as she navigates her journey into adulthood. I particularly enjoyed that Phoebe knew of her neurodivergence and the strengths she offered, especially to her friendship with secondary characte...

 By: Deb Fitzpatrick Location: FIC FIT Genre:  Mystery, Adventure Spencer Gray is just an ordinary kid, but he manages to get into some pretty extraordinary situations. When Spencer stumbles on a sinister operation in the bush, his life goes into overdrive – midnight rescue missions, super-endangered animals, hair-raising adventures. To survive, Spencer will need to pull off something spectacular. This is an adventure tale about resilience and agency—building one and realizing the other—and a survival story that will empower young people   ‘We’ll be on the ground shortly, Spence,’ he said into his headset. ‘Thanks for coming up with me. Can’t imagine a better flight companion.’ Spencer grinned at him. ‘Don’t lose it now, Dad. Get this thing back on the ground safe and sound, okay?’   Spencer Gray is 12 and finally old enough to join dad in his glider. His friends are going to be so jealous! Going up is awesome, but when disaster strikes, Spencer will need to be ...

 By: Taran Matharu Location: FIC MAT Genre: DRAGONS!! EPIC FANTASY Series: Soulbound Saga #1 Cover art !!! So good! From the ashes of an empire, a hero will rise… Jai has spent his life forced to serve the cruel empire that killed his family and now rules his people. To grow ever more powerful, the emperor’s young son is betrothed to Princess Erica of the Dansk Kingdom. An unconquerable realm, where ancient beasts roam. The princess brings with her a priceless gift: dragons. Only Dansk Royalty can bond with these magical beasts to draw on their power and strength. Until now. When the betrothal goes wrong, a bloody coup leads to chaos at court. Finally, Jai has a chance to escape. He flees with a fierce Dansk warrior, Frida, but not before stealing a dragon egg. To vanquish the empire, he must do the impossible: bond with a dragon. Only then he can seize his destiny, and seek his revenge … An epic new fantasy, where dragons fly and empires fall. Rachel reviews it this way What an ab...

 By: Meredith Adamo Location: FIC ADA Genre: Dragons!  "  I showed up for the mystery and stayed for the great writing and the thoughtful exploration of consent. It encompasses everything from joyful connection to how sexual assault sometimes isn't named as such and how it affects the the victim". April Henry Cheats. Liars. Fakes. Friends? A breathtaking contemporary YA thriller – serious questions and hot romance in an irresistible twisty mystery. Perfect for fans of  One of Us is Lying. Jo used to be the perfect high-school girl – class president, popular, bright and successful. But when nude photos of her were leaked to the entire school, her grades plummeted, her friends fell away and now she's a reckless, difficult social outcast. The girl who 'deserved' it. Then her former best friend Maddie disappears. Everyone else assumes Maddie has just run away but that doesn't add up to Jo. To discover the truth, Jo needs to get back in with the group of classm...

  By: Sophie Kim  Location: FIC KIM Genre: Dragons and Fantasy, Myth and Romance Epic Reads Pick for The 30 Must-Read YA Books for the Rest of 2022 BookRiot Pick for 12 Amazing Asia-Inspired Fantasy Books “ Last of the Talons is a stunning blend of dark romance and Korean mythology. Sophie Kim writes enemies to lovers with heart-pounding intensity, blurring the line between love and hate. Bloodthirsty, addictive, and searingly romantic.” ―Axie Oh, New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea After the destruction of her entire Talon gang, eighteen-year-old Shin Lina―the Reaper of Sunpo―is forced to become a living, breathing weapon for the kingdom’s most-feared crime lord. All that keeps her from turning on her ruthless master is the life of her beloved little sister hanging in the balance. But the order to steal a priceless tapestry from a Dokkaebi temple incites not only the wrath of a legendary immortal, but the beginning of an unwinnable game… Sud...

 By: Jasmine Guillory  Location: FIC GUI Genre: Romance, Fiction Series: Meant to Be In this reimagining of Beauty and The Beast, Izzy didn’t think she’d still be living at home, working as an editorial assistant at 25. To prove she deserves a promotion, Izzy takes it upon herself to give a jaded high-profile author a pep talk to push him to complete his late manuscript. Soon these two find they have more in common than they thought. Jasmine’s books are always a treat! Taylor Reid Sometimes to truly know a person, you have to read between the lines. Isabelle is completely lost. When she first began her career in publishing after college, she did not expect to be twenty-five, still living at home, and one of the few Black employees at her publishing house. Overworked and underpaid, constantly torn between speaking up or stifling herself, Izzy thinks there must be more to this publishing life. So when she overhears her boss complaining about a beastly high-profile author who has...

 By: Paolo Bacigalupi  Location; FIC BAC Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Dragons Recommended for people looking for their next Game of Thrones fix, and fans of Brandon Sanderson. Navola masterfully blends intricate world-building with a gripping narrative, immersing readers in an Italy-esque city-state brimming with power struggles and hidden dangers. The setting, reminiscent of Renaissance Italy, adds authenticity and creates a world that is both familiar and unique.- Charles "You must be as sharp as a stilettotore’s dagger and as subtle as a fish beneath the waters. This is what it is to be Navolese, this is what it is to be di Regulai." In Navola, a bustling city-state dominated by a handful of influential families, business is power, and power is everything. For generations, the di Regulai family—merchant bankers with a vast empire—has nurtured tendrils that stretch to the farthest reaches of the known world. And though they claim not to be political, their staggering wealth has...

 By: Willow Smith and Jess Hendel Location: FIC SMI Genre: Mythology, Vikings, Fantasy " Intimate, tender and fiercely epic " From Willow Smith and Jess Hendel comes a powerful and groundbreaking historical epic about an African warrior in the world of the Vikings. Lore, legend, and history tell us of the Vikings: warrior-kings on epic journeys of conquest and plunder. But the stories we know are not the only stories to tell. There is another story, one that has been lost to the mists of time: the saga of the dark queen. That saga begins with Yafeu, a defiant yet fiercely compassionate young warrior who is stolen from her home in the flourishing Ghānaian empire and taken as a slave to a distant kingdom in the North. There she is thrust into a strange, cold world of savage shield maidens, tyrannical rulers, and mysterious gods. And there she also finds something unexpected: a kindred spirit. She comes to serve Freydis, a shy princess who couldn’t be more different than the con...

 By: Percival Everett Location: FIC EVE Genre:  Historical Fiction, retelling of Huck Finn,  Barak Obama read ! BOOKER LONG LIST 2024  This is a masterpiece and the reason that classic retellings exists. It is subversive, smart, daring, and supremely executed .  A brilliant, action-packed reimagining of  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn , both harrowing and ferociously funny, told from the enslaved Jim's point of view When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a man in New Orleans, separated from his wife and daughter forever, he decides to hide on nearby Jackson Island until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father, recently returned to town. As all readers of American literature know, thus begins the dangerous and transcendent journey by raft down the Mississippi River toward the elusive and too-often-unreliable promise of the Free States and beyond. While many narrative set p...

 By: James Patterson Location: NF 920 PAT Genre: Tiger and Golf How did Tiger Woods become the greatest of all time? And how did he fall so spectacularly?  Tiger Woods is unrivalled as an athlete. He made the ultimate commitment to his chosen sport - and transformed it. Before the age of twenty-five, he rose to phenomenon twice named 'Sportsman of the Year' by Sports Illustrated, champion of more than thirty professional tournaments and the youngest player to win all four Grand Slam tournaments. Tiger, Tiger taps into the transformative moments of Woods's life, revealing in vivid, dramatic scenes what he saw and felt on the course and in his inner life - from his only 'perfect' shot to his missed first putt at the 1995 Masters through his recent comeback tours. Through a compelling series of original interviews, passionate golfer James Patterson and golf reporter Peter de Jonge get inside the impossible mystery of a global star. review by Kirk I’m a big Tiger Woods ...

 By: Stacy Lee Location: FIC LEE Genre: Titanic, Asian, Historical Fiction Read this book if: you loved The Titanic (the movie), if you love historical fiction, if you love the found family trope, just read this book please- Julia Valora Luck has two things: a ticket for the biggest and most luxurious ocean liner in the world, and a dream of leaving England behind and making a life for herself as a circus performer in New York. Much to her surprise, though, she's turned away at the gangway; apparently, Chinese people aren't allowed into America. But Val has to get on that ship. Her twin brother, Jamie, who has spent two long years at sea, is on board, as is an influential circus owner. Thankfully, there's not much a trained acrobat like Val can't overcome when she puts her mind to it. As a stowaway, Val should keep her head down and stay out of sight. But the clock is ticking and she has just seven days as the ship makes its way across the Atlantic to find Jamie, auditi...

 By: James Lee Bourke Location: FIC BUR Genre: Historical Fiction, Civil War “It’s meant to be a historical book, and it is meant to be about today. The same monsters are still out there.” From American master James Lee Burke comes a novel set in Civil War-era Louisiana as the South transforms and a brilliant cast of characters – enslaved and free women, plantation gentry, and battle-weary Confederate and Union soldiers – are caught in the maelstrom In the fall of 1863, the Union army is in control of the Mississippi river. Much of Louisiana, including New Orleans and Baton Rouge, is occupied. The Confederate army is in disarray, corrupt structures are falling apart, and enslaved men and women are beginning to glimpse freedom. When Hannah Laveau, a formerly enslaved woman working on the Lufkin plantation, is accused of murder, she goes on the run with Florence Milton, an abolitionist schoolteacher, dodging the local constable and the slavecatchers that prowl the bayous. Wade Lufkin...

 By: Ann Liang Location: FIC LIA Genre: Romance, Young Adult i used to imagine what it would be like to be someone who had somebody else. i would imagine tenderness. the concept of infinite. of endless patience. imagine them chasing after me even when i run. cradling my sorrows in the palm of their hands. imagine them caring, trying to understand. and now there’s you. ✔️ Academic rivals to lovers ✔️ Forced proximity ✔️ Slow burn Snarky and romantic, I Hope This Doesn't Find You is Never Have I Ever meets To All the Boys if Lara Jean wrote hate emails instead of love letters. Sadie Wen is perfect on school captain, valedictorian, and a "pleasure to have in class." It’s not easy, but she has a trick to keep her model-student smile plastered on her face at all she channels all her frustrations into her email drafts. She'd never send them of course -- she'd rather die than hurt anyone's feelings -- but it's a relief to let loose on her power-hungry English tea...

 By: Lily Meade Location:  FIC MEA Genre: Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller Sutton going missing is the worst thing to happen to Casey, to their family. She’s trying to help find her sister, but Casey is furious. And she can’t tell anyone about their argument before Sutton disappeared. Everyone paints a picture of Sutton’s perfection: the popular cheerleader with an entourage of friends, a doting boyfriend, and a limitless future. But Sutton manipulated everyone around her, even stole an heirloom bracelet from Casey. People don’t look for missing Black girls--or half-Black girls--without believing there is an angel to be saved. When Sutton reappears, Casey knows she should be relieved. Except Sutton isn’t the same. She remembers nothing about while she was gone—or anything from her old life, including how she made Casey miserable. There’s something unsettling about the way she wants to spend time with Casey, the way she hums and watches her goldfish swim for hours. What happened ...

 By: Francesca Zappia Location: FIC ZAP Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Mystery “Cat is stuck in her high school with a small group of other teens, none of whom can find any doors that lead out. Some have retained their humanity while others, Cat included, have morphed into something . . . less so. . . . Cat’s memories come back with glacial slowness as she tries to piece together why they are all trapped there and to use those clues to try to escape, all while fighting to stay alive . . . An eerie, savage novel.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books American Horror Story meets the dark comedy of Kafka's The Metamorphosis as Cat searches for a way to escape her high school. A tale of family, love, tragedy, and masks--the ones others make for us, and the ones we make for ourselves. Katzenjammer will haunt fans of Chelsea Pitcher's This Lie Will Kill You and E. Lockhart's We Were Liars. Cat lives in her high school. She never leaves, and for a long time her school has provid...