ABE LINCOLN
AWARD 2013
MRS. THOMPSON
Anna and the French Kiss: Stephanie Perkins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6Xe2lbt1lk
Anna can't wait for her senior year in
Atlanta, where she has a good job, a
loyal best friend, and a crush on the
verge of becoming more. So she's not
too thrilled when her father
unexpectedly ships her off to boarding
school in Paris - until she meets Etienne
St. Clair, the perfect boy. The only
problem? He's taken, and Anna might
be, too, if anything comes of her crush
back home. Will a year of romantic nearmisses end in the French kiss Anna awaits?
Bruiser: Neal Shusterman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlRpdlHqN7s
There's a reason why Brewster can't have friends—why he
can’t care about too many people. Because when he cares
about you, things start to happen. Impossible things that can’t
be explained. I know, because they’re happening to me. When
Brontë starts dating Brewster “Bruiser” Rawlins her twin
brother, Tennyson, isn’t surprised. But then strange things
begin to occur. Tennyson and Brontë’s scrapes heal unnaturally
fast, and cuts disappear before their eyes. What at first seems
like their good fortune turns out to be more than they bargained
for...much more.
The Chosen One: Carol Lynch Williams
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BMmtdhbhTw
Thirteen-year-old Kyra has grown up in an isolated community
without questioning the fact that her father has three wives and
she has twenty brothers and sisters. That is, without
questioning it much—if you don’t count her visits to the Ironton
County Mobile Library on Wheels to read forbidden books, or
her secret meetings with Joshua, the boy she hopes to choose
for herself. But when the Prophet decrees that Kyra must marry
her sixty-year-old uncle she must make a desperate choice in
the face of violence and her own fears of losing her family
forever.
Clockwork Angel: Cassandra Clare
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tntndQF4eV0
Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.
When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to
find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the
reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting
for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks
and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets.
Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a
secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa
learns that she is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the
power to transform into another person. What’s more, the
Magister will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his
own.
Dark Song: Gail Giles
Ames Ford has a perfect life--that is, she had a perfect life, until
her father is fired and her family has to move from their
mansion in Colorado to a slum in Texas. Now her mother won't
stop yelling, her father won't stop drinking, and her little sister
hides with a pillow over her head to drown out the fighting. But
then Ames meets Marc...he loves her more than anything, and
he won't let anyone stand in his way where Ames is concerned-especially her parents. Ames must now decide if she's willing
to commit the ultimate betrayal against her family.
Impossible: Nancy Werlin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNjavMx1Jlw
Lucy is seventeen when she discovers that she is the
latest recipient of a generations-old family curse that
requires her to complete three seemingly impossible tasks
or risk falling into madness and passing the curse on to the
next generation. Unlike her ancestors, though, Lucy has
family, friends, and other modern resources to help her out.
But will it be enough to conquer this age-old evil?
Impulse: Ellen Hopkins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kod9nXFWXLA
Three lives, three different paths to the same destination:
Aspen Springs, a psychiatric hospital for those who have
attempted the ultimate act -- suicide. Vanessa is beautiful
and smart, but her secrets keep her answering the call of
the blade. Tony, after suffering a painful childhood, can
only find peace through pills. And Conner, outwardly, has
the perfect life. But dig a little deeper and find a boy who is
in constant battle with his parents, his life, himself. In one
instant each of these young people decided enough was
enough. Now they have a second chance, but only if
they're strong and can fight the demons that brought them
here in the first place.
Leviathan: Scott Westerfeld
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyEiMye9sOA
It is the cusp of World War I. The Austro-Hungarians and
Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines
loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists
employ genetically fabricated animals as their weaponry.
Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful
beast in the British fleet. Aleksandar Ferdinand, a Clanker,
and Deryn Sharp, a Darwinist, are on opposite sides of the
war. But their paths cross in the most unexpected way,
taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical,
around-the-world adventure….One that will change both
their lives forever.
Little Brother: Cory Doctorow
Marcus figures he knows how the system works–and how
to work the system. Smart, fast, and wise to the ways of
the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting his high
school’s intrusive surveillance systems. But his whole
world changes when he and his friends are caught in the
aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco.
Marcus and his crew are apprehended by the Department
of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret prison
where they’re interrogated for days.The city has become a
police state where every citizen is treated like a potential
terrorist and Marcus has to take down the DHS himself.
Lockdown: Escape from Furnace
Alexander G. Smith
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2-geGurAyQ
Furnace Penitentiary: the world’s most secure prison for
young offenders, buried a mile beneath the earth’s surface.
Convicted of a murder he didn’t commit, sentenced to life
without parole, “new fish” Alex Sawyer knows he has two
choices: find a way out, or resign himself to a death behind
bars, in the darkness at the bottom of the world. Except in
Furnace, death is the least of his worries. Soon Alex
discovers that the prison is a place of pure evil. And behind
that evil is the all-powerful warden. Alex plans an escape
and he must risk everything to expose this nightmare that’s
hidden from the eyes of the world.
Matched: Ally Condie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dBKSzR1SIs
Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right
choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to
believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her
Matching ceremony, Cassia knows he is her ideal mate . . .
until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant
before the screen fades to black. The Society tells her it's a
glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the
happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia
can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love,
Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is
faced with an impossible choice.
The Monstrumologist: Rick Yancey
These are the secrets I have kept. This is the trust I never
betrayed. But he is dead now and has been for nearly
ninety years, the one who gave me his trust, the one for
whom I kept these secrets. The one who saved me . . . and
the one who cursed me. So starts the diary of Will Henry,
orphan and assistant to a doctor with a most unusual
specialty: monster hunting. In the short time he has lived
with the doctor, Will has grown accustomed to his late night
callers and dangerous business. But when one visitor
comes with the body of a young girl and the monster that
was feeding on her, Will's world is about to change forever.
North of Beautiful: Justina Chen Headley
It's hard not to notice Terra Cooper. She's tall, blond, and
has an enviable body. But with one turn of her cheek, all
people notice is her unmistakably "flawed" face. Terra
secretly plans to leave her stifling small town in the
Northwest and escape to an East Coast college, but gets
pushed off-course by her controlling father. When an
unexpected collision puts Terra directly in Jacob's path, the
handsome but quirky Goth boy immediately challenges her
assumptions about herself and her life, and she is forced in
yet another direction. With her carefully laid plans
disrupted, will Terra be able to find her true path?
Paranormalcy: Kiersten White
Evie’s always thought of herself as a normal teenager,
even though she works for the International Paranormal
Containment Agency, she’s falling for a shape-shifter, and
she’s the only one who can see through glamours. But now
Evie’s dreams are filled with haunting voices and cryptic
messages—and she’s realizing that she may be at the
center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to
all paranormal creatures. So much for normal.
The Sky is Everywhere:
Jandy Nelson
Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band
geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked
safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister,
Bailey. But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted
to center stage of her own life and, despite her nonexistent
history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to
balance two. Toby was Bailey's boyfriend; his grief mirrors
Lennie's own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transplant from
Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his
musical talent. For Lennie, they're the sun and the moon;
one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her
in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can't
collide without the whole world exploding.
Thirteen Reasons Why: Jay Asher
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vikVdZu-YA
Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious
box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he
discovers cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker–his
classmate and crush–who committed suicide two weeks
earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen
reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of
them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list.
War:
Sebastian Junger
In War, Sebastian Junger gives breathtaking insight into
the truths of war-- the fear, the honor, and the trust among
men. His on-the-ground account follows a single platoon
through a 15-month tour of duty in the most dangerous
outpost in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley. Through the
experiences of these young men at war, he shows what it
means to fight, to serve, and to face down mortal danger
on a regular basis.
Will Grayson, Will Grayson:
John Green & David Levithan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzZKXxle_bA
One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, Will
Grayson crosses paths with . . . Will Grayson. Two teens
with the same name, running in two very different circles,
suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected
directions, and culminating in epic turns-of-heart and the
most fabulous musical ever to grace the high school stage.
Told in alternating voices from two YA superstar authors,
this collaborative novel features a double helping of the
heart and humor that have won them both legions of fans.
ABE LINCOLN
AWARD 2014
Across the Universe: Beth Revis
What does it take to survive aboard a spaceship fueled by lies?
Amy is a cryogenically frozen passenger aboard the spaceship
Godspeed. She has left her boyfriend, friends--and planet-behind to join her parents as a member of Project Ark Ship.
Amy and her parents believe they will wake on a new planet,
Centauri-Earth, three hundred years in the future. But fifty
years before Godspeed's scheduled landing, cryo chamber 42
is mysteriously unplugged, and Amy is violently woken from her
frozen slumber. Someone tried to murder her.
Ashes: Ilsa J. Bick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A8aLLRos9o
An electromagnetic pulse flashes across the
sky, destroying every electronic device,
wiping out every computerized system, and
killing billions. Alex hiked into the woods to
say good-bye to her dead parents and her
personal demons. Now desperate to find out
what happened after the pulse crushes her
to the ground, Alex meets up with Tom—a
young soldier—and Ellie, a girl whose
grandfather was killed by the EMP. For this
improvised family and the others who are
spared, it’s now a question of who can be
trusted and who is no longer human.
Cinder: Marissa Meyer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfkFotwA5LA
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New
Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From
space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their
move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . .
. Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a secondclass citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her
stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But
when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome
Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an
intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught
between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must
uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her
world’s future.
Daughter of Smoke and Bone: Laini Taylor
Around the world, black handprints are appearing on
doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have
crept through a slit in the sky. In a dark and dusty shop, a
devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low. And
in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about
to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war. Meet Karou.
She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may
not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious
"errands"; she speaks many languages--not all of them
human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her
head that color. Who is she? That is the question that
haunts her, and she's about to find out. When one of the
strangers--beautiful, haunted Akiva--fixes his fire-colored
eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood
and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love
whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live
to regret learning the truth about herself?
Everybody Sees the Ants: A.S. King
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5juiTIH2qTI
Lucky Linderman didn't ask for his life. He didn't ask his
grandfather not to come home from the Vietnam War. He
didn't ask for a father who never got over it. He didn't ask
for a mother who keeps pretending their dysfunctional
family is fine. And he didn't ask to be the target of Nader
McMillan's relentless bullying, which has finally gone too
far. But Lucky has a secret--one that helps him wade
through the mundane torture of his life. In his dreams,
Lucky escapes to the war-ridden jungles of Laos--the
prison his grandfather couldn't escape--where Lucky can
be a real man, an adventurer, and a hero. It's dangerous
and wild, and it's a place where his life just might be worth
living. But how long can Lucky keep hiding in his dreams
before reality forces its way inside?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQRWPut6RMA
Every Day: David Levithan
Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every
day in love with the same girl. There’s never any warning
about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace
with that, even established guidelines by which to live:
Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not
interfere. It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in
the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon.
From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no
longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he
wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.
The Fault in Our Stars: John Green
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PEepfswJWs
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has
bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but
terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But
when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters
suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s
story is about to be completely rewritten. Insightful, bold,
irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is awardwinning-author John Green’s most ambitious and
heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny,
thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.
Five Flavors of Dumb: Antony John
The Challenge: Piper has one month to get the rock band
Dumb a paying gig. The Deal: If she does it, Piper will
become the band's manager and get her share of the
profits.The Catch: How can Piper possibly manage one
egomaniacal pretty boy, one talentless piece of eye candy,
one crush, one silent rocker, and one angry girl? And how
can she do it when she's deaf? Piper can't hear Dumb's
music, but with growing self-confidence, a budding
romance, and a new understanding of the decision her
family made to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby
sister, she discovers her own inner rock star and what it
truly means to be a flavor of Dumb.
Hate List: Jennifer Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWNGIRTU2u4
Five months ago, Valerie Leftman's boyfriend, Nick,
opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop
him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but
was implicated in the shootings because of the list she
helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick
hated. The list he used to pick his targets. Now, after a
summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as
she returns to school to complete her senior year. Haunted
by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and
navigating rocky relationships with her family, former
friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to
grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in
order to make amends and move on with her life.
How to Save a Life: Sara Zarr
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHzX2OuSTpg
Jill MacSweeny just wishes everything could go back to
normal. But ever since her dad died, she's been isolating
herself from her boyfriend, her best friends -- everyone
who wants to support her. When her mom decides to adopt
a baby, it feels like she's somehow trying to replace a lost
family member with a new one. Mandy Kalinowski
understands what it's like to grow up unwanted -- to be
raised by a mother who never intended to have a child. So
when Mandy becomes pregnant, one thing she's sure of is
that she wants a better life for her baby. It's harder to be
sure of herself. Will she ever find someone to care for her,
too? As their worlds change around them, Jill and Mandy
must learn to both let go and hold on, and that nothing is
as easy -- or as difficult -- as it seems.
I Hunt Killers: Barry Lyga
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wwRp7Ou53E
Jazz is a likable teenager. A charmer, some might say. But
he's also the son of the world's most infamous serial killer,
and for Dear Old Dad, "Take Your Son to Work Day" was
year-round. Jazz has witnessed crime scenes the way
cops wish they could--from the criminals' point of view. And
now, even though Dad has been in jail for years, bodies
are piling up in the sleepy town of Lobo's Nod. Again. In an
effort to prove murder doesn't run in the family, Jazz joins
the police in the hunt for this new serial killer. But Jazz has
a secret--could he be more like his father than anyone
knows?
Legend: Marie Lu
What was once the western United States is now home to
the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors.
Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest
districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed
for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born
into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most
wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious
as they seem. From very different worlds, June and Day
have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's
brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime
suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse,
Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks
to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events,
the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them
together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to
keep its secrets.
Marcelo in the Real World: Francisco X. Stork
Marcelo Sandoval hears music no one else can hear--part
of the autism-like impairment no doctor has been able to
identify--and he's always attended a special school where
his differences have been protected. But the summer after
his junior year, his father demands that Marcelo work in his
law firm's mailroom in order to experience "the real world."
There Marcelo meets Jasmine, his beautiful and surprising
coworker, and Wendell, the son of another partner in the
firm. He learns about competition and jealousy, anger and
desire. But it's a picture he finds in a file -- a picture of a girl
with half a face -- that truly connects him with the real
world: its suffering, its injustice, and what he can do to
fight.
The Pregnancy Project: a Memoir
Gaby Rodriguez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dlg9KHrKw0
The true story of a high school senior whose faked
pregnancy rocked her community and made international
headlines. It started as a school project…but turned into so
much more. Growing up, Gaby Rodriguez was often told
she would end up a teen mom. After all, her mother and
her older sisters had gotten pregnant as teenagers; from
an outsider’s perspective, it was practically a family
tradition. Gaby had ambitions that didn’t include teen
motherhood. But she wondered: how would she be treated
if she “lived down” to others' expectations? Would
everyone ignore the years she put into being a good
student and see her as just another pregnant teen statistic
with no future? These questions sparked Gaby’s school
project: faking her own pregnancy as a high school senior
to see how her family, friends, and community would react.
What she learned changed her life forever.
Purple Heart:
Patricia McCormick
When Private Matt Duffy wakes up in an army hospital in
Iraq, he's honored with a Purple Heart. But he doesn't feel
like a hero. There's a memory that haunts him: an image of
a young Iraqi boy as a bullet hits his chest. Matt can't
shake the feeling that he was somehow involved in his
death. But because of a head injury he sustained just
moments after the boy was shot, Matt can't quite put all the
pieces together. Eventually Matt is sent back into combat
with his squad—Justin, Wolf, and Charlene—the soldiers
who have become his family during his time in Iraq. He just
wants to go back to being the soldier he once was. But he
sees potential threats everywhere and lives in fear of not
being able to pull the trigger when the time comes. In
combat there is no black-and-white, and Matt soon
discovers that the notion of who is guilty is very
complicated indeed.
Ready Player One: Ernest Cline
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifXryyx4erU
It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place. Like
most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings
by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a
sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to
be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any
of ten thousand planets. And like most of humanity, Wade
dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket
that lies concealed within this virtual world. And then Wade
stumbles upon the first puzzle. Suddenly the whole world is
watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt—among
them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very
real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for
Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win.
But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect
virtual existence and face up to life—and love—in the real
world he’s always been so desperate to escape.
Room:
Emma Donoghue
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8rj2otXNfM
To five-year-old-Jack, Room is the world. . . . It's where he
was born, it's where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play
and learn. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the
wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick
visits. Room is home to Jack, but to Ma it's the prison
where she has been held for seven years. Through her
fierce love for her son, she has created a life for him in this
eleven-by-eleven-foot space. But with Jack's curiosity
building alongside her own desperation, she knows that
Room cannot contain either much longer.
Shadow and Bone: Leigh Bardugo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GFt5WLSk_c
Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has
been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near
impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on
human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one
lonely refugee. Alina Starkov has never been good at
anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and
her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant
power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to
setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from
everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court
to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led
by the mysterious Darkling. Yet nothing in this lavish world is
what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom
depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront
the secrets of the Grisha…and the secrets of her heart.
Stupid Fast: Geoff Herbach
I AM NOT STUPID FUNNY. I AM STUPID FAST. My name
is Felton Reinstein, which is not a fast name. But last
November, my voice finally dropped and I grew all this hair
and then I got stupid fast. Fast like a donkey. Zing! Now
they want me, the guy they used to call Squirrel Nut, to try
out for the football team. With the jocks. But will that fix my
mom? Make my brother stop dressing like a pirate? Most
important, will it get me girls-especially Aleah? So I train.
And I run. And I sneak off to Aleah's house in the night. But
deep down I know I can't run forever. And I wonder what
will happen when I finally have to stop.
Wintergirls: Laurie Halse Anderson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anxTRdRr410
Lia and Cassie are best friends, wintergirls frozen in fragile
bodies, competitors in a deadly contest to see who can be
the thinnest. But then Cassie suffers the ultimate loss-her
life-and Lia is left behind, haunted by her friend's memory
and racked with guilt for not being able to help save her. In
her most powerfully moving novel since Speak, awardwinning author Laurie Halse Anderson explores Lia's
struggle, her painful path to recovery, and her desperate
attempts to hold on to the most important thing of all: hope.