Kim promised her bff that she would come back to visit after she died. Knowing that she had a congenital heart defect, Kim actually spent a lot of time planning for how she would return to visit Emmy. But almost a year after Kim’s death, nothing has happened. Emmy waits, trying everything she can think of on all the anniversaries of major events in their lives, and puts her own life on hold. She hides under her bed, emotionally disconnected from everyone around her. Finally, Emmy sees a ghost, but it is not Kim; it is her recently deceased teacher.  Hoping that means Emmy will appear to her soon, Emmy tries to believe more, convinced it is her fault Kim has not appeared.

Emmy is crushed by her grief, and the cruelty of her peers makes it worse. Teens will easily identify with characters in the book and recognize as all too familiar the actions of many other characters.  This book feels disjointed; events are not in chronological sequence. The writing is often choppy, but feels realistic – grieving is not smooth and pretty. Fans of Gayle Forman and those looking for something to read after TFIOS should enjoy this.

Gaston, “Gas,” is devastated by the loss of his mother, who he believes was killed by an illegal alien in an auto accident. When Gas’s father begins drinking more and becomes physically abusive, Gas decides it is time to leave. He ends up in another state, working with a family of Mexicans – the people his father has taught him to hate. Gas finds out that the family he works with are more trustworthy than his new boss, who will do anything for money. This coming of age novel is fast-paced and will pull the most reluctant readers along for the ride. The characters aren’t fully developed, but Gas’s feeling ring true. NOTE: some language and ethnic slurs.

Ophelia is paparazzi fodder: she is the daughter of the King of Denmark’s adviser and the girlfriend of the King’s son, Hamlet. Her life is the epitome of today’s celebrity culture. When Hamlet’s dad dies unexpectedly and his mother marries his uncle Claudius, Hamlet begins to fall apart. The novel follows Shakespeare’s plot in great detail, which is not a good thing. It might have been better if this modern retelling was loosely based on the play and let go a little more. Shakespeare fans will be put off and those who have never read the original will miss some of the references and events. Girls who enjoy Lauren Conrad might enjoy this one.

Khalid, a fifteen year old from England, is on a trip to Karachi to visit family when he is mistaken for a terrorist and sent to Kandahar and then Guantanamo Bay. An innocent victim of the war on terror, he is held, interrogated and tortured for two years. This fictionalized story representing real situations illustrates the captives’ feelings of helplessness and boredom, the brutality and indifference of the jailors, and the consequences both intended and unintended of the war on terror. This story is riveting and will grab the attention of most teens. There is a timeline and discussion questions at the end that should prompt a lot of dialogue.

Instead of serving time in juvie, four girls elect to enter a new correctional program. Each of the girls has some sort of history that makes them reluctant to trust. Working together helps the girls to slowly begin to open up to each other. However one of the girls tries to sabotage both the girls’ success and the entire program.

This could have been a compelling story about four girls bonding and coming to terms with their issues, however, the characters are not well-developed. Lauren, the girl who betrays the others, is unpleasant, vindictive and not a sympathetic character at all. Could have been much better than it was.

Levi moves to the Midwest at the beginning of seventh grade and just hopes to fit in with the guys. When pretty girl Macallan is assigned to show him around, they immediately discover their love of British comedy and become fast friends. The book, looking back and told in alternating voices with a few present day comments thrown in, follows the pair through 11th grade and attempts to answer the question: Can boys and girls just be friends? While the pair seem to navigate more than a few ups and downs, jealousy sets in when they date others. Sweet, gentle – definitely a summer read.

Holly, the girl from the poor side of town, is still grieving after her rich boyfriend Rob dies in a car accident. To make things worse, Rob’s friends blame her for the accident, her mother is working a second job to make ends meet and now in addition to watching her nine year old sister, her grandfather who is suffering from dementia moves in and she must care for him as well. Grandpa Aldo’s Alzheimer’s seems to be getting worse; he has started talking to a “ghost” named Roberto. Grandpa’s ghost is actually Rob, who for some reason can not move on after death. The story is told in three voices: Holly, Rob and Rob’s best friend Jason who is falling for Holly.

The best part of the book is Holly’s relationship with her younger sister and her grandfather. She is kind and caring with both; her insistence in communicating directly with her grandfather and including him in everyday decisions is particularly endearing.  Her grief for her boyfriend is realistic but not explored in any depth, which is disappointing. Many of the characters are dealing with some kind of grief: the loss of a friend, a son, a marriage, the memories of a lifetime. Again, none are explored in any depth and most are tied up a little too neatly. Many teen girls will find the heartbreak and burgeoning romance appealing. Another plus – the story is set in Seattle with references to lots of local landmarks.

Hours after her mother weds for the third time, Clare is sent to a remote New England island to stay with the father she hasn’t seen since she was three. Clare is understandably reluctant to spend time with the man she believes abandoned her. She gradually learns that her father believes he did what was best for her; by removing himself from her life, he spared her from dealing with the fact that he is gay. I found it odd that Clare barely twitched when she found out about her father and that she so easily forgave him and was not angry that her mother was so eager to keep them apart. While Clare seems to immediately accept her father’s orientation, she does nothing to stand up for him in this or in his determination to save the local sea turtle population. The book is sweet, but the end wraps up a little too neatly.

Two broken teens, one who has just been diagnosed with diabetes and sees it as a life sentence and the other who has just returned from Afghanistan with one arm, discover each other in this summer read. Kate has just been dumped weeks before graduation and refuses to take her diabetes seriously, even though her behavior lands her in the hospital more than once. Aidan wanted a career in the military, but the IED that killed his sergeant also effectively ended the career he has always wanted. Told in alternating voices, this story shows how Kate and Aidan deal with the fallout from what has happened to them and their growing relationship.  It is hard to have as much sympathy for Kate and her choices as it for Aidan, and everything is tied up a little too neatly by the end. The fact that the two have sex so quickly seemed unnecessary. Definitely summer reading.

Nora is a brainiac who is tired of being a geek and wants to be popular. When her parents move so her genius little brother can go to a better kindergarten, she sees her chance to reinvent herself and be one of the cool kids. No more AP classes, Chess Club, or gymnastics – it is time for cheerleading and dating jocks. It all works out until she meets new kid Adam, who is a nice, brainiac, chess geek. Nora makes all kinds of promises and swaps to finagle her way into Adam’s life, with disastrous results. Reading this book was one of the biggest chores of my summer. Even though the book is set locally and I was prepared to enjoy it, it was so predictable, so saccharinely sweet, I did not enjoy it at all. There was a promise of more meaningful subplots that were never explored. But the worst part was that, after all of her deception and the trouble she caused for so many other students,  everything worked out perfectly in the end.  I am sure there will be some teenage girls out there who will enjoy this book; I  certainly did not.

Danielle Levine attends a school for students with learning disabilities, fitting since she has OCD. Even though all of the students have their issues, there is still the typical high school hierarchy, and since Danielle has curly red hair and is a size 12 instead of an eight or smaller, she is not one of the cool kids. Through the essays she writes for English, the emails to her aunt Joyce, and the collections of hats, sneakers and snow globes over which she obsesses, we  gradually learn about Danielle and what caused her to leave her last school. In the end, she learns to “abide” as the Dude would say and live with the life she has. There is a lot of humor in this book; Danielle’s observations about her peers are spot on and wicked. In fact, her snarky writing prompts her English teacher to contact home and she is forced to meet with the school psychologist and attend a social skills class. Danielle finally takes off the rose colored glasses through which she viewed the unattainable jock Jacob and makes friends with a few people who give her the support she needs. The relationships Danielle develops are heart-warming. Most teens will be able to relate to Danielle’s efforts to navigate through the trials of high school of someone who is not popular and who has experienced an actual trauma.

Izzy has issues: she has huge boobs that the boys tease her about mercilessly,her mother is hypercritical of her appearance, constantly implying that she looks slutty, and her best friend is acting totally weird. But none of that compares to the fact that her mother is hiding something. She had cancer – but she is better, isn’t she? And why is her bff acting so weird? Why is the hottest guy on the basketball team hanging around her? It seems like everyone is keeping something from Izzy. Her method to deal with everything is to look for symptoms and self-diagnose. If Izzy is sick, her mother will have to pay attention to her, and not just for her boobs, right? When a risque picture of her goes viral and her mother needs surgery, Izzy’s entire world falls down around her.  There is a lot going on in this book. And the boys who make sure the picture is seen by everyone are not held accountable for what they do. But this book is about relationships and truth. Izzy is believable and readers will root for her to figure out what is going on around her and overcome the challenges that face her. Lots of humor here, but some serious issues as well. I wish the ending didn’t seem so pat.

Zen (Athena) and Xander (Alexandria) are trying to deal with the death of their mother, with no help from their father who has withdrawn from his family and the world. Zen buries herself in her karate training and instruction; Xander, who has always been somewhat of a wild child, is now on a path of total destruction. One day, the girls receive a letter from their mother, which promises that there will be more letters and packages to come. What also arrives is a mystery. The girls find out that their mother had a secret, and since she isn’t there to ask, they decide to find out on their own. However, the closer they get to an answer, the less certain they are that they want to know.

The sisters are realistic and believable; their struggle to deal with their grief rings true. The supporting characters are interesting; it is a shame that their father is so crippled with grief that he is just a side character. There is some language and quite a bit of objectionable behavior; however, it is not gratuitous. It is Xander’s way of dealing with her grief and quite understandable, if misguided.

Definitely for grades 9+.