ALICE, I THINK
Susan Juby
HarperTempest
ISBN: 0060515430
Young Adult
304 pages

A few weeks into first grade, Alice's parents took her out of school and they have taught her at home ever since. Now she's about to enter high school, and there are lots of unanswered questions. Will she be able to interact with people her own age? Will she meet a boy and perhaps go out on a date? Or should she wait until she graduates from high school? Should she develop a new look, and what type of career path should she follow? For the answers to these and many other interesting questions, you'll need to pick up a copy of this wise and witty book.

THE BATTLE OF JERICHO
Sharon Draper
Atheneum
ISBN: 0689842325
Ages 12-up
304 pages

When Jericho is invited to pledge for the Warriors of Distinction, he's on cloud nine. You see, the Warriors is the most exclusive club in school --- they give the best parties, go out with the cutest girls, and breeze through their classes. And when Arielle, one of the finest girls in his class, starts coming on to him once the pledge announcements are made, Jericho is determined to do anything to become a member.

But initiation week is an excruciating experience, and Jericho is forced to make choices he's not entirely comfortable with. Meanwhile, the sole female pledge in the group will do anything to show that she can handle the pressure. But is she being pushed too far? Should Jericho and his friends risk losing their places in the pledging process to stand up for her?

BOTTLED UP
Jaye Murray
Dial Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 0803728972
Ages 12-up
224 pages

Principal Giraldi has given 16-year-old Pip an ultimatum: Either he stops skipping classes and begins seeing a counselor after school, or he will be expelled. The thought of being kicked out of school is certainly not comforting, but what truly frightens Pip is that Giraldi might contact his father. Pip is terrified of his father.

Before this ultimatum, Pip had been passing the time away by getting high, as he tried to avoid thinking about his family life and the fact that his younger brother has changed significantly. Now, Pip is being forced to seriously think about his future: Will he follow his father's destructive path, or will he choose a life that does not involve addiction and cruelty?

CHARLIE'S ANGELS: Full Throttle
Emma Harrison
Simon Pulse
ISBN: 0689860226
Ages 14-up
208 pages

Meet the beautiful and brilliant women who work for Charlie: Dylan is the wild child who appears tough on the outside but has fierce loyalties on the inside, Natalie is the shy girl next door who just happens to be a demon behind the wheel, and Alex is quite sophisticated, the ultimate class act --- and, not to mention, unstoppable with a laptop.

Their case is to uncover the identity of a rogue FBI agent and ensure the security of HALO: the Hidden Alias List Operation, a.k.a. the witness protection program. HALO's list of witnesses has been encrypted into a pair of titanium rings --- and one of the rings is missing. Despite an agency fail-safe initiative, federal witnesses are at risk of being uncovered by any skilled hacker. The Angels will do all they can to prevent such a disaster from occurring.

THE CREEK
Jennifer L. Holm
HarperCollins Juvenile Books
ISBN: 006000133X
Ages 12-up
240 pages

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Caleb Devlin is a legend on Mockingbird Lane. This boy terrorized an entire town before being sent away. He hurt other kids, tortured animals, set fires, and committed other unspeakable acts. But this was all before Penny and her little brother moved there.

Well, guess what? Caleb has returned, older and more dangerous than ever, and terrible things have started happening again. The entire town knows he's responsible, but the police can't arrest him without proof. So Penny and her friends have no choice but to try to stop him themselves. There's just one tiny problem --- now he's after them!

CUBA 15
Nancy Osa
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385730217
Ages 12-up
256 pages

Violet Paz has just turned 15, which is a pivotal birthday in the eyes of her Cuban grandmother. Fifteen is the age when a girl enters womanhood, traditionally celebrating the occasion with a quinceañero. But Violet is half-Cuban and half-Polish, and she feels 100% American. In fact, she is not too familiar with Cuban culture; she knows nothing about quinces and just a smidgen about the history of Cuba.

As she begins to ask questions about her Cuban roots, cultures and feelings collide. The mere mention of Cuba and Fidel Castro brings great sadness to her grandparents and angers her father. Only Violet's aunt Luz remains open-minded. With so many different viewpoints, it's not easy to know what to believe. All Violet knows is that she must form her own opinions, even if it causes arguments within her family.

FAT KID RULES THE WORLD
Kelly Going
Putnam
ISBN: 0399239901
Ages 14-up
192 pages

Troy Billings is standing at the edge of a subway platform seriously contemplating suicide when he meets Curt MacCrae, a semi-homeless punk guitar genius who also happens to be a drop-out legend at Troy's school on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Curt saves Troy's life that day, though Troy gets more than he bargained for when Curt recruits him to be his drummer. There's only one problem: Troy can't play the drums. And to make matters more complicated, Troy's father thinks Curt is a drug addict and his brother thinks Troy is a loser. But with Curt, anything is possible.

THE FIRST PART LAST
Angela Johnson
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0689849222
Ages 12-up
144 pages

Bobby is a typical urban teenage boy: impulsive, eager and restless. On his sixteenth birthday he receives news from his girlfriend Nia that is sure to change his life forever --- she is pregnant with his baby. Suddenly school, house parties and hanging out with friends no longer seem important. Instead, Bobby spends much of his time accompanying Nia to the obstetrician and visiting with a social worker who believes that the only way for Nia and Bobby to lead a normal life is to put their baby up for adoption.

GAIA ABDUCTED (Fearless Series)
Francine Pascal
Simon Pulse
ISBN: 0689860196
Ages 16-up
384 pages

Last summer a chance encounter with a sympathetic CIA agent gave Gaia Moore precious insight into her parent's history, as well as the decades-long feud with her uncle. But Gaia remains unaware of which Moore twin is truly her father. That one piece of information seemed to be the most vital key in understanding her identity --- until now.

Trapped in an institution for enemies of the Agency, Gaia finds herself once again playing reluctant savior to various colorful patients. And before she can help either herself or them, she's going to meet someone --- someone closer to her than she ever imagined.

GIRLS IN TEARS
Jacqueline Wilson
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385730829
Ages 12-up
192 pages

Ellie knows the rule: Best friends always come before boys. But Russell isn't just any boy. He and Ellie are in love. She thinks they will be together forever --- until everything goes wrong. Now Ellie feels like crying all the time and, to make matters worse, she can't even count on her friends, Magda and Nadine, anymore. They were supposed to be inseparable, but so many things have changed. Are they really splitting up for good?

THE GLASS CAFE
Gary Paulsen
Random House/Wendy Lamb Books
ISBN: 0385324995
Ages 12-up
112 pages

Al works nights as an exotic dancer at the Kitty Kat Club and has a very close relationship with her twelve-year-old son, Tony. But when Tony discovers the beauty and power of art, his drawings of dancers at the Kitty Kat Club spark attention from social services. Are they merely artistic sketches, or pornographic drawings? Is Al a responsible mother making money for her family, a skilled storyteller, or a woman simply taking off her clothes? Al refuses to surrender custody of Tony without a fight.

GOD WENT TO BEAUTY SCHOOL
Cynthia Rylant
HarperTempest
ISBN: 0060094338
Young Adult
64 pages

Newbery Medalist Cynthia Rylant imagines a God who performs human activities, such as buying a dog, writing a fan letter, and making spaghetti. With many teens struggling to achieve an understanding of God and spirituality, this novel told in verse arrives at the perfect time. It celebrates the simple things in life while taking a long, hard look at what it means to be human.

JAKE RILEY: Irreparably Damaged
Rebecca Fjelland Davis
HarperTempest
ISBN: 0060518375
Young Adult
272 pages

Jake Riley seems to have many contradicting labels attached to his name: a nice guy, a loser, a good friend, a menace to society. Which classification should we believe? Perhaps Jake is a combination of all these things. Jake's best friend, Lainey, wants to help him adjust to life after reform school. Conversely, Jake's guidance counselor thinks he's dangerous and should be put away. Even Jake isn't quite sure where he belongs.

MATES, DATES, AND DESIGNER DIVAS
Cathy Hopkins
Simon Pulse
ISBN: 068985546X
Ages 12-up
208 pages

Nesta has met the perfect boy: good-looking, fun, sweet. But there are also problems. Simon is from a rich, upper-class background --- with a lifestyle to match it --- and it's difficult for Nesta to keep up. And then there's Simon's friend Cressida to deal with. Nesta is determined to impress the new crowd, but finds herself totally out of place. Luckily she has Lucy and Izzie by her side, every step of the way.

NECESSARY NOISE: Stories About Our Families as They Really Are
edited by Michael Cart
illustrated by Charlotte Noruzi
HarperTempest/Joanna Cotler Books
ISBN: 0060274999
Young Adult
256 pages

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Many television sitcoms of the fifties and sixties portrayed families in an idealized way. You had a man, a woman and their offspring --- sure, they experienced problems in their lives, but the love they had for one another helped them overcome any and all obstacles.

The ten stories in NECESSARY NOISE, however, talk about families the way they really are. Siblings coping with their younger brother's overdose. A girl terrified of her older sister's dual personality. A boy trying to adjust to his life with two mothers. A father visiting his son on death row. These are the stories of today's families --- and they're nothing like the Cleavers!

THE NEW RULES OF HIGH SCHOOL
Blake Nelson
Viking Children's Books
ISBN: 0670036447
Ages 12-up
244 pages

Max Caldwell is tired. He's tired of having a "perfect" girlfriend, he's tired of worrying about college applications, and he's tired of always doing what he's supposed to do. So for the first time, dependable, reliable Max steps back from his Mr. Perfect, straight-A life to see what happens when he lets go for a while. He learns quickly that his new approach to life won't bring all the answers, but it sure raises a lot of interesting questions.

THE SPEED OF LIGHT
Ron Carlson
HarperTempest
ISBN: 0380978377
Young Adult
288 pages

Larry, Witt, and Rafferty have the entire summer ahead of them to play as much baseball as they want, build structures in the backyard, and find out what makes the world tick.

Larry doesn't particularly care to know what constantly draws him into Witt's backyard whenever he's not at baseball practice --- after all, it's filled with weeds and rotting appliances. All he knows is that there's no one else he'd rather be with than his two friends, that the chaos of Witt's universe offers refuge from his own orderly home and an entrance into a world of change, growth, and unpredictability.

SWEETBLOOD
Pete Hautman
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0689850484
Ages 12-up
192 pages

Lucy has always been more or less in control of herself and her diabetes --- but lately everything is slipping away. Her grades are declining, her interest in the occult is growing, and her episodes of high blood sugar have become much more frequent. When she suggests in a term paper that the symptoms of untreated diabetes may look a lot like vampirism, she gets in trouble; her teacher thinks she's disturbed and her parents are worried. Amazingly she soon meets a man who claims to be a real vampire. Unfortunately, Lucy's life is spinning dangerously out of control.