CONTEMPORARY
CLASSICS
For Grades 7 - 10
(all titles found in YA section)
Bond VOYAGE BEGUN. 16-year-old
Paul becomes involved with a gang of looters and a fiercely independent girl in
this story, set in the near future.
Bridgers ALL TOGETHER NOW. Casey Flanagan observes the power of love in her grandmother’s small town during the Korean war.
Cleaver WHERE THE LILLIES BLOOM. In the Appalachian mountains, a determined 14-year-old tries to keep her orphaned family together.
Cormier THE CHOCOLATE WAR. Cliques and faculty politics defeat a rebel trying to defy the Catholic high school system.
Guy THE FRIENDS. An affluent West Indian girl befriends a poor Harlem girl.
Hamilton SWEET WHISPERS BROTHER RUSH. Tree nurses her brother through his final illness and several visits by their dead father.
Hinton THE OUTSIDERS. Ponyboy, 14, describes a tragic feud between the “greasers” and the “socs.”
Holland THE MAN WITHOUT A FACE. 14-year-old Charles Norstadt learns much from his badly scarred, reclusive tutor.
Kerr GENTLEHANDS. As Buddy Boyle tries to impress his friends, he discovers his grandfather is a Nazi war criminal.
Konigsburg A PROUD TASTE FOR SCARLET AND MINIVER. Eleanor of Aquitaine waits in Heaven to see if her husband, Henry II, will be able to join her.
Levoy ALAN AND NAOMI. Two friends struggle to remain sane after World War II.
Lipsyte CONTENDER. A Harlem boxing center helps 17-year-old Alfred escape the frustrations which caused his friends to turn to drugs.
McCaffrey DRAGONSONG. In the world of Pern, a young girl receives help from nine fire lizards.
Myers FAST SAM, COOL CLYDE AND STUFF. Stuff recalls when he was 13 and hung out with his best friends, Fast Sam and Cool Clyde.
O’Neal LANGUAGE OF GOLDFISH. Carrie’s drawing talent seems her only hope when she suffers a nervous breakdown.
Peck FATHER FIGURE. Jim’s choice to be a father to his 8-year-old brother is threatened when they spend the summer with their long-lost father
Peck A DAY NO PIGS WOULD DIE. A 12-year-old Shaker farm boy learns responsibility as he deals with the slaughter of his pet pig.
Sebestyen WORDS BY HEART. The first black family in a pioneer farm community pays a tragic price for trying to make a better life.
Werbsa DREAM WATCHER. Albert Scully, a high school freshman and misfit, feels out of place until an 80-year-old actress helps him be himself.
Westall MACHINE GUNNERS. Chas and his friends arm their fort against the enemy, who are anything but the Nazi horde they expect.
Zindel PIGMAN. Two high
school sophomores tell of their friendship with a lonely old man.
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