Teenreads.com - WHAT TO GIVE, WHAT TO GET 2003

WHAT TO GIVE, WHAT TO GET
Best Books of 2003

As 2003 comes to a close, we at Teenreads.com have compiled some of our favorite books of the year for teens. Leading the pack is what we believe to be this season's best holiday read: Kieran Scott's JINGLE BOY, a funny tale about a young man whose Christmas appears to be ruined by a series of unfortunate events. Our other selections cover a variety of genres --- science fiction, fantasy, suspense and nonfiction --- and include Christopher Paolini's enormously successful debut novel ERAGON.

So whether you're a teenager who has no clue what to buy for your friends, or an adult trying to find ideal gifts for the young people in your life, these suggestions should make your holiday shopping a little easier and your recipients very happy.

JINGLE BOY
Kieran Scott
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385731132
Ages 12-up
240 pages
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• Author Interview

Sixteen-year-old Paul Nicholas simply cannot get enough of Christmas. That's why he's so attracted to Sarah, a girl who smells like peppermint and thinks shopping for presents is the ultimate afternoon activity. But it doesn't take long for the holiday season to turn gloomy for Paul, as he catches Sarah making out with Santa Claus at a mall, his dad's over-the-top lights catch the Nicholas house on fire, and his mom gets fired from her job because of something he did for Sarah. Will this be Paul's worst holiday, or is there still a chance for a merry Christmas?

13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen
edited by James Howe
Atheneum
ISBN: 0689828632
Ages 12-up
288 pages
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Being 13 years old can be an awkward time for many. You're officially a teenager, even though you may not feel like one --- but you're no longer a little kid, either. Here, from thirteen different points of view, are stories about that wonderful (or dreadful) time. Written by some of today's finest writers for young adults --- including Meg Cabot, Laura Godwin, Ron Koertge and Carolyn Mackler --- these stories truly capture the agony and ecstasy of being 13.

THE A-LIST
Zoey Dean
Little Brown & Company
ISBN: 0316734357
Ages 15-up
256 pages
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Seventeen-year-old Anna Percy is on her way to Beverly Hills, where she'll live with her estranged dad for the rest of the school year while her mother travels to Europe with a friend. While on the plane, Anna meets Princeton student Ben Birnbaum, who invites her to a famous actor's wedding. There, Anna meets the rich and famous people who will soon be her classmates at Beverly Hills High. But even in La-La Land, Anna is having a difficult time starting over and just can't seem to escape certain problems.

DANGEROUS GIRLS
R.L. Stine
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060530804
Ages 12-up
256 pages
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Destiny Weller and her twin sister, Livvy, are beautiful, smart and popular. They look forward to a summer of fun (and romance) as junior counselors at Camp Blue Moon. However, Destiny and Livvy don't realize the evil that awaits them at camp --- an evil that will change their lives forever.

Summer ends, but the horror follows them home. The twins are overcome by an inhuman craving for blood and they prowl their town at night, eager to satisfy their hunger. How long can they keep their terrifying secret from their friends, and how much longer can they avoid the vampire hunters who are determined to destroy them?

THE EARTH, MY BUTT, AND OTHER BIG ROUND THINGS
Carolyn Mackler
Candlewick Press
Fiction
ISBN: 0763619582
256 pages
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• Reading Group Guide

Fifteen-year-old Virginia Shreves has a larger-than-average body and a plus-size inferiority complex. She lives on the Web, eats a ton of junk food, and follows the "Fat Girl Code of Conduct." Her stuttering best friend has just moved to Walla Walla. Her new companion, Froggy Welsh the Fourth, has just succeeded in getting his hand up her shirt, and she lives in fear that he'll look underneath.

Then there are the other Shreves: Mom, the successful psychologist and exercise fiend; Dad, a top executive who eyes thin women on TV; and older siblings Ana�s and rugby god Byron, both of whom are slim and brilliant. Virginia is convinced that, without her, the Shreves would be a picture-perfect family. But then a shocking phone call changes everything.

ERAGON: Inheritance, Book One
Christopher Paolini
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Science Fiction
ISBN: 0375826688
528 pages
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• Author Interview

When a young farm boy named Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it's a lucky discovery; perhaps it will buy his family meat for the winter. But when the stone hatches into a beautiful blue dragon, Eragon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself. Overnight his simple life is shattered, and he is thrust into a perilous new world of destiny, magic and power.

With only an ancient sword and the advice of an old storyteller for guidance, Eragon and the fledgling dragon must navigate the dangerous terrain and dark enemies of an Empire ruled by a king whose evil knows no bounds. Can Eragon take up the mantle of the legendary Dragon Riders? The fate of the Empire may rest in his hands. . . .

FIREBIRDS: An Anthology of Original Fantasy and Science Fiction
edited by Sharyn November
Firebird/Penguin Young Readers Group
Short Stories/Fantasy & Science Fiction
ISBN: 0142501425
432 pages
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• Roundtable

Firebird --- the imprint --- is dedicated to publishing the best fantasy and science fiction for teenage and adult readers. FIREBIRDS is an equally special anthology. Its sixteen original stories showcase some of the genre's most admired authors, including multiple award-winners Diana Wynne Jones, Garth Nix, Lloyd Alexander, Nancy Farmer, Meredith Ann Pierce, and Patricia A. McKillip. Here you will find a sparkling range of writing, from dark humor to high sword and sorcery to traditional ballads --- something for all readers to enjoy.

GEOGRAPHY CLUB
Brent Hartinger
HarperTempest
ISBN: 0060012218
Ages 13-19
240 pages
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Russel Middlebrook is convinced he's the only gay kid at Goodkind High School --- until he finds out that his online gay chat buddy is none other than Kevin, the popular but closeted star of the school's baseball team. Soon Russel meets other gay students, including his best friend Min, who reveals that she's bisexual, her soccer-playing girlfriend Terese, and Terese's politically active friend, Ike. But how can teenagers this diverse get together without drawing attention to themselves?

HAUNTED: A Tale of the Mediator
Meg Cabot
HarperCollins Juvenile Books
ISBN: 006029471X
256 pages
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Susannah Simon is a 16 year-old mediator --- a liaison between the living and the dead. One day, she discovers that Jesse, the ghost of a young man from the nineteenth-century, is haunting her bedroom. Susannah tries to get close to Jesse but her advances fail to capture his attention. However, this resistance is not Susannah's only obstacle. There is another guy, a live one who also possesses the ability to talk with the undead. He is after her in the same way that she is after Jesse --- and he knows how to send Jesse to the Great Beyond for good.

NIGHTMARE
Joan Lowery Nixon
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385730268
Ages 12-up
176 pages
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Emily hasn't been living up to the standards set by her overachieving family, and so her parents have enrolled her at Camp Excel --- an academic camp for underachievers. But Emily has been plagued by a recurring nightmare since she was a child. With the help of two new friends at the camp, Emily discovers that her nightmare is not merely confined to her head. Because someone at Camp Excel has a secret --- and will do anything, including murder, to keep Emily from learning the truth.

NO BODY'S PERFECT: Stories by Teens about Body Image, Self-Acceptance, and the Search for Identity
Kimberly Kirberger
Scholastic Trade
ISBN: 0439426383
289 pages

Kimberly Kirberger, co-author of the bestselling CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE TEENAGE SOUL books and a renowned expert on teen issues, addresses the topic of body image in NO BODY'S PERFECT. Unfortunately, some girls today suffer from a lack of self-esteem and self-love, which can lead to eating disorders, depression, drug use and more. This important book contains powerful stories, poems from real teens, and personal tales. Kirberger hopes these accounts, along with her own advice, will help girls learn to accept, love and appreciate their bodies --- and, ultimately, love themselves.

THE SECOND SUMMER OF THE SISTERHOOD
Ann Brashares
Delacorte
Fiction
ISBN: 0385729340
384 pages
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• Author Talk

Ann Brashares follows the huge success of her bestselling first novel, THE SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS, with THE SECOND SUMMER OF THE SISTERHOOD, which continues the adventures of four best friends --- Bridget, Lena, Carmen and Tibby --- and the magical pair of jeans that fits each of them perfectly.

THE SITTER
R. L. Stine
Ballantine
ISBN: 0345459806
Ages 12-up
320 pages

Ellie Saks desperately wants to escape the city, tired of dead-end jobs, her mother's disapproval, her loser ex-boyfriend, and the memories of a terrible incident that occurred years ago. So she immediately agrees to her best friend's suggestion that she spend the summer in the Hamptons --- complete with glitzy parties, cool cocktails, and hot dates. To be able to afford all this fun, Ellie takes a job as a nanny.

It isn't long before Ellie meets four-year-old Brandon, who hasn't spoken for months. Ellie recognizes that he is a troubled boy who is haunted by something too horrible to even talk about. She then begins to receive threatening messages and disturbing gifts. But it's not until she barely escapes a harrowing experience that she realizes her life may depend on figuring out who's behind it all.

THE SONG READER
Lisa Tucker
Pocket Books
Fiction
ISBN: 0743464451
320 pages
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• Reading Group Guide

Leeann's older sister Mary Beth has a gift. When the two sisters are left alone after the death of their mother and the disappearance of their father, Mary Beth becomes the hero of both her younger sister and their entire town. She is a "song reader." She doesn't read palms or tarot cards; she reads people's secrets and desires from the songs they can't get out of their minds. And her customers idolize her. But as Leeann soon learns, every gift has its price. The sisters' bond will be tested when Mary Beth's advice leads to a tragedy that divides their small Missouri town.

THE TRUE MEANING OF CLEAVAGE
Mariah Fredericks
Atheneum
Fiction
ISBN: 0689850921
224 pages
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Sari and Jess are best friends and total opposites. They've liked each other ever since they discovered that they are the only two normal people at Eldridge Alternative. As they prepare to face the trials of ninth grade, Sari is excited but Jess isn't. How can she face the Prada Mafia, the most evil clique at school? What if something really interesting happens to Sari and not Jess? Not even Jess can predict the mayhem when Sari falls madly in love with David Cole, a senior who has been dating Thea Melendez for the longest time. So he can't possibly be interested in Sari. Or can he?

WE JUST WANT TO LIVE HERE: A Palestinian Teenager, an Israeli Teenager - An Unlikely Friendship
Amal Rifa'i and Odelia Ainbinder with Sylke Tempel
St. Martin's Griffin
Current Affairs
ISBN: 0312318944
112 pages
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Palestinian Amal Rifa'i and Israeli Odelia Ainbinder are two teenage girls who live in the same city, yet are worlds apart. They met on a student exchange program to Switzerland. Weeks after they returned, the latest Intifada broke out in the fall of 2000.

But two years later, Middle East correspondent Sylke Tempel encouraged Amal and Odelia to develop their friendship by expressing their deepest feelings through letters. In these letters, Amal and Odelia discuss the Intifada, their families, traditions, suicide bombers and military service. They write frankly of their anger, frustrations and fear, but also of their hopes and dreams for a brighter future.

ZIPPED
Laura and Tom McNeal
Knopf
Fiction
ISBN: 0375814914
288 pages
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When 15-year-old Mick reads an e-mail never meant for his eyes, his world is shattered. His stepmother --- his lovable, beautiful stepmother --- is cheating with a man named Alexander Selkirk. And Mick's dad --- his quiet, loyal dad --- has no idea. Mick is obsessed and burdened with his secret, and nothing can distract him.