YOUNG ADULT FICTION / Social Themes / Homelessness & Poverty
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Gather
Price: $10.99
Pub Date: September 3, 2024
Format: Paperback
Winner of the Kirkus Prize
A National Book Award Finalist
A Michael L. Printz Honor Book
“A heartfelt novel about the challenges of youth and the value of community.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Ian Gray isn’t supposed to have a dog, but a lot of things that shouldn’t happen end up happening anyway. And Gather, Ian’s adopted pup, is good company now that Ian has to quit the basketball team, find a job, and take care of his mom as she tries to overcome her opioid addiction. Despite the obstacles thrown their way, Ian is determined to keep his family afloat no matter what it takes. And for a little while, things are looking up: Ian makes friends, and his fondness for the outdoors and for fixing things lands him work helping neighbors. But an unforeseen tragedy results in Ian and his dog taking off on the run, trying to evade a future that would mean leaving their house and their land. Even if the community comes together to help him, would Ian and Gather have a home to return to? Told in a wry, cautious first-person voice, Kenneth M. Cadow’s resonant novel, a 2023 National Book Award Finalist, brings an emotional and ultimately hopeful story of one teen’s resilience in the face of unthinkable hardships.
Stripes of the Sidestep Wolf
Price: $7.99
Pub Date: December 10, 2019
Format: Paperback
“A quiet, complex work, whose themes of sacrifice and redemption work their way throughout. . . . A memorable, haunting experience.” — Kirkus Reviews
Ever since his dad went off the deep end and decided he didn’t need to work anymore, Satchel O'Rye has felt stuck for life in his dying country town. A high-school dropout drifting from one job to the next, Satchel’s only concern is keeping his family afloat. But things start to change when he spies a strange animal at a nearby mountain — and mentions it to Chelsea Piper, the local pariah. Could the animal he saw be a Tasmanian tiger, a marsupial thought to be extinct? Two loners in a country town find cause for hope in this taut, shimmering tale by Sonya Hartnett about daring to live a life beyond expectations.
Thursday's Child
Price: $7.99
Pub Date: August 13, 2019
Format: Paperback
"A startling coming-of-age story. . . . Through Harper, Hartnett captures the humanity of her spirited, slightly eccentric, and then nearly broken characters." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Harper Flute believes that her younger brother Tin, with his uncanny ability to dig, was born to burrow. While their family struggles to survive in a bleak landscape during the Great Depression, the silent and elusive little Tin begins to tunnel beneath their tiny shanty. As time passes, Tin becomes a wild thing, leaving his family further and further behind. Sonya Hartnett tells a breathtakingly original coming-of-age story through the clear eyes of an observant child, with exquisite prose, richly drawn characters, and a touch of magical realism.
Being Fishkill
Price: $17.99
Pub Date: November 14, 2017
Format: Hardcover
Fishkill Carmel fends for herself, with her fists if need be — until a thwarted lunch theft introduces her to strange, sunny Duck-Duck and a chance for a new start.
Born in the backseat of a moving car, Carmel Fishkill was unceremoniously pushed into a world that refuses to offer her security, stability, love. At age thirteen, she begins to fight back. Carmel Fishkill becomes Fishkill Carmel, who deflects her tormenters with a strong left hook and conceals her secrets from teachers and social workers. But Fishkill’s fierce defenses falter when she meets eccentric optimist Duck-Duck Farina, and soon they, along with Duck-Duck’s mother, Molly, form a tentative family, even as Fishkill struggles to understand her place in it. This fragile new beginning is threatened by the reappearance of Fishkill’s unstable mother — and by unfathomable tragedy. Poet Ruth Lehrer’s young adult debut is a stunning, revelatory look at what defines and sustains “family.” And, just as it does for Fishkill, meeting Duck-Duck Farina and her mother will leave readers forever changed.
Exposure
Price: $9.99
Pub Date: November 8, 2016
Format: Paperback
“Peet’s prose is both lyrical and unflinching. . . . A bold exploration of ageless themes of power, fame, love, and trust, all seen through the deceptive lens of modern celebrity culture.” — Booklist
When a black South American soccer star signs on to a team in the country’s racist south, headlines blare. And when he falls for Desmerelda, a stunning white pop singer, their controversial marriage propels them into the media spotlight. But celebrity attracts enemies—some very close to home. And its dazzle reaches the city’s hidden corners, exposing a life of desperation the glitterati could never imagine. When a girl is found murdered, reporter Paul Faustino witnesses the power of the media in making and breaking lives. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Othello, this modern tragedy is an enthralling work of crossover fiction.
Lottery Boy
Price: $16.99
Pub Date: March 8, 2016
Format: Hardcover
In a gripping thriller with a hint of Oliver Twist, a street kid and his dog are chasing an unlikely fortune — and dodging the thugs who would steal it.
Twelve-year-old Bully has lost his mum and his old life. Living rough on the streets of London with his dog, Jack, he can’t imagine a future. But one day he finds, tucked inside his most cherished possession—the last birthday card his mother ever gave him—a lottery ticket he bought her. And it’s a winner. A big winner. Suddenly there’s hope, if only he can get to his prize on time! But just as Bully’s prospects open up, peril closes in. Now ruthless gangsters are in hot pursuit, and everyone wants a piece of him. Whom can he trust to help him retrieve what's his? And even if Bully does claim all that money, will he really be winning what he needs most? Michael Byrne's thrill-packed debut delivers the emotionally charged story of a boy whose luck has changed for the better, if only he can survive long enough to claim it.
The Agency: The Body at the Tower
Series: The Agency
Price: $16.99
Pub Date: August 10, 2010
Format: Hardcover
Mary’s second adventure as an undercover agent forces her to relive some harrowing childhood experiences as she seeks the identity of a murderer.
Mary Quinn is back, now a trusted member of the Agency, the all-female detective unit operating out of Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls. Her new assignment sends her into the grimy underbelly of Victorian London dressed as a poor boy, evoking her own childhood memories of fear, hunger, and constant want. As she insinuates herself into the confidence of several persons of interest, she encounters others in desperate situations and struggles to make a difference without exposing — or losing — her identity. Mary’s adventure, which takes place on the building site of the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament, offers a fictional window into a fascinating historical time and place.

Gather
Price: $10.99
Pub Date: September 3, 2024
Format: Paperback
Winner of the Kirkus Prize
A National Book Award Finalist
A Michael L. Printz Honor Book
“A heartfelt novel about the challenges of youth and the value of community.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Ian Gray isn’t supposed to have a dog, but a lot of things that shouldn’t happen end up happening anyway. And Gather, Ian’s adopted pup, is good company now that Ian has to quit the basketball team, find a job, and take care of his mom as she tries to overcome her opioid addiction. Despite the obstacles thrown their way, Ian is determined to keep his family afloat no matter what it takes. And for a little while, things are looking up: Ian makes friends, and his fondness for the outdoors and for fixing things lands him work helping neighbors. But an unforeseen tragedy results in Ian and his dog taking off on the run, trying to evade a future that would mean leaving their house and their land. Even if the community comes together to help him, would Ian and Gather have a home to return to? Told in a wry, cautious first-person voice, Kenneth M. Cadow’s resonant novel, a 2023 National Book Award Finalist, brings an emotional and ultimately hopeful story of one teen’s resilience in the face of unthinkable hardships.
Stripes of the Sidestep Wolf
Price: $7.99
Pub Date: December 10, 2019
Format: Paperback
“A quiet, complex work, whose themes of sacrifice and redemption work their way throughout. . . . A memorable, haunting experience.” — Kirkus Reviews
Ever since his dad went off the deep end and decided he didn’t need to work anymore, Satchel O'Rye has felt stuck for life in his dying country town. A high-school dropout drifting from one job to the next, Satchel’s only concern is keeping his family afloat. But things start to change when he spies a strange animal at a nearby mountain — and mentions it to Chelsea Piper, the local pariah. Could the animal he saw be a Tasmanian tiger, a marsupial thought to be extinct? Two loners in a country town find cause for hope in this taut, shimmering tale by Sonya Hartnett about daring to live a life beyond expectations.
Thursday's Child
Price: $7.99
Pub Date: August 13, 2019
Format: Paperback
"A startling coming-of-age story. . . . Through Harper, Hartnett captures the humanity of her spirited, slightly eccentric, and then nearly broken characters." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Harper Flute believes that her younger brother Tin, with his uncanny ability to dig, was born to burrow. While their family struggles to survive in a bleak landscape during the Great Depression, the silent and elusive little Tin begins to tunnel beneath their tiny shanty. As time passes, Tin becomes a wild thing, leaving his family further and further behind. Sonya Hartnett tells a breathtakingly original coming-of-age story through the clear eyes of an observant child, with exquisite prose, richly drawn characters, and a touch of magical realism.
Being Fishkill
Price: $17.99
Pub Date: November 14, 2017
Format: Hardcover
Fishkill Carmel fends for herself, with her fists if need be — until a thwarted lunch theft introduces her to strange, sunny Duck-Duck and a chance for a new start.
Born in the backseat of a moving car, Carmel Fishkill was unceremoniously pushed into a world that refuses to offer her security, stability, love. At age thirteen, she begins to fight back. Carmel Fishkill becomes Fishkill Carmel, who deflects her tormenters with a strong left hook and conceals her secrets from teachers and social workers. But Fishkill’s fierce defenses falter when she meets eccentric optimist Duck-Duck Farina, and soon they, along with Duck-Duck’s mother, Molly, form a tentative family, even as Fishkill struggles to understand her place in it. This fragile new beginning is threatened by the reappearance of Fishkill’s unstable mother — and by unfathomable tragedy. Poet Ruth Lehrer’s young adult debut is a stunning, revelatory look at what defines and sustains “family.” And, just as it does for Fishkill, meeting Duck-Duck Farina and her mother will leave readers forever changed.
Exposure
Price: $9.99
Pub Date: November 8, 2016
Format: Paperback
“Peet’s prose is both lyrical and unflinching. . . . A bold exploration of ageless themes of power, fame, love, and trust, all seen through the deceptive lens of modern celebrity culture.” — Booklist
When a black South American soccer star signs on to a team in the country’s racist south, headlines blare. And when he falls for Desmerelda, a stunning white pop singer, their controversial marriage propels them into the media spotlight. But celebrity attracts enemies—some very close to home. And its dazzle reaches the city’s hidden corners, exposing a life of desperation the glitterati could never imagine. When a girl is found murdered, reporter Paul Faustino witnesses the power of the media in making and breaking lives. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Othello, this modern tragedy is an enthralling work of crossover fiction.
Lottery Boy
Price: $16.99
Pub Date: March 8, 2016
Format: Hardcover
In a gripping thriller with a hint of Oliver Twist, a street kid and his dog are chasing an unlikely fortune — and dodging the thugs who would steal it.
Twelve-year-old Bully has lost his mum and his old life. Living rough on the streets of London with his dog, Jack, he can’t imagine a future. But one day he finds, tucked inside his most cherished possession—the last birthday card his mother ever gave him—a lottery ticket he bought her. And it’s a winner. A big winner. Suddenly there’s hope, if only he can get to his prize on time! But just as Bully’s prospects open up, peril closes in. Now ruthless gangsters are in hot pursuit, and everyone wants a piece of him. Whom can he trust to help him retrieve what's his? And even if Bully does claim all that money, will he really be winning what he needs most? Michael Byrne's thrill-packed debut delivers the emotionally charged story of a boy whose luck has changed for the better, if only he can survive long enough to claim it.
The Agency: The Body at the Tower
Series: The Agency
Price: $16.99
Pub Date: August 10, 2010
Format: Hardcover
Mary’s second adventure as an undercover agent forces her to relive some harrowing childhood experiences as she seeks the identity of a murderer.
Mary Quinn is back, now a trusted member of the Agency, the all-female detective unit operating out of Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls. Her new assignment sends her into the grimy underbelly of Victorian London dressed as a poor boy, evoking her own childhood memories of fear, hunger, and constant want. As she insinuates herself into the confidence of several persons of interest, she encounters others in desperate situations and struggles to make a difference without exposing — or losing — her identity. Mary’s adventure, which takes place on the building site of the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament, offers a fictional window into a fascinating historical time and place.