F
MAR
With You and Without You (age 10+)
by Ann Matthews Martin
family ... illness/loss
A twelve-year-old faces the fact that her father is dying, and then his death, but dealing with the emptiness afterwards is hardest of all.
F
CHO
Sudden Impact (age 10+)
by Lesley Choyce
friendship ... illness/loss ... sports
Publisher comments: The heavy fullback went down right on top of him. I heard this terrifying scream come out of Kurt. Kurt was not usually a screamer. I'd never heard him utter the slightest whimper of pain, ever. He was as tough as they come. A whistle blew. The ball had missed the net. Nobody knew what I knew. I was over the rickety fence and running onto the field. The referee pulled the Fairview goon off of Kurt, but Kurt was still curled over on the grass. Coach Kenner yelled at me to get off the field. He and Jason both came chasing after me. They thought I'd lost my mind. A kid falls down in a soccer game, big deal. But I knew better. When Kurt is hurt in a soccer game and ends up in the hospital Tina tries to help him, but nobody will tell her what is wrong, and Kurt's parents don't want her around. Tina learns that Kurt needs a donor with a rare blood type, and she finds a match in Kurt's soccer rival Jason. Jason agrees to donate his blood to Kurt, but when Kurt disappears from the hospital, the situtation becomes desparate. Then Kurt's rival is in a tragic accident that may change everything.
F
BRO
Martyn Pig (age 10+)
by Kevin Brooks
humor ... friendship ... family ... illness/loss
Publisher comments: Meet Martyn Pig. His name may be bad, but his life is worse. His mother is gone, his father hates him, but things can't get any worse--or so he thinks until his father dies in a sudden accident.
F
HEN
Bird Lake Moon (age 10+)
by Kevin Henkes
illness/loss ... family ... friendship ... spooky
Publisher comments: Spencer thought the house might be haunted. Mitch knew it wasn't. And he knew why. The whole time Spencer and Mitch hung out together at Bird Lake that summer, there were secrets keeping them apart. And maybe a secret knowledge keeping them together, too...together like members of the same tribe. Like friends.
F
NER
Chess Rumble (age 10+)
by Greg Neri
family ... illness/loss ... school ... poetry
Publisher comments: A story in free verse poetry in which Marcus, a boy from the inner city who suffers bullying, is grieving his sister's death, and has been labeled a troublemaker finds a way to cope with his anger with the help of an unlikely mentor, who teaches him to play chess.
F
SMI
Keeping the Night Watch (age 10+)
by Hope Anita Smith
poetry ... family ... illness/loss
Publisher comments: My best friend, Preacher, is being just that. His sermon today is on fathers and I am his congregation. "Dads are light. They have no roots. One strong wind, and they're gone. Out of here. History." With a click, a bang, a whisper, or no noise at all. There are so many ways that a door can close, but it's not just the closing; it's the knowing. And thirteen-year-old CJ knows too much...about losing his father, about his family's pain, and especially about what it means to hold things together when times are the toughest. In this beautifully written and powerfully moving novel in poems, Hope Anita Smith tells the story of a young man's struggle to accept a father who has walked out on his family. Here, in CJ's words, is a portrait of hurt and healing, and finding the strength to open the door again.
F
WOO
After Tupac and D Foster (age 10+)
by Jacqueline Woodson
growing up ... illness/loss ... the arts ... friendship
Publisher comments: The day D Foster enters Neeka and her best friend's lives, the world opens up for them. D comes from a world vastly different from their safe Queens neighborhood, and through her, the girls see another side of life that includes loss, foster families and an amount of freedom that makes the girls envious. Although all of them are crazy about Tupac Shakur's rap music, D is the one who truly understands the place where he's coming from, and through knowing D, Tupac's lyrics become more personal for all of them. The girls are thirteen when D's mom swoops in to reclaim Dand as magically as she appeared, she now disappears from their lives. Tupac is gone, too, after another shooting; this time fatal. As the narrator looks back, she sees lives suspended in time, and realizes that even all-too-brief connections can touch deeply.
F
HOL
Letters From Rapunzel (age 10+)
by Sara Holmes
growing up ... realistic ... illness/loss ... letters/journal
Publisher comments: Once upon a time, there was a girl. Let's call her Rapunzel. A modern-day version. Abandoned. Alone. Waiting for her hair to grow and dreaming of a way to escape from her tower. She was trapped, you see. Not in the conventional fairy-tale way; this was the dreaded after-school Homework Club. A desolate place, where no gum could be chewed, and where Rapunzel sat day after day, cursing the evil spell that had been cast over her father. The doctors called it something else, but a true heroine can smell an evil spell a mile away. So when a mysterious letter addressed to P.O. Box #5667 falls into her hands, she knows she's found the pea under her mattress. But since when is finding happily ever after as simple as Just Writing Back?
F
ABB
Firegirl (age 10+)
by Tony Abbott
illness/loss ... identity ... friendship
Publisher comments: Tom's a normal seventh-grader, negotiating a slightly prickly stage in his long friendship with Jeff...The arrival of new girl Jessica Feeney, however, changes everything; Jessica, who is attending a local hospital for treatment, has been badly burned by a fire, and her terrible disfigurement shocks the class into confusion. This isn't the usual book about adjustment to difference; instead, Abbott brilliantly explores the kids' struggle to manage the intrusion of abnormality in their lives...this is a thoughtful exploration of a brief interlude's lasting impact.
F
MAS
A Mango-Shaped Space: A Novel (age 10+)
by Wendy Mass
school ... growing up ... illness/loss ... identity
Afraid that she is crazy, thirteen-year-old Mia, who sees a special color with every letter, number, and sound, keeps this a secret until she becomes overwhelmed by school, changing relationships, and the death of her beloved cat, Mango.
F
MAC
Journey (age 10+)
by Patricia MacLachlan
family ... illness/loss
Two children, left by their mother with their grandparents, feel as if their past has been erased until Grandfather finds a way to restore it to them.
F
MAC
Two Novels: Baby; Journey (age 10+)
by Patricia MacLachlan
family ... illness/loss
Contains two novels by Patricia MacLachlan, including "Baby," in which a baby left with a family at the end of the tourist season helps them come to terms with the death of their own infant son; and "Journey," in which two children, left by their mother with their grandparents, feel as if their past has been erased until Grandfather finds a way to restore it to them.
F
KAD
Kira kira (age 10+)
by Cynthia Kadohata
bigotry ... family ... friendship ... illness/loss
kira-kira (kee ra kee ra): glittering; shining. Glittering. That's how Katie Takeshima's sister, Lynn, makes everything seem. The sky is kira-kira because its color is deep but see-through at the same time. The sea is kira-kira for the same reason. And so are people's eyes. When Katie and her family move from a Japanese community in Iowa to the Deep South of Georgia, it's Lynn who explains to her why people stop on the street to stare. And it's Lynn who, with her special way of viewing the world, teaches Katie to look beyond tomorrow. But when Lynn becomes desperately ill, and the whole family begins to fall apart, it is up to Katie to find a way to remind them all that there is always something glittering, kira-kira, in the future.
F
KAD
Kira-kira (age 10+)
by Cynthia Kadohata
bigotry ... family ... friendship ... illness/loss
kira-kira (kee ra kee ra): glittering; shining. Glittering. That's how Katie Takeshima's sister, Lynn, makes everything seem. The sky is kira-kira because its color is deep but see-through at the same time. The sea is kira-kira for the same reason. And so are people's eyes. When Katie and her family move from a Japanese community in Iowa to the Deep South of Georgia, it's Lynn who explains to her why people stop on the street to stare. And it's Lynn who, with her special way of viewing the world, teaches Katie to look beyond tomorrow. But when Lynn becomes desperately ill, and the whole family begins to fall apart, it is up to Katie to find a way to remind them all that there is always something glittering, kira-kira, in the future.
F
DIC
The Tiger Rising (age 10+)
by Kate DiCamillo
illness/loss ... growing up ... friendship
Walking through the misty Florida woods one morning, twelve-year-old Rob Horton is stunned to encounter a tiger ... a real-life, very large tiger ... pacing back and forth in a cage. What's more, on the same extraordinary day, he meets Sistine Bailey, a girl who shows her feelings as readily as Rob hides his. As they learn to trust each other, and ultimately, to be friends, Rob and Sistine prove that some things ... like memories, and heartaches, and tigers ... can't be locked up forever.
F
SNY
And Condors Danced (age 10+)
by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
historical ... growing up ... illness/loss
The year Carly turns eleven, 1907, is filled with playing detective, watching condors, observing a fierce feud involving her family's Southern California ranch, and coping with unexpected tragedies.
F
DOY
Uncle Ronald (age 10+)
by Brian Doyle
illness/loss ... family ... historical
Humor and tragedy merge in this story of a family, and a culture, in crisis. At 112, Mickey McGuire is Canada's oldest citizen, but he remembers with perfect clarity the events beginning in Ottawa in 1895. That year, without investigating the cause of his daily fainting spells, school authorities decide that 12-year-old Mickey should stay home. But home is a problematic place, the site of frequent beatings of Mickey and his mother by his violent alcoholic father. Determined to spare her son further trauma, Mickey's mother sends him to stay on her family's farm run by her brother and twin sisters. Strong and tender, Uncle Ronald is wise in the ways of horses, geese, and men.
F
HON
Twilight in Grace Falls (age 10+)
by Natalie Honeycutt
family ... illness/loss
Eleven-year-old Dasie watches the effects on her family and friends when the lumber mill that supports the town closes its doors.
F
KAY
The Divide Series (age 10+)
by Elizabeth Kay
humor ... fantasy ... adventure ... illness/loss
When Felix's parents take him to "The Divide" ... a spot in Costa Rica where the waters that run down to the Pacific and Atlantic oceans separate ... Felix finds himself in a bizarre parallel world where mythical creatures and magic are a reality. There, he meets Betony, a tangle child and herbalist who becomes his friend in this strange land. As Felix explores this new world he soon discovers that its mythical beasts and fairy folk think Felix is a legendary creature who uses practical science instead of magic! Will Felix ever find his way back home...and will he want to?
title: The Divide
title: Back to the Divide
title: Jinx on the Divide
F
MAR
The Fledglings (age 10+)
by Sandra Markle
nature ... family ... illness/loss ... animals
Orphaned after the death of her mother, fourteen-year-old Kate runs away to live with her grandfather, a Cherokee Indian who is fighting the poaching of predator birds.
F
LEV
The Two Princesses of Bamarre (age 10+)
by Gail Carson Levine
princesses ... adventure ... fantasy ... magic ... illness/loss
When a plague strikes Bamarre, Princess Addie must save her sister. Brave and adventureous, Princess Meryl dreams of fighting dragons and protecting the kingdom of Bamarre. Shy and fearful, Princess Addie is content to stay within the safety of the castle walls. The one thing that the sisters share is their unwavering love for each other. The tables are turned, however, when the Gray Death leaves Meryl fatally ill. To save her sister, meek Princess Addie must find the courage to set out on a dangerous quest filled with dragons, unknown magic, and death itself. Time is running out, and the sisters' lives ... and the future of the kingdom of Bamarre ... hang in the balance.
F
COU
Getting Near to Baby (age 10+)
by Audrey Couloumbis
illness/loss ... family
Although 13-year-old Willa Jo and her Aunt Patty seem to be constantly at odds, staying with her and Uncle Hob helps Willa Jo and her younger sister come to terms with the death of their family's baby.
F
CLA
Hill Hawk Hattie (age 10+)
by Clara Gillow Clark
adventure ... historical ... illness/loss
Catalog: Angry and lonely after her mother dies, eleven-year-old Hattie pretends to be a boy and joins her father on a adventure-filled rafting trip down the Delaware River in the late 1800s to transport logs from New York to Philadelphia.
F
YUM
The Friends (age 10+)
by Kazumi Yumoto
friendship ... illness/loss
Curious about death, three sixth-grade boys decide to spy on an old man waiting for him to die, but they end up becoming his friends.
F
TOL
Who's There? (age 10+)
by Stephanie S. Tolan
family ... illness/loss ... spooky
When fourteen-year-old Drew and her mute younger brother come to live with their father's estranged relatives after their parents' sudden death, they discover that the house is haunted by ghosts and a deadly family secret. A first-rate thriller.
F
STR
The World in Grandfather's Hands (age 10+)
by Craig Strete
family ... identity ... illness/loss
Eleven-year-old Jimmy is upset when he and his mother must move from the pueblo to the city after his father's death, but his grandfather's patient philosophy of life helps Jimmy slowly adjust.
F
GRE
Beat the Turtle Drum (age 10+)
by Constance C. Greene
family ... illness/loss
A young girl learns to cope with her feelings about her sister's accidental death.
F
FLE
Flying Solo (age 10+)
by Ralph Fletcher
friendship ... school ... illness/loss
Rachel, having chosen to be mute following the sudden death of a classmate, shares responsibility with the other sixth-graders who decide not to report that the substitute teacher failed to show up.
F
RYL
Missing May (age 10+)
by Cynthia Rylant
illness/loss ... family
After the death of the beloved aunt who has raised her, twelve-year-old Summer and her uncle Ob leave their West Virginia trailer in search of the strength to go on living.
F
ROD
Hannah In Between (age 10+)
by Colby Rodowsky
illness/loss ... family
As she starts seventh grade, twelve-year-old Hannah can no longer ignore her mother's increasingly erratic behavior caused by excessive drinking. Hannah tries to weave order out of chaos as her mother struggles to bring her alcoholism under control. Both could use an understanding friend.
F
NEL
Earthshine (age 10+)
by Theresa Nelson
illness/loss ... family
Slim watches over her father, a disarmingly charismatic man, as his struggle with AIDS reaches its climax.
F
HEN
Olive's Ocean (age 10+)
by Kevin Henkes
illness/loss ... growing up ... friendship
``Olive Barstow was dead. She'd been hit by a car on Monroe Street while riding her bicycle weeks ago. That was about all Martha knew.'' Martha Boyle and Olive Barstow could have been friends. But they weren't, and now all that is left are eerie connections between two girls who were in the same grade at school and who both kept the same secret without knowing it. Now Martha can't stop thinking about Olive. A family summer on Cape Cod should help banish those thoughts; instead, they seep in everywhere.
F
HOL
Following Fake Man (age 10+)
by Barbara Ware Holmes
identity ... illness/loss ... mystery ... family
Homer Aldrich Winthrop was a neurologist who died of a neurological illness. That's all Homer Jr.'s mother will say about his father, who died when he was two. On an unexpected trip to Maine, 12-year-old Homer realizes there may be a reason his father is such a secret.
F
GAN
The Joey Pigza Books (age 10+)
by Jack Gantos
illness/loss ... identity ... family
Joey Pigza really wants his six-week visit with his dad to count, to show him he's not as wired as he used to be, to show his dad how much he loves him. But Carter Pigza's not an easy guy to love. He's to make it up to Joey for past wrongs and to show him how to be a winner, to take control of his life. With his coaching, Joey's even learned how to pitch a baseball, and he's good at it. The trouble is, Joey's dad thinks taking control means giving up the things that keep Joey safe. And if he wants to please his dad, he's going to have to play by his rules, even when the rules don't make sense.
sequel: Joey Pigza Loses Control
sequel: Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
sequel: What Would Joey Do?
sequel: I Am Not Joey Pigza
F
CRE
Walk Two Moons (age 10+)
by Sharon Creech
illness/loss ... identity ... growing up ... friendship ... voyages/journeys ... family
As Salamanca travels cross-country with her eccentric grandparents, she tells the story of Phoebe Winterbottom, who received mysterious messages, who met a ``potential lunatic,'' and whose mother disappeared--just like Sal's.

Sat Aug 25 11:55:25 2012
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