For Teens
Stand Up for Your Freedom to Read...
... by reading a frequently challenged or banned book.
Quicklinks: Recommended Books | Top 10 Challenges of 2011
Recommended Books
Reads recommended by teens from the Chicago Public Library’s 2012-13 Teen Advisory Council.
Catcher in the Rye
By J.D. Salinger
Recommended by Viktor
A classic, this is one of the first stories of a teen struggling through the world trying to find himself, and I found it more helpful and original than today's books on similar subjects, because it is THE original. It is not only better written than a majority of modern books, but the language tends to be less “colorful” (despite some claims)—a pleasant remnant from the days of yore, better known as the ’50s. This book has been helping teens find their way through their confusing years of angst and rebellion for generations.
Crank
By Ellen Hopkins
Recommended by Fengdan
While visiting her absentee father, good girl Kristina becomes fearless Bree, falling in love and taking crazy risks. What begins as a fun, wild ride with “the Monster” leaves her empty and struggling for life.
Audiobook
Lord of the Flies
By William Golding
Recommended by Matthew
When a plane filled with 30 schoolboys from Britain is shot down and crashes on a tropical island, the boys begin immediately talking about survival plans and leadership roles. As the novel progresses, however, many of the boys lose their sanity and resort to savagery. When all ties to civilization are threatened, will the few strong-minded boys left have what it takes to stay alive and keep the group safe?
Audiobook | eAudiobook
One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies
By Sonya Sones
Recommended by Jia Jia
It would be any girl's dream to live in Los Angeles with a fabulous and wealthy movie star father, but Ruby couldn’t disagree more.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
By Stephen Chbosky
Recommended by Victoria
Charlie is a wallflower, a shy introvert entering his freshman year of high school, the most intimidating of them all. Fortunately, he is befriended by an outgoing senior sister-brother duo named Sam and Patrick. Set in the 1990s, this book pays homage to mix tapes, friendship and life affirmation written in the form of letters to the reader.
Audiobook
Stargirl
By Jerry Spinelli
Recommended by Sam
Stargirl Caraway sticks out like a ketchup stain on a white shirt, and she loves it; she always sticks up for herself, her friends and even her pet rat, Cinnamon. Leo is . . . well, the opposite; he’s always trying to blend in, the closest he comes to standing out is having a talk show broadcast throughout the school. When these two very different people fall in love, will sparks fly, or will they both end up crushed?
Audiobook | eAudiobook | eBook
Stolen Children
By Peg Kehret
Recommended by Angela
Baby-sitting courses teach you basic first aid, bedtime tips and how to change diapers, but usually not what to do if two thugs with a gun show up. That’s something Amy will have to figure out on her own (and quick) because while she is babysitting 3-year-old Kendra, two men break into the house and kidnap them both. This thrilling book gives readers an action-filled story line while not being overly graphic.
Unwind
By Neal Shusterman
Recommended by Angela
In the near future, after a civil war fought over abortion, a compromise is reached allowing parents to sign an order for children (ages 13 to 18) to be unwound—taken to "harvest camps" where their body parts are harvested for later use. The action-packed story centers around three teens who are scheduled to be “unwound.”
Audiobook | eAudio
Top 10 Challenges of 2011
The 10 most frequently challenged books of 2011 (as reported to the America Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom).
- ttyl; ttfn; l8r, g8r series
By Lauren Myracle - The Color of Earth series
By Kim Dong Hwa - The Hunger Games series
By Suzanne Collins - My Mom's Having A Baby!
By Dori Hillestad Butler, illustrated by Carol Thompson - The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
By Sherman Alexie - Alice series
By Phyllis Reynolds Naylor - Brave New World
By Aldous Huxley - What My Mother Doesn't Know
By Sonya Sones - Gossip Girl series
By Cecily von Ziegesar - To Kill a Mockingbird
By Harper Lee