McCormick, Patricia.  Never Fall Down.  Balzer + Bray. 978-0-06-173094-8. Based on the true story of Arn Chorn, a Cambodian boy who learns to kill to survive, this book chronicles his life from April of 1975 until he is adopted by an American relief worker in 1980.  Between the starvations, the malaria, the beatings, the labor camps with no medical supplies, and surrounded by death, both slow and too fast, Arn learns to survive the only way he can.  Historical fiction.

Valentine, Jenny.  Double. Hyperion. 978-1-4231-4715-5. When he is mistaken for Cassiel, another 16 year old boy who has been missing for two years, runaway Chap is suddenly surrounded by the family he had always wished for.  Unfortunately, some times we get what we wish for. . . and families aren’t always what they seem----especially the one who murdered Cassiel.  Mystery thriller.

Roberts, Jeyn.  Dark Inside.   Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers. 978-1442423510. Earthquakes, bombs, families gone, nighttime, and zombies called Baggers are just a few of the frightening changes in the new world that was once called North America.  Aries, Clementine, Mason, and Michael, along with the anonymous Nothing, narrate this story in alternating chapters, where nothing is as it seems, especially when it comes to the traitor Nothing. Expect a sequel.

Crockett, Sophie D. After The Snow.  Fiewel and Friends. 978-0-312-64169-6. It is 2059.  Global warming has so damaged the atmosphere that the oceans don’t work and there is nothing but snow covering most of the earth. Fifteen year old Willo Blake lives in Wales and returns from hunting to find his family gone.  Humans have been reduced to scavenging for the smallest of comforts in this post-apocalyptic society and his family had thought that they had escaped the government’s oppression.  For readers who liked Hunger Games meets Maze Runner meets The Knife of Never Letting Go, all in the frigid cold. Expect a sequel.

Rosenfelt, David. Heart of a Killer.  Minotaur Books. 978-0-312-59837-2. What would you do to save the life of your daughter?  Convicted murderer Sheryl Harrison wants to donate her heart to her daughter who is in desperate need of a transplant and has a rare blood type that only matches her mother’s. Sarcastic, unmotivated Jamie Wagner is assigned the pro bono case by his large law firm and is not sure how he feels about working with a murderer.  Mystery thriller for older readers. Language.

Sonnenblick, Jordan. Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip.  Scholastic Press. 978-0-545-32069-6. Filled with humor at his arrival onto the high school scene as well as sadness at his grandfather’s Alzheimer’s, Peter Friedman must learn how to cope with it all.  A serious accident ruins Peter’s hopes of becoming the star of the baseball team so he must find his way through the rocky road of girls, friends, parents, aging grandparents, and the dynamics of high school. High interest novel for both boys and girls.

Volponi, Paul. The Final Four.  Viking.  978-0-670-01264-0.  Filled with quotes from both players and coaches, realistic problems for collegiate athletes, and national news, this novel covers the story of four college basketball players on their way to the biggest goal of their life—the NCAA championship.  Freshman Malcolm McBride plans on leaving the projects of Detroit behind him and playing in the NBA; Junior Roko “Red Bull” Bacic escaped his native Croatia but misses his family terribly. Crispin Rice is inspired by the wealthy Hope, the girl of his dreams. Reserve player M.J. wants to get off the bench and prove that he can live up to his name of Michael Jordan.

Fracture

Miranda, Megan. Fracture. Walker & Co. 978-0-8027-2309-3. Eleven minutes can be an eternity—especially when you’re drowning in the freezing lake. After being in a coma for 6 days with no physical signs of brain damage, Delaney realizes that something about her has mysteriously changed. She can sense death around her. Romance/supernatural. Language. This will be the YA hit of the year!!