Toronto silent book club member Sundus Butt returns with another delicious harvest of young adult (YA) titles and recommendations. Enjoy all the monthly YA installments here.
Friends with Boys by Faith Erin Hicks (11–16)
It’s easy to lose your soul in high school.
I love everything about this graphic novel. It follows Maggie as she starts high school after being homeschooled with her three brothers all her life. The characters are terrific, the humour is delightful, and the artwork is wonderful (as is always the case with Hicks). I could relate wholeheartedly to Maggie from her nervousness about being around so many people to her love for Alien and Ripley. This is a coming-of-age story focused on family and friends, oh, and being haunted by a ghost.
Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate
Imaginary friends are like books. We’re created, we’re enjoyed, we’re dog-eared and creased, and then we’re tucked away until we’re needed again.
Jackson’s family has little money for food and rent, and Jackson bears the struggles of a difficult life like an old soul. But when things get even worse and it looks like Jackson and his family may have to live in their minivan again, Jackson’s old imaginary friend, Crenshaw, appears.
This is a lovely story focused on family, friendship, and homelessness. Jackson is a great character; his small kindnesses to his sister and his bravery in trying to be strong for his parents make him endearing and also make his trials that much more painful. His interactions with Crenshaw (an enjoyable character, too) are simple, but reveal so much about what Jackson’s trying to keep buried. The story touches on how important it is to share your burdens and heartache with the people you love.
While I Was Away by Waka T. Brown
Three people who weren’t here with us, but actually were. Their stories, their relationships, their lives all tied together and echoing across time.
This memoir follows twelve-year-old Waka as she’s sent to Tokyo (from America) for several months by herself to improve her Japanese. Waka stays with her forbidding grandmother and she has to navigate an unfamiliar language, culture, and customs.
This is a sensitive and gentle story about the different experiences the author had in Japan. It clearly left a huge mark on her life and she explores the feeling of being an outsider, being caught between two different cultures, and also learning to love someone who can be both kind and severe.
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
“Stories are important,” the monster said. “They can be more important than anything. If they carry the truth.”
This illustrated story follows 13-year-old Conor as his mom battles cancer. One night, Conor wakes up and finds an ancient force/monster outside his window. The monster tells Conor three stories, but at the end Conor must reveal his own terrifying truth about a recurring dream that haunts him.
This book is so well crafted. Conor’s isolation, pain, and anger are so visceral and your heart breaks for him. And the monster is an excellent character that combines menace, wisdom, and care (and the stories he shares are wonderful dark mini-fairy tales). The balance between raw emotion, imagination, and insight makes this a great story about coping and grief.
Page by Paige by Laura Lee Gulledge (12–17)
I suppose all moms have an idea who they hope their daughters will be. Like a connect-the-dots picture where you think you know what shape it will become. But then it’s the daughter who draws the lines, and she might connect the dots you didn’t intend, making a whole different picture. So I’ve gotta trust the dots she’s given me, and she’s gotta trust me to draw the picture myself.
This is a beautifully illustrated graphic novel that follows teenage Paige when she moves to New York City with her parents from Virginia. Paige is painfully shy and finds herself feeling isolated and lost in the big city, and she retreats into her mind and sketchbook for refuge (even though both are difficult places at times). Some of the metaphorical drawings convey Paige’s introversion and insecurity perfectly and you can understand exactly how she is feeling. Overall, the story is about actively changing your life in small ways so you can find your people and your place.