DEB'S Baker's DOZEN

1. Your Own Sylvia by Stephanie Hemphill. "In passionate, eloquest verse [at times modeling that of Plath, herself], Stephanie Hemphill interprets the people, events, influences, & art that made up the tumultuous years of [Sylvia Plath's life and work]."
2. Deadline by Chris Crutchter. When Ben Wolf learns he has a terminal illness, he decides to experience a "normal" senior year keeping his illness a secret--only to discover that a last year isnot normal & truth is the best path for a final year of life.
3. Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. Gifted storyteller & author of The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini gives us another "breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan's last 30 years." It is the story of two women--one young, one old--who first become family & then unlikely friends, finally developing "an indestructible love" that would seem utterly unattainable.
4. An American Breeze
5. Bright Side of Disaster by Katherine Center. Definitely a make-lemonade out of lemons book--appealing, spirite & funny! "Very pregnant & not quite married, Jenny Harris doesn't mind that she & her fiance, Dean, accidentally started their family a little earlier than they'd planned. The night he...doesn't come back, Jenny's future husband demotes himself to sperm donor. And the very next day, Jenny goes into labor!"
6. Harmless by Dana Reinhardt. Three high school girlfriends who invent a story about an alleged rape committed by a homeless man, learn valuable lessons about truth.
7. Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson. By completing community service for painting words on his school building, high school senior, Tyler Miller develops a physique to be noticed. With more confidence, but still bullied & growing up with an uncommunicative father, he faces hard decisions about what defines a man in today's society.
8. Do the Math: Secrets, Lies & Algebra by Wendy Lichtman. Eighth-grader Tess finds that she can use algebra outside of class--as a secret code, in shorthand & to help her solve two suspenseful mysteries!
9. Schooled by Gordan Korman. When his hippie grandmother, Rain, falls out of a tree, Capricorn , who has been her homeschool pupil, attends middle school for the first time. He is targeted by the big man on campus & elected class president.
10. Do Not Pass Go by Kirkpatrick Hill. "When Deet's father is jailed for using drugs, Deet learns that prison is not what he expected, nor are other people necessarily the way he thought they were."
11. Real Benedict Arnold by Jim Murphy. A thorough look--militarily & politically--at a traitor who could have been a hero.
12. I'll AskYou 3 Times, Are You Ok? by Naomi Shihab Nye. An award-winning poet's collection of touching, funny, & unforgettable experiences during car travel.
13. Beauty Shop for Rent by Laura Bowers. "Raisde by a great-grandmother & a bunch of beauty shop buddies, 14-year-old Abbey resolves to overcome her unhappy childhood & disillusionment with the mother who deserted her."