|
2018-19 HISD "Name That Book" High School Book List
|
"The Name That Book contest, coordinated by the HISD Department of Library Services, serves to acquaint HISD students with classic literature as well as contemporary award-winning books, representing a variety of genres. The district-wide competition is held in the spring. “It is wonderful to have a place at school to exchange ideas and discuss incredible books with other students. The books on the Name That Book list really provide something for everyone. They are thought-provoking and challenging, and I have fallen in love with some great books I probably wouldn’t have read if it hadn’t been for Name That Book. I have also made friends that I probably wouldn’t have made if not for Name That Book!” -senior student, High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and a member of 2009 1st place high school team."
|
|
|
|
Alex, approximately
by Jenn Bennett
Seventeen-year-old Bailey moves to California to live with her father and, perhaps, finally meet an online friend and fellow film buff, but soon finds herself attracted to an annoying co-worker
|
|
|
All in Pieces
by Suzanne Young
Sent to an alternative high school after an event that stemmed from caring for a special-needs sibling, Savannah bonds with fellow newcomer Cameron while struggling to retain custody of her brother and navigate a vengeful ex. By the best-selling author of The Program series.
|
|
|
American street
by Ibi Zoboi
When Fabiola's mother is detained upon their arrival to the United States, Fabiola must navigate her loud American cousins, the grittiness of Detroit's west side, a new school, and a surprising romance all on her own
|
|
|
Between two skies
by Joanne O'Sullivan
Bayou Perdu, a tiny fishing town way, way down in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, is home to sixteen-year-old Evangeline Riley. She has her best friends, Kendra and Danielle; wise, beloved Mamere; and back-to-back titles in the under-sixteen fishing rodeo. But, dearest to her heart, she has the peace that comes only when she takes her skiff out to where there is nothing but sky and air and water and wings. It's a small life, but it is Evangeline's. And then the storm comes. And everything changes. Amid the chaos and pain and destruction comes Tru--a fellow refugee, a budding bluesman, a balm for Evangeline's aching heart. This novel asks compelling questions about class and politics, exile and belonging, and the pain of being cast out of your home. But, perhaps above all, this is a gently woven love story, difficult to put down, impossible to forget.
|
|
|
Carve the mark
by Veronica Roth
Living on a violent planet where everyone develops a unique power meant to shape the future, Akos and Cyra, youths from enemy nations, resent gifts that render them vulnerable to others' control before they become unlikely survival partners
|
|
|
City of saints and thieves
by Natalie C. Anderson
Sixteen-year-old Tina and two friends leave Kenya and slip into the Congo, from where she and her mother fled years before, seeking revenge for her mother's murder but uncovering startling secrets
|
|
|
The cruelty
by Scott Bergstrom
Forced to step into a hero's role she does not believe in when her father goes missing, high school student Gwendolyn Bloom is compelled to train as an assassin and assume a new identity in order to defeat kidnapping gangsters throughout Europe's criminal underworld. Simultaneous eBook.
|
|
|
Devil in a blue dress : an Easy Rawlins mystery
by Walter Mosley
Easy Rawlins, a tough World War II veteran and detective, is hired by a financier and gangster to locate Daphne Monet, a search that leads him from elegant boardrooms to the raucous jazz joints of late 1940s Los Angeles
|
|
|
Dreamland burning
by Jennifer Latham
Alternating chapters explore how race relations have changed in the past century, as Rowan Chase investigates a murder committed during the Tulsa race riot in 1921
|
|
|
Eliza and Her Monsters
by Francesca Zappia
When the anonymous teen creator of a wildly popular webcomic is tempted by a school newcomer to pursue real-world relationships, everything she has worked so hard to build crumbles in the wake of their highly publicized romance. By the author of Made You Up. Simultaneous eBook.
|
|
|
Genuine fraud
by E Lockhart
A novel of psychological suspense by the best-selling author of We Were Liars follows the experiences of a diabolically intelligent girl who repeatedly reinvents herself in an effort to secure a charmed existence. Simultaneous eBook.
|
|
|
Goodbye days : a novel
by Jeff Zentner
When his three best friends die in a car crash after the driver was texting at the wheel, Carver becomes subject to a criminal investigation and receives support from a few loving people while trying to come to terms with his guilt
|
|
|
The Hate U Give
by Angie Thomas
"Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil's name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Starr does or does not say could upend her community. Itcould also endanger her life"
|
|
|
The Inexplicable Logic of My Life
by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Having believed he was happy with his place in the loving Mexican-American family he shares with his adoptive gay father, Sal turns angry and uncertain when his senior year arrives and he realizes that he wants to know more about his biological origins. By the author of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.
|
|
|
Life in a fishbowl
by Len Vlahos
Becoming a prisoner in her own home when her cancer-patient father and their family become the stars of a cutthroat reality series, 15-year-old Jackie struggles with estrangement from her mother and sister while worrying about her father's heath before resolving to end the show. Simultaneous eBook.
|
|
|
Loving vs. Virginia : a documentary novel of the landmark civil rights case
by Patricia Hruby Powell
A tale inspired by the landmark 1955 civil rights case follows the relationship between two young people who challenged period segregation, prejudice and injustice to pursue a relationship at the center of a Supreme Court case that legalized interracial marriage. By the award-winning author of Josephine. Simultaneous eBook.
|
|
|
Moxie : a novel
by Jennifer Mathieu
In a small Texas town where high school football reigns supreme, Viv, sixteen, starts a feminist revolution using anonymously-written zines
|
|
|
Mr. 60%
by Clete Barrett Smith
"Matt Nolan is the high school drug dealer, deadbeat, and soon-to-be dropout according to everyone at his school. His vice principal is counting down the days until Mr. 60% (aka Matt) finally flunks out and is no longer his problem. What no one knows is the only reason Matt sells drugs is to take care of his uncle Jack, who is dying of cancer. Meet Amanda. The overly cheerful social outcast whose optimism makes Matt want to hurl. Stuck as partners during an after-school club (mandatory for Matt), it's only a matter of time until Amanda discovers Matt's secret. But Amanda is used to dealing with heartbreak, and she's determined to help Matt find a way to give life 100 percent"--Provided by publisher
|
|
|
Piecing me together
by Renée Watson
Tired of being singled out at her mostly-white private school as someone who needs support, Jade would rather participate in the school's Study Abroad program than join Women to Women, a mentorship program for at-risk girls
|
|
|
Ramona Blue
by Julie Murphy
Struggling with family problems and still living in a FEMA trailer years after Hurricane Katrina, lesbian teenager Ramona welcomes the return of her childhood friend Freddie but her shifting feelings for him cause her to question her sexual identity
|
|
|
Saints and misfits
by S. K. Ali
Janna Yusuf, the daughter of the only divorced mother at their mosque, tries to make sense of the events that follow when her best friend's cousin--a holy star in the Muslim community--attempts to assault her at the end of sophomore year
|
|
|
Saving Red
by Sonya Sones
A novel in verse by the author of Stop Pretending follows the experiences of 14-year-old Molly, who is forced to confront painful realities in her own life while struggling to help a spirited but mentally ill homeless girl during the holiday season. Simultaneous eBook. 50,000 first printing.
|
|
|
Strange the dreamer
by Laini Taylor
War orphan and junior librarian Lazlo Strange gets an unexpected opportunity to follow his dream of seeking the mythic lost city of Weep with the Godslayer and his band of legendary warriors
|
|
|
The sun Is Also a Star
by Nicola Yoon
A scientifically minded girl who avoids relationships to help keep her family from being deported and a dutiful student who endeavors to live up to his parents' high expectations unexpectedly fall in love and must determine which path they will choose in order to be together. By the best-selling author of Everything, Everything.
|
|
|
Symptoms of being human
by Jeff Garvin
Struggling with identity, Riley, a gender-fluid teenager, starts an anonymous blog after a therapist encourages it, but when the blog goes viral Riley must make a choice--to walk away or to risk everything and come out
|
|
|
Words in deep blue
by Cath Crowley
Rachel left a love note for Henry in his favorite book tucked away in his family's bookstore and has returned years later to work alongside him as they both struggle through challenges and find hope in each other
|
|
|
|
|
|