Powered by a book like {foo}
Recommendations based on Okay for Nowby Gary D. Schmidt
* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans
The Wednesday Wars
by Gary D. Schmidt
A coming-of-age story of a student facing the challenges of the Vietnam War era.
In this Newbery Honor-winning novel, Gary D. Schmidt offers an unforgettable antihero. The Wednesday Wars is a wonderfully witty and compelling story about a teenage boy’s mishaps and adventures over ... (Goodreads)
Counting by 7s
by Holly Goldberg Sloan
A story of resilience and hope, as an outsider learns to find her place in the world.
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other ... (Goodreads)
The One and Only Ivan
by Katherine Applegate
A gorilla named Ivan, who lives in a mall, finds hope and freedom through his art and the help of his friends.
The story is placed at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall by the Video Arcade. Ivan, the gorilla, has lived in captivity at the Big Top Mall for 9,855 days by his own tally. , He lives in his domain, and is ... (Wikipedia)
These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901
by Nancy E. Turner
A young woman's struggle for independence, chronicles her journey through the American Southwest.
“Belongs on your must-read list. This novel is a gem.” — Omaha World-Herald Nancy E. Turner's unforgettable, These Is My Words, melds the sweeping adventures and dramatic landscapes of, Lonesome ... (Barnes & Noble)
Orbiting Jupiter
by Gary D. Schmidt
Told through the eyes of a young boy, a story of redemption, love, and family.
When Jack meets his new foster brother, he already knows three things about him: Joseph almost killed a teacher. He was incarcerated at a place called Stone Mountain. He has a daughter. Her name is ... (Goodreads)
Dead End in Norvelt
by Jack Gantos
A humorous coming-of-age story of a boy helping an elderly neighbor and uncovering the secrets of his hometown.
Dead End in Norvelt takes place during the summer of 1962, after the American schoolboy Jack Gantos fires his father's war trophy, a Japanese sniper rifle , at a war movie playing at a drive-in movie ... (Wikipedia)
A Monster Calls
by Patrick Ness
A young boy's journey of self-discovery, coming to terms with his mother's terminal illness.
Thirteen-year-old Conor O'Malley awakens from the same nightmare he has been experiencing for the past few months, "the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming". At seven minutes after ... (Wikipedia)
Moon Over Manifest
by Clare Vanderpool
A young girl's adventure through 1920s America, uncovering family secrets and finding her identity.
The main character in the book is Abilene Tucker, a nice, adventurous girl from 1936. Her father sent her to a small town called Manifest, Kansas while he worked a railroad job somewhere else. She ... (Wikipedia)
Code Name Verity
by Elizabeth Wein
Two female spies' harrowing mission during WWII and the secrets they discover.
In 1943 Nazi-occupied France, a British Lysander spy plane crashes in the fictional town of Ormaie. On board are two best friends, a pilot (Maddie, code name: Kittyhawk) and a spy (Julie, code name: ... (Wikipedia)
Inside Out & Back Again
by Thanhha Lai
A young girl and her family flee Vietnam, adapting to a new life in America.
Inside Out and Back Again is a story about a young girl named Kim Hà and her family, consisting of her Mother and three brothers, being forced to move to the United States because the Vietnam War had ... (Wikipedia)
Out of My Mind
by Sharon M. Draper
A young girl with cerebral palsy struggles to overcome obstacles and prove her ability.
Melody Brooks is a girl who was born with cerebral palsy . Also, who is ten years old. Her parents have done everything they can to help her live a normal life, but life is often frustrating for ... (Wikipedia)
The Crossover
by Kwame Alexander
Two brothers explore the joys and struggles of adolescence through the power of basketball.
New York Times, bestseller ∙ Newbery Medal Winner ∙, Coretta Scott King Honor Award ∙,2015 YALSA 2015 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults,∙, 2015 YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers ... (Barnes & Noble)
One for the Murphys
by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
A young foster child's struggles to find her place in a tumultuous world.
Twelve-year-old Carley Connors can take a lot. Growing up in Las Vegas with her fun-loving mother, she's learned to be tough. But she never expected a betrayal that would land her in a foster care. ... (Goodreads)
Wonderstruck
by Brian Selznick
Two stories from different eras intertwine, revealing hidden connections between a deaf girl and a runaway boy.
Ben’s story starts in Gunflint Lake, Minnesota in June 1977. He was born deaf in his left ear. Ben’s mom, Elaine, was the town librarian, but died in a car crash. He now lives with his aunt and uncle ... (Wikipedia)
Three Times Lucky
by Sheila Turnage
A young girl's adventure to discover the truth of her mysterious past.
Newbery honor winner,, New York Times, bestseller, Edgar Award Finalist, and E.B. White Read-Aloud Honor book. A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime ... (Goodreads)
The Scorpio Races
by Maggie Stiefvater
A thrilling race between magical sea horses, set against a backdrop of danger and suspense.
It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die. At age ... (Goodreads)
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
by Sherman Alexie
A young Native American boy's struggles to survive in a difficult world.
The book follows a fourteen-year-old boy living with his family on the Spokane Indian Reservation near Wellpinit, Washington for a school year. It is told in episodic diary style, moving from the ... (Wikipedia)
When You Reach Me
by Rebecca Stead
A young girl in 1970s New York City receives mysterious notes that seem to predict the future. She must unravel the mystery before it's too late.
Miranda is an ordinary sixth grader, until she starts receiving mysterious messages from somebody who knows all about her, including things that have not even happened yet. Each message brings her ... (Goodreads)
Liar & Spy
by Rebecca Stead
A young boy's journey of self-discovery, navigating the complexities of bullies and friendships.
The day that Georges (with a silent s, named for Georges Seurat ) moves from a house to an apartment with his family, he sees a boy walking two dogs, disappearing into a locked door under the lobby ... (Wikipedia)
Everybody Sees the Ants
by A.S. King
Lucky Linderman escapes his troubled life through vivid dreams where he searches for his missing grandfather in Laos.
Lucky Linderman didn't ask for his life. He didn't ask his grandfather not to come home from the Vietnam War. He didn't ask for a father who never got over it. He didn't ask for a mother who keeps ... (Goodreads)
Nation
by Terry Pratchett
A story of courage and determination, as an island nation rebuilds its culture and identity after a devastating tsunami.
Alone on a desert island — everything and everyone he knows and loves has been washed away in a storm — Mau is the last surviving member of his nation. He’s completely alone — or so he thinks until ... (Goodreads)
The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, the Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog
by Adam Gidwitz
A medieval adventure across France, featuring three miracle-working children and their loyal dog.
The novel is told by multiple narrators, all travelers at the Holy Cross-Roads Inn near Paris, set in early March 1242. Marie, a brewer from the town of Saint-Geneviève, starts the story of Jeanne ... (Wikipedia)
Rain Reign
by Ann M. Martin
A young girl with Asperger's navigates her world through her love of homonyms while dealing with family issues.
From Newbery Honor author Ann M. Martin, who wrote the Baby-sitters Club series, comes a, New York Times,-bestselling middle grade novel about a girl, her dog, and the trials of growing up in a ... (Barnes & Noble)
Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast
by Robin McKinley
An unconventional retelling of a classic fairytale, exploring themes of love and transformation.
Roderick Huston, a wealthy merchant and widower, has three daughters; Grace, Hope, and Honour. When Honour was a child she asked what her name meant and afterwards said she'd rather be named Beauty, ... (Wikipedia)
Daughter of Smoke & Bone
by Laini Taylor
A young woman discovers a secret world of angels, monsters, and a destiny she never knew was hers.
Karou, a 17-year-old art student living in Prague , goes about her daily life attending classes and hanging out with her best friend Zuzana, while simultaneously trying to evade her ex-boyfriend ... (Wikipedia)
The False Prince
by Jennifer A. Nielsen
A young orphan is chosen to impersonate a long-lost prince in a daring plan to save a kingdom.
In this first book in a remarkable trilogy, an orphan is forced into a twisted game with deadly stakes. Choose to lie...or choose to die. In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the ... (Barnes & Noble)
The Kitchen House
by Kathleen Grissom
A young Irish girl is taken in by a plantation family in Virginia and becomes entangled in the lives of the slaves who work there.
When a white servant girl violates the order of plantation society, she unleashes a tragedy that exposes the worst and best in the people she has come to call her family. Orphaned while onboard ship ... (Goodreads)
Ask the Passengers
by A.S. King
Astrid sends love to passengers flying overhead, while struggling with her own identity and the expectations of those around her.
Astrid Jones desperately wants to confide in someone, but her mother's pushiness and her father's lack of interest tell her they're the last people she can trust. Instead, Astrid spends hours lying ... (Goodreads)
The Invention of Wings
by Sue Monk Kidd
A powerful story about a girl's journey to freedom, despite the limitations of slavery.
Writing at the height of her narrative and imaginative gifts, Sue Monk Kidd presents a masterpiece of hope, daring, the quest for freedom, and the desire to have a voice in the world—and it is now ... (Goodreads)
Orphan Train
by Christina Baker Kline
A story of two women's intertwined lives, spanning generations and crossing continents.
The #1 New York Times Bestseller “A lovely novel about the search for family that also happens to illuminate a fascinating and forgotten chapter of America’s history. Beautiful.”—Ann Packer Moving ... (Barnes & Noble)
