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YA Books You Won't Be Assigned to Read This Summer

May 19, 2015

Summer is the time to be outside in the sun and lounge around. If you're looking for a good book to read, check these out. You're not likely to find them on any summer reading list you encounter this year.

Willa has moved to Hollywood and underwhelmed. There is an interesting serial killer on the loose, setting his murder scenes to mimic famous movies. And then Willa starts seeing creepy, inexplicable things, like scribbling on the walls that no one else sees. Is Willa's crazy connected to the violence of the serial killer?
Lea and Gabe should be together. Everyone - from the Starbucks barista to the squirrel in the park - can see it. In this first book from Swoon Reads, a crowdsourced publishing imprint, the possible romance of Lea and Gabe is told from 14 different points of view.
Casey has survived cancer, and she's determined to prove that she is no invalid. What better way to demonstrate that she is certainly kick-butt than to join a roller derby team? And as if that wasn't quite challenging enough, Casey manages to end up playing against some supernaturally powered opponents.
Five-year-old Gerald appeared on the reality show, "Network Nanny," becoming famous for his angry explosions...of poop. Now sixteen-years-old, Gerald is still living in his severely dysfunctional family, and still chafing under the moniker, "Crapper." Then he meets Hannah, whose family is nearly as twisted as his own.
After playing a pivotal role in Will Grayson, Will Grayson, Tiny Cooper has a book all of his own. In typical Tiny style, he relates his story not just in words and paragraphs, but in "big, lively, belty" musical numbers.
Garth is accidentally transported into Ghostopolis, aka the afterlife, when an agent with the Supernatural Immigration Task Force meant only to send Garth's skeletal horse. Danger and kindness abound in this graphic novel about finding one's way home.
In a world where there is an epidemic of teen suicide, lovers Sloane and James know to avoid any sign of emotion. Emotional displays are a signal that the teens are infected. As Sloane and James become inescapably pulled into the early stages of the suicidal illness, they face mandatory stays in The Program. After the treatment from The Program, teens come back free from depression, but their memories are wiped clean as well.
After the death of her best friend, Lillian, Hannah just wants life to return to normal. But with the ghost of Lillian hanging around, nagging at Hannah to solve a rash of murders, normal seems more impossible than ever.