The Boy from the Basement

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass

While I Was Away

The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person

The Education of Ivy Blake

Fat Hoochie Prom Queen

The Day of the Pelican

Keeping Safe the Stars

Shark Girl

On a sunny day in June, at the beach with her mom and brother, fifteen-year-old Jane Arrowood went for a swim. And then everything -- absolutely everything -- changed. Now she's counting down the days until she returns to school with her fake arm, where she knows kids will whisper, "That's her -- that's Shark Girl," as she passes. In the meantime there are only questions: Why did this happen? Why her? What about her art? What about her life? In this striking first novel, Kelly Bingham uses poems, letters, telephone conversations, and newspaper clippings to look unflinchingly at what it's like to lose part of yourself - and to summon the courage it takes to find yourself again.

age range: 12 yrs and up
grade range: Grade 7 and up

Discover Your Child's Next Read

The Boy from the Basement

Susan Shaw, 2004

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass

Meg Medina, 2013

While I Was Away

Waka T. Brown, 2021

The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person

Frederick Joseph, 2020

The Education of Ivy Blake

Ellen Airgood, 2015

Fat Hoochie Prom Queen

Nico Medina, 2008

The Day of the Pelican

Katherine Paterson, 2009

Keeping Safe the Stars

Sheila O'connor, 2012