The Stolen One by Suzanne Crowley

After the death of her adoptive mother Grace, feisty and independent, sixteen-year-old Katherine Bab wants no part of her expected marriage and so she does exactly what Grace told her not to do and flees to London in search of her true identity, taking her deaf sister Anna with her. Katerine’s flame red-hair catches the eye of Queen Elizabeth and soon Katherine finds herself installed among the Queen’s Ladies in Waiting. Kat finds herself taken in by the glamour of court life and the closeness she develops with the Queen. It is only as she discovers the secrets of her own life that Kat discovers where her heart truly lies.

The Stolen One masterfully captures the mystery and intrigue surrounding Elizabeth’s court. Readers will delight in Kat’s voice and heart-felt narration. Historical details are beautifully crafted, however, at times can be confusing to those unfamiliar with the period. Everything is given a detailed description, which at times slows the story down too much but over all fans of history fiction will appreciate Kat’s search for her true identity and what she really desires.

Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba by Margarita Engle

Daniel’s parents put all of their money into the boat passage to New York that was supposed to ensure his escape from Nazi Germany. Unfortunately, the boat full of refugees that Daniel is on has been turned away from both the Canadian and United States ports where they attempted to land. Cuba is their last chance or they will be forced to return to Germany. When Daniel is finally allowed into Cuba, he meets David a Russian immigrant and Paloma, a Cuban native whose corrupt father determines the future of the refugees. As Daniel battles to overcome the language barrier, the heat, and the loneliness, fears of Nazis spies overtake Cuba and all Germany immigrants and refugees without a J on their passport are arrested. Daniel, and Paloma find themselves helping to hide an older German couple of mixed religious background stay together.

Through sparse, easy to follow verse, Engle weaves a story of a relatively unknown aspect of holocaust history. Primarily told through Daniel’s voice, Engle captures the loneliness and sadness of a young boy separated from his parents under horrific conditions and whose desperation to be reunited with them is gut-wrenching. Youth of Cuban ancestry will be delighted to see a novel in which their country’s history looks better than the United States. This quick read will be perfect for reluctant readers who are comfortable with books in verse.

Project Sweet Life by Brett Hartinger

Every teenager knows that fifteen is the year of the optional summer job, after all once you turn sixteen you start working until you retire or die. Dave finds his plans of relaxing and hanging out with his best friends Curtis and Victor dashed when their dads decree the teens must get summer jobs. Unwilling to give up their final summer of freedom, the boys dream up Project Sweet Life, in which they quickly earn $7000 to show their dads and spend the rest of the summer pretending to go off to summer jobs.

Hartinger has crafted a hilarious comedy of errors full of wit and crazy adventures. As far fetched as the plot seems, Project Sweet Life is an idea that could have been pulled from the heads of many teen boys that I know. Characters drive the story and are likeable, interesting, with such an honest voice that readers can easily insert themselves or their friends into the tale.

The Orange Houses by Paul Griffin

When she was five years old, Tamika suffered from meningitis and was left with “moderately severe” hearing loss and now ten years later she would rather turn off her hearing aids and escape the noise of the world. At the age of eighteen, Jimmi Sixes self-medicates to forget what he saw in the war and mute the pain from death of the love of his life and their child. Looking for a chance at a new life, sixteen-year-old Fatima has paid a shark twenty-five hundred dollars to smuggle her from her war torn home in Africa to New York. As these three struggle to survive the poverty and violence of life in the Bronx they find comfort and support in each other until a horrific incident that changes each of them forever.

Griffin has packed a lot into this short novel. Poetic prose and hauntingly realistic characters will capture reader’s interest from the first page. The inconsistent pacing is a drawback, the story begins slowly but the ending rushes to an abrupt and traumatic conclusion. The rotating narrative allows readers to bond with each character but at times leaves gaps in the characters story. This thought-provoking title would make an excellent book discussion on relevant and contemporary issues- particularly immigration. Sadly the unappealing cover does a huge disservice to the novel and will limit its teen appeal.