The Best of the Best in 2007 (Part 1)
Discover the best 2007 books in this curated list, featuring acclaimed YA and juvenile fiction by Sarah Dessen, John Boyne, and Pam Muñoz Ryan. From *The Boy in the Striped Pajamas* to *This Lullaby* and *Becoming Naomi León*, explore standout reads full of heart, history, and identity.
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Becoming Naomi León
by Pam Muñoz Ryan
When Naomi's absent mother resurfaces to claim her, Naomi runs away to Mexico with her great-grandmother and younger brother in search of her father.
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Behind the Eyes
by Francisco X. Stork
Sixteen-year-old Hector is the hope of his family, but when he seeks revenge after his brother's gang-related death and is sent to a San Antonio reform school, it takes an odd assortment of characters to help him see that hope is still alive.
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A Friendship for Today
by Pat McKissack
In 1954, when desegregation comes to Kirkland, Missouri, ten-year-old Rosemary faces many changes and challenges at school and at home as her parents separate.
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Invisible
by Pete Hautman
You could say that my railroad, the Madham Line, is almost the most important thing in my life. Next to Andy Morrow, my best friend. Lots of people think Doug Hanson is a freak -- he gets beat up after school, and the girl of his dreams calls him a worm. Doug's only refuge is creating an elaborate bridge for the model railroad in his basement and hanging out with his best friend, Andy Morrow, a popular football star who could date any girl in school. Doug and Andy talk about everything -- except what happened at the Tuttle place a few years back. It does not matter to Andy that we live in completely different realities. I'm Andy's best friend. It does not matter to Andy that we hardly ever actually do anything together. As Doug retreats deeper and deeper into his own reality, long-buried secrets threaten to destroy both Doug and Andy -- and everything else in Doug's fragile world.
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This Lullaby
by Sarah Dessen
From the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Once and for All She’s got it all figured out. Or does she? When it comes to relationships, Remy’s got a whole set of rules. Never get too serious. Never let him break your heart. And never, ever date a musician. But then Remy meets Dexter, and the rules don’t seem to apply anymore. Could it be that she’s starting to understand what all those love songs are about? “Remy and Dexter jump off the pages into the hearts of readers, who will wish for a romance like this of their own.” —Booklist Sarah Dessen is the winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for her contributions to YA literature, as well as the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award. Books by Sarah Dessen: That Summer Someone Like You Keeping the Moon Dreamland This Lullaby The Truth About Forever Just Listen Lock and Key Along for the Ride What Happened to Goodbye The Moon and More Saint Anything Once and for All
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The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
by John Boyne
Two young boys encounter the best and worst of humanity during the Holocaust in this powerful read that USA Today called "as memorable an introduction to the subject as The Diary of Anne Frank.” Berlin, 1942: When Bruno returns home from school one day, he discovers that his belongings are being packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move to a new house far, far away, where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence stretches as far as the eye can see and cuts him off from the strange people in the distance. But Bruno longs to be an explorer and decides that there must be more to this desolate new place than meets the eye. While exploring his new environment, he meets another boy whose life and circumstances are very different from his own, and their meeting results in a friendship that has devastating consequences.
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Leaving Fishers
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
A lonely newcomer at her high school, Dorry is drawn into a religious group called "The Fishers of Men" by some friendly fellow students, only to find herself immersed in a cult that forces her to make some difficult choices and from which she must struggle to extricate herself. Reissue.
