The following annotated bibliography was compiled by the American Library Association. Librarians throughout the U.S. helped select these titles from the several thousand children's books published during 2004. Included are books of especially commendable quality, books of particular creativity, and books of fiction, information, poetry, and pictures. This suggested reading list is appropriate for young adults.

Almond, David. The Fire-Eaters. Delacorte. (0-385-73170-1)
Simultaneously searing and soaring, this passionate exploration of faith places the private apocalypses of rural English schoolboy Bobby Burns against the backdrop of the Cuban missile crisis. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Bausum, Ann. With Courage and Cloth: Winning the Fight for a Woman's Right to Vote. National Geographic. (0-7922-7647-7)
Focusing on Alice Paul, Bausum's account of the 72-year battle to gain women's voting rights uses archival photographs and other visual material, tinted in purple and gold, to accompany information about political strategies, the treatment of jailed activists, and the determination that resulted in women's suffrage in the U.S. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. Putnam. (0-399-23861-1)
Alcatraz is the evocative backdrop for this highly original novel, set in 1935, in which 12-year old Moose tells about his travails on "the Rock," where his father works. Hilarious antics are interwoven with themes if isolation and imprisonment a, compassion and connection. A 2005 Newberry Honor Book and A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Chotjewitz, David. Daniel, Half Human: And the Good Nazi. Tr. from the German by Doris Orgel. Simon & Schuster/Richard Jackson. (0-689-85747-0)
In this suspenseful story set in 1930s Germany, a boy accustomed to privilege is forced into a life of deception after discovering that he is half-Jewish. His complicated relationship with his friend Armin is challenged when the rise of Nazism takes the children in different directions. A 2005 Batchelder Honor Book and A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Curtis, Christopher Paul. Bucking the Sarge. Random/Wendy Lamb. (0-385-32307-7)
With great wit and intelligence, 14-year old Luther plots to escape his ruthless mother's plans for his life and to find his way in the world outside of Flint, Michigan. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Doyle, Brian. Boy O'Boy. Douglas & McIntyre/Groundwood. (0-375-82401-4)
This powerful, engaging novel set in Ottawa at the end of World War II introduces 12-year old Martin O'Boy, whose wit, upbeat disposition, and superhero inspiration help him triumph over poverty, a troubled family life, and abuse from a man with an eye for boys.

Drez, Ronald J. Remember D-Day: The Plan, The Invasion, Survivor Stories. illus. National Geographic. (0-7922-6666-8)
The history of this pivotal World War II event is chronicled in a compelling narrative, presented in an accessible, engaging format and buttressed by a variety of primary sources.

Farmer, Nancy. The Sea of Trolls. Simon & Schuster/Richard Jackson. (0-689-86744-1)
In a tale inspired by Norse legend, Jack sets off on a quest and encounters wild adventures and outrageous characters, including trolls, dragons, giant spiders, and fierce boars. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Fisher, Catherine. The Oracle Betrayed. Greenwillow. (0-06-057157-8)
Mirany becomes the keeper of the Archon's final secret and must find a way to save her kingdom. Set in a mythic Greco-Egyptian kingdom, her story in filled with betrayal and intrigue. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Freedman, Russell. The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights. Clarion. (0-618-15976-2)
Freedman gracefully narrates the story of Anderson's life and career in this handsomely and spaciously designed book an artist who preferred to focus on her career but was forced to confront her nation's racism. The 2005 Sibert Medal Book, A 2005 Newberry Honor Book, and A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Hoose, Phillip M. The Race to Save the Lord God Bird. Farrar/Melanie Kroupa. (0-374-36173-8)
The tragic conclusion of the reign of the magnificent ivory-billed woodpecker unfolds with passion- and a tiny dollop of hope at the end. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Is This Forever, or What? Poems & Paintings for Texas. Ed. by Naomi Shihab Nye. Greenwillow. (0-06-051178-8)
In a beautiful, contemporary collection of paintings and free-verse poetry, 140 Texas artists and poets convey their love of Texas as a "state of mind," not just a place.

Johnson, Angela. bird. Dial. (0-8037-2847-6)
Bird searches for the stepfather who abandoned her, but finds a circle of friends that reveal the true meaning of family and love. Told through the first-person perspectives of Bird and her two new friends. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Kadohata, Cynthia. Kira-Kira. Simon & Schuster/Antheneum. (0-689-85639-3)
Kadohata's tenderly nuanced novel glitters with plain and poignant words that describe the strong love within a Japanese American family from the point of view of younger sister Katie. Personal challenges and family tragedy are set against the oppressive social climate of the South during the 1950s and 1960s. The 2005 Newberry Medal Book.

Konigsburg, E. L. The Outcasts of 19 Schyler Place. Simon & Schuster/Antheneum. (0-689-86636-4)
Margaret Rose is rescued from summer camp by her eccentric uncles and, in turn, saves their splendid, artistically sculptured towers. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Leavitt, Martine. Heck Superhero. Front Street. (1-886910-94-4)
Heck's mother counts on him to be her hero, but their lives unravel when the clinically depressed woman spirals into "hypertime," leaving Heck, artist and superhero wanna-be, to fend for himself on the streets. A funny, painful, original novel. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

McKay, Hilary. Indigo's Star. Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry. (0-689-86563-5)
Through a series of humorous and poignant adventures, the Cassons learn about the true meaning of family and friendship. It's great to spend more time with the quirky characters that first appeared in Saffy's Angel.

McWhorter, Diane. A Dream of Freedom: The Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1968. illus. Scholastic. (0-439-57678-4)
Pulitzer Prize winner McWhorter mines her childhood as a white girl in Birmingham, Alabama, to write this distinguished, in-depth exploration of the civil rights movement in the U.S. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Myers, Walter Dean. Here in Harlem: Poems in Many Voices. Holiday. (0-8234-1853-7)
Borrowing from both the classical tradition and the rhythms of jazz and blues, this dazzling collection illuminates the many faces of Harlem, past and present. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Nelson, Marilyn. Fortune's Bones: The Manumission Requiem. Front Street. (1-932425-12-8)
Using a piercing cycle of poetry, Nelson introduces readers to Fortune, a slave whose death frees him but also enslaves him for 200 years- first as an anatomical specimen and later as a museum display. A 2005 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book.

Oppel, Kenneth. Airborn. HarperCollins/Eos. (0-06-053180-0)
Matt, a cabin boy aboard a luxury airship, saves a dying balloonist whose ship has been damaged. The balloonist's last words are about beautiful, winged creatures. One year later, the granddaughter of the balloonist takes passage on the airship, hoping to find the mysterious creatures. A 2005 Printz Honor Book and A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Peck, Richard. The Teacher's Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts. Dial. (0-8037-2736-4)
Russell, growing up in 1904, doesn't like school, and he's delighted when his teacher, Miss Myrt Arbuckle, dies. But when his older sister Tansy becomes the new teacher, Russell finds himself facing all kinds of new troubles. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Pratchett, Terry. A Hat Full of Sky. HarperCollins. (0-06-058660-5)
Young Tiffany Aching, two years removed from saving the world with an iron skillet, returns to face two new challenges: formal education in witchcraft and an identity-eating monster. It's the Feegles to the rescue in a great sequel to The Wee Free Men. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Ryan, Pam Munoz. Becoming Naomi Leon. Scholastic. (0-439-26969-5)
Ryan presents an endearing, unforgettable character in Naomi Soledad Leon Outlaw, who faces many challenges with courage and conviction. A book filled with humor and poignancy. The 2005 Schneider Family Middle School Award Book.

Schmidt, Gary D. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy. Clarion. (0-618-43929-3)
Set in Maine in 1912, this powerful, haunting novel, propelled by a tragic historical event, probes a forbidden friendship between a preacher's son and a dark-skinned girl from a nearby island. Steeped in imagery and laced with surprising humor, the story explores powerlessness, possibility, and the difference individuals can make. A 2005 Newberry Honor Book, A 2005 Printz Honor Book, and A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Shusterman, Neal. The Schwa Was Here. Dutton. (0-525-47182-0)
Is it possible for a human being to be invisible? Schwa nearly is, but Antsy notices him, and the two boys devise a scheme to make bog bucks. By turns hilarious and touching, this novel is both unique and creative. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

Stolz, Joelle. The Shadows of Ghadames. Tr. from the French by Catherine Temerson. Delacorte (0-385-73104-3)
Stolz paints a vivid picture of an all-female community and a young woman's coming-of-age in nineteenth-century Libya, in a story that follows 11-year old Malika as she questions the restrictions that she encounters as she approaches marriageable age. The 2005 Batchelder Award Medal.

Weeks, Sarah. So B. It. HarperCollins/Laura Geringer. (0-06-623622-3)
Heidi is determined to discover the background of her mentally disabled mother, who calls herself So B. It. As she travels to Hilltop Home for the Disabled, she meets a host of memorable characters, and when she arrives, she finds the answers to her ancestry as well as a new family. A 2005 Best Book for Young Adults (YALSA).

American Library Association