Diaries and Letters
 |
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. subjects: Spokane Indians, Indians of North America - Washington (State), Indian Reservations, Race Relations, Diary Fiction |
 |
Breathing Underwater Sent to counseling for hitting his girlfriend, Caitlin, and ordered to keep a journal, sixteen-year-old Nick recounts his relationship with Caitlin, examines his controlling behavior and anger, and describes living with his abusive father. subjects: Dating Violence, Anger, Fathers and Sons, Child Abuse, Diaries |
 |
The Juliet Club When high school junior Kate wins an essay contest that sends her to Verona, Italy, to study Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" over the summer, she meets both American and Italian students and learns not just about Shakespeare, but also about star-crossed lovers--and herself. subjects: Interpersonal Relations, Letters, Verona (Italy) |
 |
I'm Exploding Now The summer he turns seventeen, Max Whooten is feeling off his game with no job and nothing to do, but after spending a lot of time hanging out in Manhatten, thinking about life, writing down his thoughts, and visiting his aunt in Woodstock, he develops a personal philosophy called "coolism" which seems to help turn things around. subjects: Interpersonal Relations, Diaries, New York (N.Y.), Woodstock (N.Y.) |
 |
Life as We Knew It Through journal entries sixteen-year-old Miranda describes her family's struggle to survive after a meteor hits the moon, causing worldwide tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. Companion: The Dead and the Gone. subjects: Natural Disasters, Family Life, Diaries, Science Fiction |
 |
Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff Ginny makes a to do list for her seventh grade year, which includes landing a role in the school play, trying to make friends, ignoring her horoscope, and going to see her grandpa Joe in Florida; but she always seems to come up short in accomplishing any of it. subjects: Middle Schools, Middle School Students, Family Life, School Stories |
 |
Rats Saw God In hopes of graduating, Steve York agrees to complete a hundred-page writing assignment which helps him to sort out his relationship with his famous astronaut father and the events that changed him from promising student to troubled teen. subjects: Fathers and Sons, High Schools, Divorce |
 |
Sloppy Firsts Sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated when her best friend moves away and leaves Jessica to face the trials of high school on her own. subjects: High School Students, Teenage Girls, New Jersey |
 |
Sorcery and Cecilia, or, The Enchanted Chocolate Pot: Being the Correspondence of Two Young Ladies of Quality Regarding Various Magical Scandals in London and the Country In 1817 in England, two young cousins, Cecilia living in the country and Kate in London, write letters to keep each other informed of their exploits, which take a sinister turn when they find themselves confronted by evil wizards. Sequels: The Grand Tour, The Mislaid Magician. subjects: Cousins, Wizards, Supernatural, Letters. London (England) |
 |
Spud In 1990, thirteen-year-old John "Spud" Milton, a prepubescent choirboy, keeps a diary of his first year at an elite, boys-only boarding school in South Africa, as he deals with bizarre housemates, wild crushes, embarrassingly dysfunctional parents, and much more. Sequel: The Madness Continues. subjects: Boarding Schools, Choirboys, Family-South Africa, Diaries, Humorous Stories |
 |
Thirteen Reasons Why When high school student Clay Jenkins receives a box in the mail containing thirteen cassette tapes recorded by his classmate Hannah, who committed suicide, he spends a bewildering and heartbreaking night crisscrossing their town, listening to Hannah's voice recounting the events leading up to her death. subjects: Suicide, High Schools, Interpersonal Relations |
 |
Undercover High school sophomore Elisa is used to observing while going unnoticed except when classmates ask her to write love notes for them, but a teacher's recognition of her talent, a "client's" desire for her friendship, a love of ice skating, and her parent's marital problems draw her out of herself. subjects: Love Letters, Poetry, Letters, High Schools, Family Problems, Ice Skating |
 |
The Year of Secret Assignments Three female students from Ashbury High write to three male students from rival Brookfield High as part of a pen pal program, leading to romance, humiliation, revenge plots, and war between the schools. subjects: High Schools, Pen Pals, Friendship, Australia, Letters |
List updated May 2009—Patti Cook
