39.) The First Part Last by Angela Johnson

“If the world were really right, humans would live life backward and do the first part last. They'd be all knowing in the beginning and innocent in the end...”

The First Part Last by Angela Johnson (Simon Pulse, 2003)

Genre: Problem Novel, Real Life Fiction, General Fiction, African America, Urban drama

Honors:  Georgia Peach Book Award (2004), Printz Award (2004), Coretta Scott King Award for Author (2004), ALA Teens' Top Ten (2003), ALA's Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults (2004) Abraham Lincoln Award Nominee (2006) [Honors Information found at Goodreads.com]

Review: Bobby's life changes forever when he finds out Nia, his girlfriend, is pregnant. In this narrative that takes place in both the time after his daughter is born and in the past while Nia was pregnant, the author gives a very real life look at the life of a teenage father. 

Opinion: I listened to this book on audio and I think that the narrator did an absolutely fantastic job. Because I listened to this, I didn't realize it was a Printz winner until I started looking up the information on the honors! When I started I wasn't sure if I would life this book, but I ended up loving it. About a quarter of the way through I knew something had gone wrong with the delivery and it was hard for me to continue on becuase I was so into the characters that the idea that something happened to Nia during delivery was almost too much for me to bear emotionally. I also liked that this is a look at not only teenage fatherhood, but teenage single fatherhood which is a whole other ball game! 

Ideas: I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for books on teen pregnancy, or problem novels, or very realistic teenage life. I would also recommend this book for anyone looking for an African America author or main character. It was so well written, and still very short that I would recommend it very easily to just about anyone.  

22.) Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

“But you can't get away from yourself. You can't decide not to see yourself anymore. You can't decide to turn off the noise in your head.” 

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher (Razorbill, 2007)

Genre: Problem Novel, Realistic Fiction 


Honors: South Carolina Book Award for Young Adult Book Award (2010), Florida Teens Read (2008), Georgia Peach Honor Book Award (2009), Kirkus Reviews Editor's Choice, California Book Award Abraham Lincoln Award (2013), Association of Booksellers for Children's "Best Books"[Honors Information found at Goodreads.com]

Review: Hannah committed suicide. Weeks later a box of cassette tapes show up on Clay's doorstep recorded by Hannah before she killed herself. They explain the thirteen reasons why she took that final step. 

Opinion: I wasn't sure how this book would play out reading the synopsis, but it was much better written than I thought it would be. The two narrative and back and forth between the two voices made the book flow really well and move quickly.  Although I counted this as a problem novel, instead of a girl being in danger of suicide it is about a girl who has already committed suicide so that it a very interesting take on a novel.

Ideas: This book would be good for someone who likes problem novels, or novels pertaining to real teenage life. Probably teens who like John Green books would also like this novel. 

20.) Crank by Ellen Hopkins

“Have you ever had so much to say that your mouth closed up tight struggling to harness the nuclear force coalescing within your words? Have you ever had so many thoughts churning inside you that you didn’t dare let them escape in case they blew you wide open?"

Crank by Ellen Hopkins (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2004)
(Crank, Book 1)

Genre: Problem Novel, General Fiction, Series 

Honors: Abraham Lincoln Award (2009) [Honors Information found at Goodreads.com]

Review: Kristina visits her dead-beat dad one summer. While visiting him she discovers Bree, and alter-ego that seems to emerge and does all the things that "good-girl" Kristina wouldn't. Flirting with dangerous boys and experimenting with substances. Soon Bree introduces Kristina to "the monster" aka meth. Bree/Kristina soon become addicted and even after she come home she begins to lead a very dangerous life-style that results in serious problems for such a young girl. 

Opinion: This book really effected me emotionally. It basically scared the hell out of me and I wanted to run into my daughter's room to hug her when I was reading it. It looks like a monster sized book but it reads very very quickly. I want to keep reading the rest of the series just to see what happens to this poor girl! The story doesn't get resolved at the end and the girl doesn't get better in this book which is unusual for a problem novel to be a series. 

Ideas: This is a good book for anyone who likes problem novels, or likes stories that center around drug addition and the negative effects of it. If someone likes Go Ask Alice they would probably also like this book and series. This would also make a good addition to a problem novel display. 

19.) Cut by Patricia McCormick

“Look. I have a strategy. Why expect anything? If you don’t expect anything, you don’t get disappointed.”

Cut by Patricia McCormick (Push, 2002)


Genre: Problem Novel, Realistic Fiction 

Honors: Abraham Lincoln Award Nominee (2005) [Honors Information found at Goodreads.com]

Review: After cuts were discovered across Callie's armsshe is taken to a young girl's treatment facility. Callie suffers through support groups with other girls who have eating disorereds, or drug problems, but no one that has a problem quite like Callie's until girl who is also a cutter shows up for treatment. Finally Callie decides to open herself up for help.

Opinion: Although this was one of the shortest books I read, it was also one of the most difficult to get through because I was very bored with the story. Although this is an important issue that is not faced hardly at all in other teen books I had trouble relating or even caring about the main character. But that doesn't mean that other teens wouldn't find it a good read, or that they might not relate to Callie. 

Ideas: This is a good problem novel, a good real life novel, so anyone who is looking for that kind of book would like this. Obviously a teen who is afflicted with this same problem or has a friend or family member who hurts or cuts themselves then this might help them develop an understanding for what that person goes through. This would also go good in a display for problems novels. Reluctant readers  might like it because it's a very short book.

15.) The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

“As he read, I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once.”

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (Dutton Juvenile, 2012)

Genre: Realistic Fiction, Problem Novel, Romance


Honors:  Odyssey Award (2013), Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Fiction (2012), ALA Teens' Top Ten Nominee (2012), Indies Choice Book Award for Young Adult (2013), The Inky Awards for Silver Inky (2012), Abraham Lincoln Award Nominee (2014) [Honors Information found at Goodreads.com]

Review: A heart wrenching tale of love and loss, but spotted with laugh out loud humor.  14-year-old Hazel has cancer, though the tumor in her lungs has shrunk it is not gone. She still must walk around with an oxygen tank, and can't live a normal life of a 14-year-old. That seems to all change when she meets Augustus Waters at a cancer support group. They quickly form a bound that romace springs from. Augustus helps Hazel live her dream to meet her favorite author by tracking him down in the Netherlands and helping Hazel make a trip of a life time.

Opinion: I think if you don't shed at least a partial tear during this book, you must be dead inside. It was very touching and very moving. I can't even imagine to have your youth stripped away from you in the way that Hazel and Augustus did in this book.  John Green creates such a moving piece of fiction that just made me want to go home and hug my kid all night long.

Ideas: A good book for boys or girls, but the main character is a girl. It has romance in it, but it is not overbearing so certain boys might like it as well. John Green fans of course would go for this book. I did listen to this book on audio, and thought it was fantastic so I would recommend the audiobook to any teen as well. 

Funny meme from the internet