Celebrating Language Arts Wheaton, Illlinois Ruth Gheysen, Rebecca Caudill Selection Committee Deborah Will, Abraham Lincoln High School Book Award Nomination Committee

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool  Odyssey-like adventure of two boys' incredible quest on the Appalachian Trail where they deal with pirates, buried secrets, and extraordinary encounters

Legend by Marie Lu  In a dark future, when North America has split into two warring nations, fifteen-year-olds Day, a famous criminal, and prodigy June, the brilliant soldier hired to capture him, discover that they have a common enemy.

The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau  Sixteen-year-old Malencia (Cia) Vale is chosen to participate in The Testing to attend the University; however, Cia is fearful when she figures out her friends who do not pass The Testing are disappearing.

The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen  In the country of Carthya, a devious nobleman engages four orphans in a brutal competition to be selected to impersonate the king's long-missing son in an effort to avoid a civil war.

The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal  The wedding festivities of Scandinavian Princess Sophia are thrown into turmoil by an illness plaguing the royal family and a courtier's plot that places a seamstress and a royal nursemaid at the center of an epic power struggle.

Never Say Die by Will Hobbs  Fifteen-year-old half-Inuit Nick meets and shares an adventure on the Firth River in the Canadian Arctic with his white brother, Ryan. They have to face white water, wild animals, and fierce weather as Ryan documents the effects of climate change on caribou for National Geographic magazine.

Midwinter Blood by Marcus Sedgwick  Seven linked vignettes unfold on a Scandinavian island inhabited-- throughout various time periods--by Vikings, vampires, ghosts, and a curiously powerful plant

Unstoppable by Tim Green  Upon going to the doctor for a routine knee injury, foster child and aspiring NFL athlete Harrison learns that he has bone cancer.

Second Impact by David Klass and Perri Klass  When Jerry Downing, star quarterback in a small football town, gets a second chance after his drunk driving had serious consequences, Carla Jensen, ace reporter for the school newspaper, invites him to join her in writing a blog, mainly about sports.

Ungifted by Gordon Korman  When one of Donovan's thoughtless pranks accidentally destroys the school gym during the Big Game he knows he's in for it. But through a strange chain of events, his name gets put on the list for the local school for gifted students. Donovan knows he's not a genius, but he can't miss this chance to escape. Now, he has to figure out a way to stay at ASD and fit in with the kids there.

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell  Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits--smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

Bomb by Steve Sheinkin  Recounts the scientific discoveries that enabled atom splitting, the military intelligence operations that occurred in rival countries, and the work of brilliant scientists hidden at Los Alamos.

Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner  Following a stray football to the other side of a wall where there is a secret, Standish Treadwell discovers astonishing truths about a moon landing that the overseeing Motherland, a ruthless regime, is determined to hide.

A Diamond in the Desert By Kathryn Fitzmaurice  After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, thirteen- year-old Tetsu and his family are sent to the Gila River Relocation Center in Arizona where a fellow prisoner starts a baseball team, but when Tetsu's sister becomes ill and he feels responsible, he stops playing.

The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey  Cassie Sullivan, the survivor of an alien invasion, must rescue her young brother from the enemy with help from a boy who may be one of them.

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate  When Ivan, a gorilla who has lived for years in a down-and-out circus- themed mall, meets Ruby, a baby elephant that has been added to the mall, he decides that he must find her a better life.

Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern  Jess knows she's growing apart from her best friends, Char and Bizza, a situation made much worse when Bizza goes poseur- punk in order to pursue Jess' long- time crush. When Jess, who loves math, sewing, and audiobooks, is invited to play Dungeons and Dragons by class nerd Dottie, she discovers that embracing life as a nerd isn't so bad -- especially when there's a cute boy involved who loves role-playing games, too.

A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park  When the Sudanese civil war reaches his village in 1985, eleven-year-old Salva becomes separated from his family and must walk with other Dinka tribe members through southern Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya in search of safe haven. Based on the life of Salva Dut, who, after emigrating to America in 1996, began a project to dig water wells in Sudan.

The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook by Joanne Rocklin  As ten-year-old Oona and younger brother Fred conspire to break their sick cat Zook out of the veterinary clinic, Oona tells the story of Zook's previous lives.