The fall months can sometimes seem like the busiest. At Options, we know that you are juggling many commitments: a return to school, extra-curricular activities, volunteering, and for some of you, completing university applications. However, when you have an available hour, consider a trip to your local library or bookstore to pick up a copy of one of these fantastic novels!
Amber and Clay by Laura Amy Schlitz
Laura Amy Schlitz’s book Amber and Clay set in Ancient Greece, tells the story of two children. Rhaskos is quick, intelligent, and a gifted artist, but a life of slavery shackles him. His counterpart Melisto is sullen, brave, and the daughter of a wealthy Athenian family. While these two characters have seemingly little in common, what they do share is a determined will to live free from the constraints that Grecian society imposes on both slaves and women.
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Conor has known about his mother’s illness for a while; however, it is not until the monster shows up one night that he realizes the gravity of the situation. Yet still, he struggles to come to terms with the situation and his grief. Patrick Ness’s prose is accompanied by hauntingly beautiful black and white etchings.
The Last Train to Kummersdorf by Leslie Wilson
It is 1945, and Effi has fled Berlin, desperate to escape and find her American father. When she comes across a young German soldier hiding in the woods, she is at first unsure if she can trust him. However, despite their initial uncertainty of one another, they recognize that there are far greater dangers and so reluctantly collaborate to reach the West and avoid capture by the Russians.
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
When Will’s eighteen-year-old brother Shawn is shot outside of their apartment building, he knows that he must follow the rules of his neighborhood. Determined to avenge his brother’s death, he leaves his distraught mother in their flat and takes the elevator down to the lobby. However, in that two-minute eventful elevator ride, he meets four people he never thought he would see again and is presented with a choice that will determine the rest of his life.
