Mermaid Park by Beth Mayall

When Amy Rush gets to stay in Wildwood, NJ with her godmother instead of her bullying stepfather and indifferent mother and sister, she is relieved. Soon she's ecstatic because she has finagled a job at Mermaid Park. Little does she know how pivotal it will prove to be.

Highly Recommended

Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty

Jessica Darling has just had her best friend move away and she is heartbroken. No one seems to understand, from her shallow "friends" to her overly critical parents. Told alternately in letters to her friend and diary entries, Jessica really finds out what it means to be herself.

Highly Recommended

How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life by Kaavya Viswanathan

This plagiarized book is fluffy Indian-American chick-lit. I read Sloppy Firsts immediately afterwards and even though the main characters' outlooks and tone were different, it really felt like a cheap knock-off.

Since the articles said the publisher thought her original idea was too "dark", I am curious if it would actually been better written and not plagiarized.

Not Recommended

Falcondance by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

In this sequel to Snakecharm, a young Falcon must decide between loyalty to his family or to his Wyvern princess.

Highly Recommended

Girls For Breakfast by David Yoo

Nick Park is a Korean-American growing up in the WASPiest town in Connecticut. He loves girls, adores them but somehow he can't get them. Is it because he's Asian or is it something deeper?

Highly Recommended