FIRE IN THE HEART: A Spiritual Guide for Teens
Deepak Chopra
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0689862164
Ages 12-up
208 pages

A fifteen-year-old boy is walking through a swirling fog on his way to school when a voice calls out, "Come here. We need to talk." Out of the mist emerges an old man with a white beard. He is a fantastic figure, as wizardly as Merlin, as wise as Socrates, as peaceful as Buddha. Whoever he is, the old man has appeared on that very day to change the boy's life.

The old man gives the boy four days of "soul training," a time of riddles, tricks, parables and fantastic twists that bring out surprising answers to each of four burning questions about spirituality: Do I have a soul? How do wishes come true? What is the supreme force in the universe? How can I change the world?

This sounds like the plot to a cool new novel, doesn't it? Well, actually, this incident occurred in real life, and the boy was none other than Deepak Chopra, the acclaimed writer and teacher about the same invisible things that the old man taught him. FIRE IN THE HEART is Dr. Chopra's first book for teens; its aim is to pass on this soul training to young readers.

HONEY, BABY, SWEETHEART
Deb Caletti
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0689867654
Ages 12-up
320 pages

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Sixteen-year-old Ruby McQueen is a "Quiet Girl" who becomes involved with gorgeous, rich, thrill-seeking Travis Becker. But Ruby finds that she is risking more and more when she's with him. In order to mend her broken heart and keep her mind occupied on other matters, Ruby's mother Ann takes her daughter to the weekly book club she runs for seniors. When it's discovered that one of the group's own members is the subject of a tragic love story they are reading, Ruby and Ann set out to reunite these long-lost lovers.

HOW MY PRIVATE, PERSONAL JOURNAL BECAME A BESTSELLER
Julia DeVillers
Dutton Children's Books
ISBN: 0525472835
Ages 12-up
224 pages

Jamie wants more than anything to be popular, but she never dreams of the fame that she suddenly attains after a private journal entry accidentally finds its way to her teacher and then to a publisher. Before she knows what hit her, she's spending her days at book signings, power lunches and photo ops --- as a bestselling author! And the hottest guy in school finally knows her name. Could life get any better than this?

MISS SMITHERS
Susan Juby
HarperTempest
ISBN: 0060515465
Teen Fiction
336 pages

In this delightful sequel to Susan Juby's debut novel, ALICE, I THINK, Alice McLeod is no longer homeschooled or socially isolated. She has a female friend named George, a male friend, Goose, and a $400 clothing allowance to dress herself for the Miss Smithers pageant. This spunky teenager talks about her life in a zine, and we readers are fortunate enough to learn all about these latest developments.

NAKED WITHOUT A HAT
Jeanne Willis
Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385731663
Ages 14-up
224 pages

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Nineteen-year-old Will has seen brighter days. His mother is always nagging him about the lucky knit hat that he never takes off; his mother's boyfriend has forbidden Will to play "Wild Thing" --- the only song he knows --- on the guitar; and he just got fired from his job at a fast food chain. But Will's luck changes when he moves into a flat with Chrissy, James and Rocko, and gets a new job at the local park.

There, Will meets Zara, a gypsy girl whose family is camping there illegally. Will has never been happier --- until his mother threatens to ruin everything by revealing Will's childhood secret.

ON THE RUN
Michael Coleman
Dutton Children's Books
ISBN: 0525473181
Ages 12-up
208 pages

Fifteen-year-old Luke is a skilled thief with a perfect record, until the day he is caught running from a robbery gone wrong. He chooses to save the life of a blind girl, Jodi, rather than escape cleanly. As a result, Luke is given a shot at freedom if he will train to be Jodi's guide in the London Marathon. The friendship that develops between the two offers Luke one last chance to discover just how far --- and in what direction --- he is willing to run.

ONE NIGHT
Margaret Wild
Knopf
ISBN: 0375829202
Ages 12-up
240 pages

Gabe is considered to be the most attractive guy in school --- that's why his friends send him to get girls to their party. Helen, on the other hand, needs a little help in the looks department --- that's why her friends want her to come along. But Helen gets under Gabe's skin in a way no other girl has. It was one night --- one night with lasting consequences. Now Helen has to decide if she wants to keep her baby --- and if she should tell Gabe, who hasn't spoken to her since their one night together.

REDEMPTION
Julie Chibbaro
Atheneum
ISBN: 0689857365
Ages 13-up
262 pages

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Twelve-year-old Lily has not seen her father for more than eight months. He was taken from her and her mother one night by the baron's men, forced against his will to leave England and to be part of a colony in the New World. And now Lily and her mother are in danger --- the baron's men say they no longer have any right to their land. They also face persecution for being followers of Frere Lanther, a man who has been excommunicated by the church for wanting to purge it of its corrupt practices.

Their one chance for safety and freedom is to take passage on the next ship out to the New World. Afraid her father is dead but hopeful that he is still alive, Lily and Frere Lanther persuade Lily's mother to flee.

SHADOWMANCER
G. P. Taylor
Putnam
ISBN: 0399242562
Ages 12-up
304 pages

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Obadiah Demurral may be a vicar, but knowing what master he truly serves would come as a shock to the villagers of Thorpe. Craving power and filled with insatiable greed, he has welcomed a darkness into his life that enables him to do terrible things, in the hope of gaining control over the universe. He will stop at nothing, and as a shadowmancer --- a sorcerer who speaks to the dead --- he even commands restless souls to do his dirty work.

Who will stand against him? Young Raphah has come from another continent to reclaim the precious artifact --- dangerously volatile in the wrong hands --- that Demurral has stolen. Even younger and less experienced in the ways of battle are Thomas and Kate, accidentally drawn into this war between good and evil that ultimately brings them face-to-face with the powers of darkness in an epic battle.

SHOOTER
Walter Dean Myers
Amistad Press
ISBN: 0060295198
Teen Fiction
224 pages

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What is it like to be an outsider at home and at school? Leonard, Cameron and Carla struggle to find their way, but when Leonard goes on a shooting rampage at school, his friend Cameron finally gets his own wake-up call. Walter Dean Myers tells this riveting tale through a series of interviews, reports, newspaper articles and excerpts from Leonard's journal.

THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER
Sarah Dessen
Viking Press
ISBN: 0670036390
Ages 12-up
384 pages

Macy knows exactly what she's doing this summer. She will spend her days sitting at the library information desk and her evenings studying for the SATs. In her spare time she'll help her obsessive mother prepare for the big opening of the townhouse section of her luxury development. But what Macy does not anticipate is a surprising and chaotic job with Wish Catering, a motley crew of new friends, or Wes. Tattooed and artistic, Wes doesn't fit Macy's life at all. So why does she feel so comfortable with him --- and so happy?

I LIKE IT LIKE THAT
Cecily von Ziegesar
Little, Brown and Company
ISBN: 0316735183
Ages 15-up
208 pages

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It's Spring Break, and love is in the air in Cecily von Ziegesar's fifth installment in the popular Gossip Girls series!

Blair moves in with Serena and they're back to being best friends, but will the truce last? Meanwhile, Nate is playing Nate-in-shining-armor to his crazy new girlfriend, Georgie. But he will definitely get more than he bargained for when he, Georgie, Blair and Serena end up hanging out together in Sun Valley, Idaho. Back in Manhattan Jenny is spending time with a mysteriously nice new boyfriend, while Dan is occupying his hours crying in the office of the Paris Review literary journal. And exactly what is Vanessa doing shopping at Barneys with a guy in a Lacoste shirt?

MATES, DATES, AND MAD MISTAKES
Cathy Hopkins
Simon Pulse
ISBN: 0689867220
Ages 12-up
209 pages

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In this sixth volume of the Mates, Dates series, Izzie is restless and eager to be treated like an adult. So she decides that it's time to make some changes. But the new Izzie comes with brand new problems. First there is Josh Harper, an older, cute-but-wild boy. Then there is her mother, who is opposed to every part of the "new Izzie." How can Izzie learn about herself and what it means to be grown up --- without upsetting everyone along the way?

WHITE LIES AND BAREFACED TRUTHS
Cathy Hopkins
Simon Pulse
ISBN: 0689870035
Ages 12-up
224 pages

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Best friends Cat and Becca are playing truth or dare, and Becca dares Cat to tell the truth more often. First, Cat must admit that she wants to break up with her longtime boyfriend, Squidge. Then she realizes that she and Becca both have a crush on the same guy, Ollie. In this game of truth or dare, friendships are seriously tested.

THE PRINCESS OF POP
Cathy Hopkins
Simon Pulse
ISBN: 0689870027
Ages 12-up
311 pages

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In this followup to WHITE LIES AND BAREFACED TRUTHS, another game of truth or dare has Becca committed to trying out for the "Pop Princess" contest in London. Will she find the nerve to perform in front of millions of people on television?

THE DARKENING: Wicked Willow #1
Yvonne Navarro
Simon Spotlight
ISBN: 0743427742
Ages 14-up
288 pages

In the woods outside Sunnydale, Willow Rosenberg has exacted a terrible revenge for the murder of her girlfriend Tara Maclay: she has captured Warren, the murderous leader of the Trio, and flayed him alive. Her best friends, Buffy Summers and Xander Harris, arrived too late to stop her.

But the death of Warren isn't enough for Willow, who sets off on a trail of vengeance and magick-gathering to prepare the spell that will bring Tara back to life. And whoever gets in Willow's way is going to regret it --- including Buffy, who is still hoping to save her best friend.

A TALE OF TWO PIPERS
Emma Harrison
Simon Spotlight
ISBN: 0689868502
Ages 12-up
208 pages

Too much work and no time for play has made Piper a major stress case. When a seemingly harmless wish comes true, creating two Pipers, it appears the problem is solved. Two Pipers can do twice as much work, leaving one Piper to party the night away and the other to finally have time to relax.

But when Darklighters kidnap Leo and hold him hostage in exchange for the Charmed Ones' powers, one of the Pipers doesn't even seem to care. And then both Pipers' powers fade, leaving them useless and sick. Phoebe and Paige scramble to find a reversal spell, but without Leo's help, and with Piper split in two, will the Power of Three become powerless?

WIRED (Fearless #33)
Francine Pascal
Simon Spotlight
ISBN: 0689869169
Ages 16-up
240 pages

Back when Gaia was fearless, she would meet a boy and fall in love with him, but the boy would eventually get hurt. Now that Gaia feels fear, she meets a boy, falls in love with him --- and the boy gets hurt.

Some things never change…