Word Out 2011

Word Out 2010 has ended and the information on this page may not be up to date for a more current incarnation of Word Out.

Each week of Word Out! will feature three books in three different categories:

• Fiction
• Nonfiction
• Graphic Novel

Books will be introduced by teen services librarians and teens are encouraged to contribute to the discussion. Each title also includes a few readalikes–titles that you may also like if you enjoy the featured book.

You are free to read whatever you like for Word Out!, but these books were selected as recent titles of particular interest to teen readers.

There are multiple copies of all books in Toronto Public Library’s collection.  Visit our main website to search for them or click on the titles below to find a copy near you or place a hold on one.

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8

July 5 – 11

Fiction
	Struts and Frets Joe Skovron Music is the center of Sammy’s world. But with the upcoming battle of the bands fast approaching, Sammy isn’t so sure if he can make it in the music business. First off, his band is falling apart; second, Sammy has confusing feelings about his best friend and they are getting in the way of the band. To top it all off, Sammy has to look after his sick grandfather. Can Sammy keep his band together long enough to play in the battle of the bands? Readalikes Rock Star, Superstar Blake Nelson Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist Rachel Cohn
Nonfiction
	Inventory AV Club The audiovisual wing of the satirical newspaper The Onion compiles over 100 funny, weird, and amusing lists of pop-culture artefacts, with attendant commentary and additional features. Here’s hoping Toronto isn’t on the “18 Songs About Crappy Cities” list. Readalikes The Film Club: a true story of father and son David Gilmour Scholastic Canada Book of Lists James Buckley
Graphic Novel
	Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe, Volume 5 Bryan Lee O’Malley In the fifth Scott Pilgrim volume, Pilgrim just turned 24 and things couldn’t possibly be better. Which means things are about to get infinitely worse! Suddenly, two of Ramona’s evil ex-boyfriends are in town and they’re playing dirty. Pilgrim’s band is in turmoil. His own exes aren’t making things any easier. And what’s up with Ramona, anyway? She’s been acting kind of weird ever since they moved in together! Scott’s precious little life is coming back around to bite him in the butt and it may not be pretty! Readalikes Scott Pilgrim Volumes 1-4  Bryan Lee O’Malley The War at Ellsmere Faith Erin Hicks

July 12 – 18

Fiction
	I am a genius of unspeakable evil and I want to be your class president Josh Lieb Twelve-year-old Oliver Watson has the IQ of a grilled cheese sandwich, or so everyone in Omaha thinks. In reality, Oliver is a mad evil genius on his way to world domination, and he uses his great brain to make himself the third richest person on earth! Then Oliver’s father and archnemesis makes a crack about the upcoming middle school election, and Oliver takes it as a personal challenge. He’ll run and he’ll win! Turns out though, that overthrowing foreign dictators is actually way easier than getting kids to like you. . . Can this evil genius win the class presidency and keep his true identity a secret, all in time to impress his dad? Readalikes Evil Genius Catherine Jinks The zombie survival guide : recorded attacks Max Brooks
Nonfiction
	Piece by Piece : stories about fitting into Canada edited by Teresa Toten This anthology features stories written by well-known Canadian teen fiction writers who migrated to a new country and share their experiences of trying to belong as teens. The authors also explore the meaning of becoming Canadian. Contributing authors include: Linda Granfield, Eva Wiseman, Richard Polak, Marina Nemat and more. Readalikes Doppelganger David Stahler First Crossing: Stories about Teen Immigrants Donald R. Gallo
Graphic Novel
	Mirror Mind Tory Woollcott The great artwork in this graphic novel literally shows you what dyslexia looks like from the point of view of a person who has it. And, perhaps more important, it shows how dyslexia slowly but surely distances a person from her peers and holds her captive in a bubble of secrecy and isolation.  Readalikes Tyranny Lesley Fairfield Insatiable: the compelling story of four teens, food and its power Eve Eliot

July 19 – 25

Fiction
	The Hunchback Assignments Arthur Slade Modo is a hunchback who has the ability to transform his appearance. He has been raised as a secret agent by Mr. Socrates, his benefactor. Modo has not been to the outside world until he turns 14, when Mr. Socrates leaves him at a corner of the busy London'town one afternoon. In order to survive, Modo applies his learnt skills and somehow finds himself involved in uncovering a monstrous plan like no other. Readalikes Leviathan Scott Westerfeld The Death Collector Justin Richards
Nonfiction
	The Other Side: A Teen’s Guide to Ghost Hunting and the Paranormal Marley Gibson, Patrick Burns and Dave Schrader Do you believe in ghosts? Are you fascinated by things that “go bump in the night”? This book is definitely for you! With over ten years of collected ghost-hunting experience, Gibson, Burns and Schrader lead you through the intricacies of setting up a crack ghost-hunting team, the special equipment you will need and where to start looking for haunted places. Readalikes Ghosts Caught on Film: Photographs of the Paranormal? Melvyn Willin Ghosts/Aliens Trey Hamburger
Graphic Novel
	20th Century Boys Volume 1: Friends Naoki Urasawa This is the first book in a series that follows a group of friends from childhood in 1969 through to the future that is 2014. Kenji grows up dreaming of being a famous rock star and finds himself instead the owner of a small convenience store. When one of his friends commits suicide, Kenji reunites with other members of his group. Pretty soon, they are trying to unravel the mystery of a strange cult lead by a man known only as “Friend” who is trying to destroy the world as they know it. Readalikes Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad Harold Sakuishi Southland Tales Richard Kelly

July 26 – Aug 1

Fiction
	Taken Norah McClintock When Stephanie Rawls is drugged and kidnapped, she must escape alone from deep in the wilderness. Both an intense survival story and a murder mystery, McClintock’s novel should appeal to fans of both these genres. Readalikes Girl #3 Nichole McGill The Missing Girl Norma Mazer
Nonfiction
	Episodes: My Life as I See It Blaze Ginsberg Blaze Ginsberg is a high-functioning autistic twenty-something who has written a memoir that is both unusual and inventive. Episodes from his life so far (including the first day of high school) are structured as scenes from TV shows with friends and family portrayed as members of the cast. He even includes quotes, trivia, and a soundtrack listing to go along with each entry. Unique and funny, this is guaranteed to be a book unlike anything you have read before. Readalikes Mortified: Real Words. Real People. Real Pathetic. Multiple contributors Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Jonathan Safren Foer
Graphic Novel
	Mercury Hope Larson Set in two different time periods, Mercury is a story about two storylines connected by a farm, a family and some dark secrets. Part romance, part magical realism, and part historical fiction, this graphic novel seamlessly weaves these two stories together about people who are bounded by blood and are worlds apart. Readalikes A Mess of Everything Miss Lakso Gross Night Fisher R. Kikuo Johnson

Aug 2 – 8

Fiction
	Surface Tension Brent Runyon Luke’s family spend the same two weeks at the cottage every summer, and it’s during these two weeks over four consecutive summers that we get a peek into Luke’s life. At 13, he’s still a boy, intent on fishing, rock-skipping, and exploring. At 14, he’s starting to get interested in girls but feels awkward and discouraged. At 15, he’s had it with his paren'ts, and, at 16, he’s in love and simply wallowing in the fact. Readalikes The Vast Fields of Ordinary Nick Burd Totally Joe James Howe
Nonfiction
	Zeitoun Dave Eggers In August 2005, Abdulrahman Zeitoun is a middle-aged Syrian-American father of four and a successful business owner who has built a good life for him and his family in New Orleans. With Hurricane Katrina getting ever closer, Abdulrahman decides to stay and hold down the fort while he sends his wife and children away to nearby Baton Rouge. His plan is to weather the storm and then help any way he can in the aftermath. When the storm finally comes and goes, Abdulraham finds New Orleans absolutely devastated. He paddles around in a canoe, looking for survivors who need rescue. He, like everyone else, is waiting for aid, and when six armed officers arrive at his house a week after the storm, he thinks help has finally come. Only, Abdulraham is mistaken for a terrorist… Readalikes The Real Question Adrian Fogelin Breathe Penni Russon Borderline Alan Stratton
Graphic Novel
	Patsy Walker: Hellcat Kathryn Immonen In this collected issues 1-5 of the popular comic, we meet the ever stylish, newly registered super-hero Patsy Walker, aka Hellcat. Patsy is thrilled when she learns she must venture into the frozen north, chilly Alaska, to become their local super hero and protect the residents from all sorts of evil. Readalikes The Avengers: Heroes Assembled Jeff Parker The Losers Andy Diggle

Aug 9 – 15

Fiction
	The Maze Runner James Dashner Thomas wakes with no memory and alone in an elevator. He quickly finds himself in the glade with sixty other boys known as the Gladers. The glade is surrounded by a maze with no way of escaping. Like Thomas, the Gladers arrive in similar circumstances. Thomas must learn to survive in this foreign prison. He must discover the mystery of his surroundings and his imprisonment. Escape from the Glade is Thomas’ ultimate goal. Readalikes Daylight Runner Oison McGann The Lab Jack Heath
Nonfiction
	She’s Shameless Stacey May Fowles and Megan Griffith-Greene, Eds. With wit and honesty, the writers share stories of their teen experiences (both positive and negative) on everything from pop culture to high school principals. The book is founded on Shameless magazine’s tradition of smart, sassy, honest and inclusive writing, and reaches out to young female readers who are often ignored by mainstream: freethinkers, queer youth, young women of colour, punk rockers, feminists, intellectuals, artists, and activists. Readalikes Dirty Blonde: The Diaries of Courtney Love Courtney Love Neon Angel: a Memoir of a Runaway Cherie Currie Shameless Magazine
Graphic Novel
	Why I Killed Peter Olivier Ka Olivier Ka recounts his relationship as a child and young adult with Peter, a “cool, funny” priest, and its eventual ending in a shocking betrayal of trust. Often raw and with distinctive art by Alfred that shifts with the tone of the story, Why I Killed Peter resonates with the difficult and sometimes dangerous relationship between young people and figures of authority. Readalikes Epileptic David B.

Aug 16 – 22

Fiction
	Twenty Boy Summer Sarah Ockler Sixteen-year-old Frankie and best friend Anna are spending a summer holiday together in California. Aside from just fun in the sun, Frankie’s plan is to find someone to have a summer fling with Anna. Little does she know that Anna already lost her heart to none other than Frankie’s brother Matt—just before he was killed in a car accident the year before while the three of them were on their way home from getting ice cream. This is a very moving story about grief, love and – most importantly – the irreplaceable value of friendship. Readalikes The Truth About Forever Sarah Dessen Emako Blue Brenda Woods
Nonfiction
	Laid: young people’s experiences with sex in an easy-access culture Shannon T. Boodram Laid sets out to be an honest representation of youths’ perspectives about sex; from first times, pregnancies, and discovering one’s sexual identity. This book is not just for guy or girls; rather Boodram gives space for all possible points of view. Readalikes Kiss: A Girls’ Guide to Puckering Up Erin Elisabeth Conley The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens Sean Covey
Graphic Novel
	What a Wonderful World Inio Asano Asano has written a series of short stories that tell the unexpected ways lives intersect. The stories vary in topics, from a school girl bullied by her peers and by a mysterious black bird, to a 23-year-old who drops out of college and quits her band. The artwork will not disappoint, with subtle facial reactions and lifelike characters making it believable. Readalikes Ohikkoshi Hiroaki Samura The Push Man and Other Stories Yoshihiro Tatsumi

Aug 23 – 29

Fiction
	Shiver Maggie Stiefvater Every winter, Grace is fascinated by the wolves that live in the woods beyond her house, especially one with piercing yellow eyes that seems to know her. Now it is summer and Grace falls hard for a boy, Sam, with the same yellow eyes—he has to be her wolf. With the summer heat, Sam transforms into human form and is destined to return to wolf form in the frosty winter months. As autumn, and the cold weather approaches, Sam must transform again, perhaps for good this time. Can Sam and Grace find a way to be together for always? Readalikes The Summoning Kelley Armstrong Evermore Alyson Noel
Nonfiction
	Happy: A Memoir Alex Lemon Happy is poet Alex Lemon’s honest and inspirational memoir. In college he was known as the popular all-American boy nicknamed Happy. At the age of 19, Lemon has a stroke that marks the start of his depleting health. This is his journey of addiction, childhood abuse and redemption. Readalikes Too Fat to Fish Artie Lange Unsweetined Jodie Sweetin
Graphic Novel
	The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumia, volume 1 Nagaru Tanigawa Kyon is your average high school freshman but he has a superpower. He decides to join a school club for those who possess hidden superpowers. But this club has a secret mission- the members vow to protect the beautiful yet eccentric Haruhi Suzumia. Readalikes The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumia (novel)