Like a modern more grown-up version of Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen, Pullman's beautiful, sparely written book is a real pageturner that even the most sophisticated adult would find hard to resist.
Northern Lights: Philip Pullman A classic novel set in Mississippi during the 1930s. Cassie, a young black girl, is a really memorable creation, a determined and strong-willed girl who learns to fight for both her family and her principles in a world of racial hatred and destruction. Taylor wrote two more novels in a series charting the same characters’ lives.
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry: Mildred D. Taylor
Jolly is 17 years old and has two children from two absent fathers. She can't cope and so advertises for a babysitter. Verna LaVaughn replies to the advertisement and takes the first steps towards building her own future. Jolly, slowly, follows in her footsteps.
Make Lemonade: Virginia Euwer Wolff
English Reading Key Stage 3
Published in 1967 when Hinton was 17, this book became an overnight classic. It captures all the terror and excitement of being an American teenager, which feels here like being a cowboy in the Wild West.
The Outsiders: S. E. Hinton
Burgess simply writes it as it is from the point of view of 14-year-olds who see all the attractions of heroin and none of the dangers. This isn't an issue book, it is a great novel that you consume in one great adrenaline rush.
Junk: Melvin Burgess
The world of the child soldier is evoked in this challenging novel that tells the story of Kaninda, a former rebel soldier in an African war, brought to London as a refugee.