*Need more ideas? See also: Funny books for guys or Sports Fiction

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Twisted
After finally getting noticed by someone other than school bullies and his ever-angry father, seventeen-year-old Tyler enjoys his tough new reputation and the attentions of a popular girl, but when life starts to go bad again, he must choose between transforming himself or giving in to his destructive thoughts.

Asher, Jay. Thirteen reasons why
When high school student Clay Jenkins receives a box in the mail containing thirteen cassette tapes recorded by his classmate Hannah, who committed suicide, he spends a bewildering and heartbreaking night crisscrossing their town, listening to Hannah's voice recounting the events leading up to her death.

Deuker, Carl. Night hoops
While trying to prove that he is good enough to on his high school's varsity basketball team, Nick must also deal with his parents' divorce and erratic behavior of a troubled classmate who lives across the street.

Emond, Stephen. Happyface
After going through traumatic times, a troubled, socially awkward teenager moves to a new school where he tries to reinvent himself.

Fletcher, Ralph. Also known as Rowan Pohi
After impulsively lying his way into an elite preparatory school, sophomore Bobby Steele hopes to escape the shame of his father's well-publicized incarceration but keeps waiting for his secret to be revealed.

Giles, Gail. Shattering glass
When Rob, the charismatic leader of the senior class, turns the school nerd into Prince Charming, his actions lead to unexpected violence.

Green, John. Looking for Alaska
Sixteen-year-old Miles' first year at Culver Creek Preparatory School in Alabama includes good friends and great pranks, but is defined by the search for answers about life and death after a fatal car crash.

Harazin, S.A. Blood brothers
With his best friend on life-support after taking drugs at a party, seventeen-year-old Clay, a medical technician, recalls their long friendship, future plans, and recent disagreement, and tries to figure out who is responsible for the accidental overdose.

Hills, Lia. The beginner's guide to living
Struggling to cope with his mother's sudden death and growing feelings of isolation from his father and brother, seventeen-year-old Will turns to philosophy for answers to life's biggest questions, while finding some solace in a new love.

Koertge, Ron. Deadville
While visiting an injured classmate in the hospital, sixteen-year-old Ryan, who is trying to come to terms with his sister's death from cancer, meets a young patient who claims to be able to see into the world where the dead live.

Levithan, David. Every you, every me
Evan is haunted by the loss of his best friend, but when mysterious photographs start appearing, he begins to fall apart as he starts to wonder if she has returned, seeking vengeance.

Lubar, David. Dunk
While hoping to work as the clown in an amusement park dunk tank on the New Jersey shore the summer before his junior year in high school, Chad faces his best friend's serious illness, hassles with police, and the girl that got away.

Lyga, Barry. Hero-type
Feeling awkward and ugly is only one reason sixteen-year-old Kevin is uncomfortable with the publicity surrounding his act of accidental heroism, but when a reporter photographs him apparently being unpatriotic, he steps into the limelight to encourage people to think about what the symbols of freedom really mean.

Lynch, Chris. Hothouse
Teens D.J. and Russell, life-long friends and neighbors, had drifted apart but when their firefighter fathers are both killed, they try to help one another come to terms with the tragedy and its aftermath.

Mitchell, Todd. The secret to lying
Fifteen-year-old James lies about himself to be considered "cool" when he gets into an exclusive boarding school, but soon unnaturally vivid dreams of being a demon-hunting warrior lead to self-destructive acts while he is awake.

Myers, Walter Dean. Lockdown
Teenage Reese, serving time at a juvenile detention facility, gets a lesson in making it through hard times from an unlikely friend with a harrowing past.

Potter, Ryan. Exit strategy
Seventeen-year-old Zach, his best friend (and state wrestling champion) Tank, and Tank's twin sister Sarah, an Ivy League-bound scholar, are desperate to leave their depressing hometown of Blaine, Michigan, after next year's graduation, but plans go awry when Zach uncovers a steroid scandal and falls in love with Sarah.

Quintero, Sofia. Efrain's secret
Ambitious high school senior and honor student Efrain Rodriguez makes some questionable choices in pursuit of his dream to escape the South Bronx and attend an Ivy League college.

Runyon, Brent. Surface tension
During the summer vacations of his thirteenth through his sixteenth year at the family's lake cottage, Luke realizes that although some things stay the same over the years that many more change.

Sanchez, Alex. The god box
When openly gay Manuel transfers to Paul's high school, Paul, a born-again Christian, begins to question his own sexuality.

Skovran, Jon. Struts and frets
Sammy wants to be a musician, as was his grandfather, but while the band he is in is self-destructing, Sammy is too distracted by his grandfather's decline and confused feelings about his best friend to fix it--and his mother stays too busy to help

Sonnenblick, Jordan. Drums, girls & dangerous pie
When his younger brother is diagnosed with leukemia, thirteen-year-old Steven tries to deal with his complicated emotions, his school life, and his desire to support his family.

Strasser, Todd. If I grow up
Growing up in the inner-city projects, DeShawn is reluctantly forced into the gang world by circumstances beyond his control.

Volponi, Paul. Response
When an African American high school student is beaten with a baseball bat in a white neighborhood, three boys are charged with a hate crime.

Wilson, Martin. What they always tell us
Sixteen-year-old Alex feels so disconnected from his friends that he starts his junior year at a Tuscaloosa, Alabama, high school by attempting suicide, but soon, a friend of his older brother draws him into cross-country running and a new understanding of himself.