Urban Lit for Teens booklist

Walter Dean Myers: Autobiography of my Dead Brother
"The thing was that me and Rise were blood brothers, but sometimes I really didn't know him..." And so Jesse fills his sketchbook with drawings and portraits of his blood brother Rise, and his comic strip, "Spodi Roti and Wise," as he makes sense of friendship, loyalty, and loss in a neighborhood where drive-bys, vicious gangs, and abusive cops are everyday realities.
Paul Volponi: Black and White
"I don't remember if the idea of robbing people came up before Eddie snuck out his dead grandfather's gun or not. But once the two of those things were square in front of us, they fit right together." Marcus and Eddie are the stars of Long Island City High School's basketball team. Marcus is black and Eddie is white. One cold night, something goes wrong and they make a big mistake.
by Paul Langan & Anne E. Schraff: Bluford High series
Drama's happening at Bluford High. Find out exactly what in Blood is Thicker, Brothers in Arms, The Bully, Secrets in the Shadows, Someone to Love Me, and more.
Nikki Grimes: Bronx Masquerade
"The world ain't but one big surprise after another." While studying the Harlem Renaissance, students at a Bronx high school read aloud poems they've written, revealing their innermost thoughts and fears to their formerly clueless classmates.
Janet McDonald: Brother Hood
Nate Whitely's life at a prestigious prep school in upstate New York takes him far from his Harlem home, but not so far as to sever the strong bond he has to his neighborhood. Soon, complications from one life intrude into the other. His childhood friend Hustle won't give up his street-smart ways and doesn't want Nate to either.
Charles R. Smith Jr.: Chameleon
Now that Shawn is headed for high school, he wonders if he'd be better off at the school in Mama's neighborhood, where he'd be free of Compton's hassles. But then he wouldn't be with his buddies - shooting the breeze, cracking jokes, tightening his D on the court, covering each other's backs - or with the beautiful Marisol, who's been making star appearances in his dreams.
Janet McDonald: Chill Wind
"Aisha knew what time it was - time to deal." When her welfare benefits dry up, Aisha, a 19 year-old black single mother with two children and no high school diploma or work history, has to figure out a way to support herself and her family.
L. Divine: Drama High series
"Drama class ain't got nothin' on Drama High." Jayd just wants to start her Junior year of high school drama free. But wanting ain't getting, especially at a place like Drama High, a predominately white high school in a wealthy part of Los Angeles, where Jayd and 30 other Compton kids get bussed to daily.
Angela Johnson: The First Part Last
Bobby's a classic urban teenager. He's restless. He's impulsive. But the thing that makes him different is this: He's going to be a father. His girlfriend, Nia, is pregnant, and their lives are about to change forever. They want to do the right thing - if only it was clear what the right thing was.
Walter Dean Myers: Game
Drew Lawson has mad game. He knows it, his teammates know it, and his coach knows it. But now there's a white boy who's getting all of the coach's love. Drew can't lose his cool, because he needs ball to get to college. He needs to find out how deep his game really is.
Janet McDonald: Harlem Hustle
Abandoned to the streets to raise himself, Eric Samson knows life won't be easy. Beginning with the choices he must make. The fast cash of the streets still tempts him, but the threat of getting locked up - again - is daunting. Maybe Eric's way out is as Harlem Hustle, the rapper he dreams of being.
Alan Lawrence Sitomer: Homeboyz
When Teddy Anderson's little sister is gunned down in a drive-by shooting, the gang members who rule the streets dismiss the incident as just another case of RP, RT - wrong place, wrong time. According to gangsta logic, Tina is just another casualty. But while the Anderson family mourns, Teddy plots revenge.
Alan Lawrence Sitomer: The Hoopster
Andre Anderson has got it all together: work, play, and romance. He rules the local basketball court. His new girlfriend, Gwen, is as smart, good-looking, and ambitious as he is. And at Affairs magazine, where Andre works as a summer intern, his featured personal essay on racism has just made him a local celebrity. But the unflinching honesty of Andre's writing has made him a target.
Dream Jordan: Hot Girl
Opportunity knocks one hot summer day when fly-girl Naleejah struts her stuff right up to Kate and takes a seat. After Naleejah gives her a much-needed makeover, Kate suddenly has the attention of her dream boy. But is Naleejah checking for him, too? Soon, what seems like a fun and exciting summer ends up being a harsh reality check. Kate must decide how to get back on the right track... or is it already too late?
Denene Millner & Mitzi Miller: Hotlanta series
"Designer clothes. Gorgeous boys. Family secrets. Major drama. They don't call it Hotlanta for nothing!" Twins Sydney and Lauren Duke are the privileged princesses of the Atlanta social scene. Prim-and-proper Sydney and wild-child Lauren have the world at their Jimmy Choo-clad feet.
Paul Volponi: Hurricane Song
Miles has only been living with his musician father in New Orleans for two months when Hurrican Katrina hits - and they haven't really been getting along. But father and son must set aside their differences when they seek refuge in the crowded Superdome. What begins as a safe haven from the storm soon turns into a nightmare.
Earl Sewell: If I Were Your Boyfriend
(A Kimani Tru novel.) How had Keysha gone from popular to social outcast? One word: frenemy. A girl Keysha thought was her friend planted drugs on her - and Keysha got caught.
Monica McKayhan: Indigo Summer
(A Kimani Tru novel.) Fifteen-year-old Indigo Summer's world finally seems to be going in the right direction: She hooks up with the star linebacker on the high-school football team, gets a date for homecoming and makes the high-school dance squad all in the same week. But sometimes things are just too good to be true.
Tia Williams: It Chicks
What they want is fame. All they have is drama. Welcome to Louis B. Armstrong, New York City's most prestigious performing-arts school, where the gifted, the wannabe starlets, and the It chicks are all on the rise. They're all playing the fame game and will do whatever it takes to nail it.
Dana Davidson: Jason & Kyra
Jason Vincent is Cross High's basketball star and one of the most popular guys in school. Brainy Kyra Evans isn't. But she doesn't much care what people think. Under normal circumstances, Jason and Kyra would live in the separate worlds until graduation. Fate intervenes, however, the two grow closer and begin to fall in love. Being together means navigating challenges - but staying apart may be impossible.
Coe Booth: Kendra
Kendra's mom, Renee, had her when she was only 14 years old. Renee and her mom made a deal - Renee could get an education, and Kendra would live with her grandmother. But now Renee's out of grad school and Kendra's in high school... and getting into some trouble herself.
Derrick Barnes: The Making of Dr. Truelove
Diego loves his girlfriend, Roxy. When they suddenly break up due to Diego's own insecurity issues, the boy is crushed. So on the trusty advice of his (crazy) best friend, Diego invents an alter ego known as Dr. Truelove. A sex and relationship e-columnist, Truelove is smooth where Diego is gawky, skilled where Diego is clueless. Truelove is, quite clearly, the way back into Roxy's heart. Or so it seems...
Walter Dean Myers: Monster
Steve Harmon's black. He's in jail, maybe forever. He's on trial for murder. And he's sixteen years old. "Sometimes I feel like I have walked into the middle of a movie. Maybe I can make my own movie. The film will be the story of my life."
Monica McKayhan: The Pact: An Indigo Novel
(A Kimani Tru novel.) "Break up for the summer." That's the deal Indigo Summer makes with her boyfriend, Marcus Carter. That way, they can both enjoy their vacations, no guilt, no questions asked. Indigo heads to Chicago and starts hanging out with her cool cousin, who lives alone at seventeen and has her own life - a life Indigo thought she wanted, until things get way out of hand.
Paul Volponi: Response
Noah and his friends go to a predominantly white neighborhood with a plan: steal a car, sell it to a chop shop, and make some fast cash. But that never happens. Instead, Noah, a teen father, is the victim of a vicious beating that leaves him with a fractured skull. Was the attacker just protecting his turf, or did he assault Noah because he's black?
Katina King: Ride Wit' Me
Check out Mercedes and Dalvin, two beautiful young lovers in a modern day story that is destined to be a classic. Mercedes is truly a daddy's girl. Dalvin is a rising kingpin. But sometimes in love, things are not meant to be. Will Mercedes and Dalvin fall victim to the obstacles standing in their way, or will they fight against the odds and ride it out?
Paul Volponi: Rooftop
Addison was like the big brother Clay never had. Separated for years by a family argument, the two cousins are finally back together, trying to work out their problems. But Addison never gets a chance. One night he and Clay are on the rooftop of a building in the projects, and Addison is fatally shot - by the police - as Clay stands just a few steps away.
Paul Volponi: Rucker Park Setup
Rucker Park - a place where basketball's greatest pro players go up against street legends. Best friends Mackey and J.R. have waited their whole lives to win the basketball tournament here.
Walter Dean Myers: Shooter
Leonard: "I have bought a gaw-juss weapon. It lies beneath my bed like a secret lover, quiet, powerful, waiting to work my magic."
Allison van Diepen: Snitch
In a school run by gangs, staying out was harder than joining. Lines are clearly marked at South Bay High School. It's mixed territory for the Crips and the Bloods, which means the drama never stops. Julia DiVino wants none of it. No colors, no C-Walks - it's just not her thing. But when Eric Valiente jumps into her life, everything changes. Lines are redrawn. And then they're crossed.
: Teenage Bluez: A Collection of Urban Stories
Teenage Bluez is a collection of six urban fiction stories made especially for teenagers. Teen issues that get real crazy...
Coe Booth: Tyrell
Tyrell can't get a break. His dad is in jail, his mom's no help, his brother's just a kid, and his girlfriend, Novisha, wants more than he can give. He's living in a shelter, but he doesn't want to be there long. So he comes up with a plan. It could save him. Or it could backfire completely. Welcome to Tyrell's world.
Walter Dean Myers: What They Found: Love on 145th Street
"Looking in the mirror, I saw what I always saw, plain old me. Short hair sticking out all over my head like it ain't never seen a comb, lips too big, eyes puffy from being up all night. There ain't nothing pretty about me. I'm sixteen, and I got a baby, but that doesn't mean I'm some kind of freak. And I've never been a whore. Money don't come knocking on your door if you poor and black."