Showing titles in Homelessness, Runaways & Poverty

From Sophie Cameron, the author of Out of the Blue, comes an audiobook of magic, adventure, and what it means to truly belong. Brody Fair feels like nobody gets him: not his overworked parents, not his genius older brother, and definitely not the girls in the projects set on making his life...

In the seaside town of Nautilus, Minerva Gutiérrez absolutely hates her job at the local ice cream stand, where her sexist boss makes each day worse than the last. But she needs the money: kicked out of school and stranded by her mom's most recent hospitalization, she dreams of escaping her dead-end hometown. When an armed robbery at the ice cream stand stirs up rumors about money hidden on the property, Min teams up with her neighbor CeCe, also desperate for cash, to find it. The bonus? Getting revenge on her boss in the process.  

When seventeen-year-old Valerie Russell runs away to New York City, she’s trying to escape a life that has utterly betrayed her. Sporting a new identity, she takes up with a gang of squatters who live in the city’s labyrinthine subway system. But there’s something eerily beguiling about...

In this “powerful, stripped down novel” (School Library Journal) a young girl battles against losing herself to her addiction. “[Makes] it abundantly clear how easy it is to succumb to meth and how difficult it is to recover from it.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review “Brutally...

Underprivileged and keenly self-aware, SoCal fourteen-year-old Layla Bailey isn't used to being noticed. Except by mean girls who tweet about her ragged appearance. All she wants to do is indulge in her love of science, protect her vulnerable younger brother, and steer clear of her unstable mother. Then a school competition calls for a biome. Layla chooses her own home, a hostile ecosystem of indoor fungi and secret shame.

Little Miss Sunshine meets Room in this quirky, heartwarming story of friendship, loyalty and discovery. It's Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O'Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the...

Mara, ein 14-jähriges rumänisches Mädchen, deren Mutter gestorben ist, flieht nach Bukarest auf der Suche nach einem besseren Leben. Hunger und Einsamkeit begleiten sie, bis sie eines Morgens auf die kleine Dackeldame Dina trifft. Die beiden verstehen sich – und zwar richtig. Denn Mara versteht die Sprache der Hunde.

Street Prince is a tender portrait of a twelve-year-old boy, grappling with tragic losses and unforgiving poverty. After giving birth, his teenage mother abandoned him at the hospital, leaving a scribbled note: His name is Lamont, I am no fit mother. Keep my baby boy. Letty J. His maternal grandmother "Elma" raises him as her own child. Thought to be dead, her estranged daughter returns home with two other children. A disastrous homecoming party takes place. Lamont meets a new classmate, the prim and proper Esmaria. The children plan to sit together at church the next day.

A window into a world most people see depicted only in seconds-long news reports, one that we all should look through in order to recognize the genuine humanity within. Asad lives in Gaza, in a tiny house, on a narrow street pocked by half-destroyed buildings, in a camp that looks shabby to him...

A high-stakes story of star-crossed lovers from Simone Elkeles, the New York Times bestselling author of the Perfect Chemistry series To escape his abusive stepdad, bad boy Ryan Hess runs from his tiny Texas border town to Mexico. But his plans to keep his head down and stay out of trouble are...

Rory Harrison’s beautiful novel about identity, home, and fresh starts recounts one boy’s quest to discover a world where he can thrive, one adventure at a time. Dylan doesn’t have a lot of experience with comfort. His room in the falling-down Village Estates can generously be categorized...

Sue Divin's Runaway Road is a riveting and moving story of family and belonging set in contemporary Northern Ireland, perfect for fans of Margaret McDonald's Glasgow Boys. 'Moving, funny, cinematic, compelling' - Bernie McGill 'This powerful, immersive story explores difference and belonging...

Ian Gray isn’t supposed to have a dog, but a lot of things that shouldn’t happen end up happening anyway. And Gather, Ian’s adopted pup, is good company now that Ian has to quit the basketball team, find a job, and take care of his mom as she tries to overcome her opioid addiction. Despite the obstacles thrown their way, Ian is determined to keep his family afloat no matter what it takes. And for a little while, things are looking up: Ian makes friends, and his fondness for the outdoors and for fixing things lands him work helping neighbors.

En socialrealistisk knaldroman for unge om kærlighed, hurtige penge og livet som fattig i en rig verden. Saxo er fattig. Ludfattig. Så da han forelsker sig håbløst i klassens nye babe, Flora, har han et problem. Flora er nemlig svær at gøre indtryk på, hvis man ikke har penge til lidt luksus. Men så får Saxo en god ide, der både kan hjælpe ham med at charmere den gudeskønne Flora og skaffe sin lillesøster et par nye sko uden huller. Ideen viser sig bare ikke at være helt skudsikker, og snart bliver Saxos nye luksusliv temmelig besværligt.

On the verge of her thirteenth birthday, Tess's life is falling apart. Her mother is dead. Her father is like a zombie. And now her beloved cat, Alice, has started running into the street when cars go by, trying to get run over. The only thing Tess can think of that might help? Running away. As she ventures from home, Tess stumbles upon a crew of manga-loving goth kids hiding out in the local haunted house performing seances.

In this fast-paced thriller, eighteen-year-old Calli finds herself alone after the loss of her father—until a bruised and broken girl shows up on her property, forcing her to face the present, rethink her future, and unearth the skeletons of her own past. Life has never been easy in the small...

Anya Anderson doesn't just need a big break, she needs any break. Living on the streets doesn't leave a girl many options, so when she scores a gig reporting on the Seconds to Juliet tour, she jumps at the chance to earn enough money to sleep somewhere safe. And the paycheck will get bigger—and keep her off the streets for good—if she can dig up dirt on Will Fray, the irritatingly hot "shy guy" of the band.

A captivating coming of age story of heartbreak, hope, and brotherly love, when tragedy strikes, Deo's love of soccer is all he has left—can he use that gift to find hope once more? Just down the road from their families, Deo and his friends play soccer in the dusty fields of Zimbabwe, cheered...

A suspenseful and gut-wrenching story of an unhoused teenager struggling to survive a criminal scrapping ring while unraveling a dark family history Josh's father has gone missing without a trace, and Gran's ready to call social services. If Josh wants to keep himself and and his little brother...

After Philly teenager Alexis Duncan is injured in a gang shooting, her dreams of a college scholarship and pro basketball career vanish in an instant. To avoid becoming another Black teen trapped in her poverty-stricken neighborhood, she shifts her focus to the school's STEM team. Academics have never been her thing, but Alexis is motivated by Aamani Chakrabarti, the new Indian student who becomes her friend (and crush?). Alexis begins to see herself as so much more than an athlete. But as her future starts to reform, Alexis's own doubts and old loyalties pull her back into harm's way.