Biographies (High School)
A long way gone : memoirs of a boy soldier
A human rights activist offers a firsthand account of war from the perspective of a former child soldier, detailing the violent civil war that wracked his native Sierra Leone and the government forces that transformed a gentle young boy into a killer as a member of the army.
Charles and Emma : the Darwins' leap of faith
"Charles Darwin published 'The origin of species,' his revolutionary treatise on evolution, in 1859. Even today, the theory of evolution creates tension between the scientific and religious communities. This same debate raged within Darwin himself and played an important part in his marriage: Emma's faith gave Charles a lot to think about as he worked on his controversial theory. His wife's religious convictions made him rethink how the world would receive his ideas"--From publisher description.
The burn journals
Brent Runyon was fourteen years old when he set himself on fire, and an intense retelling of that suicide attempt followed by a year of physical and psychological recovery conveys with a terrible clarity what it means to want to commit suicide. Reader's Guide available. Reprint. 35,000 first printing.
Ghosts of war : the true story of a 19-year-old GI
In a harrowing memoir of combat, friendship, fear, and a soldier's commitment to his country, a debut author and true patriot brings teen readers inside his tour in Iraq--a war that has little impact on the everyday lives of Americans, but one that has a life-changing impact on those who are apart of it.