New Releases by Todd Strasser

"[T]his is a rare teen thriller with an actual mystery that is as quickly paced as it is heart wrenching." — Booklist All it takes is one second. One stupid move. One click of a cell phone. When Callie discovers Katherine sprawled on the ground, she bends down to help her. It's only natural—the party's been a bit wild. And it's only natural for her to pull out the fake knife, irritated at one more example of Katherine's callous disregard of other people's feelings. But the knife is real . . . and bloody. And then Callie hears the click of one cell phone, followed by another, and another. In minutes, images of her holding the bloody knife have gone viral. Now wanted for murder, Callie is on the run from the police. All the evidence points to her guilt, but she's determined to prove her innocence, which means . . . the real killer is still out there. "A great deal of dialogue, short chapters, and straightforward diction will make this a quick read for students who enjoy murder mysteries." ― Voice of Youth Advocates

"This suspenseful novel . . . blends the traditional with new tech. . . . [A]n impressive number of red herrings will keep readers guessing . . . satisfying." ― Kirkus Reviews I'll begin with Lucy. She is definitely first on the list. You can't believe how it feels to be in the cafeteria and turn around and there she is staring at me like I'm some disgusting bug or vermin. Does she really think I WANT to be this way? I hate you, Lucy. I really hate you. You are my #1 pick. I wish you were dead. The day after anonymous blogger Str-S-d wishes the popular girl would die, Lucy vanishes. The students of Soundview High are scared and worried. Especially frightened and wracked with guilt is Madison Archer, Lucy's friend and the last person to see her the night she disappeared. As days pass with no sign of the missing girl, even the attention of Tyler, an attractive new student, is not enough to distract Madison from her growing sense of foreboding. When two more popular students disappear after their names are mentioned on Str-S-d's blog, the residents of Soundview panic. Meanwhile, Madison receives anonymous notes warning that she could be next. Desperate to solve the mystery before anyone else disappears, Madison turns to Tyler, but can she trust him when it becomes clear that he knows more than he's sharing? The clock is ticking. Madison must uncover the truth behind the mysterious disappearances . . . before her name appears in Str-S-d's blog. "[Strasser's] gripping plot will keep readers turning pages late into the night." — School Library Journal "Spine-tingling. . . . A mystery set in modern technological times." ― Library Media Connection

There''s a rumor that the girls keep a Kissing Book hidden in their locker room. In the book they judge how each boy in the grade kisses. Kyle and his friends have heard that someone has written some pretty bad things about them. Can it really be true? There''s only one way to find out. They''ll have to get that book. But to do it they''ll have to go where no boy has gone before.

A middle school must-read that exposes the antisemitism in our country today! From the author of The Wave comes a poignant and timely novel about a group of seventh graders who are brought together—and then torn apart—by an afterschool club that plays a video game based on WW2. There's a new afterschool club at Ironville Middle School. Ms. Peterson is starting a video game club where the students will playing The Good War, a new game based on World War II. They are divided into two teams: Axis and Allies, and they will be simulating a war they know nothing about yet. Only one team will win. But what starts out as friendly competition, takes an unexpected turn for the worst when an one player takes the game too far. Can an afterschool club change the way the students see eachother...and how they see the world? "By using a gaming lens to explore the students’ entrée to prejudice and radicalization, he succeeds in lending immediacy and accessibility to his cautionary tale."—Kirkus Reviews

Baseados em fatos reais, o livro que inspirou a série "Nós somos a Onda", da Netflix, e o filme alemão homônimo, lançado em 2009. O que acontece quando um professor de história tenta recriar o movimento nazista em sala de aula? A turma do último ano do Colégio Gordon deveria estar estudando a Segunda Guerra Mundial, mas os alunos parecem um tanto quanto céticos em relação ao nazismo. Afinal, parece impossível para eles que a juventude alemã tenha apoiado um regime com ideias tão deturpadas, que causou a morte de tantas pessoas. Mas Ben Ross, o professor de história da escola, parece ter a ideia perfeita para engajar a classe. Ele começa um movimento estudantil focado no discurso de "disciplina" e "comunidade", bastante semelhante às premissas que inspiraram a juventude de Hitler. A ideia era mostrar para a turma que, com um líder carismático e um discurso inflamado, é fácil se deixar levar; mas, em pouco tempo, a Onda varre toda a escola. Atraídos pela ideia de "igualdade" que propõe o movimento, os alunos veem na Onda a solução para problemas como bullying, desatenção e até mesmo o baixo rendimento do time estudantil em campo. Mas quando alguns alunos se recusam a se juntar à Onda, a pressão popular aumenta, e eles se veem vítimas da intolerância dos colegas. Baseado em fatos ocorridos em 1969 em um colégio na Califórnia, A Onda traz questionamentos bastante atuais sobre o fascismo e a intolerância, explorando de forma brilhante o papel da juventude idealista na consolidação desses discursos. "Nunca na vida li um livro tão contundente, instigante e emocionante quanto A Onda." - The Guardian

Drawing from his teenage years, Todd Strasser’s novel revisits a tumultuous era and takes readers on a psychedelically tinged trip of a lifetime. With his girlfriend, Robin, away in Canada, eighteen-year-old Lucas Baker’s only plans for the summer are to mellow out with his friends, smoke weed, drop a tab or two, and head out in his microbus for a three-day happening called the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. But life veers dramatically off track when he suddenly finds himself in danger of being drafted and sent to fight in Vietnam. If that isn’t heavy enough, there’s also the free-loving (and undeniably alluring) Tinsley, who seems determined to test Lucas’s resolve to stay faithful to Robin; a frighteningly bad trip at a Led Zeppelin concert; a run-in with an angry motorcycle gang; parents who appear headed for a divorce; and a friend on the front lines in ’Nam who’s in mortal danger of not making it back. As the pressures grow, it’s not long before Lucas finds himself knocked so far down, it’s starting to look like up to him. When tuning in, turning on, and dropping out is no longer enough, what else is there?

When Dan and his family go from middle class to homeless, issues of injustice rise to the forefront in this relatable, timely novel from Todd Strasser that VOYA calls “poignant,” “darkly humorous,” and “exceptionally thought-provoking.” It seems like Dan has it all. He’s a baseball star who is part of the popular crowd and dates the hottest girl in school. Then his family loses their home. Forced to move into the town’s Tent City, Dan feels his world shifting. His friends try to pretend that everything’s cool, but they’re not the ones living among the homeless. As Dan struggles to adjust to his new life, he gets involved with the people who are fighting for better conditions and services for the residents of Tent City. But someone wants Tent City gone, and will stop at nothing until it’s destroyed...

Overweight high school senior Bo decides to change her image while working on the school play with a former star football player who is also struggling to find a new identity for himself.

One group on the Jersey Shore, another in Laguna Beach. Both have the same summer-tastic setup: total strangers sharing a house. No one sleeps, no one cleans, and everybody parties. And to pay their ways, each housemate slags through crappy summer jobs while recuperating from the night before. Ah, summer shares! In the Jersey house, cheating and misleading are the name of the game as roommates hook up and hash it out. And at Laguna Beach, surfing is just one of several popular, uh, pastimes. But some of the people in this share are keeping secrets—dangerous ones that could blow the roof off their massive house on the beach. How will these clashing personalities survive two months together? With plenty of drama to share!

In the middle of the night Garrett is taken from his home to Harmony Lake, a boot camp for troubled teens. Maybe some kids deserve to be sent there, but Garrett knows he doesn't. Subjected to brutal physical and psychological abuse, he tries to fight back, but the battle is futile. He won't be allowed to leave until he's admitted his "mistakes" and conformed to Harmony Lake's standards of behavior. And there's no way to fake it. Beaten, humiliated, and stripped of his pride, Garrett's spirit is slowly ebbing away. Then he hears whispers of an escape plot. It's incredibly risky -- if he's caught, the consequences will be unthinkable -- but it may be his only way out. In this tense, riveting novel, award-winning YA author Todd Strasser reveals what really goes on in highly secretive -- and notoriously dangerous -- boot camps, a stealth prison system where any teenager under the age of eighteen can be imprisoned at his parents' whim.

Impact Zone: The most dangerous part of the wave You gotta beat it...or you'll eat it. Ever since he went up against the locals and broke into the lineup, Kai has had his own crew. Spazzy is a summer kid with a lot of fancy gear. He looks like a total shubee. But on the board he's good, really good -- despite everything going against him. The Spazz wants to be in the local competition, but he can't do it without Kai. Kai knows there's no way Spazzy can win against Lucas, the local hero. But Kai would never let a brah down....

IMAPCT ZONE The most dangerous part of the wave You gotta beat it...or you'll eat it. The summer is hot, and so is action out on the line-up. There's a big competition coming up, with some serious burrito money attached. All the brahs are in it for something. Lucas has his career and his reputation on the line. If Kai wins, he might be able to stay in Sun Haven and not have to hit the road again with his sketchy dad. For everyone it's a chance to close out the summer as a champion. Stoked.

A house at the beach. A bunch of hot strangers. A three-month party that's Off The Hook. Seven randoms cram into a house down the shore, and they've all got agendas. Curt wants a gig. Polly wants a life. Owen's jonesing for someone he can't have. And everyone's geared up for one wicked summer. Surfing all day, partying all night. Here's the real question: If your boyfriend's cheating but you're too busy hooking up, does it really count? And if people aren't who they say they are, does it really matter?

In the Frederick Douglass Project where DeShawn lives, daily life is ruled by drugs and gang violence. Dropping out of school and joining a gang is the norm and every kid knows someone who's died. Gunshots ring out on a regular basis. DeShawn is smart enough to know he should stay in school and keep away from the gangs. But while his friends have drug money to buy anything they want, DeShawn's family can barely afford food for the month. How can he stick to his principles when his family is hungry? In this gritty novel about growing up in the inner-city projects, award-winning author Todd Strasser opens a window into the life of a teenager struggling with right and wrong under the ever-present shadow of gangs.

A collection of hot-headed penguins, disrupted by global warming, takes refuge in the ice-skating rink at the Tardy Boys'' school, but when the students appear and the new arrivals refuse to leave, chaos quickly ensues.

An offer she can't refuse. Kate Blessing is not your typical high school junior. She's a good student who's into guys and the latest designer jeans...and she's also part of the mob. Her father, Bobby Blessing, is the head of the family, and her mom, Amanda, is the brains behind the operation. Kate may not partake in the "family business," but she knows what goes down. She's proud of her family -- and of course, there are plenty of perks: her indoor pool, Caribbean vacations, expensive haircuts... But when Amanda gets fed up with Bobby's cheating and moves out, someone needs to make decisions, give orders, and keep things running. Kate has no choice but to step into her mother's shoes and prop her dad up. Bobby may be the face of the mob, but it's not long before the princess is running the show.

Have you ever seen a shape moving through the night? Do black cats always seem to cross your path? Would your heart race if a ghost sent you a text message? If so, then you might end up Too Afraid to Scream.

A collection of eight scary stories for young readers.

When Leyton and Wade Tardy agree to help their friend Daisy hide a dog at school, they have no idea what they're getting themselves into.

When Brad asks someone else to the senior prom, Nicole resorts to a desperate measure--she decides to make her next-door neighbor over into a dream date.

Skinny Cat is the scrawniest, scraggliest, laziest cat ever, but he has one very big, very disgusting talent-- he can cough up hair balls like a champ. Wil that be enough for him to win the school''s cat talent show?

During the Spanish colonization of Mexico, a young girl invents a diving bell to save her brother and her people.

Two books in one, the story starts with a boy named Jake seemingly doomed to repeat the first day of school over and over. In the second book Jake experiences the same phenomena at summer camp!

Riding the hottest summer trend around, the bestselling author "shoots the tub" with a new action-packed series for the "bros" featuring buff guys, hot girls, and fast surfboards. Original.

Tired of being hungry, cold, and dirty from living on the streets of New York City with a tribe of other homeless teenagers who are dying, one by one, a girl named Maybe ponders her future and longs for someone to care about her.

Lauren would love to be part of the popular crowd at school, and when an attractive new girl seems to befriend her and offers a chance at popularity, Lauren does not recognize how she is being manipulated.

When her intended prom date asks someone else, Nicole is faced with the challenge of turning her grungy next door neighbor into a suitable Prom King candidate. Ties in with the movie starring Melissa Joan Hart and Adrian Grenier.

A group of fifth and sixth graders find a way to deal with personal differences, family problems, and some rock-throwing high school boys so that they can play the game they love.

Twelve-year-old Steven and his younger brother Benjy make a desperate attempt to force their extremely busy parents to spend more time together with them.

The author of the "Against the Odds" series introduces a four-title miniseries featuring a tattooed, pierced, and magical nanny--a Mary Poppins for the new millennium. Heavenly Litebody comes to the rescue of the Rand family and helps the teenagers cruise through trials and tribulations.