Georgia Peach Book Award Nominees: 2019-2020 - Morgan ...

Georgia Peach Book Award Nominees: 2019-2020
1. AFTER THE SHOT DROPS / RIBAY

A powerful novel about friendship, basketball, and one teen's mission to create a better life for his family
in the tradition of Jason Reynolds, Matt de la Pena, and Walter Dean Myers.

Bunny and Nasir have been best friends forever, but when Bunny accepts an athletic scholarship across
town, Nasir feels betrayed. While Bunny tries to fit in with his new, privileged peers, Nasir spends more
time with his cousin, Wallace, who is being evicted. Nasir can't help but wonder why the neighborhood
is falling over itself to help Bunny when Wallace is in trouble. When Wallace makes a bet against Bunny,
Nasir is faced with an impossible decision—maybe a dangerous one.
Told from alternating perspectives, After the Shot Drops is a heart-pounding story about the responsibili-
ties of great talent and the importance of compassion.

2. CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE / ADEYEMI

They killed my mother….They took our magic….They tried to bury us….Now we rise.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders
beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls. But everything changed the night
magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother
and her people without hope. Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the mon-
archy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-
bent on eradicating magic for good. Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful
spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her
powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.

3. DEAR MARTIN / STONE

Raw, captivating, and undeniably real, Nic Stone joins industry giants Jason Reynolds and Walter Dean
Myers as she boldly tackles American race relations in this stunning debut.
Justyce McAllister is top of his class and set for the Ivy League—but none of that matters to the police
officer who just put him in handcuffs. And despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can't es-
cape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates. Justyce looks to the teachings of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to
find out. Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best friend, Manny, windows rolled down,
music turned up—way up, sparking the fury of a white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are
fired. Justyce and Manny are caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it's Justyce who is under
attack.

4. DEVILS WITHIN / HENSON

Killing isn’t supposed to be easy. But it is. It’s the after that’s hard to deal with.
Nate was eight the first time he stabbed someone; he was eleven when he earned his red laces—a prize
for spilling blood for “the cause.” And he was fourteen when he murdered his father (and the leader of
The Fort, a notorious white supremacist compound) in self-defense, landing in a treatment center while
the state searched for his next of kin. Now, in the custody of an uncle he never knew existed, who wants
nothing to do with him, Nate just wants to disappear.

Enrolled in a new school under a false name, so no one from The Fort can find him, he struggles to forge
a new life, trying to learn how to navigate a world where people of different races interact without en-
mity. But he can’t stop awful thoughts from popping into his head, or help the way he shivers with a
desire to commit violence. He wants to be different—he just doesn’t know where to start.

5. DREAD NATION / IRELAND

Jane McKeene was born two days before the dead began to walk the battlefields of Gettysburg and Chan-
cellorsville—derailing the War Between the States and changing America forever. In this new nation, safe-
ty for all depends on the work of a few, and laws like the Native and Negro Reeducation Act require cer-
tain children attend combat schools to learn to put down the dead. But there are also opportunities—and
Jane is studying to become an Attendant, trained in both weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-
do. It’s a chance for a better life for Negro girls like Jane. After all, not even being the daughter of a
wealthy white Southern woman could save her from society’s expectations. But when families around
Baltimore County begin to go missing, Jane is caught in the middle of a conspiracy, one that finds her in a
desperate fight for her life against some powerful enemies. And the restless dead, it would seem, are the
least of her problems.

6. FAR FROM THE TREE/ BENWAY

A contemporary novel about three adopted siblings who find each other at just the right moment.
Being the middle child has its ups and downs. But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, dis-
covering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adop-
tion, she goes looking for her biological family, including—Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister,
who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full
of chipper redheads, she’s quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And
when her adopted family’s long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can’t help but
wonder where exactly it is that she belongs.
And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological
mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he’s learned that there are no heroes, and se-
crets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they can’t hurt anyone but him.

7. GIRL MADE OF STARS / BLAKE

Mara and Owen are about as close as twins can get. So when Mara's friend Hannah accuses Owen of
rape, Mara doesn't know what to think. Can the brother she loves really be guilty of such a violent crime?
Torn between the family she loves and her own sense of right and wrong, Mara is feeling lost, and it
doesn't help that things have been strained with her ex-girlfriend and best friend since childhood, Charlie.

As Mara, Hannah, and Charlie navigate this new terrain, Mara must face a trauma from her own past and
decide where Charlie fits in her future. With sensitivity and openness, this timely novel confronts the diffi-
cult questions surrounding consent, victim blaming, and sexual assault.

8. HERETICS ANONYMOUS / HENRY

Michael is an atheist. So as he walks through the doors at St. Clare’s—a strict Catholic school—sporting a
plaid tie, things can’t get much worse. His dad has just made the family move again, and Michael needs a
friend. When a girl challenges their teacher in class, Michael thinks he might have found one, and a fellow
nonbeliever at that. Only this girl, Lucy, is not just Catholic . . . she wants to be a priest.

But Lucy introduces Michael to other St. Clare’s outcasts, and he officially joins Heretics Anonymous,
where he can be an atheist, Lucy can be an outspoken feminist, Avi can be Jewish and gay, Max can wear
whatever he wants, and Eden can practice paganism. After an incident in theology class, Michael encour-
ages the Heretics to go from secret society to rebels intent on exposing the school’s hypocrisies. When
Michael takes one mission too far—putting the other Heretics at risk—he must decide whether to fight
for his own freedom, or rely on faith, whatever that means, in God, his friends, or himself.

                                                                                                                 2

9. I AM STILL ALIVE / MARSHALL

After
Jess is alone. Her cabin has burned to the ground. She knows if she doesn’t act fast, the cold will kill her
before she has time to worry about food. But she is still alive—for now.
Before
Jess hadn’t seen her survivalist, off-the-grid dad in over a decade. But after a car crash killed her mother
and left her injured, she was forced to move to his cabin in the remote Canadian wilderness. Just as Jess
was beginning to get to know him, a secret from his past paid them a visit, leaving her father dead and
Jess stranded.
After
With only her father’s dog for company, Jess must forage and hunt for food, build shelter, and keep her-
self warm. Some days it feels like the wild is out to destroy her, but she’s stronger than she ever imag-
ined.
Jess will survive. She has to. She knows who killed her father… and she wants revenge.

10. IN OTHER LANDS / BRENNAN

The Borderlands aren’t like anywhere else. Don’t try to smuggle a phone or any other piece of technolo-
gy over the wall that marks the Border—unless you enjoy a fireworks display in your backpack. (Ballpoint
pens are okay.) There are elves, harpies, and—best of all as far as Elliot is concerned—mermaids.

Elliot? Who’s Elliot? Elliot is thirteen years old. He’s smart and just a tiny bit obnoxious. Sometimes more
than a tiny bit. When his class goes on a field trip and he can see a wall that no one else can see, he is
given the chance to go to school in the Borderlands.

It turns out that on the other side of the wall, classes involve a lot more weaponry and fitness training
and fewer mermaids than he expected. On the other hand, there’s Serene-Heart-in-the-Chaos-of-Battle,
an elven warrior who is more beautiful than anyone Elliot has ever seen, and then there’s her human
friend Luke: sunny, blond, and annoyingly likeable. There are lots of interesting books. There’s even the
chance Elliot might be able to change the world.

11. THE LONELIEST GIRL IN THE UNIVERSE / JAMES

Can you fall in love with someone you’ve never met, never even spoken to – someone who is light years
away?

Romy Silvers is the only surviving crew-member of a spaceship travelling to a new planet, on a mission to
establish a second home for humanity amongst the stars. Alone in space, she is the loneliest girl in the
universe until she hears about a new ship which has launched from Earth – with a single passenger on
board. A boy called J.

Their only communication with each other is via email – and due to the distance between them, their
messages take months to transmit across space. And yet Romy finds herself falling in love.

But what does Romy really know about J? And what do the mysterious messages which have started
arriving from Earth really mean?

Sometimes, there’s something worse than being alone . . .

                                                                                                               3

12. MARY’S MONSTER: LOVE, MADNESS, AND HOW MARY SHELLEY CREATED
FRANKENSTEIN / JUDGE

A young adult biography of Frankenstein's profound young author, Mary Shelley, coinciding with the
200th anniversary of its publication, told through free verse and 300+ full-bleed illustrations.

Mary Shelley first began penning Frankenstein as part of a dare to write a ghost story, but the seeds of
that story were planted long before that night. Mary, just nineteen years old at the time, had been living
on her own for three years and had already lost a baby days after birth. She was deeply in love with
famed poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, a mad man who both enthralled and terrified her, and her relationship
with him was rife with scandal and ridicule. But rather than let it crush her, Mary fueled her grief, pain,
and passion into a book that the world has still not forgotten 200 years later.
Dark, intense, and beautiful, this free-verse novel with over 300 pages of gorgeous black-and-white wa-
tercolor illustrations is a unique and unforgettable depiction of one of the greatest authors of all time.

13. NOW IS EVERYTHING / GILES

The McCauleys look perfect on the outside. But nothing is ever as it seems, and this family is hiding a
dark secret.

Hadley McCauley will do anything to keep her sister safe from their father. But when Hadley’s forbidden
relationship with Charlie Simmons deepens, the violence at home escalates, culminating in an explosive
accident that will leave everyone changed.
When Hadley attempts to take her own life at the hospital post-accident, her friends, doctors, family,
and the investigator on the case want to know why. Only Hadley knows what really happened that day,
and she’s not talking.

14. PITCH DARK / ALAMEDA

Lost to time, Tuck Morgan and his crew have slept in stasis aboard the USS John Muir for centuries.
Their ship harbors a chunk of Earth, which unbeknownst to them, is the last hope for the failing human
race.
Laura Cruz is a shipraider searching the galaxy for the history that was scattered to the stars. Once her
family locates the John Muir and its precious cargo, they are certain human civilization is saved.
When Tuck's and Laura’s worlds collide―literally―the two teens must outwit their enemies, evade bru-
tal monsters that kill with sound, and work together to save the John Muir . . . and the whole human
race.

15. THE POET X / ACEVEDO

A young girl in Harlem discovers slam poetry as a way to understand her mother’s religion and her own
relationship to the world. Debut novel of renowned slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body
grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.
But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of
a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a
boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to
force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept
to herself.
So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever
attend without her mami finding out, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she can’t stop think-
ing about performing her poems.
Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.

                                                                                                              4

16. THE PRINCE AND THE DRESSMAKER / WANG

Paris, at the dawn of the modern age:

Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride―or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too
busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as
the fabulous Lady Crystallia―the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!

Sebastian’s secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances―one of only two people
who know the truth: sometimes this boy wears dresses. But Frances dreams of greatness, and being
someone’s secret weapon means being a secret. Forever. How long can Frances defer her dreams to pro-
tect a friend? Jen Wang weaves an exuberantly romantic tale of identity, young love, art, and family. A
fairy tale for any age, The Prince and the Dressmaker will steal your heart.

17. SEAFIRE / PARKER

After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia
Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors
Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, who have lost their families and homes because of
Aric and his men. The crew has one mission: stay alive, and take down Aric's armed and armored fleet.

But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from
a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this
boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of
the Mors Navis have worked for?

18. THE SUMMER OF JORDI PEREZ / SPALDING

Seventeen, fashion-obsessed, and gay, Abby Ives has always been content playing the sidekick in other
people's lives. While her friends and sister have plunged headfirst into the world of dating and romances,
Abby has stayed focused on her plus-size style blog and her dreams of taking the fashion industry by
storm. When she lands a prized internship at her favorite local boutique, she’s thrilled to take her first
step into her dream career. She doesn't expect to fall for her fellow intern, Jordi Perez. Abby knows it's a
big no-no to fall for a colleague. She also knows that Jordi documents her whole life in photographs,
while Abby would prefer to stay behind the scenes.

Then again, nothing is going as expected this summer. She's competing against the girl she's kissing to
win a paid job at the boutique. She's somehow managed to befriend Jax, a lacrosse-playing bro type who
needs help in a project that involves eating burgers across L.A.'s eastside. Suddenly, she doesn't feel like
a sidekick. Is it possible Abby's finally in her own story?

But when Jordi's photography puts Abby in the spotlight, it feels like a betrayal, rather than a starring
role. Can Abby find a way to reconcile her positive yet private sense of self with the image that other
people have of her?

Is this just Abby’s summer of fashion? Or will it truly be The Summer of Jordi Perez (and the Best Burger
in Los Angeles)?

                                                                                                               5

19. TRULY DEVIOUS: A MYSTERY / JOHNSON

Author Maureen Johnson weaves a tale of murder and mystery in the first book of a new series.
Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and
artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early twentieth century tycoon, who wanted to make a
wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. "A place" he said, "where learning is a
game." Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a
mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym, Truly Devious. It be-
came one of the great unsolved crimes of American history.
True-crime aficionado Stevie Bell is set to begin her first year at Ellingham Academy, and she has an am-
bitious plan: She will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case when she gets a grip on her de-
manding new school life and her housemates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the
jokester. But something strange is happening. Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits
Ellingham Academy. The past has crawled out of its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder.

20. THE WAY YOU MAKE ME FEEL / GOO

From the author of I Believe in a Thing Called Love, a laugh-out-loud story of love, new friendships, and
one unique food truck.

Clara Shin lives for pranks and disruption. When she takes one joke too far, her dad sentences her to a
summer working on his food truck, the KoBra, alongside her uptight classmate Rose Carver. Not the
carefree summer Clara had imagined. But maybe Rose isn't so bad. Maybe the boy named Hamlet (yes,
Hamlet) crushing on her is pretty cute. Maybe Clara actually feels invested in her dad’s business. What if
taking this summer seriously means that Clara has to leave her old self behind?

With Maurene Goo's signature warmth and humor, The Way You Make Me Feel is a relatable story of
falling in love and finding yourself in the places you’d never thought to look.

                                                                                                                6