Information on teen resources, Israel trips, and youth groups in and around Metropolitan Detroit.

 

A magazine for Jewish teens and an online Jewish teen community.

The magazine features Pop culture, Real Life, Action, and Israel online.

 

 

~Reading Suggestions~

 

High School (Grades 9 – 12)

Boyne, John. The boy in the Striped Pajamas. YA FIC BOYNE

Bored and lonely after his family moves from Berlin to a place called "Out-With" in 1942, Bruno, the son of a Nazi officer, befriends a boy in striped pajamas who lives behind a wire fence.

Elkeles, Simone. How to Ruin a Summer Vacation. YA FIC ELKELES

When sixteen-year-old Amy, a spoiled American, goes to Israel for a three-month summer vacation with a father she barely knows, she is not prepared for his Jewish family and the changes they bring about in her life. 

Levitin, Sonia. Strange Relations. YA FIC LEVITIN

Fifteen-year-old Marne is excited to be able to spend her summer vacation in Hawaii, not realizing the change in her lifestyle it would bring staying with her aunt, seven cousins, and uncle who is a Chasidic rabbi.

Pressler, Mirjam. Let Sleeping Dogs Lie. YA FIC PRESSLER

On a class trip to Israel, Johanna learns that her grandfather acquired the family business from a Jewish family during the Nazi occupation. Johanna looks for the truth about how her grandfather acquired the business after his death and copes with the shame of his Nazi past.

Reinhardt, Dana. A Brief Chapter in My Impossible Life. YA FIC REINHARDT

Sixteen-year-old atheist Simone Turner-Bloom's life changes in unexpected ways when her parents convince her to make contact with her biological mother, an agnostic from a Jewish family who is losing her battle with cancer.

Sonnenblick, Jordan. Notes from the Midnight Driver. YA FIC SONNENBLICK

After being assigned to perform community service at a nursing home, sixteen-year-old Alex befriends a cantankerous old man who has some lessons to impart about jazz guitar playing, love, and forgiveness.

Stein, Tammar. Light Years. YA FIC STEIN

Maya Laor leaves her home in Israel to study astronomy at the University of Virginia after the tragic death of her boyfriend in a suicide bombing.

Zenatti, Valerie. A Bottle in the Gaza Sea. YA FIC ZENATTI

Seventeen-year-old Tal Levine of Jerusalem, despondent over the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict, puts her hopes for peace in a bottle and asks her brother, a military nurse in the Gaza Strip, to toss it into the sea, leading ultimately to friendship and understanding between her and an "enemy." 

Zusak, Marcus. The Book Thief. FIC ZUSAK

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl who’s book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors. 

Middle School (Grades 6 – 8)

Brown, Don. The Notorious Izzy Fink. YA FIC BROWN

                            In the 1890's, thirteen-year-old Sam copes with poverty and violence on the streets of New York's Lower East Side.

Ehrenberg, Pamela. Ethan Suspended. YA FIC EHRENBERG

            After a school suspension and his parents' separation, Ethan is sent to live with his grandparents in Washington, D.C., which is worlds apart from his home in a Philadelphia suburb. 

Fleischman, Sid. The Entertainer and the Dybbuk. YA FIC FLEISCHMAN

A struggling American ventriloquist in post-World War II Europe is possessed by the mischievous spirit of a young Jewish boy killed in the Holocaust. Author's note details the murder of over one million children by the Nazis during the 1930s and 1940s.

Grimberg, Tina. Out of Line: Growing Up Soviet. YA BIO GRIMBERG 2007

A rabbi remembers her life as a child in Kiev, Ukraine in the 1960’s and 1970’s, where her family lived under Soviet rule until they moved to the United States when she was fifteen. 

Leeds, Constance. The Silver Cup. YA FIC LEEDS

In 1096 during the Crusades, Anna, a German Catholic girl, and Leah, a German Jewish girl, survivor of the Worms ghetto, strike up a remarkable friendship and make surprising discoveries about each other. 

Napoli, Donna Jo. The King of Mulberry Street. YA FIC NAPOLI

In 1892, Dom, a nine-year old stowaway from Naples, Italy, arrives in New York and must learn to survive the perils of street life in the big city. 

Peacock, Shane. Eye of the Crow. “The Boy Sherlock Holmes” YA FIC PEACOCK

A woman is found stabbed to death in London in 1867, and when a young boy is drawn to the scene to investigate the murder, he becomes a suspect himself.

Toksvig, Sandi. Hitler's Canary. YA FIC TOKSVIG

Although he comes from a family of theater people who don't get involved in politics, ten-year-old Bamse and his Jewish friend Anton join Bamse's brother participate in the Danish Resistance during World War II.