Teen Read Month: Books with Beat

Last Updated on Wednesday, 12 January 2011 11:51

Pioneer Library System - Monthly Picks

October is Teen Read Month, and and these Books With Beat are sure to get you amped. Whether you're a total metal-head or you've been listening to Justin Bieber on repeat for months now, be sure to check out these rockin' books about teens learning about life, the universe, and everything through the power of music.

Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway
While trying to score a date with her cute co-worker at the Scooper Dooper, sixteen-year-old Audrey gains unwanted fame and celebrity status when her ex-boyfriend, a rock musician, records a breakup song about her that soars to the top of the Billboard charts.

Beige by Cecil Castellucci
Katy, a quiet French Canadian teenager, reluctantly leaves Montreal to spend time with her estranged father, an aging Los Angeles punk rock legend.

Born to Rock by Gordon Korman
High school senior Leo Caraway, a conservative Republican, learns that his biological father is a punk rock legend.

Cherokee Bat and the Goat Guys by Francesca Lia Block
With their parents away, four young people form a rock band that becomes wildly popular, carrying them into a "freer" life than they can cope with.

Diva by Alex Flinn
Despite her mother's objections, sixteen-year-old Caitlin determines to pursue her dream of becoming an opera singer by attending a performing arts school in Miami.

Facing the Music by Margaret Willey
Through her love of music and membership in her brother's band, sixteen-year-old Lisa learns to deal with her feelings of abandonment following her mother's death.

Fat Kid Rules the World by K. L. Going
Seventeen-year-old Troy, depressed, suicidal, and weighing nearly 300 pounds, gets a new perspective on life when a homeless teenager who is a genius on guitar wants Troy to be the drummer in his rock band.

Garage Band by Gipi
Four boys with turbulent homes join to play music together and strive the teenage years.

Glee: The Beginning by Sophia Lowell
A prequel to the television show explores what happened before Mr. Schuester took over the glee club, showing the beginning of Puck and Quinn's romance and how the club functioned without its leader.

Heavy Metal and You by Christopher Krovatin
High schooler Sam begins losing himself when he falls for a preppy girl who wants him to give up getting wasted with his best friends and even his passion for heavy metal music in order to become a better person.

Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
Annabel's family life is upsetting and she keeps hidden the fact something happen the night she and Sophie stopped being friends. Can a new boy help her find a solution?

King Dork by Frank Portman
High school loser Tom Henderson discovers that "The Catcher in the Rye" may hold the clues to the many mysteries in his life.

Lemonade Mouth by Mark Peter Hughes
A disparate group of high school students thrown together in detention form a band to play at a school talent show and end up competing with a wildly popular local rock band.

On Beale Street by Ronald Kidd
In Memphis, in the 1950's, when fifteen-year-old Johnny is introduced to the blues, he ventures to the infamous Beale Street and finds the friendship with an up-and-coming young musician Elvis Presley.

The Musician’s Daughter by Susan Emily Dunlap
In eighteenth-century Vienna, Austria, fifteen-year-old Theresa seeks a way to help her mother and brother financially while investigating the murder of her father, a renowned violinist in Haydn's orchestra at the court of Prince Esterhazy, after his body is found near a gypsy camp.

Notes from the Midnight Driver by Jordan 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.

Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
High school student Nick O'Leary, member of a rock band, meets college-bound Norah Silverberg and asks her to be his girlfriend for five minutes in order to avoid his ex-sweetheart.

What a Song Can Do: 12 Riffs on the Power of Music edited by Jennifer Armstrong
Twelve stories describe the power of music in young people's lives, from forming a community of individuals in a high school band to helping a young man connect to his Indian heritage through ancient songs.