Contemporary World Fiction for Young Readers
Discover captivating contemporary world fiction for young readers! Explore a curated list of must-read books that inspire, entertain, and broaden horizons. Perfect for young book lovers.
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Child of Dandelions
by Shenaaz Nanji
In Uganda in 1972, fifteen-year-old Sabine and her family, wealthy citizens of Indian descent, try to preserve their normal life during the ninety days allowed …
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Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet
by Kashmira Sheth
Jeeta’s family is caught up in the whirlwind of arranging marriages for her two older sisters, but the drama and excitement leave Jeeta cold. Even …
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Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party
by Ying Chang Compestine
Starting in 1972 when she is nine, Ling, the daughter of two doctors, struggles to make sense of the communists' Cultural Revolution, which empties stores …
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Chanda's Secrets
by Allan Stratton
A young adult novel set in modern Africa tells the story of Chanda, a 16-year-old girl who must confront the realities of HIV/AIDS, as well …
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Secret Keeper
by Mitali Perkins
When Asha's father goes off to America and leaves his two daughters behind in Calcutta, their traditional uncle and his family put pressures on the …
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Go and Come Back
by Joan Abelove
When the two old white ladies come to live in the Peruvian jungle village of Poincushmana, everyone makes a fuss--everyone but Alicia, who is baffled …
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Swimming in the Monsoon Sea
by Shyam Selvadurai
Although life for Amrith in 1980 Sri Lanka seems rather uneventful and orderly, things change in a hurry when his male cousin arrives from Canada …
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Beneath My Mother's Feet
by Amjed Qamar
"Our lives will always be in the hands of our mothers, whether we like it or not." Nazia doesn't mind when her friends tease and …
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Keeping Corner
by Kashmira Sheth
Ba slipped the gold bangles from my wrists. The gold ones were plain so I didn’t mind taking them off, but I loved wearing my …
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Chu Ju's House
by Gloria Whelan
One girl too many . . . When a girl is born to Chu Ju's family, it is quickly determined that the baby must be …
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Homeless Bird
by Gloria Whelan
Gloria Whelan's National Book Award–winning novel, chronicles the breathtaking story of a remarkable young woman who dares to defy fate. Like many girls her age …
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Tree Girl
by Ben Mikaelsen
They call Gabriela Tree Girl. Gabi climbs trees to be within reach of the eagles and watch the sun rise into an empty sky. She …
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The Disappeared
by Gloria Whelan
Silvia tries to save her brother, Eduardo, after he is captured by the military government in 1970s Argentina.
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A Million Shades of Gray
by Cynthia Kadohata
A boy and his elephant escape into the jungle when the Viet Cong attack his village immediately after the Vietnam war.
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The Color of My Words
by Lynn Joseph
Twelve-year-old Ana Rosa is a blossoming writer growing up in the Dominican Republic, a country where words are feared. Yet there is so much inspiration …
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The Killer's Tears
by Anne-Laure Bondoux
A young boy, Paolo, and the man who murdered his parents, Angel, gradually become like father and son as they live and work together on …
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Tonight, by Sea
by Frances Temple
This acclaimed fourth novel from the late Frances Temple tells the harrowing account of one family's escape from political persecution in Haiti.
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Blue Mountain Trouble
by Martin Mordecai
Tucked high in the Jamaican Blue Mountains is Top Valley, home to 12-year-old twins Polly and Jackson Gilmore. Both are too smart for their own …
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Escaping the Tiger
by Laura Manivong
When you're so skinny people call you Skeleton Boy, how do you find strength for the fight of your life? Vonlai knows that soldiers who …
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Boys Without Names
by Kashmira Sheth
For eleven-year-old Gopal and his family, life in their rural Indian village is over: We stay, we starve, his baba has warned. With the darkness …
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Silk Umbrellas
by Carolyn Marsden
Eleven-year-old Noi worries that she will have to stop painting the silk umbrellas her family sells at the market near their Thai village and be …
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The Garbage King
by Elizabeth Laird
This is the story of children who live on the very edge of destitution. Dani and Mamo, and the gang of street boys that they …
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Taste of Salt
by Frances Temple
Every Life Makes a Story Djo has a story: Once he was one of "Titid's boys," a vital member of Father Jean-Bertrand Aristide's election team, …
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Journey to Jo'burg
by Beverley Naidoo
If only Mma was here, Naledi wished over and over. . . Mma lives and works in Johannesburg, far from the village thirteen-year-old Naledi and …
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Colibri
by Ann Cameron
When Tzunún was little, her mother nicknamed her Colibrí, Spanish for “hummingbird.” At age four, Colibrí is kidnapped from her parents in Guatemala City and …
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Before We Were Free
by Julia Alvarez
In the early 1960s in the Dominican Republic, twelve-year-old Anita learns that her family is involved in the underground movement to end the bloody rule …
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The Baboon King
by Anton Quintana
Morengaru, a strong young hunter, has been cast out by both his mother’s people, the Kikuyu, and his father’s people, the Masai. Every day he …
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No Turning Back
by Beverley Naidoo
When the abuse at home becomes too much for twelve-year-old Sipho, he runs away to the streets of Johannesburg and learns to survive in the …
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The Middle of Somewhere
by Sheila Gordon
All over Rebecca's village everyone is talking about the bulldozers. She and her friends wonder if the government will really send bulldozers to destroy their …
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Shiva's Fire
by Suzanne Fisher Staples
In India, a talented dancer sacrifices friends and family for her art.
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The Turtle Watchers
by Pamela Powell
Three sisters on a Caribbean island witness how a giant leatherback turtle lays her eggs on the beach, and decide to guard and protect the …
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Grab Hands and Run
by Frances Temple
An El Salvadorian family flees political oppression in their homeland and takes a perilous journey north, through Mexico to America, where they hope they will …
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Asphalt Angels
by Ineke Holtwijk
Abandoned on the streets of Rio de Janeiro, thirteen-year-old Alex joins a group of children like him and finds himself adapting to his new life.
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The Whale Rider
by Witi Ihimaera
Eight-year-old Kahu, a member of the Maori tribe of New Zealand, fights to prove her love, her leadership, and her destiny when hundreds of whales …
