Books › Sketches › Books like it

1. 
   01

   Can't get there from here

   Todd Strasser

   A raw, unflinching look at the frozen margins of a city, where survival is a daily battle and found family is the only warmth.

   Shares:

   • gritty
   • found family
2. 
   02

   Tricks

   Ellen Hopkins

   A raw, rapid-fire descent into the darkest corners of vulnerability, told through fractured, breathless verse.

   Shares:

   • gritty
3. 
   03

   Scars

   Cheryl A. Rainfield

   A raw, unflinching exploration of trauma and the painful, necessary journey toward reclaiming one's own body and mind.

   Shares:

   • earnest
   • compassionate
   • hopeful
4. 
   04

   My book of life by angel

   Martine Leavitt

   A raw, urgent verse novel that plunges into the dark realities of exploitation and the desperate fight for survival.

   Shares:

   • gritty
5. 
   05

   When Jeff comes home

   Catherine Atkins · 1999

   A raw, unflinching exploration of the quiet, agonizing work of surviving the aftermath of unimaginable trauma.

   Shares:

   • somber
   • earnest
6. 
   06

   The rule of thre3

   Eric Walters

   A tense, grounded exploration of how quickly the veneer of civilization peels away when the lights go out.

   Shares:

   • gritty
   • earnest
7. 
   07

   Tyrell

   Coe Booth

   A gritty, realistic portrait of a teenager fighting to break cycles of poverty and incarceration while carrying the weight of his family.

   Shares:

   • gritty
   • resilient
   • earnest
8. 
   08

   Steffie can't come out to play

   Fran Arrick

   A stark, unflinching descent into the dark underbelly of a city that preys on naive dreams.

   Shares:

   • earnest
9. 
   09

   Girl in Pieces

   Kathleen Glasgow

   A raw, visceral descent into the aftermath of trauma that slowly pieces itself back together into a mosaic of fragile hope.

   Shares:

   • gritty
10. 
    10

    Finding Katie

    Beatrice Sparks

    An intimate, diary-style exploration of a teenager's hidden trauma behind closed doors and her journey toward safety.

    Shares:

    • somber
    • earnest
    • serious
11. 
    11

    The blue mirror

    Kathe Koja · 2004

    A haunting, lyrical descent into the intoxicating and dangerous gravity of a toxic first love.

    Shares:

    • gritty
12. 
    12

    The Bridge Home

    Padma Venkatraman

    A tender, gritty exploration of found family and survival on the unforgiving streets of Chennai.

    Shares:

    • gritty
    • earnest
    • compassionate
    • hopeful

Back to Sketches