Classic English Literature For Teens

For anyone who loves sailing and adventure, Arthur Ransome's classic Swallows and Amazons series stands alone. Originally published over a half-century ago, the twelve books are still eagerly read by children and adults alike – by all those captivated by the world of adventure and imagination. Such longevity is not only due to Ransome’s unparalleled gift of storytelling, but also his championing of qualities such as independence and initiative; virtues that appeal to every generation, whether young or old.

The story of Ali Baba, a young Persian boy who discovers a cave filled with gold and jewels, the hidden treasures of forty deadly thieves. Unfortunately, his greedy brother, Kassim, cannot wait to get his hands on the riches. Returning to the cave, he is captured by the thieves and killed, and now the evil men want revenge on Ali Baba as well.

Axel and his uncle find a note that describes a path to Earth’s center! The men climb deep inside a volcano and discover amazing wonders. They also run into danger, which could trap them below the surface forever.

In the imaginary kingdom of Prydain, Princess Eilonwy must leave her friends to go to the Isle of Mona for training as a proper princess. Because Eilonwy has magical powers, she is sought by Achren, the most evil enchantress in the land. Shortly after her arrival on the Isle of Mona, something sinister and secret befalls her.

Tree-ear is an orphan boy in a 12th-century Korean potters’ village. When he accidentally breaks a pot, he must work for the master to pay for the damage by setting off on a difficult and dangerous journey that will change his life forever.

Wayside School is back in session in this brand-new, fourth installment in the perennially beloved and best-selling series by Newbery Medal-winning author Louis Sachar. Your favorite students and teachers are all here. That includes Sharie, who loves her striped-and-spotted umbrella more than anything; Kathy, who has a bad case of oppositosis; Jason, who has to read the longest book in the world; and the rest of Mrs. Jewls’s class on the 30th floor, who are busily collecting toenail clippings.

The touching story of a young, mortally ill priest who spends his last days working among the Kwakiutl Indians of British Columbia.

The Call of the Wild is the story of a dog in the frozen Yukon told from his point of view. But this brilliantly told tale of a canine hero is in fact a graphic picture of the great gold rush to the Klondike in 1897. Brutal and fierce on one hand, it is also a story of tenderness and loyalty between man and beast and remains one of the best- selling books in American literary history.

Transported to a new world, Ryan and his friends must figure out how to save their home city of Citadel while learning to survive in a game world where death is now all too real. But first, Ryan must keep his promise to Val Helena, and he sets out on a dangerous quest to the Vale of Sorrows to defeat the Shadow King. With an enemy 10 times stronger than a world boss, Ryan will have to do some serious leveling up as a Dodge Tank to be fit for task. But when he encounters a fellow gamer with an agenda of his own, Ryan finds his very life threatened by an enemy of his own making!

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of Half Wild, the stunning sequel to Half Bad by Sally Green, read by Carl Prekopp. After finally meeting his elusive father, Marcus, and receiving the three gifts that confirm him as a full adult witch, Nathan is still on the run. He needs to find his friend, Gabriel, and rescue Annalise, now a prisoner of the powerful Black witch Mercury. Most of all he needs to learn how to control his Gift - a strange, wild new power that threatens to overwhelm him.

On Prince Edward Island, aging siblings Mathew and Marilla Cuthbert decide to adopt a boy to help with chores around the farm. But when Mathew arrives at the train platform, the only living creature in sight, legs dangling from the piles of shingles where she sits, is a freckled, green-eyed, redheaded little girl. Mathew senses immediately that life at Green Gables is going to be very different. And how right he is.

Eleven-year-old Adam loved to travel throughout 13th-century England with his father, a wandering minstrel, and his dog, Nick. But when Nick is stolen and his father disappears, Adam suddenly finds himself alone.

The sorcerer Alder fears sleep. The dead are pulling him to them at night. Through him they may free themselves and invade Earthsea. Alder seeks advice from Ged, once Archmage. Ged tells him to go to Tenar, Tehanu, and the young king at Havnor. They are joined by amber-eyed Irian, a fierce dragon able to assume the shape of a woman. The threat can be confronted only in the Immanent Grove on Roke, the holiest place in the world, and there the king, hero, sage, wizard, and dragon make a last stand.

Paddington Bear always manages to find himself in tricky situations, sometimes extraordinary situations. Like the time he had a difficult encounter with a policeman or when he found himself in deep water with a newspaper reporter. But since arriving from his native Peru after an earthquake Paddington has always felt at home with the Brown family who found him on Paddington station.

Clio might be a nymph living in exile among humans. And she might possess the rare ability to mimic any magic she sees. And she might have just seriously ticked off the most powerful family of spell weavers in the Underworld. But she is not in love with an incubus. Lyre is the rebellious black sheep of the Weaver family, and he's the only reason she survived her recent Underworld "vacation". He's also the sexiest thing she's ever seen. Together, they have to track down a catastrophically dangerous magic - a magic he created, she sort of stole, and they both lost.

Good Wives continues the story of the Little Women, the March sisters Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, as they approach womanhood. Meg longs to begin her new life with John Brook, though they can never be rich; Jo returns to devote herself to literature, and to Beth, whose illness has left her weak but whose serenity shines through the household; and Amy has gone to Aunt March, bribed with the offer of drawing lessons.

Generations of readers young and old, male and female, have fallen in love with the March sisters of this, Louisa May Alcott's most popular and enduring novel. Here are talented tomboy and author-to-be Jo, tragically frail Beth, beautiful Meg, and romantic, spoiled Amy - united in their devotion to each other and their struggles to survive in New England during the Civil War.

A touch of computer keys, a blast of heat, and suddenly the Murry twins, Sandy and Dennys, are gasping in a shimmering desert land. If only the brothers had normal parents, not a scientist mother and a father who experiments with space and time travel. If only the Murry twins had noticed the note on the door of their mother's lab: Experiment In Progress. Please Keep Out. But it's too late for regrets.

Mafatu's name means "Stout Heart," but his people call him a coward. Ever since the sea took his mother's life and spared his own, he has lived with deep fear. By the time he is twelve years old, Mafatu can bear it no longer. He must conquer his fear alone...even if it means certain death. This classic tale of a young boy's hidden strength has been a favorite of readers of all ages since 1940.

After dealing with the Goblin King, Lucius is unsure how to harness his unlocked power. He finds himself in a desperate race to the top as everyone scrambles to master their strange new abilities. The other players are the least of his worries. War is coming. The trials of Freedom have only just begun.