“Runner,” by Carl Deuker

“Runner,” by Carl Deuker is a young adult novel about a boy who becomes involved in an illegal smuggling ring.

Chance Taylor and his father live on a battered sailboat docked at the local marina. Because his father’s alcoholism keeps him jobless Chance must worry about money in ways that most kids don’t. Chance is ashamed of his poverty and constantly worried about where the grocery money and dock fees will come from. Then a mysterious person offers Chance a job. Read the rest »

“The Last Dog on Earth,” by Daniel Ehrenhaft

“The Last Dog on Earth,” by Daniel Ehrenhaft is a science fiction novel about a prion disease that causes dogs to exhibit the symptoms of rabies.

The main character is Logan Moore, an angry young man. Logan hates his biological father for abandoning him, his stepfather for trying to control him, and other kids for seeming better than him. It is only when Logan gets a pet dog that he learns to love. In training and working with his dog Jack, Logan learns patience and other virtues.

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