Showing results by narrator "Nick Podehl" in All Categories

During the summer of 1987, from their tree house fort in the woods, neighborhood boys Tim, Scott, and Luke spot a man holding a gun to missing 16-year-old Molly Peterson's back. The problem is, nobody believes their story, not even the police. As search efforts to find Molly dwindle, the boys know that she, and the man with the gun, are nearby - and that they must now find and save Molly themselves.

Thanks to his invention of Sweet Farts, the tablets that cancel even the most ripe and pungent fart smells, Keith has become the center of all kinds of attention he doesn’t want. His kid sister has turned into a farting maniac, and his parents blame him. His so-called best friends torture him at school with nicknames like “S.B.D.” (for Silent But Deadly) and try to humiliate him every chance they get. The principal wants to know what Keith’s next brilliant invention will be.

A few months after doctors tell him he has only a year to live, a precocious fifteen-year-old from a small town in Virginia has an intense reaction to The Catcher in the Rye. Deriving inspiration from J. D. Salinger’s narrative, Daniel Landon begins to question the intentions and authority of those around him in his own search for identity in the face of death.

Felton Reinstein has never been good with stress. Which is why he's seriously freaking out. Revealing his college choice on national TV? It's a heart attack waiting to happen. Deciding on a major for the next four years of his life? Ridiculous. He barely even knows who he is outside of football. And so...he embarks on The Epic Quest to Be Meaningful.

It’s been four months since Taemon got rid of psi, or telekinesis, in the secluded city of Deliverance. But rather than ushering in a new era of peace and prosperity, Taemon’s actions seem to have driven a deeper wedge between the people. Worse yet, Taemon soon discovers that he alone still has psi - a revelation that is sure to make him a target of the angry populace. make him a target of the angry populace. With society in disarray, his mother in a coma, and a target on his back, Taemon decides to attempt to rescue his father.

Tommy has given himself a new name - Kenny - from the Japanese ken, meaning sword. It’s a good samurai name. A warrior’s name. This summer at camp - a camp for kids who are not wanted at home - Kenny and his friends need all the samurai cunning and strength they can muster. They have declared a war - between themselves and the camp’s sadistic overseer, Matron, and her adult son, Christian, who secretly stalks one of the girls. Covertly building a samurai castle in the woods, Kenny and his motley band of warriors strategize their attack and eventual escape. But then things go horribly wrong.

People in Merit, Wisconsin, always said Jimmy was...you know. But people said all sorts of stupid stuff. Nobody really knew anything. Nobody really knew Jimmy. I guess you could say I knew Jimmy as well as anyone (which was not very well). I knew what scared him. And I knew he had dreams even if I didn't understand them. Even if he nearly ruined my life to pursue them. Jimmy's dead now, and I definitely know that better than anyone. I know about blood and bone and how bodies decompose. I know about shadows and stones and hatchets. I know what a last cry for help sounds like.

You care about your connection and relationship with God, but you are also experiencing all the ups and downs of teenage life. These 101 stories are written by teens who share their own experiences growing up as a Christian teen. You will be supported and inspired by these heartfelt true stories, as teens like you use their faith to help them navigate their teenage years.

To become a demon, you must die in complete and utter despair. Three hundred years ago, Max passed that test with flying colors and joined the afterlife resolving never again to have innocent blood on his hands. Now Max has been given the job of breaking a young witch's family curse. But what she doesn't know, what Max can't bring himself to tell her, is that completing his mission almost certainly means her death.

Nestled in the Pennsylvania countryside, Florence University frames an idyllic college world, complete with cute coeds and handsome jocks - not to mention plenty of booze and sex with virtually no responsibility. For three seniors, the vagaries of life have rarely been so terrifying. Drawn together by their struggles for identity, the three students form a fateful friendship that will change the courses of their lives forever. Sexy, fast paced, and layered with intimate insight about life’s most formative years, The Fall is a compelling coming-of-age story.

Joseph has always had such good fortune that his nickname is Lucky. His luck has come in thirteens. He’s the thirteenth of his parents’ thirteen children. And both of his parents were thirteenth children. But just before his thirteenth birthday, his luck is about to change. Two mysterious visitors warn him that if he collects thirteen thirteens by midnight on his thirteenth birthday, he’ll unleash a terrible curse. And as soon as they leave, Lucky’s streak goes from good to bad.

It's a question as old as time itself: which is better, the zombie or the unicorn? In this anthology, edited by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier (unicorn and zombie, respectively), strong arguments are made for both sides in the form of short stories. Half of the stories portray the strengths - for good and evil - of unicorns and half show the good (and really, really bad-ass) side of zombies.

In 1839, after decades of conflict, the Russian army and the Muslims of Chechnya are on the verge of a truce. To prove his commitment to peace, warrior chief Imam Shamil offers a hostage: his son, Jamal Eddin. But once the truce is signed, the Russians spirit Jamal Eddin back to Russia, where Czar Nicholas “adopts” the boy. Immersed in imperial court life, Jamal Eddin matures into the consummate courtier. Still, he maintains his Muslim faith - until he falls in love with a beautiful Russian aristocrat.

Marshall Seaver is being haunted. In the first installment of this chillingly compelling trilogy, sixteen-year-old Marshall discovers that something beyond our world is after him. The eerie clues pile up quickly, and when people start dying, it's clear whatever this is - it's huge. Marshall has no idea what's happening to him, but he's soon convinced that it has something to do with his best friend, Cooper, who's been missing for over a week.

Rubion Federation ship HMS Belsus visits a 300-year-old colony planet, and discovers a society near revolution against the rule of a "transfigured being" known as Toth. Commander Michael Queal's crew and ship are immediately threatened by Toth and his followers, including a host of strange bioengineered creatures unique to the planet. Only a banished people on a remote island are willing to aid Queal in his fight to bring freedom to the colony, and allow him to survive the wrath of a monstrous, unbalanced dictator. But help sometimes comes from unexpected directions!

Being yourself can be such a bad idea. For 16-year-old Badi Hessamizadeh, life is a series of humiliations. After withdrawing from public school under mysterious circumstances, Badi enters Magnificat Academy. To make things "easier", his dad has even given him a new name: Bud Hess. Grappling with his Iranian-American identity, clinical depression, bullying, and a barely bottled rage, Bud is an outcast who copes by resorting to small revenges and covert acts of defiance, but the pressures of his home life and the unrequited affection of his new friend, Nikki, prime him for a more dangerous revolution.

Derek's brother Ronny isn't himself.... No, really. Ronny's body has been taken over by the long-dead soul of a man named Virgil Black. Lucky for him, Virgil is one of the good guys. Not all of them are. In fact, a Legion of evil souls is staging a serious comeback. And they're staging it at Bayou Malpierre, the site of Derek's most horrible nightmare. That nightmare is about to get even worse. . . .

Gary Paulsen was one of the kids who slipped through the cracks, until art and dogs saved him. So are Jake, Jojo, and Jamie, all 12-year-olds who, like Gary Paulsen, had to grow up too fast. Gary Paulsen’s three poignant novellas add up to an unforgettable book.

Fourteen-year-old Finn is a loner, living with his dad and his amazing dog, Dylan. This summer Finn is hoping for a job where he doesn’t have to talk to anyone except his buddy, Matthew. Then he meets Johanna, who’s living next door. She’s a graduate student in her 20s, cool and funny, and she treats Finn as an equal. Dylan thinks she’s great too. Johanna’s dealing with breast cancer, and Matthew and Finn help take care of her - and come to care for her.

Here are 32 Stories of lifes challenges and growing up for older teens, including "Tough Stuff", "Family Ups and Downs", "Overcoming Challenges", and "Moving On".