Generally sad books.

Doug Wilhelm's book Falling is more suitable to high school collections. More language and drug situations than I would want.

Maureen Johnson's The Keys to the Golden Firebird was much sadder than I thought it would be. After 13 Little Blue Envelopes and Devilish, it was a surprise. It read more like Sarah Dessen. The cover is so pretty, and the title so optimistic, that it was a bit of a shock. Mayzie's father dies, and her family slowly self-destructs. Mother becomes a nonentity, oldest sister turns to alchohol and unsuitable boyfriend, youngest sister is generally unhappy and withdrawn, and Mayzie herself has an unsatisfactory relationship with the boy next door. They all slog along the best they can, which isn't very well. Good book, but I wasn't expecting the sadness.

A little happier was Rallison's It's a Mall World After All. A little sad in a way, since the main character kept goofing up her relationship with the boy she liked. Actually, this reminded me a bit of the Anne Emery or Rosamund du Jardin books from the 1950's. Just fewer saddle shoes.