Life, As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

This book is written in the form of journal entries by sixteen-year-old Miranda following the devasting effects of an asteroid hitting the moon and changing its orbit.

It's a disaster worldwide as tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions wreck havoc everywhere. Food production is affected as is the distribution system as gasoline supplies fail.

What would happen if life as we have always known it to be, changed suddenly? School, heating in our home, transportation, recreation---just being able to eat at a restaurant or even have enough to eat at home? How would you survive? Could you keep your family together and safe until conditions improved? Would people "rise" to the occasion of extraordinary need and help their community or would they try to take advantage of weaker more vulnerable members? This book looks at these questions from the vantage point of Miranda, her two brothers and her mother. Will they be all right?

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Book One, Olympia Series.

Wow! What if the Greek gods still lived on Mount Olympus & still came to earth? What if they still fell in love with mortals and had children? What if you were one of them --- half-human & half-god -- a demigod?

With the help of a satyr and a daughter of Athena, Percy Jackson travels across the U.S. in search of Zeus's thunder bolt. Lots of adventures as various Greek monsters and gods try to help him or prevent him from completing his quest.

The SMC also has books two and three.

Claws by Dan Greenburg

When fourteen-year-old Cody runs away from his controlling abusive mother, he heads west working at odd jobs along the way. The Sam Houston Tiger Ranch is in need of a "tiger wrangler" and Cody has a new job. Tiger wranglers feed the tigers, exercise them and clean out their pens. It's not your ordinary job---it's filled with danger and the thrill of being with wild animals. Cody is big for his age and everyone believes he is sixteen. In learning how to care for the tigers, leopards and lions, he learns more about himself and what he wants out of life.

Along the way, he solves the mystery of the missing co-owner of the tiger ranch. This is a page-turner---I wanted to find out about how the tigers came to be a this rescue park, what had happened to the co-owner and if Cody was ever going to get out of his bad home situation. Set in Texas, there are lots of Texas expressions--colorful sayings.