| Boy 21 by Matthew Quick |
| I absolutely loved The Chosen by Chaim Potok at that age, since it's about a boy around his age. I'm not Jewish, but I could relate to the themes about studying, knowledge, and finding your place in the world. One of the characters--a Hasidic rabbi's son--has to deal with own interest in exploring another field (psychology, if I remember correctly) instead of pursuing the rabbinate (which is his father's aspiration for him). |
This is exactly what I came to write -- both of these. |
I read this book once per year. I love it. |
| Anything by Garth Nix |
| The YA version of Unbroken. |