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Books in Orca Soundings series

  • No More Pranks

    Monique Polak

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, Sept. 1, 2004)
    Pete likes to play pranks. It doesn't matter what it is as long as it gets a laugh. When he impersonates his vice-principal on a radio call-in show, he goes too far and is suspended from school. Pete's parents send him to spend the summer working with his uncle, a whale-watching guide in a tourist town far from the city. When a whale is injured by a reckless tour guide, Pete struggles to save the animal. Then Pete has to pull the most important prank of his life to bring the guide to justice.
    Z+
  • Tell

    Norah McClintock

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, Sept. 1, 2006)
    When his step-father Phil is shot dead in an apparent robbery, David becomes the prime suspect. Where was David that night, and what does he know about Phil?
    Y
  • The Bodyguard

    Sean Rodman

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, Jan. 29, 2019)
    Ryan Hale, aka Replay, is the most successful running back in his high school's history. With university scouts making him offers he can't refuse, his future seems set. The problem is, Ryan would much rather go to film school. But his dad doesn't want to hear it. His teammates sure don't. He can't afford the application fees anyway. But then a solution appears when Markus, a strange exchange student with outrageous stories about mobsters and hackers, offers to pay Ryan to be his bodyguard. Things get complicated when Ryan realizes the stories may be closer to the truth than anyone imagined.
    Z+
  • Sticks and Stones

    Beth Goobie

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, Jan. 1, 2002)
    Jujube is thrilled when Brent asks her out. She is not so happy when the rumors start flying at school. Pretty soon her name is showing up on bathroom walls and everyone is snickering and sniping. When her mother gets involved, Jujube's reputation takes another hit. Deciding that someone has to take a stand, Jujube gathers all the other girls who are labelled sluts--and worse--and tries to impress on her fellow students the damage that can be done by assigning a label that reduces a person to an object. Also available in Spanish.
    Z+
  • Something Girl

    Beth Goobie

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, April 1, 2005)
    Sophie is in a lot of trouble. She is on probation for stealing and is doing poorly at school. Her mom doesn't really talk to her, and the other adults in her life are pressuring Sophie to talk about her bruises. Sophie worries that if she tells, she will be sent to live in a group home. Her friend Jujube is the only person who knows the truth, and now Jujube, too, wants Sophie to speak up.
    Z
  • Crime Club

    Melodie Campbell

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, Aug. 27, 2019)
    Sixteen-year-old Penny has moved with her mom and huge dog, Ollie, to live above a small-town pub owned by her aunt. It's a relief to start over in a place where no one knows her father is in prison. It's summer, and the only person she knows is her nerdy cousin Simon. Soon she meets Simon's best friend, Brent, and Brent's twin sister, Tara, and their pug, Wolfgang. When Ollie digs up a human bone in the backyard of the pub, police are called. It turns out the bone is over twenty years old. Who can the dead person be? Surely Aunt Stella can't be involved. Penny and Simon decide to investigate. Together with Brent and Tara, they form The Crime Club. And before long they discover one thing: if you've killed before, you can kill again.
    N
  • Viral

    Alex Van Tol

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, April 1, 2011)
    Mike has fallen deeply in love with his best friend, Lindsay. And he's pretty sure she feels the same way…until a simple misunderstanding destroys Lindsay's trust. Devastated and feeling betrayed, Lindsay leaves town for the summer. In the fall, she returns to school a different person and she's suddenly tight with the "in" crowd. When Lindsay gets intoxicated at a party and ends up in a compromising situation, she has no idea that someone is filming the whole thing on his phone. When the footage goes viral around their school, Mike has to dig deep within himself to find the courage to help Lindsay in her time of greatest need.
    Z+
  • Off the Grid

    Lesley Choyce

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, May 1, 2015)
    Sixteen-year-old Cody was born and raised “off the grid” deep in the wilderness by idealistic parents. When his father becomes seriously ill, the family is forced to move into the city so he can get treatment. Attending high school for the first time, Cody is an oddity and has a hard time adjusting. He finds unlikely allies in DeMarco, an inner-city kid, and Ernest, a philosophical homeless man, and he begins a tentative friendship with Alexis. When he comes to DeMarco’s defense in an altercation at school, Cody finds himself in trouble with the police. A second confrontation puts Cody in more trouble with the cops, and he is convinced he must escape to the family homestead or be arrested. But Cody is torn between fleeing the city or staying with his ailing father and facing whatever consequences come his way.
    Z+
  • Bang

    Norah McClintock

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, March 1, 2007)
    Quentin and JD have been friends forever. Even after JD gets in trouble Quentin stands by him. Hanging out together Quentin learns JD has a gun and when they are caught in a robbery JD uses the gun—with deadly results. Trying to cover up the crime and escape detection, Quentin gets in even deeper than he expected and learns that the only person he can trust is himself. Especially when his freedom—and his future—is at stake.
    Z+
  • Tap Out

    Sean Rodman

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, April 1, 2015)
    When Darwin's father went to prison for assault, his mom decided it was time to move him from his inner-city school to the elite Norfolk Academy. It was supposed to be a brand-new start for him. But old instincts die hard, and Dar is used to fighting for everything. Convinced by a new friend to take part in an illegal fight club, Dar starts competing in no-holds-barred matches between students. He quickly rises to become the best in the ring. When one match goes too far and a student is almost killed, Dar faces a choice. Everyone tells him he's a fighter, but he needs to decide for himself―who is he, and what is he fighting for?
    Z+
  • Caged

    Norah McClintock

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, Nov. 7, 2017)
    Even if Kenzie's dog had somehow managed to escape from the family's fenced backyard, Kenzie knows the big, lovable chocolate Lab wouldn't have gone far. As they search for Clancy, Kenzie and his dad keep hearing stories about other dogs that have gone missing too. When Kenzie finds Clancy's ID tag and spots a van loaded up with dog food, he knows he has to investigate further. With the help of a schoolmate whose dog has also disappeared, Kenzie uncovers an illegal operation that grabs dogs off the street and turns them into bloodthirsty killers.
    Z+
  • Last Ride

    Laura Langston

    Paperback (Orca Book Publishers, March 1, 2011)
    He killed his best friend, Logan, in a street-racing accident a year ago. As he tries to make amends to Logan's girlfriend and keep his promise to never race again, Tom is haunted by his dead friend. He thinks Logan is trying to tell him something. Not only that, since he faces huge medical bills from the accident and may have to give up his car, the pressure to race is almost unbearable.
    Y