In the Margins (ITM) is proud to present the official nominations for our 2015 book list, to date. New titles are still being considered, and ITM is seeking teen feedback to assist in producing a list of finalists. ITM, under the umbrella of Library Services for Youth in Custody, strives to bring to light self-published and small press published titles by, for, and about people in poverty, on the streets, in custody, or otherwise living in the margins. Books from larger publishers are also considered if they fit our charge. Teens are the target audience for the lists we create and promote. We hope our book list will empower librarians working in difficult situations to legitimize their book choices in order to promote positive reading and literacy activities for teens in the margins. We will have openings to serve on the selection committee in January 2015 for the 2016 list (click here for membership application). Anyone is welcome to nominate a title via a nomination form. A committee member will review the information and consider it for official nomination.  Please let us know of your interest. The titles nominated for the 2015 In the Margins recognition are the following: Beaty, Daniel. Knock, Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me. Little, Brown. Dec. 2013. 40p. Tr $18. ISBN 9780316209175. Why isn't his dad around to play Knock, Knock jokes anymore? Booth, Coe. Kinda Like Brothers. Scholastic. Aug. 2014. 256p. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780545224963. Jarrett is kinda mad he has to share a room with Kevon, a foster kid. They aren’t friends, they aren’t brothers, and they aren’t exactly enemies. But sometimes it sure feels like it. Burgess, Melvin. The Hit. Scholastic/Chicken House. Feb. 2014. 304p. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780545556996. Take the hit. Live the most intense week of your life. Then die. Is life during these hard times so bad that this sounds like a great idea? Butler, Pacc. From God’s Monster to the Devil’s Angel. CreateSpace. Jan. 2014. 170p. pap. $14.95. ISBN 9781494771669. After a childhood full of abuse, is a life of crime on the streets with gangs his only option? Canion, Ebony. Left for Dead. Life Changing Bks. Feb. 2014. 228p. pap. $15.99. ISBN 9781934230596. Ebony's tragedy-filled life takes a deadly turn when a woman with a grudge deliberately drives over her and drags her body through the street under her car. Chappell, Crissa-Jean. More Than Good Enough. Flux. Jan. 2014. 216p. pap. $8.99. ISBN 978-0738736440. Trent doesn’t fit in on the Rez with his dad, who just got out of jail, or with his mom, who dumped him, but he does fit with Pippa. Will her acceptance be enough to help him realize that it’s enough to just be himself? De Vries, Maggie. Rabbit Ears. HarperTrophy Canada. Sept.2014. 288p. pap. $8.99. ISBN 9780062332905. Will Kaya escape her demons on the drug-infested streets? Dragon, Laura Roach. Hurricane Boy. Pelican. Mar. 2014. 160p. pap. $8.95. ISBN 9781455619160. When their broken family is left homeless and separated from their sick grandmother, siblings must struggle to stay together after Hurricane Katrina. Ewing, Lynne. The Lure. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray. Feb. 2014. 288p. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780062206886. Gangs, girls, and guns: a deadly combination. Giles, Gail. Girls Like Us. Candlewick. May 2014. 224p. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9780763662677. Quincy and Biddy rely on their natural sense of survival to make it in the real world after a lifetime of abuse and abandonment. Hall, Shyima. Hidden Girl: The True Story of a Modern-Day Child Slave. S. & S. Jan. 2014. 240p. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781442481688. Sold into servitude by her Egyptian parents, Shyima sees no hope of escape when her captors bring her to the United States. Hillman, Bill. The Old Neighborhood. Curbside Splendor. Apr. 2014. 500p. pap. $15.95. 9781940430003. Joe can’t seem to escape his destiny as a Chicago gang member, even as drug addiction and violence threaten to destroy his family and friends. Jiang-Stein, Deborah. Prison Baby. Beacon. Mar. 2014. 176p. pap. $14. ISBN 9780807098103. Born in a prison to an addicted mother, can Deborah ever fit in? Jones, Patrick. Bridge. Darby Creek. Aug. 2014. 96p. lib. ed. $27.99. ISBN 9781467739030. pap. $7.95. ISBN 9781467744829. José’s life just got harder when his dad has a medical emergency and lands in jail. Jones, Patrick. Controlled. Darby Creek. Aug. 2014. 112p. lib. ed. $27.99. ISBN 9781467739023. pap. $7.95. ISBN 978-1467744836. Misty is out of control, especially since her mother just died. But it's nothing new—except to Rachel, her cousin. Because now Misty is moving in with Rachel and taking over. Drama, trouble and just possibly, good girl Rachel going bad. Jones, Patrick. Target. Darby Creek. Aug. 2014. 128p. lib. ed. $27.99. ISBN 9781467739009. pap. $7.95. ISBN 9781467744850. Native American Frankie's trying to leave the gang and start new at Rondo High. His mom moved so that he would get away from the negative influences he had before. His dad's in prison and is egging him on to take revenge, and his cousins are in his new neighborhood doing the same. What will Frankie do? Knight, Michelle. Finding Me: A Decade of Darkness, a Life Reclaimed. Weinstein. May 2014. 280p. Tr $14.98. ISBN 9781602862562. Kidnapped and tortured for 11 years, Michelle survives the horrors of captivity under the control of psychopath Ariel Castro. Kuehn, Stephanie. Complicit. St. Martin’s Griffin. Jun. 2014. 256p. Tr $19.95. ISBN  9781250044594. Jamie has tried hard to fit in with his adoptive parents, but his sister hasn’t done anything but get into trouble, finally landing in jail for attempted murder. Now she’s out, and Jamie is sure she’s coming for him. K’Wan. Black Lotus. Akashic. May 2014. 128p. Tr $19.95. ISBN 9781617752650. pap. $11.95. ISBN 9781617752667. Murder! Mystery! Intrigue! Can you figure out the assassin's game? Miles, Michelle. The High Price I Had to Pay 2: Sentenced to 30 Years as a Nonviolent, First Time Offender. Voices International. Nov. 2013. 66p. pap. $7.99.  ISBN 9780991104109. She had it all and didn’t think twice until she got arrested by the Feds. Morgan, Kass. The 100. September 2013. Little, Brown. 336p. Tr $18.00. ISBN 978-0316234474. pap. $10.00. ISBN 978-0316234498. One hundred teens, chosen to return to Earth after nuclear war has exiled humanity to life on spaceships, have one thing in common: criminal pasts. Given no choice, they face a dangerous world and a more dangerous enemy—each other. Nelson, Blake. The Prince of Venice Beach. Little, Brown. Jun. 2014. 240p. Tr $18. ISBN 9780316230483. Cali uses his street smarts to work undercover and help other runaways in Venice Beach. Reynolds, Jason. When I Was the Greatest. S. & S./Atheneum. Jan. 2014. 240p. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781442459472. Friends + bad choices = deadly circumstances. Shiraz, Yasmin. Accused. Still Eye Rise. May 2014. 274p. pap. $11.95. ISBN 9780971817487. Date rapist on campus. Can Tashera stop him? Can Ahmed prove it's not him? Sitomer, Alan Lawrence. Caged Warrior. Disney-Hyperion. May 2014. 224p. Tr $15.99. ISBN 9781423171249. Will M.D.’s killer instincts in MMA lead him to a better life? Van Diepen, Allison. On the Edge.  HarperCollins/HarperTeen. Nov. 2014. 304p. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780062303448. The only witness to a homicide, Maddie is protected by Lobos, the sexy leader of Destino's gang. Workman, P.D. Ruby: Between the Cracks. PD Workman. Feb. 2014. 486p. pap. $16.90. ISBN 978-0992153953. Ruby's life is filled with gangs, drugs, foster families, and pregnancies but she is tough and wants to run her life on her terms. Can she ever find happiness? Yamini, Omar. What’s Wrong With You! Smashwords. Jan.2014. pap. $19.95. ISBN 9780991574605. A gritty eyewitness account of life behind bars that tears to shreds its hip-hop illusion of urban coolness. Zusman, Angela Beth. The Griots of Oakland. Story for All. Oct. 2013. 206p. Tr $59.99. ISBN 9780988763111. pap. $14.99. ISBN 978-0988763104. Young African American men share their struggles and triumphs, offering an honest and emotional look at what they face as they work towards the future.

Current committee members:

Chair: Amy Cheney, Librarian, Juvenile Justice Center, Alameda County, CA Sabrina Carnesi, Librarian, Crittenden Middle School, VA Dale Clark, Fraser Park Secondary, Burnaby Youth Custody Services, Burnaby, BC Canada Joe Coyle, Project Coordinator, Mix IT Up!, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL Marvin DeBose Sr., Adult–Teen Librarian, Free Library of Philadelphia, PA Mackenzie Magee, English Teacher, Passages Academy (High School), Brooklyn, NY Maggie Novario, Teen Librarian, Fort Vancouver Regional Library District, WA Dr. Kerry Sutherland, Youth Services Librarian, Akron-Summit County Public Library, OH Amy Wander, Public Services Manager, Lafayette Public Library, LA