Teen Memoirs

“Work hard, and don’t look for excuses,” C. Vivian Stringer’s parents told her, “and you can achieve anything.” But her faith and perseverance would be tested many times. A gifted athlete, she had to fight for a place on an all-white cheerleading squad in the sixties. In 1981, just...

"In this life, you grow up with your friends lying, deceiving, stealing, cheating, and manipulating other people, then eventually you turn on each other. There is no honor among thieves. You’re only as good as your last envelope full of cash. Today’s bosses will call you their best friend, but be late with an envelope, and see what happens." (Carlo Juliano)

"The American Teenager" offers a vivid exploration of the teenage experience in America through the eyes of Nick. Presented as a memoir, the book captures the essence of adolescence from documenting Nick's turbulent school days and exhilarating adventures with his close friends. This engaging narrative balances simplicity with depth, portraying the trials and triumphs of teenage life. It celebrates the spirit of youth, emphasizing the freedom and spontaneity that come with having little responsibilities.

Joyce Aparo seemed to be the perfect single mother. She doted on her sixteen-year-old daughter, Karin, encouraging her musical ability and lavishing affection on her. But behind closed doors, Joyce was a terror. For thirteen years, she beat Karin savagely and demeaned her relentlessly. When Karin met the troubled yet brilliant Dennis Coleman, the two fell head-over-heels. But Joyce disapproved—so she had to die.

Branwyn St. Clair is running from her wicked stepfather when she stows aboard the first ship she comes to. Little does she know, it is the infamous elven pirate ship, the Moonbeam. When cabin boy, Johnny Pate finds her in the hold, they form an uneasy alliance. Life aboard the Moonbeam is not what she expects. The ship soars through the clouds in search of plunder. But the biggest theft of all has already occurred....

In Shame: An Unconventional Memoir, Josh Roggie doesn't just reveal the guilt, disappointment, and embarrassment that has been present in his life - he seeks to overcome it through wit and abundant oversharing. From being born into a puritanical household, to dealing with bullying throughout school and heavy doses of anxiety, he reveals the foundation that would define his longest lasting pains. By including stories on infertility, ever-evolving theology, and even masturbation, he makes it clear that no topic is off-limits.

“Lots of people have dreams, but C. Vivian Stringer is the dream—a coalminer’s daughter who believed when her Poppa told her there was no obstacle she could not surmount. And she lives that dream, teaching others to rise up to meet challenges, turning underdogs into champions again and...

Growing up impoverished and shuttled between different households, it seemed life was bound to take a certain path for Eddie Chuculate. Despite the challenges he faced, his upbringing was rich with love and bountiful lessons from his Creek and Cherokee heritage, deep-rooted traditions he embraced even as he learned to live within the culture of white, small-town America that dominated his migratory childhood.

As a retired high school English teacher and boys’ basketball coach of 38 years, Tom Lowery has helped thousands of students negotiate the ups and downs of high school life. During that time, he noticed many of the challenges they faced weren’t all that different from the ones he had to face growing up: things like relationships, the battle for good grades, and the wins and losses of the sports world. Tom began to ask himself why students nowadays are unable to handle life’s stressors.

Changers Book One: Drew opens on the eve of Ethan Miller's freshman year of high school in a brand-new town. He's finally sporting a haircut he doesn't hate, has grown two inches since middle school, and can't wait to try out for the soccer team. At last, everything is looking up in life. Until the next morning. When Ethan awakens as a girl. Ethan is a Changer, a little-known, ancient race of humans who live out each of their four years of high school as a different person.

In January of 1963, Sharon Robinson turned 13 the night before George Wallace declared on national television "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever" in his inauguration for governor of Alabama. That was the start of a year that would become one of the most pivotal years in the history of America. As the daughter of Jackie Robinson, Sharon had incredible access to some of the most important events of the era.

In the early morning of October 18, 1986, Cherie Wier’s life collapses when her teenage son takes the life of her beloved husband. For years, Cherie grapples with events preceding and following the crime, struggling to overcome the consuming grief she suffers from her loss and the difficulty she faces as she attempts to forgive her son. The courtroom accounts of gruesome details and the shocking testimonies from experts only add to Cherie’s yearning to make sense of the crime. She is tormented, wanting to know why the tragedy happened, and if there was anything she could have done.

The Joy of Addiction is a laugh-a-minute, stranger-than-fiction, tragicomedy about a teenager who hurtles into the abyss of drug and alcohol dependency. It is a true story with an unblinking insight into the mindset of an addict and an invaluable message of recovery.

Spending the night in juvie wasn't the worst thing to happen to seven-year-old Teresa that summer. When her much-anticipated cross-country vacation turns to abduction, Teresa is forced to care for her mother, sister, and twin brothers. Homeless, abused, and afraid in the slums of San Francisco's Tenderloin District, Teresa finds joy in her adventures while fantasizing of a better life. Keeping this dream alive throughout her childhood is what drives her to end the cycle of abuse and poverty.

Narrated by the teenage girl who lived it, Closet Full of Coke tells the true story of how a New York suburban fifteen-year-old girl's savvy and wit helps turn the small-time drug business of Armando, a Colombian drug dealer, into a multi-million-dollar cocaine operation that puts them on the DEA's Wanted List. This intimate diary gives readers a fast-paced glimpse of the couple’s speedy rise to riches, and their inevitable descent.

Most of us think of bowling as a "sport" in quotation marks, and bowling alleys are places with disco balls, matching shirts, and funny shoes. But in the 1960s, New York City was the center of "action bowling", a form of high-stakes gambling in which bowlers - often teenagers - faced off for thousands of dollars every night. When money like that is changing hands, you can bet the pressure is on (and the balls are rigged), and losses come with dire consequences.

As a teen mom turned doctor, Dr. A certainly had the odds stacked against her. Raised in the crime-ridden streets of Detroit, her family was turned upside down at age 13 when her parents divorced and her mother was shot by a hitman—and survived! Three years after, Dr. A became a teen mom, young and pregnant while still in high school. Despite it all, she went on to earn three degrees and six figures before the age of 30, all while raising her son and working full time! Using secrets that fostered career management for life, she didn’t just beat the odds, she crushed them!

Investigators and Central Florida residents were horrified when 16-year-old vampire cult leader Rod Ferrell was arrested and charged with bludgeoning a cult member's parents. When they realized the slain couple's 15-year-old daughter was missing, they feared she was a victim, too. Detectives and journalists swarming over three states soon uncovered a web of blood-drinking occult rituals, illicit sex, wildly dysfunctional families, and spiritual warfare.

Carl Lavin was a high school senior when Pearl Harbor was attacked. The Canton, Ohio, native enlisted when he turned 18, a decision that would take him with the US Army from training across the United States and Britain to combat with the 84th Infantry Division in the Battle of the Bulge. Home Front to Battlefront is the tale of a foot soldier who finds himself thrust into a world where he and his unit grapple with the horrors of combat, the idiocies of bureaucracy, and the oddities of life back home - all in the same day.

Farrah Rauch died by cop at the culmination of a long and difficult adolescence. Her family sought help for her, but multiple institutions and treatment facilities failed to reach her. Her friends and siblings tried to help her feel accepted but failed to reach her. Her father, Steve, tried to guide her to better life choices but failed to reach her—until 14 bullets cast their connection for eternity.