Fourteen-year old Henry Smith's father told him, "If you build your house far away from trouble, trouble will never find you." But trouble comes careening down the road one night in the form of a pickup that strikes Henry's older brother, Franklin. Driving the truck is Chay Chouan, a young Cambodian from Franklin's school. The accident sparks racial tensions in the school and in the well-established town where Henry's family has lived for over 200 years. Caught between anger and grief, Henry sets out to do the only thing he can think of: climb Mount Katahdin, the highest mountain in Maine, which he and Franklin were going to climb together. Without his parents' knowledge, Henry sets out to hitchhike to the mountain with his best friend Sanborn and Black Dog. Prejudice takes on a different face when the three are picked up by Chay, whose personal story has made him leave his family with nowhere to go. Their journey includes moments of danger, discovery, and reconciliation. Franklin's death and the Cambodian atrocities committed against Chay's family, while not graphically described, may be a bit much for the squeamish.
A Million Shades of Gray by Cynthia Kadohata
Since he first touched one of the elephants kept by his village, all thirteen-year old Y'Tin ever wanted was to become an elephant handler. When he is given charge of Lady, Y'Tin becomes the youngest handler of his clan. But in 1975 his life in Vietnam is threatened by the North Vietnamese army after the U.S. forces withdraw. His village is attacked and those who do not escape are murdered or imprisoned. When Y'Tin is ordered to help dig a mass grave, he knows escape is his only hope. He escapes into the jungle with another boy and is reunited with his beloved Lady who is about to calve. This historical adventure, the conflict of the Vietname people, Y'Tin's personal battles with friends and enemies, and his love for Lady make A Million Shades of Gray an engaging read.
