CCBC booklist are compiled from books we have recommended in various editions of CCBC Choices. Most of these booklists are updated annually. You can also select books from one or more booklists to create a custom list, which can also include additional books from the CCBC-Recommended Book Search.
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Icarus
CCBC Review:
Icarus, 17, works for his father, Angus, an art restorer and forger. Part of his job is to regularly break into Mr. Black’s mansion to replace art pieces with forgeries Angus made. Because their lives demand secrecy, intelligent and socially savvy Icarus (white) maintains distance from kids at school, curating acquaintanceships with strict emotional and physical parameters. Secretly plotting to flee home and their life of crime when he turns 18, Icarus’s plans are upended when he discovers Mr. Black’s teenage son, Helios, is a literal captive—wearing an ankle monitor and unable to escape Mr. Black’s house or abuse. Lonely Helios promises to keep Icarus’s thefts secret if Icarus continues to visit. Icarus does, and the two become friends and then fall in love. At the same time, Icarus is surprised to discover that the school relationships he thought he could so carefully control are something else altogether—they’re friendships. And it turns out his friends have been worried about him—a realization that is transformative for Icarus and Helios both. This suspenseful, richly layered novel full of symbolism and suspense explores themes of abuse and trauma, families and friendship. But at its heart it’s a tender, hopeful story about kids taking care of one another, a theme further buoyed by the author’s note discussing how teens are often first to notice when a peer is having problems, and can often be the first (and sometimes only) ones to lend support. ©2025 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Age 14 and older
Age Range:
Grades 9-12 (Age 14 and older)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
Abuse
Art and Artists
Crime
Ethical/Moral Choices
Friendship
Gays
LGBTQ+ Persons
Love and Romance
Suspense
Diversity subject:
LGBTQ Character/Topic
On CCBC Booklist:
LGBTQ Lives in Selected Children's and Young Adult Books
Publishers:
HarperCollins, HarperTeen
Publish Year: 2024
Pages: 382
ISBN: 9780063285781
CCBC Location: Fiction, Ancrum
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Please send questions or comments about CCBC booklists to ccbcinfo@education.wisc.edu.