Adventure & Survival
High-energy books to get your heart racing! Full of narrow escapes, wild adventures, and more. Most of these are Realistic Fiction (though very high drama!). Other adventurous “flavors” can also be found in Science Fiction or Fantasy!
**Conflicts in A&S can be a little different than other stories. Look for these shortcuts:
PvN = Protagonist versus Nature (no “bad guys,” just someone trying to survive in the wilderness)
PvP = Protagonist versus Other People (yep, “bad guys” included)
Heists & Fugitives (PvP)
Protagonists run from a bad guy and must contact the authorities before...
Chasing Vermeer - Blue Balliett
Crossing the Wire - Will Hobbs
The Danger Box - Blue Balliett
Edgeland - Jake Halpern
The Graham Cracker Plot - Shelley Tougas
I Am Princess X - Cherie Priest
Loot: How to Steal a Fortune - Jude Watson
Millions - Frank Cottrell Boyce
On the Run [series] - Gordon Korman
South by Southeast - Anthony Horowitz
Striker: Sudden Death - Nick Hale
Swindle - Gordon Korman
The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid - Colin Meloy
Historical Adventures & Survivors
Beyond the Bright Sea - Lauren Wolk
The Detective’s Assistant - Kate Hannigan
Projekt 1065 - Alan Gratz
Shadow on the Mountain - Margi Preus
Amber and Clay - Laura Amy Schlitz
Alone - Megan Freeman
Living Out in the Wilderness (PvN)
Protagonist endures challenges of nature.
Blind Mountain - Jane Resh Thomas
Go Big or Go Home - Will Hobbs
Hatchet - Gary Paulsen
Ice Island - Sherry Shahan
Island of the Blue Dolphins - Scott O’Dell
Julie of the Wolves - Jean Craighead George
My Side of the Mountain - Jean Craighead George
Never Say Die - Will Hobbs
Old Wolf - Avi
Peak - Roland Smith
The Pirates of Crocodile Swamp - Jim Arnosky
Scar Island - Dan Gemeinhart
Stranded - Jeff Probst
Wild River - PJ Petersen
Search & Rescue (PvN)
Searching for someone lost in the wilderness, or trying to get out.
Connect the Stars - Marisa de los Santos & David Teague
Count Me In - Sara Leach
Falcon Wild - Terry Lynn Johnson
Hatchet - Gary Paulsen
Horizon - Scott Westerfeld
Ice Dogs - Terry Lynn Johnson
Mountain Dog - Margarita Engle
Never Say Die - Will Hobbs
One Came Home - Amy Timberlake
The 7 Professors of the Far North - John Fardell
Surviving Bear Island - Paul Greci
Tumble & Blue - Cassie Beasley
Seafaring Adventures (PvN)
Protagonist vs. Ocean. Not all deserted islands are that great...
Beyond the Bright Sea - Lauren Wolk
Finn at Clee Point - Richard Knight
The Great Wide Sea - M.H. Herlong
Into the Killing Seas - Michael P. Spradlin
Orphan Island - Laurel Snyder
Overboard - Elizabeth Fama
Shark Girl - Kelly Bingham
Shipwreck Island - S.A. Bodeen
Surrounded by Sharks - Michael Northrup
Seafaring Variation: Pirates! (PvP)
Protagonist vs. Pirates!
How to Be a Pirate - Cressida Cowell
Raider’s Ransom - Emily Diamond
Super Spies (PvP)
Protagonist vs. OMINOUS ORGANIZATION. Gizmos, gadgets, and supervillains!
Alex Rider [series] - Anthony Horowitz
The Genius Files [series] - Dan Gutman
H.I.V.E. [series] - Mark Walden
I.Q. [series] - Roland Smith
The League of Unexceptional Children - Gitty Daneshvari
N.E.R.D.S.: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society [series] - Michael Buckley
Outlaw - Stephen Davies
Revenge: Jason Steed - Mark A. Cooper
The Secret of Zoom - Lynne Jonell
Silverfin [Young James Bond series] - Charlie Higson
Spy School [series] - Stuart Gibbs
The Year of the Bomb - Ronald Kidd
Treasure Hunters (PvP)
Protagonists race against the clock to find a treasure before someone else does!
The Adventurer’s Guide to Successful Escapes - Wade Albert White
The Blackthorn Key [series] - Kevin Sands
Book Scavenger [series] - Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
Finders Keepers - Shelley Tougas
Treasure Hunters - James Patterson
Tumble & Blue - Cassie Beasley
The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin
Wild Weather (PVN)
Characters must survive a terrible natural disaster some kind.
Escaping the Giant Wave - Peg Kehret
The Great Wide Sea - M.H. Herlong
Night of the Howling Dogs - Graham Salisbury
Serafina’s Promise - Ann E. Burg
Storm Runners [series] - Roland Smith
Survivors: Fire, Chicago 1871 - Kathleen Duey
Terror at Bottle Creek - Watt Key*