11. Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
Why not give your teen a novel by a virtuoso who wrote it when he was (practically) a teenager himself. Based on his own life and that of his grandparents, Safran Foer takes a personal family history and a college thesis project and turns his research trip into his first novel. A clever structure and strong reliance on actual historical events, this book will challenge your teen to think on many different levels.
