I really liked your list but I noticed you left off some award winners and other highly acclaimed authors off your list.
If you're looking for some historical fiction with the scope and power of Octavian Nothing give, Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis a try. Although my favorite Christopher Paul Curtis novel is The Watsons Go To Birmingham, 1963. Another good read-a-like for Octavian Nothing is the 1976 Newbery Winner, Roll of Thunder, Hear by Cry by Mildred Taylor. I read it too young as a child; only by reading it again as an adult did I realize how awesome this book was. Plus the great thing about it is that it has a prequel and several sequels.
Another favorite book of mine is Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood by Ben Saenz. It was voted best YA book of 2004 by Adbooks (a listserv about adolescent books frequented by YA libraians, publishers and authors)
The Printz winner (The best YA book decided by A.L.A) last year was a graphic novel called American Born Chinese by Gene Yang. It is the story about Jin, the only Asian kid at his middle school and how he meet's the legendary Monkey King. It has a really cool format and story structure.
Lastly, anything by Walter Dean Myers. There's a reason he's a legend in YA fiction.
More book
If you're looking for some historical fiction with the scope and power of Octavian Nothing give, Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis a try. Although my favorite Christopher Paul Curtis novel is The Watsons Go To Birmingham, 1963. Another good read-a-like for Octavian Nothing is the 1976 Newbery Winner, Roll of Thunder, Hear by Cry by Mildred Taylor. I read it too young as a child; only by reading it again as an adult did I realize how awesome this book was. Plus the great thing about it is that it has a prequel and several sequels.
Another favorite book of mine is Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood by Ben Saenz. It was voted best YA book of 2004 by Adbooks (a listserv about adolescent books frequented by YA libraians, publishers and authors)
The Printz winner (The best YA book decided by A.L.A) last year was a graphic novel called American Born Chinese by Gene Yang. It is the story about Jin, the only Asian kid at his middle school and how he meet's the legendary Monkey King. It has a really cool format and story structure.
Lastly, anything by Walter Dean Myers. There's a reason he's a legend in YA fiction.