Throw out the classics, these books are fantastic

Tired of reading books written before the discovery of electricity? How about those "page turners" originally drafted on parchment? A host of new reads will quench your thirst for non- Shakespearean and modern paperbacks. Here's a brief look at several books to kick back and relax with in your free time this summer.

Twelve by Nick McDonell

Nick McDonell's debut novel Twelve, which was written when the well-connected former prep-schooler was only 17, documents the lives of privileged Manhattan teenagers, complete with ennui, drugs and pop culture. McDonell uses an episodic plot to convey his social/cultural messages throughout the novel. White Mike, Twelve's Cheerios-loving, milkshake-drinking drug dealer, drives the majority of the light plot.

Twelve shares its casual, youthful arrogance with the jaded aggressiveness of predecessors like Catcher in the Rye. McDonell crafts a pulsing narrative that clips along at an after-hours pace, shifting easily from Harlem to Central Park, all to introduce a cast of loosely linked characters. For a 17-year-old author, McDonell does a surprisingly superior job of exposing the world of the Manhattan elite.

She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb

Dolores is an emotional basket case—and for good reason. She's suffered almost every abuse that exists: Her father is a violent, philandering liar, her mother has the mental capacity of a four-year-old, and the men in her life are probably the gender's most loathsome animals. But Dolores does not quit as she battles her woes with a sense of self-indulgence and excess.

Junior Ben Martinez champions the book's emotional pull. "If you are way too happy and you want to get depressed, She's Come Undone definitely evokes that emotion," Martinez explains. Whether disgusted by her antics or moved by her pathetic ploys, the reader will be drawn into Dolores' warped, riotous world.

The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen

The Corrections chronicles the downfall of the Lambert family, headed by Alfred, a once-rigid disciplinarian who now wallows in Parkinson's-induced dementia. He fights with his embittered wife Enid, who yearns for a perfect Midwestern Christmas—a subplot which is the focus of much of the book.

Franzen creates a blend of suspense and character development that is unique. As in his other novels, Franzen expertly mixes a specific tale with broad and sophisticated observations. The final product is social commentary aimed at our personal insecurities, which proffers the adage that diverse people can reach a mutual understanding.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Charlie is a freshman, and while he's not the dork of the school, he's far from adored. He's a wallflower—shy, pensive and mature beyond his years, minus some social know-how. The reader learns about Charlie through the informal letters he writes to an unnamed person, each of which renders his story even more heart-wrenching. Sophomore Karla Anzora found the novel's impact so great she could not stop turning the pages. "Wallflower was the only book I actually ever finished," she says. "The plot kept me interested until the very end." Charlie deals with the same struggles many kids face—friends, crushes, family pressures, sexuality and drug experimentation—but he's also confronted with the trauma of his best friend's recent suicide. These issues make Wallflower a book to which all high school students can relate.

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers

This unruly but professional debut by Dave Eggers begins with a merrily self-referential send-up of memoirs: His ‘Acknowledge-ments' recognize not only "your problems with the title" but also the current surplus of confessional memoirs. Eggers honestly details his heartbreaking story—as a 21-year-old, he lost both his parents within five weeks of each other to cancer, leaving him to raise his eight-year-old brother. He cleverly entwines this story with an account of his founding of Might Magazine in San Francisco. Along with the witty literary devices that pepper the novel, Eggers' funny and furious insights into family misfortune reveal a complex spectrum of emotion.