After living in twelve places in eight years with her drifting mother, fourteen year old Calle Smith finds herself in Andreas Bay, California, at the start of ninth grade. Fearful of putting down roots anywhere, but armed with her song journal, she moves to her own soundtrack through a world that bounces her between the school drama crowd, a mysterious loner, and an unlikely boy who will become her first love. But it's the troubling truth Calle uncovers about the father she thought abandoned her that forces Calle to face the toughest choice of her young life.

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Songs for a Teenage Nomad
    a novel by kim culbertson
        What is the soundtrack of your life?


2008 Ben Franklin Award Winner:
Best New Voice in Children's/YA Fiction

Silver Medal YA Fiction: 2008 IPPY Awards

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"WOW!! Rich, beautifully detailed, extremely well written and completely real people in a real world, coping, just as we all cope. Calle is a female kind of Holden Caulfield. There is no hidden agenda in the book to try to get the reader to "drink the kool-aid", just a well told story that allows the reader of any age to feel, explore, and decide for themselves the basic issues of life and love for themselves. Walking with Calle through her life as she explored her options and her opportunities was as interesting and absorbing as reading Catcher in the Rye was many, many years ago. Brilliant work."
-- Ben Franklin Award Judge

"SONGS FOR A TEENAGE NOMAD is a wonderful book. It is a high school classic reminiscent of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, only it is more appropriate for a slightly younger audience. Calle is a wonderful character and, as the reader, you want her to succeed in all areas of her life....The most unusual part of this book is that it has a great soundtrack. You are able to listen along with Calle, giving more dimension to her character and the book....This is a novel that you will want to experience over and over again, just like a great song."
-- Teensreadtoo.com 5 Star Review, Reviewed by: Becca Boland

"Culbertson has crafted a world true and honest to the teenage experience, with characters you love immediately. Her storytelling reminds me of the classic teen book and movie titles of the '80s, like The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink, and I'm thrilled to be working with her on the film adaptation."
-- Loretta Ramos, MFA Producers Program, UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television

" Kim Culbertson understands me. I hear my own voice, my own confusion, pain, happiness, and self-discovery echoed through Calle's narrative. From start to finish, I relate to Calle on a level that I have never before experienced in a book."
-- Michaela, age 16, Portland, OR

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