Chinese Handcuffs
by Chris Crutcher
Young adult · ages 12–18 · grades 7–12 · 820L · 202 pages · 1991
Why we'd hand it over
A 1991 landmark YA novel about suicide and self-harm that still holds because Crutcher refuses sentimentality — the friendship between Dillon and Jennifer feels true, and the ending doesn't resolve the characters' pain, only their willingness to keep showing up.