Have anything to add? Email esolberg@monmouthcollege.edu

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Recommended books FROM THE 1990s and BEYOND (with a few exceptions)

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. Purple Hibiscus. Algonquin, 2003.

Alexie, Sherman. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Little, Brown, 2007.

Black, Holly. White Cat (first in the Curse Workers trilogy). McElderry, 2010.

Blundell, Judy. What I Saw and How I Lied. Scholastic, 2008.

Bray, Libba. Beauty Queens. Scholastic, 2011.

Bray, Libba. A Great and Terrible Beauty (first in the Gemma Doyle trilogy). Delacorte, 2003.

Brothers, Meagan. Debbie Harry Sings in French. Henry Holt, 2008.

Clare, Cassandra. City of Bones (first in the Mortal Instruments series). McElderry, 2007.

Cline, Ernest. Ready Player One. Random House, 2011.

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games (first in the Hunger Games trilogy). Scholastic, 2008.

Crutcher, Chris. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes. Greenwillow, 1993.

danforth, emily e. The Miseducation of Cameron Post. Balzer + Bray. 2012.

Farmer, Nancy. The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm. Puffin, 1994.

Flake, Sharon G.. The Skin I’m In. Jump at the Sun, 1998.

George, Madeleine. The Difference Between You and Me. Viking, 2012.

Goode, Laura. Sister Mischief. Candlewick, 2011.

Green, John. The Fault in Our Stars. Dutton Juvenile, 2012.

Headley, Justina Chen. Nothing But the Truth (and a Few White Lies). Little, Brown, 2006.

Hornsby, Nick. Slam. Putnam, 2007

Johnson, Maureen. 13 Little Blue Envelopes. HarperCollins, 2005.

Johnson, Maureen. The Name of the Star (first in the Shades of London series). Putnam, 2011.

Larbalestier, Justine. Magic or Madness (first in the Magic or Madness trilogy). Penguin, 2005.

Link, Kelly. Pretty Monsters. New York: Speak, 2008.

Lo, Malinda. Ash. Little, Brown, 2009.

Lo, Malinda. Huntress. Little, Brown, 2009

Malín, Alegría. Estrella’s Quinceañera. Simon & Schuster, 2006.

Maloy, Maile. The Apothecary. Putnam Juvenile, 2011.

Marsden, John. Tomorrow, When the War Began (first in the Tomorrow series). Houghton-Mifflin, 1995.

McKinley, Robin. Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast. HarperCollins, 1978.

Moore, Perry. Hero. Hyperion, 2007.

Okorafor, Nnedi.  Akata Witch. Viking, 2011.

Okorafor-Mbachu, Nnedi. Zahrah the Windseeker. Graphia, 2005.

Pinkney, Andrea. Bird in a Box. Little, Brown 2011.

Reynolds, Sheri. The Sweet In-Between. Three Rivers, 2008.

Rowling J.K.. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (first in the Harry Potter series). Scholastic, 1998.

Ryan, Pan Muñoz. Esperanza Rising. Scholastic, 2000.

Roth, Veronica. Divergent (first in the Divergent trilogy). HarperCollins, 2011.

Sherman, Delia. The Freedom Maze. Big Mouth House, 2011.

Smith, Sherri L. Flygirl. Putnam Juvenile, 2009.

Stead, Rebecca. When You Reach Me. Wendy Lamb Books, 2009.

Taylor, Laini. Daughter of Smoke and Bone (first in a series). Hachette, 2011.

Vaught, Susan. Big Fat Manifesto. Bloomsbury, 2008.

Zusak, Markus. The Book Thief. Knopf, 2005.

Want more books by or information on these authors? Try googling the author's website.
Also, many authors are active on Twitter, such as @malindalo and @nnedi.

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Suggested Websites

http://www.diversityinya.com/

http://www.foreveryoungadult.com/

http://bitchmagazine.org/post/from-the-library-100-young-adult-books-for-the-feminist-reader

http://www.gayya.org/

http://www.phoebenorth.com/

http://www.hungermtn.org/young-adults-and-childrens-literature/

http://www.kirkusreviews.com/lists/tough-teen-heroines-science-fiction-and-fantasy/

http://ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/printzaward/Printz.cfm

http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklistsbook.cfm

http://thehappynappybookseller.blogspot.com/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/teen-books

http://www.amightygirl.com/

http://readergirlz.blogspot.com/

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/48255-children-s-bookshelf-archive.html

http://www.avclub.com/features/ya-why/

 http://blackteensread2.blogspot.com/p/booklists.html "Reading in Color."

http://bookobsessiongpl.blogspot.com/ Book Obsession. Blog by teen librarians ar Glendale Public Library, Glendale, AZ.

http://diversityinya.tumblr.com/post/43987101928/diversity-in-ya-is-baaaack-on-tumblr    Diversity in Young Adut Lit.

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 Suggested Articles

"2011 Recommended Reading List." Locus Online: The Website of The Magazine of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Field. 1 Feb. 2012. http://www.locusmag.com/Magazine/2012/02/2011-recommended-reading-list/ 

"5 Questions with... the Legendary Judy Blume!" Engage/Teacher to Teacher Blog. 29 Sept. 2011.  http://engage.reading.org/blogsnbspnbsp/blogviewer/?BlogKey=c9cb42c6-d7a9-46a9-9cd4-c87ff3c3a20c&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed  Blume is still engaged, funny, and thoughtful.

Allain, Sarah. "Should We Be Worried About the End of Boys? Probably Not…" Love Letters. 8 Nov. 2012. http://saraallain.wordpress.com/2012/11/08/should-we-be-worried-about-the-end-of-boys-article-review/ A response to Melse.

Almagor, Lelac. "And Stay Out of Trouble: Narratives for Black Urban Children." The Horn Book Magazine. Sept./Oct. 2009:525-9. http://archive.hbook.com/magazine/articles/2009/sep09_almagor.asp (See Flake for response.)

Anderson, Laurie Halse. "Happy & Sad about the NPR Top 100 YA List." LaurieHalseAnderson.com. 12 Aug. 2012. http://madwomanintheforest.com/happy-sad-about-the-npr-top-100-ya-list/

Bajpai, Nandini. "100+ YA Book Covers of Color!" Pinterest. http://pinterest.com/nandinibajpai/one-hundred-ya-book-covers-of-color/ A great visual display featuring covers with characters of color.

Bean, Thomas W. and Helen Harper. “Reading Men Differently: Alternative Portrayals of Masculinity in Contemporary Young Adult Fiction.” Reading Psychology 28:11-30, 2007. MC students can access it through Hewes in the Academic Search Premier database.

Beaudoin, Sean. "The Dudes of YA, a 'Lit-Erotic' Photo Spread. The Weeklings.com. 14 Nov. 2012. http://www.theweeklings.com/sbeaudoin/2012/11/14/the-dudes-of-ya-a-lit-erotic-photo-spread/  Mostly for fun, but also a great list of YA writers.

Bloebaum, Billie. "My Favorite Young Adult Novels." Powells.com. 2 Dec. 2011. http://www.powells.com/blog/contributors/my-favorite-young-adult-novels-by-bjb/#more-38457

Brennan, Sarah Rees. "Gay in YA and the Circle of Suck." LiveJournal. 23 Sept. 2011. http://sarahtales.livejournal.com/189748.html

Chicago Public Library. "Best of the Best Books 2012: For Teens -- Ages 14 and Older." Chicago Pubic Library.org 2012.. http://www.chipublib.org/forteens/teenspages/bestofbest_teen.php

Children's Book Council. "Diversifying the 'Best Of' Lists." CBC Diversity. Dec. 14 2012.  http://www.cbcdiversity.com/2012/12/diversifying-best-of-lists.html?spref=tw A selection of books with diversity chosen from various end-of-year book lists.

Diana. "No Longer 'Silent All These Years.' The Explosion of Young Adult Fiction and Its Impact on the Future Voices of Women." Feminine Things. 31 Dec. 2011. http://www.femininethings.org/2011/12/no-longer-silent-all-these-years.html

Doll, Jen. "What Does 'Young Adult' Mean?" The Atlantic Wire. 19 Apr. 2012. http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2012/04/what-does-young-adult-mean/51316/

Doll, Jen. "The Ongoing Problem of Race in Y.A." The Atlantic Wire. 26 Apr. 2012. http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2012/04/ongoing-problem-race-y/51574/

Flake, Sharon. "A Response to Lelac Almagor's 'And Stay Out of Trouble'"). The Horn Book. 2011. http://archive.hbook.com/resources/authorsartists/shoptalk/flake.asp (See Almagor, Lelac entry above.)

Grossman, Lev. "Literary Revolution in the Supermarket Aisle: Genre Fiction Is Disruptive Technology." Time.com. 23 May 2012. http://entertainment.time.com/2012/05/23/genre-fiction-is-disruptive-technology/

Grossman, Lev. "Love Among the Ruins." Time.com. 12 Mar. 2012. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2108049,00.html

Hannah. "Diverse Dystopias: A Book List." The Open Book. Lee&Low.com. 30 Aug. 2012. http://blog.leeandlow.com/2012/08/30/diverse-dystopias-a-book-list/

Harrison, Metteivie. "In Defense of Twilight." Mettevieharrison. 8 Nov. 2012. http://metteivieharrison.tumblr.com/post/35274316931/in-defense-of-twilight

Hart, Kate. "Uncovering YA Covers: 2011." Kate Hart.  16 May 21012. http://www.katehart.net/2012/05/uncovering-ya-covers-2011.html

Holmes, Anna. "White Until Proven Black: Imagining Race in Hunger Games." NewYorker.com. 30 Mar. 2012. http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2012/03/hunger-games-and-trayvon-martin.html

Johnson, Maureen. "Coverflip: Maureen Johnson Calls For An End To Gendered Book Covers With An Amazing Challenge." 5 May 2013. HuffingtonPost.com. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/07/coverflip-maureen-johnson_n_3231935.html YA author Johnson questions the different marketing strategies of books written by men and women and asks readers to flip the gender of favorite books and re-imagine the covers.

Kaufman, Leslie. "Beyond Wizards and Vampires, to Sex." 12 Dec. 2012. The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/22/books/young-adult-authors-add-steaminess-to-their-tales.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&smid=tw-nytimes&_r=0 Claims that YA Lit with more erotic content is a new publishing trend.

Klise, James. "Class, Today's Word Is Irony." Chicago Tribune. 27 Sept. 2012. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/ct-perspec-0927-books-20120927,0,6457009.story  A YA author is invited to read during Banned Books Week only to have his invitation revoked because his book is too controversial.

Kwitney, Alisa. "YA Crush: Who's Brooding Now? The YA Heroine Has a Sulk." 25 Jan. 2012. Heroes and Heartbreakers.com. http://www.heroesandheartbreakers.com/blogs/2012/01/whos-brooding-now-the-ya-heroine-has-a-sulk

Larbalestier, Justine. "Duty of Care." Justinelarbalestier.com. 31 July 2012.  http://justinelarbalestier.com/blog/2012/08/01/duty-of-care/  Larbalestier argues that a YA writer's job with her/his readers is not a parental-type role but to "write the best and most truthful stories we can." 

Lewit, Meghan. "Why Do Female Authors Dominate Young-Adult Fiction? 7 Aug. 2012. The Atlantic.com http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/08/why-do-female-authors-dominate-young-adult-fiction/260829/

Lo, Malinda. FAQ on Ash. MalindaLo.com.  http://www.malindalo.com/ash/ash-faq/

Lo, Malinda. "Recommended." 18 Jan. 2012. MalindaLo.com. http://www.malindalo.com/extras/recommended/ Malinda Lo's list of recommended books featuring queer female characters.

Lo, Malinda. "YA Fiction and the Many Possibilities of Manhood." MalindaLo.com. 12 Nov. 2012. http://www.malindalo.com/2012/11/ya-fiction-and-the-many-possibilities-of-manhood/ A response to Melse.

Lu, Marie. "Writing a Book for Boys." The Huffington Post. 4 Mar. 2013. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marie-lu/writing-a-book-for-boys_b_2806387.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003. Lu argues for the un-usefulness of gender-based labels for books and the usefulness of genre labels like science fiction or urban fantasy.

Masurat, Anastasia. YA? Why Not? Bitch. Fall 2008: 66-81. Includes an interview with Nnedi Okorafor. See Professor Solberg for a copy, search databases, or order back issues at http://bitchmagazine.org/feminist-magazine-back-issues

Mesle, Sarah. "YA Fiction and the End of Boys." Los Angeles Review of Books. 8 Nov. 2012. (see North and for responses) http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=1152&fulltext=1&media=

Miller, Jessica. "Taking Teens to Brand-New Worlds with YA Science Fiction" YALSA: The Hub (Your Connection to Teen Reads). 24 Jan. 2012. http://www.yalsa.ala.org/thehub/2012/01/24/taking-teens-to-brand-new-worlds-with-ya-science-fiction/

Miller, Laura. "Dystopias for Young Readers" The New Yorker 14/21 June 2010. http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2010/06/14/100614crat_atlarge_miller 

Miller, Laura. "A Prestige-Free Zone." Salon.com 12 Aug 2012. http://www.salon.com/2012/08/15/a_prestige_free_zone/?source=newsletter

Mitchell, Saundra. "It's Not the End of Boys, It's the Beginning of New Men." Making Stuff Up for a Living.com. 8 Nov. 2012. http://saundramitchell.com/blog/2012/11/08/everytime-ya-gets-big-press-its-because-its-girl-centered A response to Melse.

NPR Books. "Young Adult Fiction Finalists." npr.com. 24 July 2012.  http://www.npr.org/2012/07/24/157111862/young-adult-fiction-finalists

NPR Books. "Your Favorites: 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels." npr.com. 7 Aug. 2012. http://www.npr.org/2012/08/07/157795366/your-favorites-100-best-ever-teen-novels

North, Phoebe. "YA and Boys and the Problem of Limited Historical Context." Phoebenorth.com. 8 Nov. 2012.  http://www.phoebenorth.com/2012/11/08/ya-and-boys-and-the-problem-of-limited-historical-context/ A response to Melse.

Ockler, Sarah. "Race in YA Lit: Wake Up & Smell the Coffee-Colored Skin, White Authors!" sarahockler.com. 30 Apr. 2012. http://sarahockler.com/2012/04/30/race-in-ya-lit-wake-up-smell-the-coffee-colored-skin-white-authors/

Park, Linda Sue. "On NPR 'best ever teen novels' list." What I'm Reading.com. 16 Aug. 2012 http://lsparkreader.livejournal.com/86319.html

Porter, Daisy. "From Problem to Pride: A Short History of Queer YA Fiction." MalindaLo.com. 4 June 2012. http://www.malindalo.com/2012/06/from-problem-to-pride-a-short-history-of-queer-ya-fiction/

"Rants about Rants about YA." YA!Flash. 18 Dec. 2012. http://yaflash.tumblr.com/post/39106372768/rants-about-rants-about-ya A critique of overly familiar critiques of YA Lit.Rappaport, Hilary. "On the Rights of Reading and Girls and Boys." The Horn Book. 12 Apr. 2012. http://www.hbook.com/2012/04/using-books/home/on-the-rights-of-reading-and-girls-and-boys/

reise. "Read a F*cking Book: 20 Best Young Adult Novels For Queer Girls." Autostraddle.com. 10 Aug. 2012. http://www.autostraddle.com/20-best-teen-novels-for-queer-girls-143198/

Seltzer, Sarah. “Hunger Pangs: Hunting for the Perfect Heroine.” Bitch. Summer 2011: 38-42. See Professor Solberg for a copy, search databases, or order back issues at http://bitchmagazine.org/feminist-magazine-back-issues

Smith, S.E. "We're All Mad Here: Mental Illness in YA Fiction" Bitchmedia. 22 Aug. 2011. http://bitchmagazine.org/post/were-all-mad-here-mental-illness-in-ya-fiction. An overview of six books recommended for their portrayal of young people and mental illness.

Smith, Tiana. "Beauty in Books." TianaSmith. 12 May 2012. http://www.tianasmith.com/search

Sylvester, Brad. "Textbook Adoption: the New Face of Banning Books" Yahoo! News. 20 Sept. 2011. http://news.yahoo.com/textbook-adoption-face-banning-books-223600744.html 

Woodson, Jacqueline. "Good Minds Suggest -- Jacqueline Woodson's Favorite Books about Real Teen Problems. GoodReads.com. Feb. 2012. http://www.goodreads.com/interviews/show/649.Jacqueline_Woodson?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=goodminds

 

Copyright 2012 Erika Solberg. All rights reserved.