Booklist Magazine released its Editors’ Choice lists earlier this week, including the annual Best Adult Books for Young Adults. Booklist is the only other review journal that creates a list sharing our criteria — books published for adults that have interest for young adults — so it is always fun to compare the two.
Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern Once Upon a River by Bonnie Jo Campbell Ready Player One by Ernest Cline Swamplandia! by Karen Russell When She Woke by Hillary Jordan Girls Like Us: Fighting for a World Where Girls are not for Sale, an Activist Finds Her Calling and Heals Herself by Rachel Lloyd
Booklist includes three titles that we did not review here: Wingshooters by Nina Revoyr, The World Beneath by Cate Kennedy, and Earth: The Operators’ Manual by Richard Alley. I had all of them on my list to consider. We did not receive review copies of the first two, and I failed to review the third myself. (Yes, I do sometimes assign books to myself then get side-tracked. I’m working on that!)
The others, those that we did review here but did not choose for our Best list, were all reviewed very positively. They simply did not stand out to their SLJ reviewer as a best. And I think I may reveal that Zahra’s Paradise was reviewed too late. It would probably have found a place on our list too.
I mentioned earlier what a strong year it has been for adult books with teen appeal. I am looking forward to the last of the triumvirate – the Alex Awards – to be announced at the Youth Media Awards during ALA Midwinter in Dallas on Monday, January 23rd. My observation is that the Alex Awards tend to emphasize appeal. To my eyes, the Booklist Best list tilts toward the literary. So I expect differences. And, of course, the Alex committee is only allowed to honor 10 titles. I can’t imagine narrowing the field to just ten this year. Of course, that’s why it’s a committee process.
What might be considered Alex shoe-ins? Oh, how I would love to speculate! I know what I would be fighting for, and I think I know what I would fight for in vain (if past experience is any indication). But it all comes down to those final discussions at the Midwinter conference itself. At least the Alex committee is now allowed to reveal a nominations list as well as the ten winners, which gives everyone more titles to recommend to teens.
The purpose of AB4T is to help librarians and other readers learn about books published for the adult market that have appeal to teens.
Currently, nearly 20 librarians review for the blog. All work with teens in either public or school libraries, in a variety of settings across the country. We began work on the Best list in September. I invited the reviewers to “nominate” titles they found to be among the best of the year. In order to make the final list each title needed at least two enthusiastic readers, so once we had a preliminary list together we signed up as second readers, many of us discovering new favorites among the titles reviewed by others.
2011 was a particularly strong year for adult books with appeal to young adult readers. In the end I narrowed down the long list to the titles displayed here, and that was a challenge. Truth is, I was asked to come up with a list of 15-20. You might notice that there are 24 here. Love that SLJ is flexible, because it would have been too painful to let even one of these go!
It’s hardly surprising that genre fiction is well represented here, as are debut authors. What stands out this year is the number of literary fiction titles with teen appeal. For example, three of our titles are among the five fiction choices on the New York Times “10 Best Books of 2011″. That’s unusual.
And finally, I’m very pleased to add that the list is back in the print magazine this year — the December 2011 issue is in the mail as we speak.
FICTION
BIRCH, Carol. Jamrach’s Menagerie. (Doubleday)
Jaffy leaves behind his life on the streets of 19th-century London for an adventure to the Pacific Islands aboard a whaling ship in search of a mythical–yet far too real–dragon in this enormously satisfying novel of friendship, survival, and redemption.
CAMPBELL, Bonnie Jo. Once Upon a River. (Norton)
Sixteen-year-old runaway Margo Green creates a new life on the river. Guided by a biography of Annie Oakley and an astounding ease with the natural world, Margo struggles to navigate the perils of human nature while she searches for the mother who abandoned her long ago.
CLINE, Ernest. Ready Player One. (Crown)
Imagine if Willie Wonka had been a video game designer. Now imagine a world where most people spend their time as avatars in a virtual reality. The founder of this virtual reality leaves his fortune to the first to win a contest, comprised of puzzles and tasks based on 1980s popular culture. Three teens compete to win against an evil conglomerate.
CUTTER, Kimberly. The Maid. (Houghton Harcourt)
This thrilling, visceral retelling of the life of Joan of Arc follows the rise of a poor, abused, illiterate girl who leaves her family and follows fervent belief and conviction to victory in battle and renown. Readers will yearn for a different story this time, to avoid the betrayal, abandonment and death at its end.
DIFFENBAUGH, Vanessa. The Language of Flowers. (Ballantine)
Alternate chapters weave Victoria’s past as a foster child and her present as a semi-homeless 18-year-old in Diffenbaugh’s moving debut. Victoria finds her first job in a florist shop, putting to use the language of flowers she first learned from her only real family, the foster mother she lost 10 years earlier.
GRANT, Helen. The Glass Demon: A Novel. (Bantam)
In this creepy gothic novel, Lin’s family moves to a German village so her father can study thelegend of the Allerheiligen Glass – medieval stained glass windows said to have been cursed by a demon, bringing death to those who gaze upon them. A brilliant combination of horror, fairy tales, mystery, and romance.
GROSSMAN, Lev. The Magician King. (Viking)
Fillory is a magical utopia. With little for a monarch to do, Quentin goes on a quest. Alternating chapters relate his old friend, Julia’s backstory. While Quentin enjoyed life at Brakebills, Julia learned magic on the streets. Her journey is powerful and horrifying in this follow-up to The Magicians.
HARRINGTON, Laura. Alice Bliss: A Novel. (Viking)
Alice’s idyllic small-town life is interrupted when her father’s army reserve unit is called up for active duty in Iraq. After he is declared missing in action, she turns to her best friend, the boy next door, for support.
HENDERSON, Eleanor. Ten Thousand Saints. (HarperCollins)
It begins with the drug-fueled last day in the life of 15-year-old Teddy McNicholas, and spirals from there into the lives of those who were closest to him. Henderson’s depiction of late-1980s New York is impressive–from the Straight Edge scene to the gay community’s grappling with HIV.
HOWREY, Meg. Blind Sight. (Pantheon)
When he is invited to live with his biological father for the summer, 17-year-old Luke is amazed to discover that the man is a famous television star. Chapters begin with the teen’s wonderfully witty college application essays, which reflect a new understanding of family dynamics and the workings of the human brain.
JORDAN, Hillary. When She Woke. (Algonquin)
Reproductive freedom, racism, and the separation of church and state are only a few of the issues explored in this character-driven dystopian novel that bears parallels to The Scarlet Letter.
MORGENSTERN, Erin. The Night Circus. (Doubleday)
Le Cirque des Rêves appears without warning on the outskirts of cities around the world. Only open at night, it is filled with magic and theater, each tent a sensory experience, manipulated and sustained by two young people locked in a mysterious competition.
OBREHT, Téa. The Tiger’s Wife. (Random)
In a war-torn Balkan country, a young doctor remembers her grandfather and tells a series of interlinked tales both historical and magical featuring the tiger’s wife and the deathless man. In this account of love, loss and war in the modern world, Obreht’s vivid writing creates unforgettable visions of unique settings.
RUSSELL, Karen. Swamplandia! (Knopf)
Mere months after their mother dies, the Bigtree family’s alligator-wrestling theme park and cafe, Swamplandia!, goes out of business, sending the abandoned siblings on individual perilous journeys away from home in this dazzling, affecting, funny novel.
SOLOMON, Anna. The Little Bride. (Riverhead)
In late 19th-century Russia, Minna, a 16-year-old servant, wishing for a new life in America, signs up with Rosenfeld’s Bridal Service. She is sent to the hardscrabble South Dakota Territory where both her devoutly orthodox husband-to-be and his crude one-room dugout fall far short of her dreams.
VENDITTI, Robert & Mike Huddleston. Homeland Directive. (Top Shelf)
This tightly plotted thriller of a graphic novel probes the fine line between government protection and privacy invasion. The United States has determined that its residents can be investigated for suspicious activities by mining everyone’s data DNA, the sum of each person’s online transactions and activities.
WALTON, Jo. Among Others. (Tor)
As she recovers from the confrontation with her mother that killed her twin sister, Mori keeps a journal permeated by a love of reading in this mesmerizing fantasy novel. Sent to a boarding school where she is desperately lonely and abandoned by the fairies who once kept her safe, Mori finds refuge in books, which are her instruction manuals and her joy.
WILSON, Daniel H. Robopocalypse. (Doubleday)
In this artificial intelligence blockbuster, the heroic actions of a handful of characters are told in the form of briefing reports recovered after the Robot Wars that nearly exterminated humanity. This format with its emphasis on survival in battle and full-throttle action will appeal particularly to those who enjoy science-gone-wrong thrillers.
WOODING, Chris. Retribution Falls. (Spectra)
Captain Darian Frey loves the Ketty Jay, his airship, and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep flying. After he and his crew of misfits take on a job that goes horribly awry, they find themselves aligned against a conspiracy and trying to save the day in this action-filled, steampunk adventure.
NONFICTION
BROWN, Mike. How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming. (Spiegel & Grau)
Brown gives a charming account of the astounding series of discoveries that result in the down-grading of Pluto from planet status. The combination of engaging humor, accessible science, and personal anecdote makes for a lively glimpse into an extremely successful career in astronomy.
GRENNAN, Conor. Little Princes: One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal. (HarperCollins/Morrow)
What was intended to be a 90-day experience working in an orphanage became much more on the day Grennan learned that many of his young charges were actually the victims of a child trafficker. In this adventurous, funny and even romantic book, he dedicates himself to reconnecting the children with their families in remote Nepalese villages.
OTTAVIANI, Jim. Feynman. (First Second)
Nobel-Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman was a researcher, professor, civilian scientist at the birth of the atomic bomb, and famed lecturer. His quirky personality and his passion for physics and for fun are presented in energetic, colorful images, as are his more important scientific theories.
TRAN, GB. Vietnamerica: A Family’s Journey. (Villard)
In this intriguing graphic memoir, Tran, born and raised in the United States, returns to Vietnam to research his family’s history, especially their experiences of the Vietnam War and then adapting to life as immigrants living in the United States.
With ALA Annual approaching, where we all begin to look forward to fall books, this is a good time to look back at the best of the best of the year so far.
Each blog reviewer was asked to choose up to 3. We aimed (as always) to highlight books that offer a combination of quality and teen appeal. Some reviewers offer a reason for choosing the book as a “best,” others a brief plot summary. Either way, click on the link for the full blog review.
Agree or disagree? Please share your own favorites in the comments!
Fiction
After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn
Probably the most teen appeal of the three I’ve chosen. Really fun, but thought-provoking at the same time. (Mark Flowers)
Alice Bliss by Laura Harrington
Alice’s idyllic small-town life is interrupted when her father’s army reserve unit is called up for active duty in Iraq. (Angela Carstensen)
Among Othersby Jo Walton
A love of reading permeates this mesmerizing fantasy about Mori’s life after her twin sister’s death and surviving her mother’s attempts to destroy her. (Angela Carstensen)
Big Girl Smallby Rachel DeWoskin
Sixteen year-old Judy has the body of a little person, but the fiery drive of a dragon master, until the day she finds herself in the center of a sex scandal. (Diane Colson)
Blind Sight by Meg Howrey
Seventeen year-old Luke is amazed to discover that his biological father is a famous television star. Even more amazing is the bond that develops between father and son, and Luke’s gradual understanding of his family. (Diane Colson)
The Cloud Roads by Martha Wells
A rousing fantasy about a lost boy who can shift from “groundling” to a winged form, and who discovers he has a role to play in saving the world. (Karyn Silverman)
The Glass Demon by Helen Grant
The development of mood, setting and rising tension pay off in a harrowing climax. The savvy and complex teen characters have an original point of view that keeps readers caring about their story. (Priscille Dando)
Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch
Jaffy leaves behind a life on the streets of 19th-century London for adventure on the high seas in this enormously satisfying novel of friendship, survival, and redemption. (Connie Williams)
The Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card
This speculative fiction coming of age tale has Danny discovering his mettle when he learns he may be the most powerful gatemage ever born. Too bad his family wants him dead. (Charli Osborne)
Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson
This will be a go-to book for librarians wanting to satisfy reluctant teen readers – a barely plausible war thriller told in brief episodes of relentless action. (John Sexton)
Sister by Rosamund Lupton
A really well told mystery with great characters and a *completely* unexpected ending. (Carla Riemer)
Spiral by Paul McEuen
Tight plotting, three dimensional characters and seamless integration of science make this a stand out thriller. (Priscille Dando)
Swamplandia!by Karen Russell
A dazzling, affecting, funny novel in which three abandoned siblings each journey away from their isolated island home at their own peril. (Angela Carstensen)
Ten Thousand Saints by Eleanor Henderson
Haven’t had a chance to try this one out on teens yet, and I have a feeling it might be a hard sell, but the book is just too good not to include. (Mark Flowers)
The Tiger’s Wife by Téa Obreht
In a war-torn Eastern European country, a young doctor remembers her grandfather and tells a series of interlinked tales both historical and magical. (Karyn Silverman)
Touch by Alexi Zentner
Grief and loss across generations in the Far North, Touch is story-telling at its best. (John Sexton)
The Uncertain Places by Lisa Goldstein
A gripping fantasy appealing even to non-fantasy fans like me. The story stays with you in a very haunting way. (Caroline Bartels)
The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (Kingkiller Chronicles #2)
Nothing else manages this blend of genuine adolescent voice; sophisticated, beautiful writing; and heart-wrenching, pulse-pounding action. (Karyn Silverman)
History of a Suicide: My Sister’s Unfinished Life by Jill Bialosky
Teen readers, especially those impacted by suicide, will find insight in this unforgettable account of the tragic circumstances and aftermath of the death of the author’s sister by suicide. (John Sexton)
Little Princes:One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal by Conor Grennan
A fast funny read with romance, adventure and a good cause. Teens will relate, enjoy reading and plot how to change the world if they aren’t already doing so. This book has taken off in schools across the country. (Amy Cheney)
The Listener by David Lester
Louise, a contemporary young Canadian sculptor, travels to Europe after an activist friend dies during a protest in Vancouver. There she confronts the influence of the Third Reich on international art and politics, past and present. (Francisca Goldsmith)
Vietnamerica by GB Tran
The best GN I’ve seen in a while. Intriguing story, perfect structure, excellent blending of art and words. (Mark Flowers)
Poetry
Ardency: A Chronicle of the Amistad Rebels by Kevin Young
A chorus of voices brings the story of the Amistad to life, from hymns and letters to speeches and a reading primer. (Karlan Sick)
I am home from ALA Midwinter with plenty to share. I was hoping to blog along the way, but it was a busy, busy conference. Never fear, I took plenty of notes. I also learned about several promising upcoming titles along the way, so I look forward to sharing the pre-pub excitement here, once those boxes arrive.
Today I want to talk about YALSA’s 2011 Alex Awards, which were announced at the Youth Media Awards on Monday morning. The 2011 list is absolutely wonderful, with terrific appeal to teens. A huge congratulations to members of the committee. Trust me, they all read at least 75 or 100 adult books last year in their work toward this list.
The 2011 Alex Award winners are (as listed on the YALSA website):
· “The Boy Who Couldn’t Sleep and Never Had To” by DC Pierson, published by Vintage Books, a division of Random House, Inc. (ISBN 9780307474612)
· “Breaking Night: A Memoir of Forgiveness, Survival, and My Journey from Homeless to Harvard,” by Liz Murray, published by Hyperion (ISBN 9780786868919)
· “Girl in Translation,” by Jean Kwok, published by Riverhead Books, an imprint of the Penguin Group ( (ISBN 9781594487569)
· “The House of Tomorrow,” by Peter Bognanni, published by Amy Einhorn Books, an imprint of G.P. Putnam’s Sons, a division of the Penguin Group (ISBN 9780399156090)
· “The Lock Artist,” by Steve Hamilton, published by Thomas Dunne Books for Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin’s Press (ISBN 9780312380427)
· “The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake: A Novel,” by Aimee Bender, published by Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc. (ISBN 9780385501125)
· “The Radleys,” by Matt Haig, published by Free Press, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc. (ISBN 9781439194010)
· “The Reapers Are the Angels: A Novel” by Alden Bell, published by Holt Paperbacks, a division of Henry Holt and Company, LLC (ISBN 9780805092431)
· “Room: A Novel,” by Emma Donoghue, published by Little, Brown and Company a division of Hatchette Book Group, Inc. (ISBN 9780316098335)
· “The Vanishing of Katharina Linden: A Novel,” by Helen Grant, published by Delacorte Press, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, division of Random House, Inc.(ISBN 9780385344173)
6 of the 10 were reviewed here last year, and I will link to those reviews as I mention each title. This list shares four titles with the SLJ Best Adult Books 4 Teens list: Girl in Translation, Room, The Vanishing of Katharina Linden, and The House of Tomorrow.
In an earlier post about the Alex Awards, I refrained from predictions. About 10 minutes before the awards began I could not resist jotting down four titles that I thought would make it. Three of them did: Girl in Translation, Room and The Vanishing of Katharina Linden. Those of you who have been reading over the past months know about my enthusiasm for Girl in Translation and Room. And I sensed that The Vanishing of Katharina Linden would be just the sort of book that would be chosen for the Alex. I haven’t read it myself yet, though it is sitting on my pile, but I am halfway through an ARC of Grant’s next book The Glass Demon (scheduled for July). Her writing is accessible, and the European settings combined with supernatural/horror elements are a winning combination.
The House of Tomorrow is also a popular choice. The reaction to my blog post about it was strong, and I talked with several readers through the year who mentioned this as one of their favorites. Honestly, this book could have been published as a YA novel.
Which brings me to one of the things I love about this list as a whole — the teen appeal aspect. The committee really got it right. Another example — The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake. I have written before about the fact that the copy in my library has been checked out over and over ever since it arrived. I have also experienced strong positive reactions to Room among my teen patrons, which was read widely over the Thanksgiving and Christmas vacations.
I also love that this is a strongly genre list. Memoir, thriller, vampires, post-apocalyptic zombies, mystery, and of course, coming-of-age. The Lock Artist is a good example. This is a mainstream, stand-alone crime novel by a popular mystery author known for his Alex McKnight series. Hamilton’s debut, A Cold Day in Paradise (Minotaur, 1998) won an Edgar award.
But let’s talk about the titles that have not been reviewed here. First, The Radleys. I must confess that I read this book and chose not to review it. We are charged to publish only positive reviews on this blog. Considering it appears not only on the Alex list, but also in a strong New York Times Book Review article by Matthew Sharpe and on this month’s IndieBound Next list, maybe I should wish that I had sent this one off to a different reviewer. To me, it did not contribute anything new to the vampire genre. Yes, it includes two teenagers and plenty of moral questions, but I did not see anything special. As a fan of Matt Haig’s The Dead Fathers Club (Viking, 2007), this was not an easy decision. I try hard to resist being swayed in my own opinions by how celebrated a book might be elsewhere, but I do wonder if I should re-read this one.
Breaking Night has been sitting on my to-read pile since September, when a teacher at my school pressed it on me and insisted I read it. Guess I should have done that! It’s a snow day here in New York City, and I hope to take advantage.
The Boy Who Couldn’t Sleep and Never Had To was assigned for review here, and the review is still pending.
Same with The Reapers are the Angels. Yep, that one I assigned to myself. I read the book in early December and absolutely loved it. But alas, I haven’t actually sat down to finish the review yet. This deeply moving (believe it or not) post-apocalyptic zombie novel is original in its settings, the voice and self-reflection of the teen protagonist, and the zombies themselves. A perfect choice for an Alex Award.
The Alex Awards committee also releases a list of vetted nominations. The committee only started releasing a nominations list last year. How I wish it had started earlier. There are always a few “bleed-on-the-table” books that don’t make the final list. And once they fail to make the list, confidentiality rules dictate that members of the committee are not allowed to talk about them and how close they came. If only…
My only quibble: a lack of nonfiction among the winners. Yes, Breaking Night is a memoir, but where is the informational nonfiction? The vetted nominations include The Other Wes Moore and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, and a few others. But where is Junger’s War? Schiff’s Cleopatra? I have a feeling it came down to a discussion of appeal. And it is hard to argue that either of these titles would be more popular than the chosen winners.
And it is important to note that the selection process does NOT include any attempt to balance the list. Members are directed to vote for their top books. Sometimes this results in interesting combinations. I’m thinking of 2007 when both Eagle Blue and The Blind Side, both nonfiction sports books, made the list. Or 2006, which shared The Glass Castle and Jesus Land, both memoirs about family.
What do you think? Are there any books that you wish had made the list? Did the list include any of your favorites? Or favorites among your teens?
The New York Times announced its Ten Best Books of 2010 yesterday, and there are two books with teen appeal on the list: Room by Emma Donoghue and Cleopatra: a life by Stacy Schiff.
Speaking of Best Books lists: The Early Word site compiles links to ALL of the Best Books of the Year lists — scroll down the right side column until you see it. First on the list is another aggregator, Largehearted Boy. Their page is somewhat overwhelming, but taken in small gulps, very enjoyable.
But which celebrated titles have appeal to teens? That is the question!
We will be releasing our very own Best Adult Books 4 Teens 2010 list, right here, next Monday. Look for it!
Next, a colleague has an important book coming out at the end of the month: Urban Grit: A Guide to Street Lit by Megan Honig (Libraries Unlimited). Megan is a Young Adult Collections librarian at the New York Public Library. She is writing a blog, 30 Days of Street Lit, to promote and celebrate her book and the genre. Street Lit is popular with teens, and a genre I hope to add into the mix of reviews on this blog in the new year.
Today’s review is of an historical fiction/western debut novel about the Gold Rush. I cannot resist the chance to recommend two of my favorite titles, both Alex Award winners, that are not exactly readalikes for Crown of Dust, but do share a genre. First, The Night Birds by Thomas Maltman (Soho, 2007). The main character, Asa, is 14 years old in 1876 when his Aunt Hazel comes to live with his family in Minnesota. She tells stories of a Dakota uprising in 1862, and the loss of her first love. Second, The Work of Wolves by Kent Meyers (Houghton Mifflin, 2004). This one is contemporary, set on a ranch in South Dakota, involving a love story and the rescue of abused horses. The writing sets it apart.
VOLMER, Mary. Crown of Dust. 288p. Soho. 2010. Tr $24. ISBN 978-1-56947-861-5. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–Young Alex shows up, bruised and bloody, in a small Gold Rush settlement called Motherlode. One of his many secrets is that he is actually a girl, fleeing a past that is too terrible to remember. When Alex discovers a gold nugget, he/she finds a new identity as the “Golden Boy,” blending in with the rough and tumble cast of characters inhabiting Motherlode’s Wayside Inn. The inn is owned by the indomitable Emaline, a woman who creates an unexpected sense of family in the remote hills. Yet she has a secret past of her own. When Motherlode attracts the attention of new settlers, which include lawyers, lawmen, and their gentile women, the past violently re-emerges for both women. Volmer brings the danger and wonder of wild California to life in this vivid re-creation of the Gold Rush era. Readers get a real sense of the tensions surrounding the gold miners: unpredictable nature, vicious rivalries, and the intrusion of laws made by “men in small rooms.” The third-person narration passes casually from one character to another, sometimes shifting from one paragraph to the next. This increases the mystery of Alex, who is alternately referred to as “him” or “her,” depending on the character’s perspective. Teens will be seduced by the slow revelations of Alex’s past, and the collision of her past with those she has come to love in her present.–Diane Colson, New Port Richey Library, FL
Angela Carstensen is Head Librarian and an Upper School Librarian at Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York City. Angela served on the Alex Awards committee for four years, chairing the 2008 committee, and chaired the first YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adult committee in 2009. Recently, she edited Outstanding Books for the College Bound: Titles and Programs for a New Generation (ALA Editions, 2011). Contact her via Twitter @AngeReads.
