Thread: What do teens read nowadays?

Hi,

I'm a school librarian and this is what I've had requests for and what has been recommended. First I have a URL for you to the American Librarians Association website. It is a great place for teen reads, especially reluctant readers:

[url]http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=librariesandyou&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=84944[/url]

(Or go to [url="http://www.ala.com"]www.ala.com[/url] Click on Libraries & You, then Best Books for Young Adults)

Some of the popular authors with my teens are:

Walter Dean Meyers (Scorpion, Monster) He writes about contemporary issues and urban youth

Nancy Farmer (House of the Scorpion, Sea of Trolls, A Girl Named Disaster) She write Science Fiction/Fantasy but very well

E.L. Konigsburg - She writes contemporary issues, relationships, and family type stories

Sharon Creech (Chasing Redbird, Love That Dog) - She writes contemporary issues, relationships, and family type stories.

Francesa Lia Block (these can be a little racy, but with an open minded teacher are great for starting discussions about contemporary issues)

Louis Sachar (Holes) He may seem young but for reluctant readers or lower ability readers he has great potential.

Jerry Spinelli (a personal favorite; Stargirl, Loser, Maniac Magee) - His books often address issues like racism, acceptance, individuality versus "fitting in". He is also great for reluctant readers.

A great graphic novel (yes they are novels I am converted to their literary worth) is the series Sandman by Neil Gaiman. Students will need to research mythology, classic literature, and common folktales to truly understand the nuances of these novels. However, I recommend it only if your department is feeling adventurous.

I could go on, but this post would be way too long. I hope these help!

Anything Harry Potter is a SAFE bet. A girl in one of my honors American Literature classes is trying to get me to read the first one! The Natural, can't remember the author I think it is Malumund, seems to be popular around the spring time baseball season. Hope that this helps!

I am not too far out of high school myself, and am a secondary ed. English Major. I really enjoyed Fransesca Lia Block's Witch Baby and Weetzie Bat. These stories can be found in her Dark Angels book and are magical realism stories. I also enjoyed Monster by Walter Dean Myers, Speak by Laurie Anderson Halse, Habibi by Naomi Shihab Nye, and a book written by one of my professors, Two Suns in the Sky by Miriam Bat-Ami. Hope this helps out a little.

Great! Thanks everyone, now I have some more ideas

Laurie Halse Anderson is amazing. I've read Speak (about a girl who was raped, very good book), Catalyst (about a high school senior who is a great student, great kid, but under a lot of pressure), and Prom (about "normal" kids in Philly who are just surviving high school).

Hi,

Do you want popular books or parent/teacher recommended books?

With my classes the most popular teen books this year are:

The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches
Chronicles of Narnia
In the Service of Dragons
Amulet of Samurkand
Dragon Rider (the whole dragon theme is popular this year)
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants/Second Summer
Princess Diaries
A Series of Unfortunate Events
The Giver

As a teacher and parent I would recommend out of these:

The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches
Chronicles of Narnia
Princess Diaries
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants/Second Summer
The Giver

Debby

Originally Posted by debbier

Hi,
Do you want popular books or parent/teacher recommended books?
Debby

Both. If we are going to spend time and money on buying a lot of books for our kids to read, I would like a diverse collection...

Thanks for your tips, Debby!

Books dealing with multicultural issues should definitely be incorporated as much as possible. Again, Walter Dean Meyers is great for this. I agree that Laurie Halse Anderson is a great choice as well; however, if you are in a more conservative district you might have a few problems with her book Speak because of the issues in the book...but definitely a great book just the same.
Also, M.T. Andersen made a book called Feed that reminds me alot of an updated, futuristic version of The Giver that students might be able to relate to more than the traditional book. It's about the same ideas--distopia, conformity...
There are a huge number of great choices...let me know if you need anymore help..YA Lit is my passion!
Jen

I don't know if you can get Australian authors, but anything written by John Marsden is highly recommended. Especially the "Tomorrow When the War began" series.