What the Teens are Reading Now (*or Hunger Games and What Else I Don't Have to Weed)

Tip of the Day: Catch up with the books I read and what I think of them here.

A few weeks ago, a reader asked what teen books are currently going out from the library like hot cakes. I've been monitoring my YA library collection in order to properly answer this question. And I've learned that the answer is: It depends.

Here are some observations.

1. I had a YA display up for all of May, Asian American Heritage Month books; titles that featured Asian characters or themes. And over the course of the month, only a handful of books were checked out -- and I have a fairly large Asian population in my town. These books were a mix of historical, contemporary, and fantasy stories.

2. I had a YA display up for two weeks in May, Jewish Heritage Month books; titles that featured Jewish characters or themes. And over the coures of the two weeks, a large number of these books were checked out -- and I have a very large Jewish population in my town. These books were a mix of historical (WWII/Holocaust primarily) and contemporary.

3. I had a YA display up for four days in June (so far), Gay Pride Month books; titles that featured GLBT characters or themes. And over the course of the four days, a lot of these books were checked out (and this display was super popular last year over the course of June as well) -- and I have no idea how big the gay population is in my town. These books are primarily contemporary fiction.

4. In the books that were NOT recently on display, I've noticed these titles/genres going out:

a) high fantasy (ex. Cinda Williams Chima's HEIR series)


b) spy novels (ex. Ally Carter's series)


c) action adventure novels (ex. James Patterson's series, Anthony Horowitz's series, Cassandra Clare's series)


A lot of "midlist" books that I bought in 2009/2010 are now languishing on the shelves, even if they are good books, and sadly I will probably have to weed them to make space for new stuff soon. BUT it's amazing how much these same titles can suddenly take off when they are put on the local school's summer reading lists or for assignments. I can see why authors get so excited when their books make the "state award lists."

Another conclusion is that while high fantasy and some paranormal romance are still going strong, contemporary is being read a lot, too, compared to the past couple years (during the TWILIGHT series' debuts).

Oh, and if you want to know the title in general with the most holds in our system, it is 50 SHADES OF GREY (about 700 holds between the hard copy and ebook versions; yes, it's beating out HUNGER GAMES).

Deena, Miss Subbing for Pubbing

7 Clues to Winning You is Out Today!

Tip of the Day: Check out Kristin's first book, A Match Made in High School too. 

HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY TO MY FRIEND KRISTIN WALKER!!! 

Kristin Walker's newest super funny contemporary book, 7 Clues to Winning You, is out today.

From Goodreads:

When a humiliating picture of Blythe goes viral, she's instantly the target of ridicule at her new school. To salvage her reputation, Blythe teams up with Luke to win the Senior Scramble scavenger hunt. But Luke is an unlikely ally and potentially can't be trusted.

Perhaps it's his Shakespearean witticisms that reel Blythe in despite her better judgment . . . or maybe she just craves the thrill of the game. But as the hunt progresses, their relationship heats up. Soon their madcap mischief spirals out of control. Blythe is faced with arrest and expulsion, among other catastrophes - until Luke shows her what the Scramble (and love) is really about.

What People are Saying:

"In this hilarious account of a girl's reluctant adjustment to new circumstances...Walker (A Match Made in High School) focuses on Blythe's regrets and changing attitude... The vibrant, first-person narrative captures the humor and heartache of Blythe's predicaments." - Publishers Weekly

"7 Clues to Winning You is a definite winner for any contemporary fan! I loved it! This is exactly the kind of YA I need more of in my life. I want more of these kind of stories. Funny light yet deep and thought provoking. I hope you'll all give this book a try!" - Princess Bookie

"A clever, well-woven plot with a loveable cast of quirky characters and a sprinkle of Shakespeare. Kristin Walker's latest laugh out loud book will leave you wanting more." 
– Kristina Springer, author of The Espressologist and My Fake Boyfriend is Better Than Yours


My Thoughts:

Yep, that last blurb was from me. :-) I adored Kristin's newest book! It's on the long side at 317 pages but reads fast because Kristin has such a great and hysterical voice. She first won me over with her debut book, A Match Made in High School, which is a tears rolling down your cheeks from laughter kind of book. And her latest did not disappoint. While I loved her main character Blythe, I have to say the two elderly woman she befriends at the nursing home are by far my fave. Just read it, you'll love it. Promise. 

Find it now on Indiebound, Amazon, or Barnes and Nobles. Follow Kristin on twitter at @Kristin_Walker or visit her Web site www.Kristin-Walker.com.




Kristina, Miss Author in Action

Dystopian Fiction Overload? (or Reality Bites but That's What Life Is*)

*with apologies to Limp Bizkit

Tip of the Day: My library won the area's Library of the Year award! Click here for details! Thanks to everyone who nominated Brighton Memorial Library. You rock!

I just read a YA book where:
--the main character is under house arrest on and off over her life
--phone lines are government controlled, only available intermittently, and rarely available for international calls
--the internet is highly monitored and all modems must be registered with the government
--outsiders are often forbidden from entering the country, and citizens are often not allowed out
--those who sneak information about the country/government outside the borders and are caught are subjected to imprisonment, physical torture, and death
--those participating in peaceful protests against the government are subjected to imprisonment, physical torture, and death
--disease runs rampant
--citizens are poor and powerless to overcome their situations
--the government spends millions on its lavish capital while the citizens starve in the other cities
--elections are rigged

Is this the latest dystopian novel on the shelves at B&N?

Nope. It's not even fiction. It's the story of Burma in the 1980s-present as presented in CHAMPIONS OF FREEDOM: AUNG SAN SUU KYI by Sherry O'Keefe (Morgan Reynolds, 2012).

I read this book to review it for VOYA, knowing nothing about Suu Kyi or Burma when I picked it up. I reached the end where the author compared Suu Kyi's world to that of George Orwell's 1984, I thought, holy crap. This horrific reality IS real for so many people across the globe.

So the next time you want to write about a government-controlled world but you keep hearing that dystopian fiction is overdone (I'm definitely reaching "full" on my library shelves), pick a country where this issue is a reality. Write about the real world -- even if we wish it was not so. I would totally read and buy those books.

Will I write them? I was very inspired by Suu Kyi's story, but would need to do a ton more research about a country that I just touched upon. Perhaps some day. Until then, I want to read more. Get writing! :)

Deena, Miss Subbing for Pubbing

I Miss the Light

Tip of the Day: Don’t lock up your teen books libraries! Adults read YA too! (Our public library doesn’t open the teen section until 3 p.m. daily. BOO!)

I’m with Deena. Yesterday she talked about what she’s looking for as a teen librarian so today I’m going to tell you what I’m looking for as a YA reader.

Look at this:

Notice anything? What the heck is with all the dark books?! Okay, I get it. Publishers want to make lots of $$$ so they chase trends. When Twilight was big (okay, settle down all you Twi-hards. :-) I know you feel Twilight still IS big. I mean more at the beginning of Twi-mania) there were 1.2 million vampire books released that year. I may be embellishing on that number but it certainly felt like that right? And now Hunger Games is a huge success so brace yourself for the onslaught of world ending, fighting for your life, I’m just trying to make it another day without being poisoned, burned, drowned, shot, stabbed etc. but my hair still looks cute books.

And that’s great and all for the occasional high adventure book. But what about everyday life? What about stuff that might actually happen to teens today? I want to read about what to do when your best friend suddenly stabs you in the back. Or how to deal with the fact that the guy you’ve been secretly in love with for years just fell in love with your best friend. I want some more realistic stuff on the shelves. And make it funny too please. There isn’t nearly enough funny stuff available anymore.

I’m not saying that there isn’t ANY. There totally is. But you’ve got to hunt it down because it sure isn’t getting the promo the doom and gloom stuff is. I’m currently reading Meredith Zeitlin’s Freshman Year and other Disasters which came out earlier this month and it's totally cute. 

And Kristin Walker (A Match Made in High School) has a new book coming out next month that’s super funny.  

But I miss the bigger selection of light funny books. There was a time that I would walk into the library and just check out all of the pink books. Not lying. I didn’t even read their summaries. But I just knew if it was pink it would be girlie and fun. And I was rarely disappointed.

And it not just me. I’m hearing this from teens too. I was skyping with a book club not too long ago and after we finished I asked them what kind of books they were reading. The teens were all excited about Hunger Games and the movie but they expressed that aside from the Hunger Games they were growing very weary of all the dark sci fi and dystopian. One teen said, “Why are all the books about end of the world, people dying, and all that awful stuff? Why can’t there be nice stories about things that really might happen?” She went on to say that was why they had read mine that month because they were looking for books that weren’t depressing.

And I get e-mails from readers all of the time about how much they like to laugh and relate to fun stories so there is a need there. Obviously I wouldn’t want the bookshelves to be all pink either but, hey how about we shoot  for a balance? Hopefully we’ll start seeing more fun romance YA around the corner.

Kristina, Miss Author in Action