Book Lists, Award Winners, and Recommendations for Summer Reading – 2008
This is a compilation of recent awards winners and recommended reading lists for Young Adults. This may help you (teachers) choose new material for your Summer Reading List, or may help you (parents and kids) choose interesting, fun, and quality books to read for pleasure.
More than 6,000 teen readers across the country chose New Moon by Stephenie Meyer as their favorite book in the annual Teens’ Top Ten. The online vote took place during Teen Read Week, October 14–20, 2007, with the second entry in Meyer’s popular vampire romance series winning easily.
- New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2006).
- Just Listen by Sarah Dessen (Viking Children’s Books, 2006)
- How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles (Flux, 2006).
- Maximum Ride: School’s Out – Forever by James Patterson (Hachette Book Group USA/Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2006).
- Firegirl by Tony Abbott (Hachette Book Group USA/Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2006).
- All Hallows Eve (13 Stories) by Vivian Vande Velde (Harcourt, 2006).
- Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (Harcourt, 2006).
- River Secrets by Shannon Hale (
- Bad Kitty by Michele Jaffe (HarperCollins, 2006).
- Road of the Dead by Kevin Brooks (Chicken House, 2006).
The Quick Picks committee seeks books that teens, ages 12-18, will pick up on their own and read for pleasure. The list is geared to the teenager who, for whatever reason, does not like to read. The list is not intended for teenagers with reading disabilities, though some of the selected titles may be appropriate for those teens. Teen input is a vital aspect in the final decision of the committee.
Bey, Dawoud. Class Pictures. 2007. Aperture, $45.00 (978-1-59711-043-3).
Erskine, Kathryn. Quaking. 2007. Penguin Group/ Philomel Books, $16.99 (978-0-399-24774-3).
Greenfield, Lauren. Thin. 2006. Chronicle Books, $35.00 (978-0-8118-5633-1).
Grody, Steve and James Prigoff. Graffiti
Shaw, Susan. Safe. 2007. Penguin Group/ Dutton, $16.99 (978-0-525-47829-4).
Shusterman, Neal. Unwind. 2007. Simon and Schuster, $16.99 (978-1-4169-1204-0).
Sitomer, Alan L. Homeboyz. Hyperion/ Jump at the Sun, $16.99 (978-1-4231-0030-0).
Thalia. Thalia: Belleza!: Lessons in Lipgloss and Happiness. 2007. Chronicle Books, $19.95 (978-0-8118-5829-8).
The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18. The winning titles are selected from the previous year's publishing.
- American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New
- Bad Monkeys, by Matt Ruff, published by HarperCollins (ISBN13: 978-0061240416)
- Essex County Volume 1: Tales from the Farm, by Jeff Lemire, published by Top Shelf Publications (ISBN13: 978-1891830884)
- Genghis: Birth of an Empire, by Conn Iggulden, published by Delacorte (ISBN13: 978-0385339513)
- The God of Animals, by Aryn Kyle, published by Scribner (ISBN13: 978-1416533245)
- A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, by Ishmael Beah, published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux/Sarah Crichton Books (ISBN13: 978-0374105235)
- Mister Pip, by Lloyd Jones, published by Random/Dial Press (ISBN13: 978-0385341066)
- The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss, published by DAW (ISBN13: 978-0756404079)
- The Night Birds, by Thomas Maltman, published by
- The Spellman Files, by Lisa Lutz, published by Simon & Schuster (ISBN13: 978-1416532392)
Alexie, Sherman. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. Illus. by Ellen Forney. Little, Brown, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-316-01368-0; $16.99.
Beah, Ishmael. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. Farrar, Straus & Giroux/Sarah Crichton, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-374-10523-5; $22.00.
Downham, Jenny. Before I Die. Random House/David Fickling, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-385-75155-1; $15.99.
Hemphill, Stephanie. Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath. Random House/Alfred A. Knopf, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-375-83799-9; $15.99.
Jones, Lloyd. Mister Pip. Dell Publishing/Dial Press, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-385-34106-6; $20.00.
Landy, Derek. Skulduggery Pleasant. HarperCollins, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-06-123115-5; $17.99.
Peet, Mal. Tamar: A Novel of Espionage, Passion, and Betrayal. Candlewick, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-7636-3488-9; $17.99.
Polly, Matthew. American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New
Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A Novel. Illus. by Brain Selznick. Scholastic, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-439-81378-5; $22.99.
Tan, Shaun. The Arrival. Illus. by Shaun Tan. Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine, 2007; ISBN13: 978-0-439-89529-3; $19.99.
ALA Margaret A. Edwards Award 2008
The Margaret A. Edwards Award, established in 1988, honors an author, as well as a specific body of his or her work, that have been popular over a period of time. It recognizes an author's work in helping adolescents become aware of themselves and addressing questions about their role and importance in relationships, society, and in the world.
Orson Scott Card is the recipient of the 2008 Margaret A. Edwards Award honoring his outstanding lifetime contribution to writing for teens for his novels Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow.
An accomplished storyteller, Card weaves the everyday experiences of adolescence into broader narratives, addressing universal questions about humanity and society. The award was announced January 14 at the 2008 Midwinter Meeting of the American Library Association (ALA) in
Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow both published by Tor Books, present a future where a global government trains gifted young children from around the world in the art of interstellar warfare, hoping to find a leader whose skills can prevent a second attack upon humanity by the insect-like aliens descriptively nicknamed "buggers." Young Andrew "Ender" Wiggin may be the savior they seek. He is not alone, as seen in the companion tale, Ender's Shadow, where orphaned Bean relates his own
"Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow continually capture the imagination and interest of teens," said Edwards Committee Chair Brenna Shanks. "The conflicts of self and society, on a personal level and on a universal stage, never lose relevance."
Card, the author of numerous books, short stories and plays, lives in
ALA The Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature 2008
The White Darkness, by Geraldine McCaughrean, published by HarperTempest, an imprint of HarperCollins has won the 2008 Michael L. Printz Award. McCaughrean has won numerous awards for children's literature in her native
Fourteen-year-old Symone's exciting vacation to
"Symone's unforgettable voice propels this journey of discovery in a book that is intricately plotted, richly imaged and brings new meaning to the term unreliable narrator," said Printz Award Committee Chair Lynn Rutan. "Readers will need to hang onto their snow goggles in this compelling book in which nothing is as it seems at first glance."
1. Dreamquake: Book Two of the Dreamhunter Duet by Elizabeth Knox,
2. One Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke
3. Repossessed by A.M. Jenkins
4. Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath by Stephanie Hemphill
RI Teen Book Awards
2009 Nominees
Recommended for Middle School Students
The
Recommended for All Teens
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
Beige by Cecil Castelucci
Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
