Young Adult Fiction

Today's stint in library-educate-myself-land was spent listening to a webinar through Scholastic Library Journal:

Young Adult Book Buzz 2009.

Again - beware of sales pitches, but it is always good to keep your finger on the pulse.

I find YA literature hard to keep up with, not that there is that much that is great, but more that these books often seem so uninteresting. Of late, many have focused exclusively on girls, and petty girls at that. I was glad to hear about some more intriguing titles for the coming season, and quite a few that have male main characters!

These are some of my favorite picks from the list

(keeping in mind that I am basing my selection on reviews, not my own readership)

INTERTWINED

IRON KING

INSIDE OUT

PATTERSON HEIGHTS

ASH

HATE LIST

ONCE WAS LOST

FREAKS AND REVELATIONS

BEAUTIFUL CREATURES

THE RIVER

HAPPYFACE

WALKING BACKWARD

ME, MYSELF AND IKE

MEDIA MELTDOWN

RUINED: A NOVEL

SHIVER

WISH

AFTER EVER AFTER

NUMBERS

LAST OF THE DEATH WARRIORS

If anyone else wants to listen to a similar webinar,

tune in on October 22, 2-3p.m.

(register at www.slj.com/webcasts)