YA Books -- Not Just For Kids Anymore

Dear Neighbors:

I hope all of you have read The Hunger Games series and are craving more young adult fiction. Before I started teaching, I never thought about reading kids' books. Why would I, right? They're for kids!

Not so much anymore. When I started teaching 5th grade, I found that my students tended to rely on me more and more for book recommendations. Having little familiarity with their literature, I had to ask our school librarian (thanks, Anne!) for help. Over the past three years, I've amassed a mental catalog of appropriate books for my students. If a book becomes popular among the kids, I make a point of reading it. 

Utterly delightful.

Waaaaaaaay back when I worked for the Postal Service, I passed the time doing data entry by listening to books on tape. A co-worker, an unforgettable woman named Deanna, would make several trips to the library and share anything she found. I was surprised when a book called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone started making the rounds. 

I listened to it grudgingly and was shocked at how much I enjoyed it. I was hooked and from then on, I bought all of the books as soon as they were released. I have the entire series in hardback and every once in a while, I'll have a little Harry Potter marathon and re-read the series. As a matter of fact, I think it's time for that again. Soon.

This was the first children's series that truly captured my attention. I think it's because the books are so well written -- they're neither predictable or ridiculous. Yes, Harry always wins in the end, but I always found it believable. All of Rowling's characters are memorable and I felt as though I knew the characters intimately, as if they were my own friends. In a way, you could say they were. 

My next encounter was with the Twilight series. 

Enjoyable. Then zzzzzz.

While I can understand why young people and particularly young girls would enjoy this sort of book, I found it only so-so. The books were terribly drawn-out and it felt as though the plot took forever to move forward. New Moon was the worst offender -- Bella spent far too many pages lamenting the absence of Edward when she should have been Doing Something Other Than Waiting For That Rat Bastard To Come Back. In fact, Bella wins the award (the one I just made up) for The Most Boring Main Character In The History of Books. I suppose that to a teenage girl, the fact that Edward is "in love" with a young woman who has no interests, no ambition and no personality is just dreamy. I find it tragic.

My 5th graders absolutely love the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. The main character is Greg Heffley, a boy with all sorts of schemes and shortcuts. Sometimes, he's successful in his endeavors. Other times, he's explaining and apologizing. And who doesn't have a friend like Rowley?

Always fun.

 I have a ritual I follow each and every time a new book is due to be released:

• Pre-order several copies through Scholastic.com;
• Find an important task for which my students will be rewarded with their own copies of the book -- the day it's released (returning signed notes, completing all homework, mastering a skill in math, etc....)
• Order an extra copy for my nephew, Derek, and hang on to it for Christmas.

If only!!

Even in the 5th grade, students still enjoy listening to a teacher read a good book. I especially love reading to them, bringing the characters to life through the use of funny voices. It's now become a tradition for me to read The Homework Machine by Dan Gutman. This story is told from many points of view and involves a computer that is tasked with completing homework for four kids who would otherwise never speak to each other. The sequel, The Return of the Homework Machine, is also a great read.

One of my students recently introduced me to the Alex Rider series, which was written by Anthony Horowitz. 

Exploding gum. 'Nuff said.

This series is about the adventures of a 14 year-old boy who is recruited for England's MI6 program in the first book, Stormbreaker. Even though he does his best to avoid involvement in their missions, he's drawn in time and time again. He's a teenage James Bond and has the gadgets to prove it! I'm waiting for my copy of the last book in the series, Scorpia Rising. I'll be bummed when I'm finished with it. I hope the last book leaves an opening for a return.

The series began in 2000 and one of the things I like best about discovering it later is that the technology makes great strides throughout the series. 

 Not all of my reading choices are based on my students' interests. One such book is Matched, by Allie Condie. I've been indulging my newfound fascination with dystopian fiction and this book fits the bill perfectly. 

Fun, but exhausting. Minimally original.

Cassia Reyes lives in a new and improved society where everything has been streamlined for efficiency and to limit the need for making choices (a hallmark of dystopian fiction, it seems). She's been Matched for a future marriage with her best friend and starts to question not only the matching process, but everything about the society in which she lives. The series continues with Crossed and will finish up with Reached in November of this year. Take this as a light read -- it makes up for a lack of originality with a healthy dose of charm.

My main gripe about this series and many others can be summed up with this question: Why must we have a series for every book? I find that all too often, stories are dragged out long past the point where the plot has been resolved. Crossed was such a book; there was a point in the middle that I thought would never end. And following in the great dystopian tradition, I can assume that the final book will entail the outcome of a revolution and the final choice between two equally deserving boys...zzzzzzzzz.....

Not like anything I've read recently, that's for sure.

Finally, if you were a teenager in the 80's, you'll remember a movie called "Red Dawn" with Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen (pre-"winning"). John Marsden, an Australian author, wrote a series that kicked off with Tomorrow, When The War Began about a group of Australian teenagers who return from a camping trip to find that their town has been invaded by an unknown entity and their country is at war. The series began in 1993, so I suggest you go back and find it. You're more likely to find it online than in the bookstores.

I would never have the space to mention every book and series I enjoy, but I think this list is a pretty good start. 

You may be trolling online bookstores looking for books similar to The Hunger Games. Keep in mind that every popular idea is copied a hundred times over. Read reviews and look for ratings before making your purchases.

Happy Reading!

D