Here because I skimmed the list while working on aardy's computer. And because I'm a middle-school librarian who always reads stuff from our state library group's HS list. -grin-
Kira-Kira and Five People are the only ones in my middle school library. Kira-Kira is definitely middle-grades stuff, and several of the elementary libraries have it. Heck, the Newbery is for stuff that's aimed at kids "under 14" so... yeah. Haven't read it, but from the reviews, it's definitely tragic.
Five People is in 3/4 of our middle schools and in the HS. One professional review said it was a sweet book that made you smile. A girl from another middle school gave it 5 stars and said that she reread it FIVE TIMES. *blinkblink* I guess she liked it. It was a 2008 Abe Nominee. [The Abe Lincoln award is a young readers' award-- books are nominated by HS students / teachers / librarians and a panel of librarians and HS students picks 22 titles to go on the nominee list for the year.]
Acceleration is in one of our other middle schools and in the HS library. I've debated getting it, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. It sounds GOOD to me. It won the 2004 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Mystery. It was an Abe Nominee for 2007.
Never heard of Crackback. Two middle schools and the high school have it. Lexile is only 490; one of the middle schools has it in the Quick Reads [Hi-Lo] section. One review said that it took a good long look at adults (his father and his coach included) who demand respect but don't really deserve it. Probably there for the sports jocks who hate to read.
My Sister's Keeper is at one middle school and at the HS. I'm pretty sure it was an Abe Lincoln nominee... yeah, it won the Abe in 2006. Haven't read it, but I've heard it was excellent.
Nineteen Minutes is the only one I've read, and I really couldn't put it down. It's tragic, horrifying, and sad. But it really can make students think about the effects of bullying, teasing, and taunting. It was an Abe Nominee in 2010, which is why I read it last fall.
I do agree that these are pretty dark and/or depressing overall. The thing is... that's a huge part of YA lit, isn't it? You end up with SO many books about orphans and abandoned kids and such, because the whole thing is about getting away from the parents and doing things on their own. And I think it's a backlash against the Happy Perfect Ending that kids always get in books they read in elementary school. Many of these are described in reviews as gripping page-turners, which will hook some of the students who normally wouldn't read anything during the summer. And while they aren't challenging in language, many of these are books that (supposedly) Make You Think once you're done reading them.
I'm trying to think of what would be good to add to the list... Maybe something like The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, in which a HS girl secretly takes over the direction of pranks carried out by her boyfriend's all-male secret society. Maybe I'd Tell You I Love You But Then I'd Have To Kill You, in which a HS girl attends a spy-training school for girls. Both of those had some funny bits. Maybe Heir Apparent, wherein a HS girl is trapped in a virtual-reality video game in which she's the secret heir to the throne, and must figure out the solution to the game before her brain is fried due to the machine being broken. That one is one I recommend to guys and girls often, since it's got medieval, futuristic, adventure, and mystery all in one.
What titles would you like to see on the list? My administrators always are more willing to listen to me talk about a problem if I've got a couple of suggestions for solutions...
no subject
Kira-Kira and Five People are the only ones in my middle school library. Kira-Kira is definitely middle-grades stuff, and several of the elementary libraries have it. Heck, the Newbery is for stuff that's aimed at kids "under 14" so... yeah. Haven't read it, but from the reviews, it's definitely tragic.
Five People is in 3/4 of our middle schools and in the HS. One professional review said it was a sweet book that made you smile. A girl from another middle school gave it 5 stars and said that she reread it FIVE TIMES. *blinkblink* I guess she liked it. It was a 2008 Abe Nominee. [The Abe Lincoln award is a young readers' award-- books are nominated by HS students / teachers / librarians and a panel of librarians and HS students picks 22 titles to go on the nominee list for the year.]
Acceleration is in one of our other middle schools and in the HS library. I've debated getting it, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. It sounds GOOD to me. It won the 2004 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Mystery. It was an Abe Nominee for 2007.
Never heard of Crackback. Two middle schools and the high school have it. Lexile is only 490; one of the middle schools has it in the Quick Reads [Hi-Lo] section. One review said that it took a good long look at adults (his father and his coach included) who demand respect but don't really deserve it. Probably there for the sports jocks who hate to read.
My Sister's Keeper is at one middle school and at the HS. I'm pretty sure it was an Abe Lincoln nominee... yeah, it won the Abe in 2006. Haven't read it, but I've heard it was excellent.
Nineteen Minutes is the only one I've read, and I really couldn't put it down. It's tragic, horrifying, and sad. But it really can make students think about the effects of bullying, teasing, and taunting. It was an Abe Nominee in 2010, which is why I read it last fall.
I do agree that these are pretty dark and/or depressing overall. The thing is... that's a huge part of YA lit, isn't it? You end up with SO many books about orphans and abandoned kids and such, because the whole thing is about getting away from the parents and doing things on their own. And I think it's a backlash against the Happy Perfect Ending that kids always get in books they read in elementary school. Many of these are described in reviews as gripping page-turners, which will hook some of the students who normally wouldn't read anything during the summer. And while they aren't challenging in language, many of these are books that (supposedly) Make You Think once you're done reading them.
I'm trying to think of what would be good to add to the list... Maybe something like The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, in which a HS girl secretly takes over the direction of pranks carried out by her boyfriend's all-male secret society. Maybe I'd Tell You I Love You But Then I'd Have To Kill You, in which a HS girl attends a spy-training school for girls. Both of those had some funny bits. Maybe Heir Apparent, wherein a HS girl is trapped in a virtual-reality video game in which she's the secret heir to the throne, and must figure out the solution to the game before her brain is fried due to the machine being broken. That one is one I recommend to guys and girls often, since it's got medieval, futuristic, adventure, and mystery all in one.
What titles would you like to see on the list? My administrators always are more willing to listen to me talk about a problem if I've got a couple of suggestions for solutions...