Notable Young Adult Books
Check out these young adult book picks from our friends at Powell's Books in Portland, Oregon.
Hopelessly out of touch with the latest books for tweens and teens? Even if you have been following the hot new authors, you'll want to see which books Danielle Marshall and her team at Powell's Books in Portland, Oregon, have selected as noteworthy, recent young adult fiction.
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This is an unusual novel about the power of words. The Book Thief takes on the seemingly impossible setting of Nazi Germany and the improbability of Deathas narrator and weaves together one of the most compelling stories of the year. Winner of the American Library Association's Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Fiction, Zusak has created what can only be called an instant classic. 560 pages.
Sherman Alexie, well known as an adult fiction author, becomes a newly christened, enthusiastically welcomed young adult writer with his Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. This exciting foray into the young adult book world isn't generating lots of buzz just because he's a venerable author — it's because his YA debut is actually fantastic, as in, crying-while-laughing-and-staying-up-till-
the-wee-hours fantastic. 240 pages.
In this tale of teenage pregnancy told from the boy's perspective, Nick Hornby's wit and wisdom shine as brightly here as in his popular adult novels. When faced with the unthinkable,the news that his ex-girlfriend is pregnant, Sam looks for answers in the biography of his hero, pro-skateboarder, Tony Hawk. When Sam's poster of Hawk begins talking to him, well, things just get weird ... and funny ... and truthful. 304 pages.
A wonderful retelling of an almost forgotten Brothers Grimm fairytale called "Maid Maleen," Shannon Hale creates a fantasy novel that is the perfect escape. All the great fairytale elements are present: a tower with a girl locked inside, a refusal of marriage to a powerful man she doesn't love, true romance and adventure. 320 pages.
Glowingly reviewed in the New York Times, this book transcends classification as
a book for young adults and enters the territory of books you read and never forget. Tessa is dying of leukemia and in the process of making her last-things-to-do list, she learns how to truly live. Never saccharine, Downham's words always resonant with truth and beauty. This would make a wonderful gift for a teenage girl. 336 pages.
In this book that has been compared to Catcher in the Rye, Peter Cameron has penned a story about emotional alienation and loneliness that is a wonderful coming-of-age story. Avoiding his freshman year in college, 18-year-old James Sveck allows himself to be distracted by anything and everything. This is a fantastic book about growing up and growing into yourself. 240 pages.
I never get tired of a great coming-of-age story, especially one as beautifully rendered as this one. Deb Caletti gives us Jade, a complicated, anxiety-ridden girl who finds herself in love and faced with some of life's most crucial questions. All this, within the unusual backdrop of an elephant house at the zoo. 304 pages.
Linda Urban hits all the right notes in this book about Zoe, a girl who longs to become a concert pianist. What does it matter that she doesn't have a piano and can't play? But, with a gift of an electric organ — which perfectly illustrates how adults can sometimes miss the mark when interpreting kids' dreams — Zoe finds herself in the music of the unwieldy instrument. 224 pages.
An Abundance of Katherines is a laugh-out-loud book about relationships. The main character, Colin, is great with languages, anagramming and mathematical formulas, but not so great with girls named Katherine. He's been dumped 19 times and is creating a formula to prevent heartbreak that he calls The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability. This book is tender, truthful and just plain funny. 256 pages.
Our young adult book recommendations come from Danielle Marshall and the Kids' Team at Powells.com. From a storefront in 1971 in Portland, Oregon, this independent, family-owned bookstore has grown into a mecca for book lovers with six locations in the Portland area and an award-winning Web site.
November 2007
