book rec time!

[lirazel]

Except that it's y'all reccing things to me.

I'm speeding through Megan Whalen Turner's The Queen's Thief series and OMG MY LOVE FOR THIS SERIES I CANNOT DESCRIBE VOMITING RAINBOWS EVERYWHERE. But I'm going to finish it pretty soon, and I'd like to have something else waiting for me when I finish. So.

What are your favorite YA books? I think I'm just going to read YA for a while, honestly, because A) easy to read, B) favorite, C) unpretentious, D) despite the fact that I am indeed an adult I mostly don't feel like one. I mostly like fantasy or historical stuff, but if you've got some contemporary books that are just wonderful, feel free to tell me about those, too.

And...go!

Comments

[viorica8957.livejournal.com]

I really love Angeline by Karleen Bradford- it's historical fiction about a girl sold into slavery in Egypt after the failure of the Children's Crusade. I'm sure there are others, but I'm blanking at the moment- I'll check my collection and get back to you.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

That sounds really fantastic--and I love anything to do with Egypt. I'll put it on my list! Yay!

[marketchippie.livejournal.com]

ATTOLIA ATTOLIA ATTOLIA ATTOLIA ATTOLIA. ♥ Also, Gen/Attolia, I DIE.

(Will mull over YA recs, but CAN WE JUST.)

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

OMG SHE IS FLAWLESS!

And I kind of want to be her. And marry Gen. PERFECTION.

It amazes me how much I love them. I started out thinking Attolia was just evil and power-mad or whatever, and then you find out she's so much more! And I was kind of sort of shipping Gen/Eddis until he captured Attolia and they were in the boat together and I was all BOOM. INSTANT SHIP. OTP FOREVER. OMG I CANNOT GET OVER MY LOVE FOR THEM!

I'm also loving Costis a lot. And everyone! I started King of Attolia this morning and I'm about to finish it. I hear the next book is about Sophos? I like him, so I'm pleased about that, but I hope Gen and Attolia show up a lot.

[uwsannajane.livejournal.com]

Oooh! I mostly lurk on LJ, but on this topic I can weigh in with confidence - on British fic, which I've read a ton of in the past year or two, even though I live on the other side of the Atlantic. If you're not in the UK, you can buy books w/ no shipping fee via the Book Depository - a lot cheaper than Amazon. Most are for older teens unless otherwise noted.

Heartiest recs:

Siobhan Dowd - A Swift Pure Cry, Bog Child, Solace of the Road, and (for slightly younger readers), The London Eye Mystery - all "realistic," all splendid.

Gillian Philip - Bad Faith (dystopian future), Crossing the Line (knife crime, with a ghost), and Firebrand, which is getting a lot of attention right now - it's a fantasy novel, set in Scotland, the first in a planned series.

Keren David - When I Was Joe and its sequel, Almost True - young man on the run.

Helen Grant - The Vanishing of Katharina Linden and The Glass Demon - European mysterious creepiness, done v. well.

Candy Gourlay - Tall Story - again, written for slightly younger readers, lovely story about an Anglo-Filipino family.

Lee Weatherly - Child X and Missing Abby - maybe a bit younger?, anyhow both really good reads.

Patrick Ness - The Knife of Never Letting Go and its sequels are v. cool (dystopian fantasy)

Do you already know any of these?

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

Oooooh! I love British stuff, and thank you for letting me know where I can get them without shipping!

I haven't heard of any of those! But I'm especially excited about anything involving Scotland or dystopian fantasy, because those are two of my favorite things. Thank you so much!

[deird1]

Most of my favourite YA books are Australian...

As in explicitly Australian, not just written by Aussies.

There's:

- the Tomorrow When The War Began series, which I've already talked about at length. Sudden war, teenagers stuck running around making up guerilla warfare to try and survive.

- Feeling Sorry For Celia, and its sequel Finding Cassie Crazy. Told entirely through letters - some real, and some imaginary. Typical high school girls doing interesting high school things.

...and everything else I've got is either over 50 years old, actually a comic book, mindmeltingly strange, or Harry Potter.

[ghostrunner7.livejournal.com]

Wait, what? There's a sequel to Feeling Sorry for Celia?

[ghostrunner7.livejournal.com]

Oh, god I love those books so hardcore. SO HARDCORE.

Have you read any Holly Black?

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

I KNOW I AM SO OBSESSED I CANNOT EVEN TELL YOU.

I haven't! I know of her, of course, but I haven't actually read any of her. Where would you start?

CANADA apparently

[streussal.livejournal.com]

Alice, I Think trilogy by Susan Juby! Contemporary series, told in the form of a journal and ridiculously hilarious. I love Alice so much. Possibly my favourite first lines of any book ever: "I blame it all on the The Hobbit. That, and my supportive home life." Also, Canadian.

Anything by Kit Pearson, who also happens to be Canadian. Awake and Dreaming is a beautiful contemporary book with fantasty elements (it won the Governor General's Award, which is pretty huge). The Guests of War trilogy is set during World War Two. A Handful of Time flips between the present and the time of the main character's mother (fantasy element).

Martha Brooks' Two Moons in August (set in the 1950s). I also like True Confessions of a Heartless Girl, but my dad disliked the protagonist (I think she was supposed to be a little unlikeable, but ymmmv). ...Oh god she's also Canadian.

...I swear this was by accident.

Re: CANADA apparently

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

Ha! I love it though! Those all sound great!

The answers are making me delirious with joy thinking of all the lovely books there are to read!

[laeria.livejournal.com]

My very favourite YA of all time is Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.

It's contemporary. It's a love story. Music and queerness are integral to it. Nothing much happens. It's largely about communication and art, the various forms thereof. There's discussions about gender and religion and faith and sexuality and class and style and the Beatles, and the protagonists are simultaneously teenaged and mature.

I'm pretty sure the protagonists' arcs ought to appeal to you - not saying more so I don't spoil you, unless you want me to. But I'd definitely love to hear what you think about it. (Disclaimer: it might not be your cup of tea, because I think you really have to love the hero and heroine in order to enjoy the book.)

[laeria.livejournal.com]

Oh, also, there's a film based on it, but I haven't seen it. I don't think I want to until someone I trust assures me it didn't erase or charicaturise the queerness or otherwise ruin the point of the story.

[snickfic]

You've been talking about Terry Pratchett, and his YA series about Tiffany Aching works very nicely as a standalone, no other Discworld knowledge necessary.

You're familiar with Robin McKinley, yes? If not, Beauty is a good place to start.

Also I assume you've read Anne McCaffrey's YA Pern trilogy? If not, definitely those. They're by far my favorite part of Pern.

The Ear, The Eye, and the Arm and In The House of the Scorpion, both by Nancy Farmer, are two of the most spectacularly weird books I've ever read. Both YA, both near-future SF.

I feel like we've discussed this, but if you haven't read Ellen Ruskin's The Westing Game, YOU NEED TO. RIGHT THIS MINUTE. Fabulous ensemble cast and quirkiness and mystery and tricky POV transitions.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

Oh, good! I want to read Pratchett but I was always intimidated trying to figure out where to start. But that sounds like a good place.

Robin McKinley's my favorite always. Have you read Outlaws of Sherwood? It's my favorite adaptation of the Robin Hood stories EVER. I like it even more than the cartoon Disney version, which is otherwise my favorite.

I actually haven't read any McCaffrey! I should probably do that, though....

are two of the most spectacularly weird books I've ever read. Both YA, both near-future SF.

Those sound lovely!

I LOVE THE WESTING GAME. We read it in school, and I've reread it several times since then. PERFECT BOOK.

Thank you!

[gryfndor-godess.livejournal.com]

Aaah, I feel like this post was made for me.

1. The Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud. It takes place in an AU world where corrupt magicians rule the world because they are able to summon and control djinnis. The book is told from the alternating perspectives of a sarcastic 5000-year-old djinni and the 12-year-old boy who summoned him and doesn't even realize he's losing his soul (metaphorically; not literally) in the process.
It is a perfect blend of fantasy and history. Even though it takes place in mostly modern times, the AU is different enough (the British and Czech empires rule the world; Gladstone and Disraeli were *magician* prime ministers) that it feels historical. The characters are stunningly three-dimensional, the world is beautifully developed, and the writing is great. I cannot recommend this series enough.

2. Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer. It's not historical, but the fantasy element (technologically advanced fairies live beneath the earth) is superb. The books are witty, and you want the characters to be your best friends.

3. Percy Jackson and the Olympians, by Rick Riordan. Greek mythology! What is not awesome about that? I have never seen another series that is more like Harry Potter in structure (not nearly as good as HP, but nothing is) and character arc. Though the first book definitely meanders and Percy is kind of a brat, he's 12. His growth and emotional maturity throughout the rest of the series are fantastic, the adventures are page-turning, and the romance is wonderful. If you wanted a Harry/Hermione romance and were disappointed, Percy will give you that dynamic (which is not to say there is a 'Ron' character who gets shafted; I know Ron/Hermione is one of your OTPs, so I mean 'you' in the general sense).

The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin. Perfect, perfect, perfect book. It's not fantasy, but it takes place in the 70s, which is historical enough for me (b/c you can really tell it was written back then; the characters are wonderfully flawed and some of those flaws include attitudes that are wrong and politically incorrect but were unfortunately prevalent a few decades ago). It's a mystery book, and it won the Newberry, and it is utterly fantastic.

I'm not a big fan of contemporary YA paranormal because so much of it is romance with stupid heroines in love with horrible jerks, but one series that does stand out is the "Shiver" series by Maggie Stiefvater. It's a werewolf love story, but the writing is lyrical, the mythology is kind of cool, and the romance is sweet rather than nauseating. And I don't even like werewolves.

I guess I kind of failed on the historical part, but if you read any of them, I hope you like them!

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

Some I've heard of! AND OMG THE WESTING GAME. I am so in love with how much love it's getting in this thread! YAY!

Thank you! And I'll be sure to let you know!

[alwaysjbj.livejournal.com]

The Queen's Man and sequels by Sharon Penman.

It's 1193. In a bleak and bitterly cold England, King Richard, on his way back from the crusades, has been missing for two months, and his ruthless brother John is scheming for the throne...

I love all her books, but unlike her other more weighty (but truly fabulous) books, her Justin DeQuincy books are quickly read and very enjoyable.

I imagine if you are into Fantasy that you have already read them, but just in case... Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern series.

HOW CAN ONE GIRL SAVE AN ENTIRE WORLD?

To the nobles who live in Benden Weyr, Lessa is nothing but a ragged kitchen girl. For most of her life she has survived by serving those who betrayed her father and took over his lands. Now the time has come for Lessa to shed her disguise—and take back her stolen birthright...

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

I've read Here Be Dragons and it is flawless, so I'll have to check those out! Cool!

Thanks muchly!

[pennydrdful.livejournal.com]

Recommending...

The Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce - A fantasy series that I love to death. It's about Alanna, a girl who pretends she's a boy in order to become a Knight.

Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - I just stumbled upon this the other day, after hearing people rec it, and let me tell you - the first book is amazing!

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray - The first in a really interesting trilogy.

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

I've read most of those, but I haven't read any Tamora Pierce! Which I realize is shocking, because you'd think I would have--but nope! I'm really glad to be reminded, though, because I've been meaning to read them! Thanks!

[worldwasasong.livejournal.com]

Hard to believe you've never read them, since now that I think of it they do seem right up your alley :). I LOVE those books. Childhood favorites, for sure.

Other favorite YAs, some of which you've probably read or heard of:
The Daughter of the Forest / The Sevenwaters Trilogy (there are 4 but I mostly like the first 3)
The whole Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, especially book 3
Summer Sisters, by Judy Blume
The China Garden, Liz Berry
Blood and Chocolate, Annette Curtis Klause (hope I spelled that right)
Speak, totally forgot the author
Drowning Anna, also forgot the author (warning: depressing)
The Hero and the Crown, Robin McKinley
The Blue Sword, Robin McKinley
Deerskin, also Robin R.

Those are my top favorites, sorry I don't have my bookshelf in front of me to give you more. Hope there are a couple there you haven't read.

Xoxox.

[worldwasasong.livejournal.com]

Oh! Yes! As the person above me said - the Alanna books. I'm also a big fan of the Circle books, also by Tamora Pierce. And by the circle books, I mean the first four about Briar and the other three whose names I've forgotten (NOT the second series about them, which is not nearly is good).

Also along those lines, Diana Wynn Jones wrote the Crestomanci books (http://www.leemac.freeserve.co.uk/chresto.htm) and The Dalemark Quartet (http://www.leemac.freeserve.co.uk/dalemark.htm), which I also loved back in the day.

Last but not least, how could I forget - Outlander, by Diana Gabaldon. She's written maybe seven or eight in the series, but the first one is by far the best.

[fenchurche.livejournal.com]

You're the second person I've had recommend those books in the last week! Definitely going to have to give them a try.

And wow... I have a tone of favorite YA books! Here are a few:

Archer's Goon by Diana Wynne Jones (actually, I recommend anything by DWJ, but this is a good one to start). Oh! And then definitely pick up Howl's Moving Castle! Miyazaki made a movie based on it that is quite good, but very different in tone. I recommend reading the book first!

Ordinary Jack by Helen Cresswell -- it's the first in a series and they're all wonderful. Not fantasy (at least in the traditional sense), not historical and not really contemporary... I'm honestly not sure how to categorize it except fun and funny. They're British and can be a bit difficult to track down in the US but are well worth the effort!

The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley (and its prequel The Hero and the Crown but read the other one first). Quite frankly, anything by Robin McKinley!

There are more, but I'll leave it at that for now!

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

They are flawless and hit my kinks left and right. Fun worldbuilding, fantastic characterization, and wonderful plotting!

Robin McKinley is one of the most important writers in my life, so I'm glad you love her too! I haven't read the rest of those, though, so I'll add them to the list!

[eilowyn.livejournal.com]

Okay, it may be a bit more juvenile than young adult, but The Sisters Grimm, Fairy Tale Detectives series by Michael Buckley are absolutely adorable. They're about a town in New England where fairy tale characters settled in the early 1800s, and the descendants of the Grimm Brothers have to help keep them secret. The Sisters Grimm are Daphne and Sabrina, who just discovered they're related to THE brothers Grimm, and who go to live with their grandmother in the town where the fairy tale characters live after the disappearance of their parents, which is the sustaining mystery of the series. There's Puck as a character, the grandmother having an ambiguous live-in relationship with the Big Bad Wolf, and Little Red Riding Hood as a sociopath. Best of all, SMG gives one of the blurbs recommending the books!

Another good series are the Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud, which takes the boy magician trope from Harry Potter and pairs him with a snarky, sarcastic genie named Bartimaeus. Probably my favorite YA fantasy series next to Harry Potter.

If you like Egyptian stuff, there's Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw, which was my favorite book until I was old enough to read Pride and Prejudice. It's about an Egyptian slave who gets involved in espionage in the Pharaoh Hatshepsut's court, and is probably one of the more romantic YA books out there that don't include teen vampires as a requisite for romance.

I have more if you need them, but you have a pretty substantial list going already, so I'll wait until you ask again!

[penny-lane-42.livejournal.com]

OMG YOU LOVE MARA???????

THAT WAS MY FAVORITE BOOK EVER. I READ IT SO MANY TIMES THE LIBRARY COPIES STARTED FALLING APART AND THEN I GOT A COPY FOR CHRISTMAS AND READ IT SO MANY TIMES IT'S FALLING APART. CENTRAL READING EXPERIENCE OF MY YOUNG ADULTHOOD. FAVORITE FAVORITE FAVORITE ALWAYS.

Anyways. I may have some feelings about that book.

But the others sound lovely as well! Oh yay more to read! And whenever you have more, feel free to flood me with them--I'm bookmarking this entry so that I can use it as my to-read list.

MARA! AND SHEFTU!

[fenchurche.livejournal.com]

Oh! Oh! I don't know how I could have forgotten this, since I've been recommending it to *everyone* for the last few years: Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson.

It's the first in an excellent series of books... very funny and extremely well written young adult science fantasy. Seriously, they're some of the best books I've read in recent years.

[delta-mai.livejournal.com]

I have no idea what YA is, but you should read The Beach. It's infinity better than the film (that screwed it up and turned it all Hollywood) and it's really easy and fun to read - it's written in this really light way so you totally don't notice when something bad happens until it hits you. AWESOME book.

Also Hitch-Hiker's Guide and To Kill a Mockingbird and Rebecca :)

[louise39.livejournal.com]

I have been reading the Vorkasigan saga books by Lois McMaster Bujold. The series covers different years in the life of Miles Vorkasigan. He was damaged by a poison and antidote while he was a fetus and so grew to 4'9''. Bright, hyper and adventurous - his life is filled with quests.

[ozmissage.livejournal.com]

Caroline B. Cooney wrote a time travel series that I hold directly responsible for my obsession with time twisty love stories. There are four books, but the first two are by far the best: Both Sides of Time and Out of Time. This modern girl is pining for ye old days when she accidentally travels back in time to the 19th century. There's murder and consumption and all manner of swooning. They're delightful. :D

The Mediator series by Meg Cabot is also a lot of fun and has an awesome Ghost/Person ship that's very Ghost of Mrs. Muir. It's got a strong Buffy vibe to it. Sadly, if memory serves the series was left unfinished (and if Amazon is any indication, the books have hideous covers now) but they're still worth checking out if you're looking for something breezy with a little action.

[zombie_boogie.livejournal.com]

I haven't actually read much contemporary YA (other than Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, all of which I loved), but working in a bookstore does have its advantages as it introduces me to what's new and hot in YA fiction. I know I Am Number Four, The Book Thief, and A Great and Terrible Beauty are popular as well as highly recommended.

Another series that I love is the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger. It's not technically YA, but they're still easy reads and incredibly fun. They're steampunk novels with vampires and werewolves and a cheeky, British sense of humour. The first book is Soulless and it's a trilogy thus far, with the fourth book expected to come out this July.

Oh and I will forever lahv lahv lahv Anne of Green Gables.

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Yay, book recs! I'm loving this thread, I already noted down a ton of titles.

I'll throw in my own:

Tamora Pierce, especially the "Song of the Lioness" quartet.

Patricia C. Wrede, especially her dragon series and "Sorcery and Cecelia"

Lloyd Alexander, the Westmark series, which I liked even better than Taran

Astrid Lindgren, Ronja the robber's daughter and the brothers Lionheart. Beautiful and incredibly good books.

Michael Ende, The neverending story, Momo (it's so so brilliant, I think I should read Momo again)

(I translated the titles of the last two from German, not sure if those are the English titles)

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

- E. L. Konigsberg is where it's at!

- and Zilpha Keatley Snyder!

- Girl Goddess #9 by Francesca Lia Block. She's an excellent author and I love most of her books to death, but this collection of short stories is a masterpiece and my absolute favorite work of hers.

- Owl in Love and Woman in the Wall by Patric Kindl. OMG MY LOVE FOR THESE BOOKS KNOWS NO BOUNDS. They don't seem to be super well known, but they're two of my favorites.

- basically everything by John Green ever. I do not normally read books by cis/straight/white dudes, but he is amazing. Paper Towns is set in MY (and his) hometown and blew me away.