Today is Young Reader’s Day, an annual event held to recognize the benefits and joys of reading. This day was co-founded in 1989 by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress and, surprisingly enough, Pizza Hut! The company has committed itself to enabling access to reading through its BOOK IT! literacy program and The Literacy Project.
I have always been an avid reader. I love 1960s American literature (Truman Capote and Christopher Isherwood are my all-time favorites), and contemporary French novels. I also have a soft spot for YA fiction.
I grew up in France, where YA fiction is still not as widespread as in the U.S. In the early 2000s, it was really difficult to find good novels with teen characters that were not one-dimensional. I read my fair share of “teen novels” and most of them revolved around teenage girls falling in love with the boy next door. Even though I enjoyed reading them (shoutout to Jacqueline Wilson for portraying relatable preteen girls), there was not a lot to choose from and these books really targeted a (pre) teen audience.
Once I got older (and was eventually able to read an entire book in English!), I discovered the world of YA fiction and OMG it changed my life! I could go on for hours about my favorite YA novels, but I managed to choose only five.
How They Met and Other Stories, David Levithan (2008)
“Here are 18 stories, all about love, and about all kinds of love. From the aching for the one you pine for, to standing up and speaking up for the one you love, to pure joy and happiness, these love stories run the gamut of that emotion that at some point has turned every one of us inside out and upside down. What is love?”
What a better way to start this list than with a novel by David Levithan. He is my favorite YA author and I had a hard time choosing only one of his books. I chose this one because I spend a lot of my time commuting and short stories are great picks to read in the T. Have you ever arrived to class and been dying to read the next chapter? That never happens with short stories!
David Levithan started to write these stories as a junior in high school and this makes all the difference. These stories are so relatable because they were actually written (at least the first draft) by a teenager. All of them are obviously really good, but if I had to pick two I would say: “The Alumni Interview” and “The Number Of People Who Meet On Airplanes.”
Other books by David Levithan worth mentioning are Two Boys Kissing and Will Grayson, Will Grayson, co-written with John Green.
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Benjamin Alire Sáenz (2012)
“Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship — the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.”
This is the first YA novel I read as an actual young adult and I loved it! The story is told from Ari’s point of view and Benjamin Alire Sáenz did such a good job of writing a relatable Mexican-American teenage boy struggling with insecurity, and sadness and slowly falling in love. Yes, this is the “special friendship” mentioned in the synopsis…
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe won the Stonewall Book Award for LGBT fiction in 2013. If you are looking for great novels featuring LGBTQ characters, you should check previous years winners.
The Book Thief, Markus Zusak (2006)
“Set during World War II in Germany, [The Book Thief] is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist – books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.”
12-year old me cried while reading this book and trust me this almost never happens. This book is truly depressing. It is about the Holocaust, the main character is an orphan, and this is just the start: the story is narrated by Death itself. Yet, this is not morbid at all thanks to Zusak’s beautiful writing and the way he manages to infuse his story with lively humor. This book is an ode to the power of books and the perfect read to celebrate Young Reader’s Day.
If you do not feel like reading a book, The Book Thief was adapted into a movie in 2013.
Lies We Tell Ourselves, Robin Talley (2014)
“In 1959 Virginia, the lives of two girls on opposite sides of the battle for civil rights will be changed forever. Sarah Dunbar is one of the first black students to attend the previously all-white Jefferson High School. […] Linda Hairston is the daughter of one of the town’s most vocal opponents of school integration. […] Forced to work together on a school project, Sarah and Linda must confront harsh truths about race, power and how they really feel about one another.”
This book is divided into five parts. Chapters from the first four parts are titled “Lie #” and really tackle the question of how your surroundings and your education can influence your own beliefs. The last part is about truths and what it takes to confront and change those notions, as Sarah and Linda come to terms with who they really are.
I loved the fact that the author gave a voice to both girls, each chapter being told from one of the girls’ point of view. That being said, some critics thought that Sarah’s story was not a white author’s to tell. It is true that it sometimes felt like Sarah was just a tool to open Linda’s mind and I wonder if a black author would have written these characters the same way. I have complicated feelings toward this book, but I still really love the story.
More Than This, Patrick Ness (2014)
“A boy drowns, desperate and alone in his final moments. He dies. Then he wakes, naked and bruised and thirsty, but alive. How can this be? And what is this strange deserted place? As he struggles to understand what is happening, the boy dares to hope. Might this not be the end? Might there be more to this life, or perhaps this afterlife?”
There is no denying that this book is weird, but weird in a good way. Although it is really long (maybe a bit too long but I did not really mind), it is well paced, and there are so many turns of event. While I was reading it, all I could think was: “Please don’t make all of this a dream with the main character waking up at the end!” No spoilers here, all I can tell is that this book made the list. If I am being honest, I am not one hundred percent sure of what really happened there. My best advice is to read it and make your own opinion about it.
I hope you will enjoy these books and remember there is no such thing as being too old to enjoy a YA novel!
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