Thursday, October 13, 2011

Lists of Bests & Other Stories

So this list of the top 100 young adult books has been making the rounds of book blogs (I don't know who compiled it, though) & I don't know if I particularly agree with it. By which I mean I don't agree with it. (Sometimes, I try to be diplomatic & fail a little bit. By which I mean I fail miserably.) It looks to me like a list of the most popular contemporary young adult books, but, as anyone who's read the House of Night series can attest to, most popular doesn't always mean best. By which I mean everybody's tastes differ & one person's best may be another person's worst. (Sometimes I do the diplomacy thing backwards.)

Anyway, I've bolded the books I've read & italicised those I've been meaning to read for positively ages.

Top 100 Young Adult Books:
    1. Alex Finn – Beastly
    2. Alice Sebold – The Lovely Bones
    3. Ally Carter – Gallagher Girls (1, 2, 3, 4)
    4. Ally Condie – Matched
    5. Alyson Noel – The Immortals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
    6. Anastasia Hopcus – Shadow Hills
    7. Angie Sage – Septimus Heap (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
    8. Ann Brashares – The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (1, 2, 3, 4)
    9. Anna Godbersen – Luxe (1, 2, 3, 4)
    10. Anthony Horowitz – Alex Rider (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
    11. Aprilynne Pike – Wings (1, 2, 3)
    12. Becca Fitzpatrick – Hush, Hush (1, 2)
    13. Brandon Mull – Fablehaven (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
    14. Brian Selznick – The Invention of Hugo Cabret
    15. Cassandra Clare – The Mortal Instruments (1, 2, 3, 4)
    16. Carrie Jones – Need (1, 2, 3)
    17. Carrie Ryan – The Forest of Hands and Teeth (1, 2, 3, 4)
    18. Christopher Paolini – Inheritance (1, 2, 3, 4)
    19. Cinda Williams Chima – The Heir Chronicles (1, 2, 3)
    20. Colleen Houck – Tigers Saga (1, 2)
    21. Cornelia Funke – Inkheart (1, 2, 3)
    22. Ellen Hopkins – Impulse
    23. Eoin Colfer – Artemis Fowl (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
    24. Faraaz Kazi – Truly, Madly, Deeply
    25. Frank Beddor – The Looking Glass Wars (1, 2, 3)
    26. Gabrielle Zevin – Elsewhere
    27. Gail Carson Levine – Fairest
    28. Holly Black – Tithe (1, 2, 3)
    29. J.K. Rowling – Harry Potter (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
    30. James Dashner – The Maze Runner (1, 2)
    31. James Patterson – Maximum Ride (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
    32. Jay Asher – Thirteen Reasons Why
    33. Jeanne DuPrau – Books of Ember (1, 2, 3, 4)
    34. Jeff Kinney – Diary of a Wimpy Kid (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
    35. John Boyne – The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
    36. John Green – An Abundance of Katherines
    37. John Green – Looking for Alaska
    38. John Green – Paper Towns
    39. Jonathan Stroud – Bartimaeus (1, 2, 3, 4)
    40. Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl – Caster Chronicles (1, 2)
    41. Kelley Armstrong – Darkest Powers (1, 2, 3)
    42. Kristin Cashore – The Seven Kingdoms (1, 2)
    43. Lauren Kate – Fallen (1, 2, 3)
    44. Lemony Snicket – Series of Unfortunate Events (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
    45. Libba Bray – Gemma Doyle (1, 2, 3)
    46. Lisa McMann – Dream Catcher (1, 2, 3)
    47. Louise Rennison – Confessions of Georgia Nicolson (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
    48. M.T. Anderson – Feed
    49. Maggie Stiefvater – The Wolves of Mercy Falls (1, 2, 3)
    50. Margaret Peterson Haddix – Shadow Children (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
    51. Maria V. Snyder – Study (1, 2, 3)
    52. Markus Zusak – The Book Thief
    53. Markus Zusak – I am the Messenger
    54. Mark Haddon – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
    55. Mary Ting – Crossroads
    56. Maureen Johnson – Little Blue Envelope (1, 2)
    57. Meg Cabot – All-American Girl (1, 2)
    58. Meg Cabot – The Mediator (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
    59. Meg Cabot – The Princess Diaries (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
    60. Meg Rosoff – How I Live Now
    61. Megan McCafferty – Jessica Darling (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
    62. Megan Whalen Turner – The Queen’s Thief (1, 2, 3, 4)
    63. Melina Marchetta – On the Jellicoe Road
    64. Melissa de la Cruz – Blue Bloods (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
    65. Melissa Marr – Wicked Lovely (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
    66. Michael Grant – Gone (1, 2, 3, 4)
    67. Nancy Farmer – The House of the Scorpion
    68. Neal Shusterman – Unwind
    69. Neil Gaiman – Coraline
    70. Neil Gaiman – Stardust
    71. Neil Gaiman – The Graveyard Book
    72. P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast – House of Night (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
    73. Philip Pullman – His Dark Materials (1, 2, 3)
    74. Rachel Caine – The Morganville Vampires (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
    75. Rachel Cohn & David Levithan – Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist
    76. Richelle Mead – Vampire Academy (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
    77. Rick Riordan – Percy Jackson and the Olympians (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
    78. Rom LcO’Feer – Somewhere Carnal Over 40 Winks
    79. S.L. Naeole – Grace (1, 2, 3, 4)
    80. Sabrina Bryan & Julia DeVillers – Princess of Gossip
    81. Sarah Dessen – Along for the Ride
    82. Sarah Dessen – Lock and Key
    83. Sarah Dessen – The Truth about Forever
    84. Sara Shepard – Pretty Little Liars (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
    85. Scott Westerfeld – Leviathan (1, 2)
    86. Scott Westerfeld – Uglies (1, 2, 3)
    87. Shannon Hale – Books of a Thousand Days
    88. Shannon Hale – Princess Academy
    89. Shannon Hale – The Books of Bayern (1, 2, 3, 4)
    90. Sherman Alexie & Ellen Forney – The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
    91. Simone Elkeles – Perfect Chemistry (1, 2, 3)
    92. Stephenie Meyer – The Host
    93. Stephenie Meyer – Twilight Saga (1, 2, 3, 4)
    94. Sue Monk Kidd – The Secret Life of Bees
    95. Susan Beth Pfeffer – Last Survivors (1, 2, 3)
    96. Suzanne Collins – Hunger Games (1, 2, 3)
    97. Suzanne Collins – Underland Chronicles (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
    98. Terry Pratchett – Tiffany Aching (1, 2, 3, 4)
    99. Tonya Hurley – Ghost Girl (1, 2, 3)
    100. Wendelin Van Draanen – Flipped
(I've bolded Melissa Marr's first Wicked Lovely book even though I'm only halfway through it because I'll have finished it by tomorrow. So far I like it, even though it involves fairies & employs that terribly over-used Supernatural Hunky Bad Boy Borderline-Abusive Stalker Who Wins Our Heroine's Heart trope. I'm hoping that if I continue thinking positive thoughts it'll go away.)

How many of these have you guys read? Are there any in particular you'd recommend? Do you agree that this represents the best 100 young adult books?

Also, does The Lovely Bones really count as young adult fiction? I'd consider some of these general fiction (The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, for example, & The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time), & I'd consider others more children's fiction than essentially young adult (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, A Series of Unfortunate Events & Harry Potter, for example, as well as Coraline, The Graveyard Book, the Tiffany Aching books, & even His Dark Materials). Do you agree? Disagree? A few weeks ago, a friend of mine who studies science fiction told me that she considers Margaret Atwood's The Handmaiden's Tale to be a sci-fi novel. I guess that reading age-groups, like genre, can be slippery things.

Bitch Magazine also compiled a list of young adult books earlier this year, & it looks very different to the list above (& not just because I couldn't figure out the list formatting). Also I know there were all kinds of kerfluffles about the removal of certain books from this list, & while I agree with a lot of what was said on the matter, I'm choosing to ignore that for the sake of staying on topic. Also because it was ages ago. Also also because this post is long enough as it is. 

100 Young Adult Books for the Feminist Reader:
      1. Estrella's Quinceañera by Malin Alegria
      2. How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
      3. Choir Boy by Charlie Anders
      4. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
      5. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

      6. Alt Ed by Catherine Atkins
      7. The Rhyming Season by Edward Averett
      8. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi

      9. Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black
      10. Dangerous Angels by Francesca Lia Block
      11. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
      12. Forever by Judy Blume

      13. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
      14. Debbie Harry Sings in French by Meagan Brothers

      15. All-American Girl by Meg Cabot
      16. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
      17. The Plain Janes by Cecil Castelluci and Jim Rugg
      18. This is All: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn by Aidan Chambers
      19. Dancing in Red Shoes Will Kill You by Dorian Cirrone

      20. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
      21. Magic Knight Rayearth by CLAMP
      22. Celine by Brock Cole

      23. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
      24. Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
      25. The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman
      26. Sex Education by Jenny Davis
      27. Mare’s War by Tanita S. Davis

      28. Dreamland by Sarah Dessen
      29. For the Win by Cory Doctorow
      30. Down to the Bone by Mayra Lazara Dole
      31. A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
      32. El Lector by William Durbin
      33. The Skin I’m In by Sharon Flake

      34. Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
      35. Breathing Underwater by Alex Flinn
      36. Crossing Stones by Helen Frost

      37. Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
      38. The Year They Burned the Books by Nancy Garden
      39. Sticks and Stones by Beth Goobie
      40. Nothing But the Truth (and a few white lies) by Justina Chen Headley
      41. Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

      42. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
      43. It’s Not What You Expect by Norma Klein
      44. Uncommon Faith by Trudy Krisher
      45. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
      46. Toning the Sweep by Angela Johnson
      47. The Bermudez Triangle by Maureen Johnson
      48. Another Kind of Cowboy by Susan Juby
      49. White Sands, Red Menace by Ellen Klages

      50. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’engle
      51. Magic or Madness by Justine Larbalestier
      52. Voices by Ursula K. Le Guin

      53. Ella Echanted by Gail Carson Levine
      54. Gravity by Leanne Lieberman
      55. Ash by Malinda Lo
      56. Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

      57. Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden
      58. Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty
      59. Sold by Patricia McCormick
      60. The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers
      61. Thunder Over Kandahar by Sharon E. McKay
      62. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley
      63. The Secret Under My Skin by Janet McNaughton
      64. Night Flying by Rita Murphy
      65. Revenge by Taslima Nasrin
      66. A Step from Heaven by An Na
      67. Skip Beat! By Yosiki Nakamura
      68. Simply Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
      69. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
      70. Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu
      71. Rampant by Diana Peterfreund
      72. Keeping You a Secret by Julie Anne Peters
      73. Luna by Julie Anne Peters
      74. Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce
      75. Trickster’s Choice by Tamora Pierce
      76. What Happened to Lani Garver by Carol Plum-Ucci
      77. Imani All Mine by Connie Rose Porter

      78. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
      79. The Ruby in the Smoke by Philip Pullman

      80. Beneath My Mother's Feet by Amjed Qamar
      81. The Sweet In-Between by Sheri Reynolds
      82. Flygirl by Sherri Smith
      83. Lucy the Giant by Sherri Smith

      84. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
      85. Big Fat Manifesto by Susan Vaught
      86. Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman
      87. Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian
      88. Izzy, Willy-Nilly by Cynthia Voigt
      89. Cress Delahanty by Jessamyn West

      90. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
      91. When Kambia Elaine Flew in from Neptune by Lori Aurelia Williams
      92. Blue Tights by Rita Williams-Garcia
      93. One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
      94. Parrotfish by Ellen Wittlinger
      95. Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff
      96. The House You Pass on the Way by Jaqueline Woodson
      97. Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
      98. When the Black Girl Sings by Bil Wright
      99. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

      100. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Interestingly enough, there are no vampire texts on this list... Could it be because the majority of them are not particularly feminist (by which I mean really not feminist at all, *cough*Twilight*cough*)? Although Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy is a refreshing exception to that rule.

Also, Francesca Lia Block's Weetzie Bat books are still my favourite things ever. There aren't many books I was obsessed with as a teen that stayed with me through adult re-readings, but Weetzie Bat is still kinda my hero.

Speaking of which, I think I might have to re-read my old favourite young adult books & make up a little list of my own. What about you guys? What would be on your list of best young adult books?

ETA: Here's a great list of 36 Young Adult Books for the Feminist Adult compiled by the wonderful Rie at Friend of Dorothy Wilde, who constantly expands my Books-To-Read list.

4 comments:

  1. Already made one!
    http://friendofdorothywilde.blogspot.com/2011/02/36-young-adult-books-for-feminist-adult.html

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  2. I <3 Tamora Pierce. Made me the woman I am today!

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  3. @Rie: Of course, I can't believe I forgot! I love that list! So many great recommendations.

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  4. The Luxe books are fun, and the Gemma Doyle trilogy at least starts out fun (was pretty disappointed with the third book), but neither are what I'd call great quality. I read the first three Wimpy Kid books and they're pretty enjoyable but definitely not YA!

    Off the top of my head, the two Octavian Nothing books by M.T. Anderson are amazing (particularly the first). I won't give any info on the plot -- my copy of the first book has a very vague cover illustration and I didn't see the cover flap text before I bought it, so I went into the book knowing nothing about it except the title, but I think that was the best way to read it, as I probably wouldn't have picked it up if I'd known about the setting ahead of time, and figuring it out as I read was a really interesting experience. Seriously, though, it's really good!

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