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University YA Lit Class
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Which authors on the list have you read before? I could recommend some Gary Paulsen books that my son and I both liked, but don't know if you have read them already. The best one, IMO is Hatchet, but all four of the books in this series were pretty good. I might be able to suggest some good graphic novels also, do they include mangas. I like the Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE, Volume 1 and this series.
hope this helps
Hi rebecca I am going to be starting a book that a few of my friends have recommended from the YA section and thought from all the good reviews I have heard about it you might want to look it up. It's called ....A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
it's the first book of a trilogy set the link to this book is below :)
A Great and Terrible Beauty
not exactly sure what category you would put this in but it might fit? If i think of anymore i will post again.
Out of all the authors I've only read Lurlene McDaniels and I've read most of her stuff. Thanks for the help so far though!
I would recommend Hunger Games for the fantasy, science fiction, horror, or suspense one. It is amazing! Why do they have audio book in there as a category for you guys?
Laurie Halse Anderson wrote Speak, which is quite popular, about a young girl who is raped right at a party before her freshmen year in high school. Many people like that one, her knew book Wintergirls, is about anorexia, I have heard good things, but haven't read it. Oh and I'd most definitely recommend A Great and Terrible Beauty if you can. I've seen it in audio book in my library.
Oh and Coraline by Neil Gaiman for a graphic novel.
I'll put in my two cents worth, also for A Great And Terribly Beauty. I read it a couple of years ago and it was really good.
Suspense: 24 Hours...Greg Isles
A Northern Light is really, really, really good, but I'll still recommend The Book Thief as the Printz honor book instead. Sorry, Allison! :-)How about Anne of Green Gables for the old time juvenile fiction?
The Complete Maus would be good for the graphic novel if you can handle Holocaust stuff at all.
Thanks guys! These are some great recommendations. I would totally read Anne of Green Gables, but I know I've read that in the last 10 years.I don't know why the professor decided to include audio book. I know that this class is required for Elementary Education majors though, so maybe he's requiring it because he wants to expose us to that type of media. It's probably helpful for teaching children to read or for children whose parents don't speak English.
I would recommend : graphic novel : The Plain Janes series There are two titles right now. Different and not really main stream but offers an alternative to manga or horror/paranormal/sci-fi genre.
Audiobooks : you can get Anne of Green Gables in audiobook for free at librivox.org
Are you at BYU? If so, I am totally in your class.
Did you read any of the other Anne books as well? I think most of them were published before 1920. Or maybe some of her more obscure novels like The Story Girl?
i did an author study on Jacqueline Woodson for my YA lit course in college. The House You Pass on the Way and I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This are fantastic reads. If You Come Softly is an amazing story, but the ending is heart-wrenching. all of her books really make you think, and can make some people uncomfortable.could you read Jane Eyre for the romance category? we read that in 12th grade, and though it's not a normal romance novel, i think it would fit.
good luck with finding your books!
Lissa wrote: "Are you at BYU? If so, I am totally in your class."Yup... I'm at BYU! There's actually a group on Goodreads for our class. There's nothing on there, but if you want brownie points with the professor you should add it.
As far as the Anne series and A Girl of the Limberlost, those are both favorites of mine so I've read them fairly recently. Thank you for the suggestions though!! It's great to get other people's perspective and recommendations so that I can read something that maybe I haven't heard of yet.
Hey, some more BYU kids! I'm at BYU too, although in a completely different program :)
How about "A Little Princess" by Burnett.. would that count as YA for the "Old time juvenile? I loved, loved, loved that book growing up (and still love it) but haven't run across many that have actually read it. Also I really enjoy Cornelia Funke's "The Thief Lord" and Roland Smith's "Peak" and "Elephant Run".
Have you read Freckles? How about the more obscure Louisa May Alcott? George MacDonald (At the Back of the North Wind, etc.)?I adored A Little Princess back in the day.
I love Freckles! Here's an update with what I'm thinking about reading.Read at least one YA book by each of the following authors:
___Laurie Halse Anderson--Prom (I've already read Speak and I think that's the book most people will go for)
___M. T. Anderson-- Feed
___Nancy Farmer--The House of the Scorpian
___Lurlene McDaniels
___Gary Paulsen--Hatchet (unless someone recommends a different book)
___Rene Saldaña, Jr.
___Jacqueline Woodson
Read at least one YA book from each of the following categories:
___audio book--Fairest
___fantasy, science fiction, horror, or suspense--still not sure, there's so many great suggestions!
___old time ‘juvenile’ fiction (pre-1920)-- Peter Pan
___poetry
___romance
___nonfiction/informational
___graphic novel--Coraline
___Printz Award winner or honor book--The Book Thief
Thanks again for all your great suggestions! I'm excited to have an excuse to read some really good children's/ya lit!
One of my favorite fantasy books for this age group is by Julie Andrews- The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles. It's VERY imaginitive and wonderful. For poetry I love Shel Silverstein.
For romance The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare.
Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles is great, I second that one (assuming you haven't read it already!). Yeah, Shel Silverstein would be my suggestion as well for poetry.
For the non-fiction: how about George Washington's World?
Rebecca, im just curious, what major(s) is this class for? I would love to take a class like this, and I still do not know what to major in when I get to college
For some nonfiction, you could check out The Rhino with Glue on Shoes, which is a collection of nonfiction by zoo vets about their relationships with animals they've treated.
Fantasy- The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope. It is a variation of the Tam Lin ballad and I know my friend's mom who teaches a YA lit class at a local college includes it in her class. Also, great book!Romance-Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise McGraw. Brooklyn Rose by Ann Rinaldi. Beauty by McKinley. All great historical fiction books!
Julie wrote: "Rebecca, im just curious, what major(s) is this class for? I would love to take a class like this, and I still do not know what to major in when I get to college "Well I'm taking it as an English major and it's an elective option for us. I know it's required for elementary education and possibly English Teaching majors at my university though. But since it's an English class that means it's open enrollment since English (at least at BYU) is an open major. So when you're looking at colleges just look into their English/Elementary Education programs to see if they offer any class like that. They might also have something similar in a library science major, but since my university doesn't have that program I wouldn't know for sure.
Whatever you decide to major in though, just remember that most people major in something they could do for a career, and minor in whatever they're really passionate about. Not saying that you shouldn't love your major, but if you have a favorite hobby you may decide you'd rather keep it as a hobby instead of making it a career.
Rebecca wrote: "Julie wrote: "Rebecca, im just curious, what major(s) is this class for? I would love to take a class like this, and I still do not know what to major in when I get to college "Well I'm taking..."
I was always under the impression that if you plan to go to gradaute school (law school, business school, PhD, etc.) it matters less what you major in. I majored in History because I love it, am now teaching English in Japan, and plan to go to law school. My employers are going to look at my law degree, not my undergraduate major. And I have no minor because there were too many different classes I wanted to take.
That being said, you don't have to worry about your major until after you're in school, unless you're deeply passionate about something or already know what you want to be (i.e., my friend the English lit PhD). I changed mine first year. Take a variety of classes freshman/sophomore year and figure out what you like best. Unless you want to be a doctor, because you have to start taking classes for that out of the gate.
Oh, and BYU might be one of the very few colleges offering a YA lit class, so if you really want to take it, apply there. I looked at dozens of colleges, and this is the first I've heard of it. What a fun class, though a very surprising one to have.
My recs:
Fantasy, etc.: Fire and Hemlock (Diana Wynne Jones), A Curse Dark as Gold (Elizabeth C. Bunce), Summers at Castle Auburn (Sharon Shinn) [though I think many of these could double as romance:]
Old Juvenile: Daddy Long Legs (Jean Webster) [1912:] (loved this one!)
Romance: The Raging Quiet (Sherryl Jordan)
Graphic Novel: Holly Black has some in her urban fantasy world that I've been wanting to read.
Printz: I haven't read either, but have heard good things about The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (E.Lockhart) and A Northern Light (Jennifer Donnelly)
I'd recommend Fantasy - The Indian in the Cupbboard
Old Juvenile - Charlotte's Web, Through the Looking Glass
Romance - Mrs. Mike, Becoming Ruby
Don't think Charlotte's Web is old enough. Fabulous book, though.
Bonnie:I read Daddy Long Legs years ago and have never been able to find it again because I didn't remember the author's name. Thanks so much for listing it here. I adored that book too and really want to find another copy.
I love Daddy Long Legs too! My grandma gave it to me years ago. If you read it you have to read Dear Enemy as well. I love it just a little more than Daddy Long Legs, but only because there's more of it to enjoy.
The Gates by John Connolly is getting excellent reviews.FROM PW:
"The Gates John Connolly. Atria, $24 (304p) ISBN 978-1-4391-7263-6
In this frothy fantasy thriller from bestseller Connolly (The Book of Lost Things), 11-year-old Samuel Johnson witnesses an inadvertent intersection of science and the supernatural while trick-or-treating at the Abernathy household in Biddlecombe, England. Something nasty reaches through an atomically engineered portal to Hades and possesses four suburban sorcerers. From that point on, Samuel finds himself battling hordes of invading demons and desperately trying to convince disbelieving adults that the impending end of the world is not a fancy of his overactive imagination."
http://www.publishersweekly.com/artic...
I saw that you have already made your picks but want to suggest reading Fever 1793. It is my favorite by Laurie Halse Anderson.
I loved Daddy Long Legs - I had my grandmother's copy, which had pictures from the Mary Pickford movie throughout - they were a hoot.
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Books mentioned in this topic
Fever 1793 (other topics)Fire and Hemlock (other topics)
Summers at Castle Auburn (other topics)
The Raging Quiet (other topics)
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (other topics)
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Read at least one YA book by each of the following authors:
___Laurie Halse Anderson
___M. T. Anderson
___Nancy Farmer
___Lurlene McDaniels
___Gary Paulsen
___Rene Saldaña, Jr.
___Jacqueline Woodson
Read at least one YA book from each of the following categories:
___audio book
___fantasy, science fiction, horror, or suspense
___old time ‘juvenile’ fiction (pre-1920)
___poetry
___romance
___nonfiction/informational
___graphic novel
___Printz Award winner or honor book