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Nice idea, Christine!I'm trying to decide between Gunslinger Girl and Devils Unto Dust. The latter is generally more horror, but it's been tagged as a western by Goodreads users so I figure that's good enough.
Last year, I read Vengeance Road and loved it! It is a little more action-y, but it was still really good. I think you could also make an argument for Rebel of the Sands; it's more of a fantasy and isn't marked as western on its top five, but several people have noted it as such, and the main character is a gunslinger in a dusty, country town.
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The only two books that come to mind are Vengeance Road / Retribution Rails or Under a Painted Sky. I haven’t read these, but they are on my TBR.
Just found some more that might be up your alley:Walk on Earth a Stranger is the first in a trilogy, featuring magical realism in the wild west.
Revenge and the Wild is one I haven't read, but it seems like it's a mix of magic and horror, and I'm so down for it.
and Grace and the Guiltless also looks really good, and doesn't sound (from the synopsis) to be really action-y.
Kimberly wrote: "The only two books that come to mind are Vengeance Road / Retribution Rails or Under a Painted Sky."Thanks for your suggestions, Kimberly! I ended up reading Under a Painted Sky for this year's challenge and plan to read Vengeance Road for next year's challenge.
Kristen wrote: "Just found some more that might be up your alley ... "Thanks for your suggestions, Kristen! I added some of those books to my TBR list.
Hi, fellow readers!I am having trouble finding a young adult classic to read in order to fulfill this year's genre challenge. Young adult literature is relatively new. I've read a lot of lists trying to find a good YA classic, but the lists are full of adult or middle grade books. Which young adult classic are you planning to read this year? What criteria do you use to determine whether a young adult novel is a classic?
Christine wrote: "Hi, fellow readers!I am having trouble finding a young adult classic to read in order to fulfill this year's genre challenge. Young adult literature is relatively new. I've read a lot of lists tr..."
I think that books that could be required reading for school are considered classic. Even books that were written before "young adult" was a genre count. Books that come to mind that fit this for me are:
The Outsiders
Lord of the Flies
A Separate Peace
The Catcher in the Rye
I think there's definitely some wiggle room for modern classics, too. I mean, when you really think about "classics" as a book genre, you're looking for novels with exceptional literary value. I think you could make a case for books like:
A Wrinkle in Time
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Forever . . .
Thank you, Kristen! I thought about reading Forever . . . , but was not sure if it was considered a classic. I will probably read that this year.
Christine wrote: "Thank you, Kristen! I thought about reading Forever . . . , but was not sure if it was considered a classic. I will probably read that this year."Yes, that one is kind of odd to call "classic," but I think it has a very large role in the YA genre. I mean, perhaps it doesn't have that much literary value, but it has become an icon of the genre due to controversial content; I mean, it was published 15 years ago and people still flip out about its subject matter. You could make an argument that it's where YA and middle grade greatly diverge in terms of content--it changed the face of "tough topics" in YA. I think that's good enough, then, yes?
I'm currently reading Written in the Stars, which is set in Pakistan. Pakistan is in South Asia but is considered part of the Greater Middle East. For the purposes of the World Traveler challenge, is Pakistan considered part of the Middle East since South Asia is not an option?
Christine wrote: "I'm currently reading Written in the Stars, which is set in Pakistan. Pakistan is in South Asia but is considered part of the Greater Middle East. For the purposes of the World Trav..."I would think so. (Source: Wikipedia.)
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I want to start a general thread where we can help each other find great books that can be used to fulfill the Alphabet Warrior and Genre Mixer challenges. Remember that any book read for either of these challenges (excluding "adult book" option on the Genre Mixer challenge) must be classified as young adult.
This year, my goal is to complete all fifty options in the Genre Mixer challenge. I am struggling to find a YA western that I want to read. I don't care for the shoot-em-up, high action plot of typical western novels. Two books I was considering are Hattie Big Sky and The Good Luck Girls, but I wasn't sure if they would be classified as westerns. What YA western is everyone else reading for the Genre Mixer challenge?