I Need a YA suggestion

[stormhawk]

For a 13 year old girl. She likes Harry Potter, Inkheart, Guardians of Gilhoole (or however you spell it), and that other series by the same author about wolves.

Anyway, at her mother's suggestion, I got her the second of the wolf books for Christmas, turned out she already had it (in paperback, so at least my hardback is an upgrade). So, I need a replacement book for her.

She's a very bright 13 year old, doesn't like Twilighty type pablum, and can handle complex storylines.

Any suggestions?

[Literally]

My sister-in-law, who is 13, really liked this book:

May Bird and the Ever After

This one was recommended to me by a bookstore patron while I was working:

The Naming

[Jackie]

Has she read The Hunger Games?

Some other suggestions:
Graceling
The Book Thief- not fantasy, but it's really good HF and narrated by Death...can't get better than that. :)
The Lightning Thief series
The Graveyard Book
A Northern Light- HF

[Amanda]

I second what Jackie suggested - the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan is really good. :)
There are also quite a few Neil Gaiman books that are YA appropriate and very good!

[Michelle]

There is also Into the Wild from the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. Which is similar in style to Guardians of Ga'Hoole. I enjoyed the Pendragon series by DJ MacHale,starts with The Merchant of Death. Also the His Dark Materials books by Philip Pullman, which starts with The Golden Compass.
I started reading those series when I was around 13 or so.

[Chad]

I'd highly recommend L.A. Meyer's Bloody Jack series, my 13 year old daughter absolutely devoured them.

[Patricia]

The Maze Runner is a good YA book, then there's a sequel called The Scorch Trials. 3rd book is due out later this year.

[stormhawk]

I think I gave the kids The Dark is Rising a couple of years ago, need to check with their mom. I'm loving these suggestions, this could represent years worth of presents.

I wonder if I can get the first Pern book as a three-in-one ...

[J.D.]

I also think that Rick Riordan is a great choice. He has a couple of series out now, but the Olympians series is the one he has already finished. Try giving her the The Lightning Thief.

[Erica]

I recommend



They go in that order and they are great! I read Catching Fire in 24 hours.

[Janet]

Here is a comparison of several ya-appropriate dragon books.
If you want a McCaffrey 3-in-1, go for the Dragonsong/Dragonsinger/Dragondrums trilogy. There's a compilation edition available, and in my opinion that's the best entry point into Pern.

Another fantastic ya dragon book is Dragonhaven by Robin McKinley. Anything by Robin McKinley is good, but I wouldn't start with Chalice or Deerskin. (Deerskin in particular has a rape/assault scene that should probably wait until 9th grade).

Another great dragon book is Mercedes Lackey's Joust (series continues with Alta, Sanctuary and Aerie).

If she's particularly into wolves, you could go for the Immortals series by Tamora Pierce (Wild Magic, etc), or Jane Lindskold (adult sci fi, but not too adult).

I second the recommendations for L.A. Meyer's Bloody Jack series (lighthearted fun) and for Philip Pullman. Suzanne Collins' series is so ubiquitous I'd be surprised if she hasn't already read it.

If she's into gritty, anything by Holly Black is fantastic. I'd start either with Tithe (series with Valiant and Ironside) or with White Cat. It's fabulous writing, but might be a bit off from her interests from what you describe.

[Rachel Alice]

I highly recommend the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan (it starts with The Lightning Thief)

Also: Leviathan, Heist Society, The Time Travelers, When You Reach Me, The Angel Experiment, Found, Holes, Artemis Fowl, Ingo, The Mysterious Benedict Society, I, Coriander, The Alchemyst, The Girl Who Could Fly, Airborn, The City of Ember, and The Thief Lord.

I have a 13 year old sister and both she and I loved all of these.

[J.D.]

Rachel wrote: "I highly recommend the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan (it starts with The Lightning Thief)

Also: Leviathan, Heist Society, [book:The Time Travelers..."

I second the Rick Riordan suggestion!

[sonya]

They say that Philip Pullman's series, His Dark Materials is for ages 10 +.

[Darling]

Kara Skye Smith's vampire novel is a fun read without the Twilighty pablum, as you say. Sort of Lemony Snickettish vampira, a bookish girl in school trying to deny her vampire heritage until, suddenly, it must be 'dealt with' according to her father and the school's headmistress (also a vampire which isn't found out until book III). Book II is due out this fall, in time for Halloween merriment, and hopefully, author's readings. :)

[eleanor]

Maybe 'Narnia' complete? Can't remember the actually title or author @ this 2nd; But I remember the author actually wrote it for children so they could understand 'Christianity' @ a much simpler level?
I could be not quite explaining the intentions of the book properly though.. I'm not trying to force anything, just thought it was an interesting fact & most of the Hoopla over the movie has passed

[Shell]

Fablehaven by Bradon Mull is the beginning to another good series. Think The Spiderwick Chronicles Box Set but BETTER!

[eleanor]

Or why not introduce some more serious classic books; not necessarily fantasy only.

[Lillie]

I would suggest Graceling and the sequel Fire
Also, The Demon King or any books by Cinda Williams Chima. They're chunky, but great for a more advanced fantasy reader.

[Jessica]

If you like YA fiction...like paranormal romance. Then I would suggest Pinelight
I got it for .99cents...if you have a kindle or nook it's a must read.


The story is the first in a YA series. It's a new twist on vampires and fallen angels and takes you to a different world...AND IT'S NOT CHEESY! I got to like chapter 5 and couldn't stop reading! One of my all time favorites now! There's a trailer on the authors goodreads page, take one look and you will see how awesome it is!



I'm anxiously waiting for the next one to come out, so if anyone could suggest some more good books in the meantime, that would be great!

[April]

Check out my new book! Young Love Murder

[Cary]

For YA my father always gave me the classics. Riki Tiki Tavi, The Jungle Book,Last of the Mohicans. However I liked C.S.Lews, Chronicles of Narnia. Which some people say should be read three times in life. As a child,in middle age, and old age. Definitly old school here.

[Shirley]

Librivox has great classics free audio.

https://catalog.librivox.org/

female
https://catalog.librivox.org/search.p...

male
https://catalog.librivox.org/search.p...

both
https://catalog.librivox.org/search.p...

Audio classics for free are a real treat.

[Dorothy]

I would suggest The Lit Report by Sarah N. Harvey or one of her other YA books..check out her web-site at http://www.sarahnharvey.com

[Rachel]

How about the Abhorsen Trilogy (Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen) by Garth Nix, they're great and there is a possibility she doesn't have them yet (here in Portugal they're not very well know...which is a shame). Or Bartmaeus Trilogy (The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem's Eye and Ptolemy's Gate) by Jonathan Stroud, my cousin loves it because the djinni (Bartimaeus) is so sarcastic and funny.
Good Luck!

[Cary]

One I forgot. Rascal which is a book about a boy who finds a baby racoon up in Minisotta or someplace, and the summer they spend together. At the end of which like all wild things. Rascal must return to his true home. Classic YA.

[Ann]

SCAT Carl Hiassen
FlUSH Carl Hiassen
HOOT Carl Hiassen
These books are about meaningful issues and the young people are depicted as true to life. Hiassen is best known for his wonderful adult novels, but I had to read these 3 and I was not disappointed!

and I agree the The Book Thief is superb!

Anne of Green Gables series if she is a romantic for 'olden times'

[PostCardashian]

Melissa wrote: "If she likes dragons, I'd recommend the books of MJ Allaire. Her books are for kids 8-15 and you can find out more if you Google her. She's a self-published author, but very serious about her wor..."

the dark is rising series is fantastic. This...
reminded me of it a lot.

[Lauren]

At 13 I loved the Tamora Pierce books. I see her Immortals series was already mentioned but I have to recommend all of her books! She tends to focus on strong female leads in an interesting fantasy world.

The two major series at that time were quartets both based in a land called Tortall that I desperately wanted to live in.:
The Song of the Lioness Quartet
The Immortals (Wolves! And actually animals in general. This is why I fell in love with these books actually.)

She also has multiple new series in the Tortall world in addition to another world although I admittedly haven't read many of the books in the other world.

I have enjoyed: Protector of the Small Quartet,
Trickster's Choice and Trickster's Queen

Terrier is the first book in the newest series. It's best to have read the other Tortall books, or at least the Song of the Lioness Series. Actually the Song of the Lioness series bleeds down into just about all the other Tortall Books although I read The Immortals series first and it's not necessary to have read Song of the Lioness to figure out what's going on.

These series are very clean, I don't remember much cussing and there's no falling madly in love with boys you barely know and the characters are actually mature and dealing with bigger issues than their social lives. Of course there's still romance and intrigue. ;-) I actually re-bought my original 2 series in the new hardback forms because my old copies were falling apart and I just couldn't have that!

[[deleted user]]

stormhawk wrote: "For a 13 year old girl. She likes Harry Potter, Inkheart, Guardians of Gilhoole (or however you spell it), and that other series by the same author about wolves.

Anyway, at her mother's suggest..."

[Zi]

I'll repeat the Leviathan series. And I too loved Tamora Pierce at that age; her strong female characters were great.

For books that haven't already been said, The Chronicles of Prydain is classic (the books that inspired Disney's The Black Cauldron). Shade's Chidren by Garth Nix was awesome, but I recall the mention of sex in that, so it would depend on the child. Thirteen Reasons Why was a good book with a more serious subject matter.

[Lauren]

Forgot to add my current YA favorite:
The Darkest Power Series features Chloe Saunders.

It starts when Chloe sees a ghost which promptly results in her ending up in a "home" for troubled kids. It turns out Chloe's fellow "troubled" kids aren't any more normal than she is. That's a horrible description, but I recommended it to some friends recently with the promise it was even better than the Twilight they were fawning over, seeing as I can't stomach Twilight. They agree hands down now!

[Emily]

I HIGHLY recommend Divergent it is an AMAZING book, coming from someone who reads tons of YA books.