Sharing the YA Love!

A list of some of my favorite YA books, and why I love them:

• ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, by Beth Revis (it just so happens that this is my most recently read YA novel). I love this book because it totally sucked me in and didn't let me go until I reached the end. I love that it is a bit of a genre buster, blending elements of dystopian and science fiction.

• UNWIND, by Neal Shusterman. Another book that was nearly impossible to put down. A perfect example of why I love speculative fiction. I have the sequel, UNWHOLLY, as well, though I haven't read it yet. Gotta wait until my daughter finishes it! EVERLOST is another of his books that I love.

• Anything by Shannon Hale, author of THE GOOSE GIRL, ENNA BURNING, and THE BOOK OF A THOUSAND DAYS, all favorites of mine. Many of her books are retellings of traditional fairy tales. I love them because they are so layered and full of awesomeness!

• THE HUNGER GAMES (series) by Suzanne Collins. What can I say? I am a total sucker for speculative, dystopian-type stories! What I love most about the Hunger Games books is the character building.

• THE DAY BEFORE, by Lisa Schroeder because of its believability. And I love verse novels!

• BECAUSE I AM FURNITURE, by Thalia Chaltas, another verse novel. I love this book because of how Thalia was able to capture so much heartache and hope in so few words. The book feels very real and raw, and I love that.

• SPEAK, by Laurie Halse Anderson. This book is also real and raw. Though it is written in prose, there are parts of the book which feel very lyrical and poetic to me. Every teen girl should read this book.

• INHERITANCE, by Christopher Paolini. The last book in THE INHERITANCE CYCLE, this book really drew me in because of how much the characters grow and change. I also loved how some of the relationships developed and the not happy/not sad, realistic ending. Plus, Roran is totally awesome!

And some of my teenage girls' favorites include:

• JUST LISTEN, by Sarah Dessen.
• WILDWOOD DANCING, by Juliet Marillier
• HARRY POTTER (the whole series, especially the fifth and seventh)
• BRISINGR, by Christopher Paolini
• Anything by Jessica Day George (possibly more MG than YA?)