Teens’ Top Ten Nominations

It’s that time of year again! Twenty-four books have been nominated by teens across the country to be voted on (again, by teens) for the ultimate “Top Ten” list. Read as many titles as you can and encourage your friends to do so, as well. This is open to anyone 12-18, and you have until October to get your read on. Voting occurs during Teen Read Week — October 12-18, 2008 — and I’ll post more as the time gets closer.

And the nominees are:

Before I Die by Jenny Downham

Betrayed by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Daemon Hall by Andrew Nance and Colin Polhemus, illus.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Extras by Scott Westerfeld

Evil Genius by Catherine Jinks

Glass by Ellen Hopkins

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

Ironside: A Modern Faery’s Tale by Holly Black

Jango by William Nicholson

Jinx by Meg Cabot

The Luxe by Anna Godberson

Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports by James Patterson

Saving Zoë by Alyson Noël

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George

The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray

Tamar by Mal Peet

Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier

Don’t forget to check out our catalog to find these amazing titles! And stay tuned for more info.

Great Graphic Novels

I don’t always mention graphic novels on TeenSpace, and I’m not exactly sure why. I read them. I love them. I think they’re awesome. And so, apparently, do a lot of other people. The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) compiles a list every year of Great Graphic Novels for Teens. Here are some of the titles that we own from the 2008 list:

• Laika by Nick Abadzis
  How a small dog became the first cosmonaut.
• Re-Gifters by Mike Carey
  Win the championship or get the guy?
• The Plain Janes by Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg
  Forced to move to the burbs, Jane starts a renegade art club.
• The Magical Life of Long Tack Sam by Ann Marie Fleming
  Ann Marie traces the path of her great-grandfather’s life, uncovering her roots and the magic behind them.
• The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis
  When your hairstyle, music and art are regulated, how do you find your voice?
• Stuck in the Middle: 17 Comics from an Unpleasant Age
  Painfully true stories about middle school.
• The Arrival by Shaun Tan
  How do you build a new life when everything around you is so strange?

Interested? Check our catalog.