Author: Kelly Jensen

Hey YA Readers!

Since it’s April, which means National Poetry Month in the USA, let’s take a peek at some of the YA novels in verse that have — or will — hit shelves this year.

Verse novels are among some of my personal favorites, though I’m a bit ashamed to say I’ve only read one of these so far. I’ll be hanging out with you all in the land of making that TBR even bigger.

Let’s get our verse on. Descriptions are pulled from Goodreads.

500 Words or Less by Juleah del Rosario (September 25)

Nic Chen refuses to spend her senior year branded as the girl who cheated on her charismatic and lovable boyfriend. To redefine her reputation among her Ivy League–obsessed classmates, Nic begins writing their college admissions essays.

But the more essays Nic writes for other people, the less sure she becomes of herself, the kind of person she is, and whether her moral compass even points north anymore.

Blood, Water, Paint by Joy McCullough (Available now)

Her mother died when she was twelve, and suddenly Artemisia Gentileschi had a stark choice: a life as a nun in a convent or a life grinding pigment for her father’s paint.

She chose paint.

By the time she was seventeen, Artemisia did more than grind pigment. She was one of Rome’s most talented painters, even if no one knew her name. But Rome in 1610 was a city where men took what they wanted from women, and in the aftermath of rape Artemisia faced another terrible choice: a life of silence or a life of truth, no matter the cost.

He will not consume
my every thought.
I am a painter.
I will paint.

I will show you
what a woman can do.

The Opposite of Innocent by Sonya Sones (September 4)

Lily has been crushing on Luke, a friend of her parents’, ever since she can remember. He’s been away for two endless years, but he’s finally returning today. Lily was only twelve when he left. But now, at fourteen, she feels transformed. She can’t wait to see how Luke will react when he sees the new her. And when her mother tells her that Luke will be staying with them for a while, in the bedroom right next to hers, her heart nearly stops.

Having Luke back is better than Lily could have ever dreamed. His lingering looks set Lily on fire. Is she just imagining them? But then, when they’re alone, he kisses her. Then he kisses her again. At first, the secrecy and danger of their relationship thrills Lily. But soon Luke begins to expect, then demand much more than kissing. He won’t stop pressuring her to do things she doesn’t want to do. Lily wishes she had never flirted with Luke. She feels imprisoned in a situation that’s all her fault. How will she escape?

People Kill People by Ellen Hopkins (September 4)

People kill people. Guns just make it easier.

A gun is sold in the classifieds after killing a spouse, bought by a teenager for needed protection. But which was it? Each has the incentive to pick up a gun, to fire it. Was it Rand or Cami, married teenagers with a young son? Was it Silas or Ashlyn, members of a white supremacist youth organization? Daniel, who fears retaliation because of his race, who possessively clings to Grace, the love of his life? Or Noelle, who lost everything after a devastating accident, and has sunk quietly into depression?

One tense week brings all six people into close contact in a town wrought with political and personal tensions. Someone will fire. And someone will die. But who?

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo (Available now)

Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.

But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself.

So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.

Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.

The Way The Light Bends by Cordelia Jensen (Available now)

Virtual twins Linc and Holly were once extremely close. But while artistic, creative Linc is her parents’ daughter biologically, it’s smart, popular Holly, adopted from Ghana as a baby, who exemplifies the family’s high-achieving model of academic success.

Linc is desperate to pursue photography, to find a place of belonging, and for her family to accept her for who she is, despite her surgeon mother’s constant disapproval and her growing distance from Holly. So when she comes up with a plan to use her photography interests and skills to do better in school–via a project based on Seneca Village, a long-gone village in the space that now holds Central Park, where all inhabitants, regardless of race, lived together harmoniously–Linc is excited and determined to prove that her differences are assets, that she has what it takes to make her mother proud. But when a long-buried family secret comes to light, Linc must decide whether her mother’s love is worth obtaining.

 

Want more about YA books in verse? I made a guide to 100 must-read titles to give you even more great reads in the format. 

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Cheap Reads!

Because you can always justify a new book when it comes with a low price tag, right? Right.

Grab Roshani Chokshi’s The Star-Touched Queen for $3. It’s the first in a fantasy series.

Kim Savage’s After The Woods, a mystery/thriller, is $3, too.

Pick up the older YA book Coffee Will Make You Black, about a girl coming of age on Chicago’s south side during an era of social upheaval, for $2.

 

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Thanks for hanging out this week and we’ll see you back here next!

–Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars on Twitter and Instagram.

currently devouring Tiffany Sly Lives Here by Dana L. Davis. 

 

PS: If you love mysteries, you’ll want to make sure you enter our huge giveaway of 15 of this year’s best mysteries. The giveaway runs through May 9, and clicking here will let you enter.

Hey YA Readers!

Let’s catch up on the latest news and happenings.

“What’s Up in YA” is sponsored by As She Fades by Abbi Glines. 

On the night of her high school graduation, Vale McKinley and her boyfriend Crawford are in a terrible car accident that leaves Crawford in a coma.

Slate Allen, a college friend of Vale’s brother, has been visiting his dying uncle at the same hospital. When he and Vale meet, she can’t deny the flutter of an illicit attraction. She tries to ignore her feelings, but she’s not immune to Slate’s charm. Slowly, they form a cautious friendship.

Then, Crawford wakes up . . . with no memory of Vale or their relationship. Heartbroken, Vale opts to leave for college and move on with her life. Except now, she’s in Slate’s territory, and their story is about to take a very strange turn.

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It seems like every time I collect the latest news in YA worth sharing, there are a ton of adaptations. This week’s collection won’t be different — but they’re all so good that it’s hard not to get excited about what we’ll soon feast our eyes upon.

• Sundance winner and YA adaptation The Miseducation of Cameron Post finally has a distributor and you’ll be able to watch it this summer.
• Netflix will adapt The Wicked Deep, which should adapt to the screen really well.
• Speaking of atmospheric YA reads perfectly ripe for adaptation, here’s news on The Hazel Wood. 
• And here’s news about Sarah J. Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses coming to the big screen.
• This summer (!!) we’ll get to watch To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before on Netflix.
• The male lead of The Hate U Give has been recast.
• How about the teen slasher book There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins being made into a slasher film? I’m 100% here. for. this.
• This is a fascinating dive into the magazine Teen Boss. Put this in the “YA adjacent” column of links, but I can’t stop thinking about it and needed to share it.
• Teenagers suggest creative ways to connect classic texts to today’s life. Brilliant. Today’s teenagers are seriously brilliant.
• The Giant Days comic will be adapted into a YA novel.
• The Broadway play “Dear Evan Hanson” will also become a YA novel.
• Thinly veiled metaphors in young adult dystopian fiction. This had me in stitches.
• Audiobook Sync is back this month! You can snag a free pair of audiobooks each week, with tons of great YA titles included.
• There are more queer YA books being published, but are queer girls being left behind? And another thoughtful Bustle piece worth reading: YA novels which are queer reads but under the radar, for young readers who aren’t out (or have other challenges preventing them from reading queer YA openly).
• Tomi Adeyemi on writing the biggest book of 2018 so far.
• YA books to read if you love Black Panther.
• This YA book tour — the Belles and Brujas — looks super fun.

Cheap Reads…

Snag these YA books in eform for not a lot of dough:

You can read Leigh Bardugo’s take on Wonder Woman for $2.

Pick up Jessica Spotswood’s first contemporary YA novel Wild Swans for $2.50.

The fantasy novel The Falconer by Elizabeth May is a whopping 60 cents.

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Thanks for hanging out this week and we’ll meet you back here again soon.

–Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars on Twitter and Instagram.

Hey YA Readers!

We’ve got a great interview to kick off another month of YA fun.

“What’s Up in YA?” is sponsored by Rebel with a Cupcake by Anna Mainwaring from KCP Loft.

Jesobel Jones says what she wants and eats what she wants — she is who she is, no regrets. But when a wardrobe malfunction leads to a mortifying encounter with a mean girl, Jess’s confidence suddenly takes a nosedive. Being fat has never bothered her before, but Jess starts to wonder if she’s been just a little too comfortable in her own skin. When the boy of her dreams seems suddenly interested, Jess must decide whether to try to fit in or remain true to herself — whoever that is. Fans of Bridget Jones’s Diary will love this bold and hilarious debut.

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Today we’re joined by the hilarious Amy Spalding, author of The Summer of Jordi Perez (And The Best Burger in Los Angeles), which hits shelves tomorrow, April 3. As a long-time fan of Amy’s writing style — a mix of humor, heart, complicated relationships, and romance — it felt only right to bring her here to talk about her new book, about representation of different bodies in YA literature, and about young adult romantic comedies.

Oh, and of course, some of her favorite books. Without further ado, here’s Amy!

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Amy Spalding grew up in St. Louis, but now lives in the better weather of Los Angeles. She has a B.A. in Advertising & Marketing Communications from Webster University, and an M.A. in Media Studies from The New School. Amy studied longform improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre.

By day, she manages the digital media team for an indie film advertising agency. By later day and night, Amy writes, performs, and pets as many cats as she can.

 

KJ: Give us the pitch for Jordi Perez

AS: I was at ALA Midwinter signing early copies of this book, and a librarian ran over to me and said, “I heard this book is about lesbians and cheeseburgers, the two best things!” So that’s the short pitch.

The longer pitch is that it’s a teen lesbian rom-com about a fat girl who lives and breathes fashion, and falls for the girl she’s competing with at her summer internship. It’s about representation and how you’re seen versus how you see yourself, but also first love, friendship, and cheeseburgers.

 

KJ: Your main character is a queer fat girl who loves fashion and food and has no interest in weight loss. This shouldn’t be, but is, revolutionary in YA. Talk a bit about what inspired Abby as a character.

AS: I knew I wanted to write a queer romcom, initially because there are so many stories where the girl gets the swoony boy, and so I wanted to write about the girl getting the swoony girl. In reading lots of YA, I kept noticing how often stories about queer kids were sad. Kids get shunned, beaten, thrown out of their homes, and sometimes even murdered. Of course, these are realities for many kids—and adults too. Despite strides made, our culture is still incredibly homophobic, transphobic, etc. But I wanted something else in queer YA lit, where things are funny and romantic and warm-and-fuzzy in that special glow you can only often find in romantic comedies. There’s certainly a place for important stories to be told about young queer characters, but look at all the escapist stories about straight kids! I wanted a story for a young queer girl that would make her look hopefully toward her future, and give her at least a temporary respite from the dangers present. I think kids understand the dangers out there; it was fun to write about the other side. It’s exciting having watched other lighter queer books find readers as time’s gone on too!

I’d been wanting to write a fat main character for almost as long as a queer one, and so it all sort of hit me at once that this was the book. I think a lot about fat fashion myself, but I didn’t want to just use Abby as a vehicle for my opinions, though of course I did want to dig deep and be honest about being fat and loving style in our culture. It’s so frustrating whenever a fat character’s storyline and personality are just about being fat! I don’t know anyone in my life who’s fat who only thinks about fat things and does fat things and talks about fat things. But I also did not want to ignore how the world can make you feel as a fat person, even a fat person who doesn’t hate herself.

Something that’s frustrated me, not only in the portrayal of fat characters, but often in how fat people are expected to talk about themselves, is the idea that we’re the “before” in life, or the prologue to the real story. Thin people get stories, adventures, romance. Fat people have to earn it by losing weight first. I wanted to write a fat girl whose story is now.

 

KJ: One of the themes your book explores is being in front of the camera vs. being behind the scenes. Can you talk a bit to this idea? Does Abby see herself as an outsider looking in or an insider looking out?

AS: Abby definitely sees herself as an outsider, at least at the start of the book. She’s convinced that even though she’s skilled at things and has great style that the world wouldn’t possibly see that about her. She also – fairly, to some degree – sees how the world views fat people, and never wants to put herself in a position where she could be subject to ridicule. Throughout the story, though, there’s much to challenge these narrow views Abby has of both herself and the world around her, and I hope it hits the right tone of real but also rom-com gauzy and happily-ever-after!

 

KJ: Your books are among the rare subgenre in YA of romantic comedies. What draws you to writing these funny stories and what writers — inside or outside of YA — inspire you with their own takes on rom com?

AS: I love romantic comedies! And maybe I’m just a goof, but I never really looked around and noticed how rare they were in YA when I was starting out.

Some of the first books I fell really hard for were E. Lockhart’s Ruby Oliver titles and The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot, which are funny, feminist, and quite swoony. So once I had the idea for my own romantic comedy, I just went for it!

I do think that women are not always encouraged to be funny the way men are. Middle grade books are often very funny, no matter the gender of the author and main characters. But then something shifts in YA.

I’m so glad there are so many great people challenging these expectations! I adore everything Maurene Goo writes; she’s so funny and sharp, and her style is so distinctly her. I fell hard for When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon and cannot wait for From Twinkle, with Love.

I’m also always very inspired by art outside of books. Even though it has a lot of very dark moments, I found a lot of inspiration in Fun Home the musical, by Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori and based on the Alison Bechdel graphic memoir, particularly in the romance between Medium Alison and Joan in this small, sweet spot of the show unmarred by the tragedy yet to unfold. And even though it’s not about young(er) people, I loved Rhea Butcher and Cameron Esposito’s Take My Wife, in how an openly queer show can still tell stories above love and relationships that are quiet and sweet and not just about coming out or the stereotypical queer storylines that have often been pushed onto queer characters by straight creators in the past.

 

KJ: Despite being humorous, your books are pointedly feminist. Can you talk a bit about where you see Jordi Perez in the larger conversation on feminism and YA literature? Or even feminism and teen culture?

AS: Considering that some of my first experiences in YA were books that read like delicious fluffy confections but contained feminist and sex-positive messages, I honestly never thought about doing anything but! As a feminist, I write through a feminist lens. I loved showing what a queer fat girl is really like, beyond any stereotyping. I didn’t write Abby to be every queer fat girl; I wrote her to be one very specific one. And I loved the power in showing a girl who didn’t hate herself for her size or her queerness, even though she’s in a culture that can send very strong messages to girls to do so.

 

KJ: One of the plotlines in Jordi Perez involves Abby eating a lot of hamburgers throughout Los Angeles to help a friend’s dad with a yelp-like app creation. This begs the question: how much research did you do for this and what’s your favorite burger in LA?

AS: Oh, gosh, I did lots of research. What a chore to have to drive through my beautiful city and eat so many cheeseburgers! Truly, it was the most fun I’ve ever had researching, and the most eager my friends were to help me out. I genuinely spent months eating burgers for the sake of this book. For fast food, I – like most Southern Californians – love In-N-Out. My slightly fancier burger favorites are Umami Burger and Fusion Burger. Barbrix in Silver Lake used to feature a fairly upscale burger I adored, but sadly it no longer appears to be on their menu, so it will have to live on only in my memories.

 

KJ: What have been some of your favorite YA books in the last couple of years?

AS: Beyond those I’ve mentioned already, I loved Robin Benway’s Far from the Tree, Zan Romanoff’s Grace & the Fever, and Nina LaCour’s We Are Okay. A friend told me that Nicola Yoon’s The Sun Is Also a Star had one of the swooniest kissing scenes put to paper, and that friend was not wrong. I know that The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is hardly flying under anyone’s radar, but I feel that for all its buzz it truly is a wonderfully written and beautiful story that more than lived up to its hype – a powerful message in a book that doesn’t read at all like homework.

 

KJ: What YA authors do you think are breaking new ground within the category and should be on the radars of more readers?

AS: Besides all the authors already mentioned, I was an early reader of Britta Lundin’s Ship It and fell in fast love with it. Anyone who cares about fandom, conventions, and queer YA should pre-order it now! Elana K. Arnold takes huge, bold risks, and I’m always blown away by her work. I love the girls centered in Julie Murphy’s books; they always feel simultaneously like someone startlingly new and a familiar face already in your life.

 

KJ: If you could give your 12-year-old self any YA book, what would it be and why?

AS: Speaking of Julie Murphy, oh, to have gotten to be a tween when Dumplin’ came out and to have read about a fat girl with all the same doubts and fears I would someday have. This book is such a gift.

 

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A big thank you to Amy for taking the time to share this, and a big “good luck” to each and every one of the “What’s Up in YA?” readers as you add even more books to the toppling TBR you have going on.

Until next week, pick up a good book or two and enjoy!

— Kelly Jensen

Currently reading We’ll Fly Away by Bryan Bliss

Hey YA Readers!

Let’s get this week started with a whole lot of book talk.

“This Week in YA” is sponsored by The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan.

Leigh is certain about one thing: When her mother died by suicide, she turned into a bird. Leigh, who is half Asian and half white, travels to Taiwan to meet her maternal grandparents for the first time. There, she is determined to find her mother, the bird. She winds up chasing after ghosts and uncovering family secrets. Alternating between real and magic, past and present, friendship and romance, and hope and despair, this is a debut novel about finding oneself through family history and love, perfect for fans of Jandy Nelson and Celeste Ng.

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Grab your TBR, open up your GoodReads page, and prepare to add some titles to your “have to read it” lists.

• A history of the ground-breaking YA lesbian novel Annie on My Mind.
• Celebrating the life of Virginia Hamilton through her nonfiction for young readers.
• See if you can figure out what these YA book covers are. Oh, they’re made out of LEGOS.
• Stunning Harry Potter cakes for Potterheads.
• Real badass ladies of history, as seen through YA fictional takes on their stories.
• We’re getting a new book by Marcus Zusak, author of the bestselling and wildly popular The Book Thief.
• 100 must-read YA book series.
• 10 great books about intrepid girls. Look at these awesome ladies!
• A round-up of teen guides to activism.
• Must-read coming out YA novels for newbies.
• High schoolers debate: are teens accurately represented in YA literature? Dig in!
• Behind the scenes of building a book festival for teenagers from the folks who put together the NoVa Teen Book Festival.
• Get these 40 paperback YA novels on your spring radar.
• Where to begin with reading bisexual and lesbian YA novels.
• This one is for the speculative fiction fans (or the curious!): 100 must-read YA science fiction books.
• YA fantasy series wrapping up in 2018.
• A shameless note that my next book’s cover was revealed on Book Riot. A not-at-all shameless note that you can also check out the cover for Cynthia Leitich Smith’s forthcoming YA novel on site, too.
• Nonfiction by Russell Freedman, who died last week at the age of 88.
• Fat positivity and body love books for children and teenagers.
• Teen girls who just happen to be sleuths in their free time.
• And finally, a look at YA books set in the long-ago past of the 1990s. . . a time before most of today’s teenagers were even born.

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Quick Pick…

The Beauty That Remains by Ashley Woodfolk

This little gem of a novel is about grief and loss, written through the perspectives of three very different characters experiencing three very different deaths in their lives.

A character driven novel to the core, this quiet YA read lingers long after you’re done. Perfect for readers who love those emotionally-charged stories that allow for deep insight into individual characters. This one has a unifying thread of music for all of the characters, and it explores, too, how music can help those grieving.

One of the most interesting themes in the book is that of one’s digital life after death. How it can become both a ghost of the person and a tool for working through their loss.

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Cheap Reads…

Grab yourself a discounted digital YA book because the days are getting longer, which means you have more time to read (or something).

Insignia by SJ Kincaid is $2. Perfect for readers who like fast-paced, action-packed science fiction. First in a series.

Julie Reece Deaver’s classic YA book Say Goodnight, Gracie is $2. I haven’t read this one, but know it’s a title that would likely be included in a YA canon, if such a thing existed.

For nonfiction, check out Victoria: Portrait of a Queen by Catherine Reef at $3.

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Thanks for hanging out this week and we’ll see you back here next!

–Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars on Twitter and Instagram

 

 

Hey YA Fans!

Today I’ve got a passionate letter of love and support for teens that, while not 100% about books, is absolutely about books and reading.

“What’s Up in YA?” is sponsored by The Final Six by Alexandra Monir from EpicReads.

Perfect for fans of Illuminae and The Martian, this action-packed YA novel set in the near future will take readers out of this world and on a quest to become one of six teens sent on a mission to Jupiter’s moon. When Leo, an Italian championship swimmer, and Naomi, an Iranian-American science genius from California, are drafted into the International Space Training Camp, their lives are forever altered. After erratic climate change has made Earth a dangerous place to live, the fate of the population rests on the shoulders of the final six, who will be scouting a new planet. Intense training, global scrutiny, and cutthroat opponents are only a few of the hurdles the competitors must endure.

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A few weeks back, I wrote a short review about Winifred Conkling’s Votes for Women, a new nonfiction YA book about the Suffragist Movement. Today, Winifred is here to talk a bit about the women in that movement, and how we should look to the teens walking out of their classrooms as change-makers in a similar regard. This piece is perfect for thinking both about how we look at today’s teenagers, but also how we think about the teenagers we’re seeing in YA literature. Especially as YA literature has become more inclusive and taken on more contemporary cultural issues — whether in realistic fiction or speculative — these observations and considerations are worth sitting with.

Not to mention that it’s worth talking about feminism during Women’s History Month in any event.

While Winifred and I share a publisher, I’ve found Votes for Women and her previous Radioactive: How Irene Curie and Lise Meitner Revolutionized Science and Changed The World to be two must-read YA nonfiction titles for readers craving women’s history and feminism.

But without further ado, here’s Winifred! 

Last week, students across the country walked out of their schools to protest in support of stronger gun-control laws. This time, the call for gun reform comes in response to the murder of seventeen students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine’s Day. We all know that this is just the most recent in a painfully long history of school shootings.

Last Wednesday marked the one-month anniversary of the South Florida shooting. Students and teachers walked out of their schools at 10 A.M. for 17 minutes – one minute for each of the lives lost in the massacre.

Thousands of students marched out of their classrooms to honor the dead and call for stronger gun-safety legislation. Marches on Washington are planned for March 24 and April 20, as well, and individual student bodies are making plans for their own walkouts and protests. There will be reports on the evening news and countless selfies of protesters posted on Facebook and Instagram, but it will be too easy for legislators to ignore these calls for change one more time. Success will require a sustained campaign of walkouts and protests — perhaps over months and years rather than a day or two a month. We know this by looking at the long history of protesting in the U.S. And in light of women’s history month, we can look to the suffragists.

On January 10, 1917, Alice Paul and eleven other women stood in front of the gates to the White House in bitter cold. Each of the women carried an oversize cloth banner suspended from an eight-foot pole. They wore hats, gloves, and ankle-length wool coats topped with striped satin sashes. One of the banners read “How long must women wait for liberty?” Another said, “Mr. President, what will you do for woman suffrage?” The others carried banners with the colors of the suffrage movement – purple, gold, and white.

Women stood at their posts daily from 9 am to 1 pm, when another group of volunteers took their place for the second shift, 1 pm to 5 pm. While on duty, the women didn’t talk with one another or with people on the street. Alice Paul knew that their silence would make those who saw them feel uncomfortable. She knew the power of silence – and discomfort. The women were called “The Silent Sentinels.”

At the time, protesting was a new idea, and it was considered radical for women to picket on the streets. But it wasn’t just the newness that made the approach successful; it was consistency. The women stuck with the protest, day after day, in good weather and bad. During the campaign, almost two thousand women protested. They were as young as nineteen and as old as eighty. Some marched regularly; other joined the picket line only once or twice. For a time, the picketers were a tourist attraction, and people would ask to hold a banner and pose for a photograph.

As the months passed, the Silent Sentinels went from being a novelty to being a nuisance. Every time President Woodrow Wilson entered or left the White House, he had to face those women. The messages changed regularly, and over time, the words wore him down and helped to change his mind about supporting women’s right to vote.

Starting in June, the Silent Sentinels began to be arrested and jailed. Although the picketers broke no laws, they were sentenced to three days in jail on trumped-up charges of obstructing traffic. (They never left the sidewalk.) By August, some picketers were sentenced to sixty days in the workhouse. In jail the women were fed moldy and worm-infested food. They were force-fed when they started a hunger strike.

It’s time for a new generation of Silent Sentinels to return to Washington and stay a while. This time they can protest in front of the Capitol Building, to be a constant reminder that Congress must have the courage to act in order to make any progress on the issue of gun safety.

The 21st century Silent Sentinels could make their point devastatingly clear by carrying banners with names and faces of the children and young people who died in their classrooms and were shot down on their college campuses. Every time a member of Congress enters the Capitol Building or poses for an interview with a news reporter, let them see a dead child’s face fluttering in the wind, asking for justice. The silence could speak for those who never got the chance to speak for themselves.

Winifred Conkling is an award-winning author of fiction and nonfiction for young readers, including Passenger on the Pearl and, most recently, Votes for Women! American Suffragists and the Battle for the Ballot.

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Thanks for tuning in this week, and we’ll see you again next with a round-up of recent YA talk around Book Riot.

–Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars on Twitter and Instagram.

Hey YA Fans:

Let’s catch up on the latest in YA news around the web.

“What’s Up in YA?” is sponsored by Inkmistress by Audrey Coulthurst from Epic Reads.

An action-packed fantasy, perfect for fans of Tamora Pierce and Kristin Cashore.

Asra is a demigod with a dangerous gift: the ability to dictate the future. But her peaceful life is upended when bandits threaten the village of Ina, the girl she loves, and the king does nothing to help.

Asra uses her magic to help, but her spell goes horribly wrong and the village is destroyed.

Unaware that Asra is at fault, Ina swears revenge on the king. To stop her, Asra must become a player in a lethal game of power involving assassins, gods, and the king himself.

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When you’re not reading a book, the next best thing is to read ABOUT books, right? In this collection of links, you can start planning your next movie marathoning sessions, given the amount of news about adaptations there is.

• First and foremost: a look at the diversity numbers from last year’s children’s books. There is a lot to chew over and sit with here.
• Here’s a look at the books which sold the most last year. Anything surprising here? I love looking at these lists (and only wish that we’d seen a book or two by those top-selling authors of color in the image selected).
• And speaking of women of color who sold a lot of books, this NPR interview with Angie Thomas about YA literature, being black in America, and more, is so worth your ears.
• The Sun is Also a Star has a potential lead actress for its adaptation.
• A Hunger Games screenwriter has been tapped to write the screenplay for the adaptation of S.T.A.G.S.
• Check this out: a really great piece about how the future of queer lit is safe in the world of YA literature….as seen in GQ.
• The previous article names the adaptation of Love, Simon as one of the things we have to look forward to from queer YA, and this review of the film is making me very hopeful.
• There’s a stand alone contemporary YA title coming from writing giant Tahereh Mafi this fall and it sounds fantastic.
• Speaking of authors with new books, who else is thrilled to see a new title coming from Sara Farizan?
• There’s a release date for the adaptation of Alexandra Bracken’s The Darkest Minds: August 3.
• The rights to This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp have been scooped by for potential adaptation.
• Laurie Halse Anderson + Wonder Woman = This is some damn exciting news!
• I’m so happy to see narrative nonfiction in YA seeing more time in the spotlight. Scholastic will be publishing more of it soon.
• Audiobook Sync is back! Every week, beginning late next month, you can scoop up two free audiobooks a week. This is especially great for the teen listeners you might know looking for a great new book.
• And finally, the weirdest, “are you joking?” story in recent memory: the former press secretary Hope Hicks may have looked familiar to YA readers because she was a cover model for The It Girl. No, really.

Quick Pick!

The Astonishing Color of After by Emily XR Pan

When Leigh’s mother commits suicide, Leigh’s life unravels. The unraveling only happens harder and stronger when she sees a bird that she knows is her mother. The story follows as Leigh leaves her home town to meet the grandparents she’s never known before to learn more about her family’s history and the person her mother was.

Pan’s debut is lush, absorbing, and perfect for readers who love the magical realism of authors like Nova Ren Suma or Laura Ruby. Leigh’s Taiwanese heritage plays a large role in the story, as do the challenges her mother and grandparents experienced in their young lives. More, this is a book about mental illness and grief that is refreshing, powerful, and much-needed.

Cheap Reads

It’s a wealth of great inexpensive reads this week. Check ’em out!

How Dare The Sun Rise by Sandra Uwiringiyimana is a memoir and tells the story of Uwiringiyimana’s experience growing up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, surviving a massacre, and making it to America. $2.

Brittany Cavallaro’s A Study in Charlotte — the first in a series of mysteries about the teens related to the famous Holmes and Watson — is $2.

The Girl From The Well by Rin Chupeco is $2 and if you like horror, particularly J-Horror, you want to read this one.

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Thanks for hanging out this week and we’ll see you again soon!

–Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars on Twitter and Instagram

Hey YA Lovers!

I’ve got a treat for you this week.

“What’s Up in YA?” is sponsored by Class of 2K18.

Building your 2018 reading list? Class of 2K18 Books are 20 debuts you need to read in 2018! From titles starred by Booklist and Kirkus, to an ABA Indies Introduce Pick, our Middle Grade and Young Adult books have one thing in common—they’re fearless. Representing an array of genres, including fantasies, contemporaries, mysteries and thrillers, Class of 2K18 Books will inspire readers to face their fears and become fearless themselves. Visit our website to learn more about our titles and fill your reading list with fearless fiction!

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Because Black History is made every month and shouldn’t be relegated to a single month, I wanted to continue the conversation about excellent black YA reads. I’ve invited a special guest to highlight some of her favorite black YA titles, both past and forthcoming. Her enthusiasm and passion for good books is infectious, and you’ll be upping your to-read list in short time.

Please welcome Patrice Caldwell.

Patrice Caldwell is an Associate Editor at Disney-Hyperion and the founder of People of Color in Publishing, as well as a contributor for Publishing Crawl and writer at Bustle and Autostraddle. She’s also a tea-enthusiast and a self-proclaimed introvert-gone-wild who grew up in Texas, where she became a voricious reader rather die of boredom in the suburbs where she lived. Visit Patrice on Twitter @whimsicallyours, Instagram @whimsicalaquarian, and her website, patricecaldwell.com.

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Happy Monday! Patrice here 🙂

Kelly asked me to stop on by and share some wonderful book recommendations post- \the best of months, February aka my birthday month aka Black History Month. Now, it used to be that Black books were always published in time for Black History Month, so that they could be used for educational, etc. purposes, but I like to think that our industry is moving to a place where “Black books” are published and can be supported any time of the year. So, without further ado, I want to share some books on my radar, that I hope you will put on yours, and can be bought/pre-ordered now and enjoyed throughout the year!!

(in order of publication)

YORUBA GIRL DANCING by Simi Bedford

A heart wrenching and heartwarming story Remi, a well-off Nigerian girl who at age six is sent to a posh all-girls boarding school in England. As the only Black girl, she navigates two cultures and ultimately must figure out who she really is. I was gifted this book by my parents, and as someone who has often been the only Black girl in school (& work) settings, this book in many ways saved my life. It is also very funny.

 

AKATA WITCH by Nnedi Okorafor

This series has been called “the Nigerian Harry Potter,” and IT. IS. AMAZING. This is book one and it starts when Sunny is twelve and discovers she’s “free agent” with latent magical powers. Don’t sleep on this one!

 

 

SLICE OF CHERRY by Dia Reeves

If you liked Dexter, you’ll love Slice of Cherry. It’s Dia Reeve’s second novel and it follows two sisters—Kit and Fancy Cordelle—who are the daughters of an infamous series killer who begin to give in to their darkest desires…the desire to kill. But, they only kill people who deserve it… The characterization is amazing as are the weird and fantastical elements woven throughout. A must read.

 

THE SUMMER PRINCE by Alaya Dawn Johnson

If you follow me on twitter, you know I’m OBSESSED with this book. (Exhibit A, Exhibit B) I first discovered it as  Cybils panelist (and it won the YA Speculative Fiction award)! Where do I begin? Well, first it’s set in a futuristic Brazil with a POC cast where queer identities are normalized. June Costa is a young artist who falls in love with Enki, the Summer King. (Her best friend, Gil, does as well!) Together, they make bold art that fuels the growing rebellion against their government’s limits on new tech. But the catch…all Summer Kings are sacrificed at the year’s end, so Enki is destined to die *gasp* *weeps*

It is this amazingly explosive novel with lush language and an ever-present countdown clock that explores what it means to be a teenager, the beauty and power of art, all amid a growing rebellion against the status quo.

You will love this novel.

 

THE SUN IS ALSO A STAR by Nicola Yoon

Nicola Yoon <3 What an amazing writer and person. Everything, Everything was such a great (& funny…the book reviews, I died) novel, and then I read The Sun is Also A Star and totally fell in love. Like with The Summer Prince, I love books with set time limits—it can add so much to the plot. This novel takes place over one day!

It follows Natasha and Daniel who meet on a crowded NYC street who go on a crazy, love-filled journey against how they’ve been raised and who they thought they were. It beautifully weaves together both their lives, you have Natasha who’s Jamaican and whose family (including herself!) is 12 hour away from being deported. And then there’s Daniel, who was on his way to an interview at Yale and whose parents (also immigrants, but from South Korea) want him to become a doctor (but he’s secretly a poet!). This is a masterfully well done book, with snippets from “outsiders” who are also part of Natasha and Daniel’s story, that is ultimately about the power of fate, love, and the possibilities in the world.

 

AMERICAN STREET by Ibi Zoiboi

Drawing on her own experience as a Haitian immigrant, American Street tells the story of Fabiola Toussaint who’s looking for “une belle vie”—a good life. Her mother has just been detained by U.S. immigration, right after leaving Haiti, and now she has to go live with her loud American cousins in Detroit, which is like a new world to her. There’s magical realism and voudou culture throughout (which I ADORED) and it’s a beautiful tale of a girl trapped at the crossroads of an impossible choice and life.

I read this book early and was raving about it for months, pushing it into the hands of so many people. I’m so happy to see all the praise it’s received (so many starred reviews and National Book Award Finalist!) and cannot wait to read Ibi’s next book, PRIDE (a Romeo + Juliet remix).

 

PIECING ME TOGETHER by Renee Watson

Piecing Me Together just received the 2018 Newbery Honor and won the Coretta Scott King Author Award. I first picked it up because I saw someone online compare it to Sharon G. Flake’s The Skin I’m In (which is a well-beloved classic of mine), and I’m so glad I did. I would also add that it reminds me of Yoruba Girl Dancing (mentioned above).

Its main character, Jade, is solely focused on getting out of her poor neighborhood. She attends a private school where she’s an outcast just to get the opportunities that will set her up for success… opportunities like the Woman to Woman mentorship program, for “at-risk” youth that promises a college scholarship but pairs jade with a Black woman from a wealthy family who treats Jade like a charity case. I love the presence of art throughout this book and how Jade pushes back, using art, to show her potential as well as her community’s.

Jade is such a fresh, much needed YA voice.

 

OVERTURNED by Lamar Giles

If you love shows like Leverage or films like Ocean’s Eleven, you will love Overturned.

Nikki Tate’s dad is sitting on death row, convicted of killing his best friend in a gambling dispute. Nikki, however, has been working on Operation Escape Vega: playing illegal card games to save up money to bounce come graduation day.

But then her dad’s murder conviction is overturned and her world changes as the dad who comes home is not the one she remembers. Not to mention he’ obsessed with finding out who framed him—and why.

As her dad digs deep into the dark depths of Vegas, Nikki is drawn into his hunt for the truth…a hunt that will cause Nikki to play for the biggest gamble ever—her life.

Overturned is fast-paced and action packed. Once you start, you won’t be able to stop turning the pages and gasping as the story reaches is powerful conclusion. I love Lamar’s books and this one, his most recent, was no different. Can’t wait to see what’s next!

 

DEAR MARTIN by Nic Stone

You think you know MLK, but you probably don’t. I feel it’s so frustrating how people constantly use MLK to advocate for peaceful protesting/against violence without really knowing enough about what he said and who he was. In other words, if “I have a dream MLK” is the main MLK you know and quote, you must read Dear Martin. And, honestly, even if it isn’t, this was one of my favorite books of last year. It’s a quick read, but a powerful one and I want to see it in the hands of teens everywhere.

This book especially touched me because I, because my siblings could’ve easily been Justyce. He’s a bright kid, top of his class, captain of debate team and heading to an Ivy League and yet this has no influence on the police offer who puts him in handcuffs. The officer is unsurprisingly cleared of all charges and so Justyce turns to Dr. King for help. But his problems aren’t over yet, because when his best friend is shot by an off-duty cop, it’s Justyce who’s left to answer.

My copy of this book is marked up with my notes all throughout the margins. It’s thought-provoking and life-changing. I urge you to read it.

 

LONG WAY DOWN by Jason Reynolds

I have been a Jason Reynolds fan since When I Was The Greatest (2014) and it’s amazing to see an artist grow and push craft limits in the way he has. And again, speaking of limited timelines, Long Way Down (which has received so much praise and won many awards) takes place within the minute fifteen-year-old Will decides whether he’s going to murder the guy who killed his brother.

I adore books in verse and so I knew I’d love this one, but I also loved the approach Reynolds takes that causes Will to interact with those whose lives have been affected by gun violence and shines a light on how structural issues, like poverty, put some of these individuals into a cycle of violence… all while on an elevator ride. Just stunning.

 

BEASTS MADE OF NIGHT by Tochi Onyebuchi

Imagine a world in which the sins manifest like demons and only sin eaters can devour them. That is the setting of Beasts Made of Night, which is the first in a new series, inspired by the author’s Nigerian heritage.

Seventeen-year-old Taj is a legendary sin-eater and the sins he’s killed mar his skin like tattoos. All his markings cause people to fear and revere him. And what I loved about this book is how instantly you’re pulled in by Taj’s cockiness… he thinks incredibly highly of himself and I loved seeing a Black boy filled with such pride…pride and yet sorrow because his conquests come at a price… in addition to the tattoos, the guilt of committing the sin appears in his mind. It is, in many ways, his desire to provide for his family that keeps him sane. Everything changes when he’s called to eat the sin of a royal and a secret about Taj, and his powers, is revealed. Now he must fight to save not only the princess he loves, but his own life as well.

I have never seen world building like this. And, again, I’m in love with Taj. I cannot wait for the next installment, which publishes this fall, so read book one now!

 

CALLING MY NAME by Liara Tamani

Calling My Name is a tour-de-force of a novel. It’s told in fifty-three episodic chapters and follows Taja Brown from middle school to high school. It deals with faith, family, and finding yourself. Perfect for fans of Sandra Cisneros and Jandy Nelson.

I was blown away by this book in part because it’s set in Texas and I saw so much of my upbringing through Taja’s story. The weight of family expectations was so ever-present that it took me back to so many of my middle and high school experiences, trying to set myself apart from my own ever-present family expectations. Absolutely powerful narrative and voice. You must read this book. Liara Tamani is a novelist to watch.

 

THE BELLES by Dhonielle Clayton

This newly-minted New York Times Best-Seller was technically one of my favorite 2017 reads, as I received an advanced copy, but it’s also one of my favorite of this year, too! Its author Dhonielle Clayton is one of the best, most hardworking people in the business (co-author of Tiny Pretty Things/Shiny Broken Pieces with Sona Charaipotra… and co-founder of CAKE literary also with Sona Charaipotra)

But what really drew me to this book was the themes it tackles, namely our societies obsession with beauty and how women from a young age are taught to be concerned about their appearance through the lens of a terrifyingly twisted yet beautiful world of Orelans, where everyone is born gray and Belles control beauty and beauty is a commodity coveted above all else.

Camellia Beauregard is a Belle who dreams of being the Queen of Orelans’s favorite and getting to live in the royal palace and tend to the royal family and their court. But soon Camellia realize being the favorite is not everything she dreamed it would be…there are dark secrets and soon she learns her existence is s life, and that her powers are far greater and dangerous that she ever imagined. When the queen asks Camellia to risk her own life and help the ailing princess by using Belle powers in unintended ways, Camellia now faces an impossible decision: save herself and her sisters and the way of the Belles, or resuscitate the princess, risk her own life, and change the ways of her world forever.

I loved seeing such a highly ambitious Black girl protagonist. Camilla reminded me of my teen self in so many ways, she just wants everyone to like her, she wants to be the best and her journey to be so, her desire, gets her into more trouble that she imagines.

This is a timeless book and once you start reading and enter Orelans, you won’t be able to stop thinking about it…and how it scarily matches our own.

 

DREAD NATION by Justina Ireland (April 2018, HarperCollins)

Zombies meets the backdrop of a divided Reconstruction-era America. It’s a pitch I never could’ve imagined and I am so completely sold.

Jane McKenne is a zombie hunter. In this new America, “certain children” attend combat schools to learn to put down the dead.

Jane, who is mixed race, is studying to be an Attendant, which means a better life, for Negro girls like her, where she be trained in weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-do. Only Jane doesn’t want that life. But when she, her ex, and her rival uncover a conspiracy helmed by Baltimore’s elite, Jane will have to go up against some very powerful enemies…which just goes to show that the dead are truly the least of her problems.

Come for the zombies, stay for the utterly amazing exploration of race and oppression, of equality and freedom, set within an action-packed story.

 

CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE by Tomi Adeyemi (March 2018, Macmillan)

I had the pleasure of hearing about this book since Pitch Wars 2016, where I was a mentor. I am so happy for the praise it has received and all the buzz. It is the most anticipated book of the year for a reason. Tomi Adeyemi has crafted a world like no other, full of magic and mayhem that reads like a movie (which is probably why the film rights were snatched up so fast). I can’t wait until more people get to read it!!

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zelie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were targeted and killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.

Now, Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.

The book has multiple POVs that are seamlessly intertwined, and is ultimately about one girl’s journey to control her powers…and her growing feelings for the enemy.

In other worlds, this is the Zutara (from Avatar the Last Airbender) ship we’ve been waiting for.

 

THE POET X by Elizabeth Acevedo (March 2018, HarperCollins)

Another one that I read very early and have been obsessed with for what seems like years (thanks, publishing). It’s a novel-in-verse that follows Xiomara Batista, who feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.

But Xiomara does have plenty to say and she does so in the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy at school who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can’t stop thinking about performing her poems…

I so felt the tug and pull Xiomara feels because it was one I felt as a teen desperate to not let anyone down. You will laugh and cry and ultimately cheer for Xiomara in this epically staged breakdown debut novel.

 

THE BEAUTY THAT REMAINS by Ashley Woodfolk (March 2018)

There is quite nothing I love more than books about grief. Call it my inner emo kid, but I adore explorations of grief, of what happens to those affected and left behind by loss, and how music can bring people together and save lives.

Enter, Ashely Woodfolk’s incredibly powerful and realistic debut novel. It follows three teens: Autumn, Shay, and Logan, who have each lost someone dear to them (at various times, but all recent). Each of them is struggling with various mental health issues and guilt that totally wrecked me. I related to this book in so many ways: Shay’s anxiety, Logan’s alcohol-addition (something I once self-medicated with), and it took me back to being a teen who felt I only had music to guide me. The Beauty That Remains is beautifully brutal and full of hope. I highly recommend this book…you will cry but you will also fall in love with three teens who are struggling to thrive and heal in a never fair world.

 

MONDAY’S NOT COMING by Tiffany D. Jackson (May 2018, HarperCollins)

If you love E. Lockhart or Gillian Flynn, you need to get hip to Tiffany D. Jackson. She writes amazing thrillers that deal with Black teens going through some tough issues and life choices. I still can’t stop thinking about her YA debut, Allegedly. Monday’s Not Coming promises to be even more amazing.

It follows Claudia, who oddly seems to be the only one who notices that her best friend, practically sister, Monday Charles, is missing. She knows Monday wouldn’t just abandon her, but as the weeks pass and Monday’s family keep dodging her questions, Claudia begins to realize that no one remembers when they last saw Monday… but how can a teen girl vanish without anyone noticing she’s gone?

I get shivers every time I think about this one!! Pre-order it NOW.

 

ON THE COME UP by Angie Thomas (June 2018, HarperCollins)

Angie Thomas, author of the #1 New York Times Best-Seller The Hate U Give, needs no introduction, except for the fact that I love seeing #1 NYT Best-Seller next to her name!

I have said many times that hip hop knew me and got me before anything else did. Much like Angie, hip hop taught me how to be a storyteller and that Black people could be, and are, storytellers. I studied it extensively in college to the point I almost continued to do so at the PhD level, had publishing not stole my heart. Angie’s been dropping hints about her next book for a while and I’m SO happy that it is about hip hop in the most glorious of ways (and most likely in a way only she can do, tackling numerous themes at once).

Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least get some streams on her mixtape. As the daughter of an underground rap legend who died right before he hit big, Bri’s got massive shoes to fill. But when her mom unexpectedly loses her job, food banks and shut-off notices become as much a part of her life as beats and rhymes. With bills piling up and homelessness staring her family down, Bri no longer just wants to make it—she has to make it.

 

FINDING YVONNE by Brandy Colbert (August 2018, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

I am a Brandy Colbert fan for life. LOVED Pointe for its masterful story of a young Black girl’s struggle with her art (ballet!) and mental health issues. LOVED Little & Lion for again, amazing exploration of mental health issues and…bisexuality (so good and apparently the Stonewall Book Committee agreed because it WON the Stonewall Book Award!).

Finding Yvonne stars Yvonne, a violinist who’s beginning to realize she’s not good enough for a conservatory program after high school (and as someone who was a young artist, whew is this a tough thing to come to terms with). But then she meets a mysterious and charming street musician and violist who seems to get her like no one else does…but then she becomes pregnant and must make the hardest decision about her future.

I haven’t read this one yet, but I am certain that Brandy is going to wow us all, just as she has before! Can’t wait!!

 

MIRAGE by Somaiya Daud (August 2018, Macmillan)

As is the way of publishing, some things take a while and I feel I’ve been so excited for and waiting for Mirage—Somaiya Daud’s debut for a while because it’s one of those novels so many bestselling authors have been buzzing about, here and there. I should mention I recently met Somaiya, at the end of last year, and now I know why: she is brilliant, studies topics like Arabic poetry and Victorian gothic at the PhD level, and this book is going to blow us all away.

It’s a science fantasy set in a galaxy (or star system), far far away (yes, so many Star Wars vibes) that’s dominated by the brutal Vathek empire.

There we meet dreamer, eighteen-year-old Amani, who imagines she’ll one day receive receiving a sign from Dihya, like the many poets she loves had, that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon.

And adventure does come, but it’s not what she expects. She’s kidnapped and taken to the royal palace where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place.

As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfection…because one wrong move could lead to her death.

I NEED MIRAGE OUT IN THE WORLD NOW. I’m so ready to dive into this world.

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I sometimes think the best recommendations come from readers who just love to read, don’t you? Thanks so much for this list of excellent books, Patrice.

We’ll see you all next week for a roundup of YA news. Until then, here are a ton of excellent titles for you to sink your reading teeth into.

–Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars