The Hub Reading Challenge – Part 2
The teen book publishing is booming and that makes for quite a few teen books to read (I know, huge understatement). Making the decision about which title to read next can be difficult, especially when I want to be able to recommend teen books to sixth graders through adults. I like to be able to talk about the popular books that are flying off the shelves. I also want to be able to suggest read-alikes that are not as well known. To be able to do this I have to read regularly (my Goodreads goal is to read 85 books this year), and, luckily, I found The Hub Reading Challenge to help me achieve that. So, welcome to the second installment on my experience with YALSA’s The Hub 2013 Reading Challenge! In this post, I will continue to explain the awards that are a part of this Reading Challenge: Schneider Family Book Award, Stonewall Book Award and YALSA’s 2013 Top Ten Amazing Audiobooks, Best Fiction,Great Graphic Novels, Popular Paperbacks, and Quick Picks.
Let’s get started with the Schneider Family Book Award. This award has been administered by ALA since 2004. It recognizes a book that encompasses “an artistic expression of the disability experience” for teens and children (Stonewall, 2013). The Schneider Family Book Award was initiated by Katherine Schneider, who is blind, and her parents, who both worked with people with disabilities. This award honors their dedication to serving those with disabilities. It also recognizes how people with disabilities are thriving in society.
The Stonewall Book Award was the first award issued to books written for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) teens. The inaugural award was presented in 1971 and currently has three distinct categories issued to books that acknowledge the GLBT experience. The awards are: the Barbara Gittings Literature Award (for fiction), the Israel Fishman Non-Fiction Award, Mike Morgan and Larry Romans Children’s and Young Adult Literature Award.
The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) has many committees that recognize great teen books. The committees are named for the award they issue and have quite an interesting past. YALSA’s Amazing Audiobooks committee is charged with presenting a list of 25-30 audiobooks that have a range of appeal for teens 12 to 18. This year there are 28 fiction titles and two non-fiction titles. The Best Fiction list comes from the Best Fiction for Young Adults Committee, which started in the 1930s as the “Best Books for Young People” (Best Fiction, 2013). They are charged with select the best books for teens and create a list for teachers and librarians to use when selecting books for a collection.
The Great Graphic Novels for Teens Committee reviews graphic novels for teens. In 2013 there were 93 titles submitted for review. Of those, 55 titles are on the honor list with the Top Ten listed here. The Popular Paperbacks Committee has a slightly more difficult charge; they create lists to encourage teens to read for fun (Popular Paperbacks, 2013)! Every year, Top Ten and theme based lists are created; this year’s lists are: Boarding Schools to Summer Camps: Leaving home to find; Gowns, Greasepaint and Guitars: Not the same old song and dance; I’m New Here Myself: A generation, caught between nations; and, More Books that Won’t Make You Blush: All of the excitement, none of the naughty. The Quick Pick books are for any teen who “dislike[s] to read for whatever reason” (Quick Picks, 2013)
In my next post, I will discuss what my opinions about some of the books I have read for this challenge. Stay tuned to find out more!
References
Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults 2013. American Library Association. Accessed March 5, 2013. http://www.ala.org/yalsa/amazing-audiobooks/2013.
Amazing Audiobooks Policies and Procedures. American Library Association. Accessed March 5, 2013. http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklists/amazingaudiobooks/policies.
Best Fiction for Young Adults Committee Policies and Procedures. American Library Association. Accessed March 5, 2013. http://www.ala.org/yalsa/bfya/policies.
Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults. American Library Association. Accessed March 5, 2013. http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklists/popularpaperback/popularpaperbacksyoung.
Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. American Library Association. Accessed March 5, 2013. http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/quickpicks.
Stonewall Book Awards List. American Library Association. Accessed March 5, 2013. http://www.ala.org/glbtrt/award/honored.
Tags: books for teens, YA Books
