Reading Lists for Teens

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Adventure Teen Staff Picks: I’d love to get away. Wouldn’t you? Away from school, younger brothers, older sisters, homework, chores, curfews and pop quizzes. And just about anywhere would do. Across the ocean, over the mountain, into the forest, out of this world. Hey, are you ready? Come on, let’s get out of here.

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Alex Awards (Teen): The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18. The award is sponsored by the Margaret Alexander Edwards Trust. Edwards was a young adult specialist for many years at the Enoch Pratt Library in Baltimore.

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Fantasy Teen Staff Picks: Wouldn’t it be great if genies were real? I’d wish my math teacher would disappear. What about ghosts, fairies and magic? Or wizards and giants? Or witches? Oh, that would be my math teacher. Yeah, well, she’s still here. So, I guess stories about those magical and mystical things will have to do.

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Great Graphic Novels: The Great Graphic Novels/Top Ten for Teens is a list of recommended graphic novels and illustrated nonfiction for those ages 12-18, prepared yearly by YALSA.

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Historical Fiction Teen Staff Picks: How long ago does something have to be to be history? The 60s? The 40s? The 1860s? The 1740s? They say that “time flies.” I guess that makes sense, because when you’re reading a great book like these, the years seems to fall away, and the teens living in that time seem a lot like teens living in this time. Same problems, same dreams, same frustrations – just weirder clothes.

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Horror Teen Staff Picks: Like a scary story? Who doesn’t? The scarier the better, that’s my philosophy. If it doesn’t make me want to sleep with the lights on, it’s not worth my time. If I don’t feel like throwing the book across the room, why bother? You, too? Then try one of these. They’re good and scary.

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Humor Teen Staff Picks: Looking for a good laugh or a humorous tale? Check out our staff picks for teens that want a good laugh.

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Indie Next List for Teens: The Indie Next List for Teens was developed with the input of independent booksellers nationwide. This list features a sampling of their selections of notable titles.

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Margaret A. Edwards Award (Teen): The Margaret A. Edwards Award, established in 1988, honors an author’s lifetime achievement for writing books that have been popular over a period of time. The annual award is administered by the Young Adult Library Services Association and recognizes an author’s work in helping adolescents become aware of themselves and addressing questions about their role and importance in relationships, society, and in the world. To learn more about the Margaret A. Edwards Award or to see a list of previous winners click here.

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Michael L. Printz Award (Teen): The Michael L. Printz Award is an award for a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature. It is named for a Topeka, Kansas school librarian who was a long-time active member of the Young Adult Library Services Association. The award is sponsored by Booklist, a publication of the American Library Association.

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Multicultural Teen Staff Picks: You could come from any country, any part of the world, and there’d be things the same as teens here. True, there would be some differences – different clothes, different customs, different languages. But teens everywhere are trying to fit in, learning who they are, finding their own place and making their own space in the world. Just like you.

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National Book Award for Young People’s Literature: The National Book Awards are given out by the National Book Foundation with the goal of enhancing the public’s awareness of exceptional books written by fellow Americans, and to increase the popularity of reading in general. For a complete list of winners visit the National Book Foundation

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National Hispanic Heritage Month Reading List for Teens: Enjoy these recent award winners and staff picks inspired by the National Hispanic Heritage Month that runs annually from September 15 to October 15.

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Reality Teen Staff Picks: Sometimes feel like you’re all alone? Like you have more problems than anyone else? Like everything is awful and nothing is right? Time for a reality check. Lots of teens have the same problems, same doubts, same aggravations. Open the cover, turn the page, maybe you’ll find the answer to your problems while reading about
theirs. Or at least, you can forget about yours for a while.

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Romance Teen Staff Picks: Aah, love. What could be more wonderful? What could be more miserable? What could be scarier, sillier or tougher than love? Here are some great love stories. Some end happy, some end sad, some end too soon. Just like love.

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Schneider Family Book Award: The Schneider Family Book Awards honor an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for children and adolescent audiences.

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Science Fiction Teen Staff Picks: Science is weird and cool, don’t you think? Things that used to be Science Fiction, like going to the moon and satellite technology, are real now. Someday things like living on Mars and nano-computers in your brain will be real. But for now, it’s weird and cool.

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Scott O’Dell Award: The Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction was established in 1982. The annual award goes to a meritorious book published in the previous year for children or young adults. Scott O’Dell established the award to encourage other writers to focus on historical fiction. Visit the website to learn more..

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Sports Teen Staff Picks: I love sports. All kinds of sports. I love to play sports, watch sports, and, of course, read sports stories. A great story puts you on the field, behind the catcher, under the goal posts, ball in your hands, right there. With all these to choose from, there’s just gotta be one for the fan in you.

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Teens’ Top Ten:  The Best Books for Young Adults committee of the Young Adult Library Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, has chosen the following books as Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults 2016.

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Volunteer State Book Award: The Volunteer State Book Award is sponsored annually by the Tennessee Library Association and the Tennessee Association of School Librarians. Each year, children across Tennessee are asked to read books from a list of nominated titles. The book with the most votes statewide wins the award.

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William C. Morris Award (Teen): The Young Adult Library Services Association created the William C. (Bill) Morris Award to honor a longtime publishing executive beloved in the library world for his enthusiasm for promoting literature for children and teens.