The Secret Life of Kitty Granger by G.D. Falksen Lerner / Carolrhoda Lab Publication Date: March 2, 2021 ISBN: 978-1541597966
Kitty is an unordinary, autistic, 16-year-old British teenager living in the 1960’s London East End. Kitty is offered the chance to work as a spy for Her Majesty’s government against fascist agents in England, and she soon finds out that the things that made her different (like hyper-awareness of the world around her) could make her a spy. Stumbling into the Cold War spy game, Kitty has gone from being an outsider to being a part of a team trying to protect their nation.
Last to Let Go by Amber Smith Margaret K. McElderry Books Publication Date: February 6, 2018 ISBN: 978-1481480734
Brooke Winters is looking forward to starting a new school with better AP options for her junior year. On the last day before summer break, Brooke comes home to find her mother, who has been a victim of domestic abuse, arrested for allegedly killing her father. Her younger sister, Callie, is in shock after witnessing the killing and will barely speak to anyone. Her older brother, Aaron, becomes his siblings’ legal guardian while their mother is in jail. Brooke struggles to find a way to keep her family together. In addition to issues at home, Brooke is learning how to handle her feelings for her new friend, Dani.
Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter Scholastic Press Publication Date: March 27, 2018 ISBN: 9781338134148
Maddie and her friend Logan, who just happens to be the President’s son, were inseparable until Maddie’s father, a former Secret Service agent, whisks her away to the remote Alaskan wilderness after an attempted abduction of the First Lady. Six years later Logan joins her in Alaska at the insistence of his parents in an attempt to get him to “shape up.” Soon the two teenagers are left on their own, technology and adult free, when a mysterious Russian assailant attacks, forcing them to flee into the unforgiving wilderness. Though Maddie is furious with Logan for his six years of silence, she will have to rescue him, and fast, from the ruthless hitman hot on their trail.
Books with lots of action are often a home run with readers, especially those who like a plot-driven story. They can cross a wide-range of genres, from spy fiction to murder mysteries.
Definition:
Action books are often very heavy on the plot with danger pulling the story forward, leaving readers on the edge of their seat desperate to know what happens next. Elements of risk and surprise are key factors in action stories. The events that trigger the action or danger are typically outside the protagonist’s day to day life. Often, at the end of the story, the hero or heroine is never the same.
Appeal:
With action novels, readers quickly turn the pages – often reading these novels in a single setting. In a series, there is often an overall arc that ties all the books together, even though the primary plot of the book is resolved.
Actions books are perfect escapism reads; this type of story rarely happens in real life.
Readers like rooting for the underdogs. Often times these teen characters go against supposedly smarter more savvy adults and yet, they are victorious in their quest. It’s hard not to root for the underdog.
One of the most frequent readers’ advisory questions I get is also one of the most complicated. Often, a reader asks for a “funny” book. But what does that mean?
Humor is subjective. Some readers might be looking for a book with slapstick-y humor, others might appreciate darker humor, like satire. Some readers don’t mind a book with bits of humor but more dramatic themes overall, others just want an easy, breezy comedy.
Bottom line: matching books with readers looking for a funny book can be tricky.
Since April is National Humor Month, it seemed like a good time to break down the subcategories of humor and offer suggestions for readers looking for funny books.
Satire
Satire is the use of humorous exaggeration to expose and criticize, particularly in the context of politics or culture.
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray (2012 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults, 2012 Amelia Bloomer List, 2012 Rainbow List, 2014 Popular Paperbacks) is about a group of beauty pageant contestants who crash land on an island: hilarity ensues. But while a less adept writer might have just mocked the beauty-obsessed girls, but instead, she creates complicated characters who for various reasons—money, love, approval—have all bought into the rigid standards beauty pageant contestants are expected to embody, and in the process, critiques consumerism , reality TV, and of course, pageants.
The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde (2013 Best Fiction for Young Adults) is the story of Jennifer Strange, a wizard for hire who becomes the last dragonslayer. Like Bray, Fforde critiques the corporate world and consumer culture in this fantasy series sure to put a smirk on reader’s faces.
We are in the midst of Hollywood’s award show season with what seems to be an endless variety of shows every weekend. Each show bringing new red carpet styles, Youtube-able acceptance speeches and a new list of what films to watch. In the spirit of this flurry of film festivities and movie lists, we thought a readalikes post would be the best way for us at the Hub to partake in all of this fun. So in preparation for the quintessential award show, the Oscars, we’ve come up with a list of a YA readalikes for some of this year’s most talked about films – The Academy Awards Best Picture Nominees.
Special thanks goes to Hannah Gomez, Jennifer Rummel, Erin Daly, Tara Kehoe, Sharon Rawlins, Jessica Lind and Wendy Daughdrill for helping to create these booklists.
Some of your favorite authors in the young adult literature world have put their own spin on the holiday season in a brand-new collection of holiday-themed short stories. For this incredible collection, we have a full playlist.
To get the connections, you’ll have to read the stories!
1. “Midnights” by Rainbow Rowell A Thousand Years by Kristina Perry
2. “The Lady and the Fox” by Kelly Link Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me by The Smiths
3. “Angels in the Snow” by Matt de la Pena Yo Amo La Navidad by Tercer Cielo
4. “Polaris Is Where You’ll Find Me” by Jenny Han Last Christmas by Wham
5. “It’s a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown” by Stephanie Perkins O, Christmas Tree by Winter Solstice
6. “Your Temporary Santa” by David Levithan Don’t Stop Believin’ by Glee Cast
7. “Krampuslauf” by Holly Black Auld Lang Syne by Rod Stewart
8. “What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth?” by Gayle Foreman You Can’t Always Get What You Want by the Rolling Stones
9. “Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus” by Myra McEntire Away in a Manger by Brad Paisley
10. “Welcome to Christmas, CA” by Kiersten White Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney
11. “Star of Bethlehem” by Ally Carter O Holy Night by Jackie Evancho
12. “The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer” by Laini Taylor Beautiful Dreamer by Roy Orbison
By Employee(s) of Universal Studios (Photograph in possession of SchroCat) [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsDefinition
Spy fiction is a sub-genre of mysteries and thrillers. For a novel to be considered spy fiction, some form of espionage must be present in the plot. This can include one person as a spy, or a whole agency of spies. Spy fiction can be set in the present day, past, and future. When spy fictions are written for teens, the protagonist or protagonists are often inexperienced and considered amateur sleuths.
Characteristics
Spy fiction must have action and adventure. Though some have it outright, others may have more of a cerebral approach. The main character or characters have a mission that is given to them at the start of the story. This can be a mission that they adopt themselves or one that is handed to them by a higher-up. Oftentimes, spy fiction involves some kind of political entity, either employing the spy or working against them. In spy fiction, good and bad parties are clearly defined. Most often, we are receiving the story from the good guy’s point of view, and that good guy is the spy. However, readers must always beware of the double agent! Unless part of a series, most spy fiction novels end with justice. However, before justice is carried out the reader is usually led on a series of twists and turns and kept guessing as to if the main character will be victorious in the end. Spy fictions are usually set in the past, alternate past, or present, and rarely are they set in the future. Continue reading Genre Guide: Spy Fiction
When did you start to love reading? Can you remember the first book that did it for you?
Why, yes I do remember–so glad you asked! I was in third grade at my local public library with my friend Margaret (a bookworm and savvy reader a few years older than me). She thrust Lois Lowry’s Anastasia, Again at me so I shrugged and checked it out. I spent the rest of that afternoon on my front porch for hours happily lost in the book. I was a reader. And I haven’t looked back since.
Over the years, I have found that the phase of life in which you read a book affects your outlook on it. Have you ever re-read a beloved book only to find you now despise it? Have you discovered that you still love that same book but notice a lot of different stuff now? If you’ve grown up reading chances are you have many fond memories of the greats you read as a kid. In this line of thinking my colleague Meaghan Darling and I put together some recommendations of titles to try now based on what you liked when you were younger.
* The Witches by Roald Dahl –Beautiful Creatures(2010 Morris Finalist) by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Some witches are good, some are bad—but all are powerful!
Summer is the perfect time for reading for fun and making s’mores. In fact, yesterday was National S’mores Day.
So I decided to combine these two concepts and give you three books on the same topic – think of them as the graham cracker, the marshmallow, and the chocolate of a s’more- all deliciously good.
Last to Let Go by Amber Smith
Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray (
![By Employee(s) of Universal Studios (Photograph in possession of SchroCat) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons](https://www.yalsa.ala.org/thehub/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/sherlock.png)
