Curating the ultimate playlist is a common theme within some beloved young adult novels. Think of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn or consider Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Since the all-important soundtrack to life is an evolving creative process, below is a list of newer songs to start you off your own December playlist.
“The Neverending Sigh” by: Foo Fighters from the album Saint Cecilia EP
Released in November as part of a special EP, this song proves that rock can be fun, too.
YALSA-bk is a listserv with lively discussions among librarians, educators, and beyond about all things YA lit. Sometimes one listserv member will ask a question of the group and others will provide feedback. This post is a compilation of responses for one such request.
Staying up with trends and interests of teen patrons is crucial to providing up-to-date collections and developing programs that will capture the attention of a teen audience. While teens are a great resources and will likely be happy to discuss their latest obsession at length, it’s also helpful to consult other resources to get a primer on a trend. Here at The Hub, we want to make it easier, so we’re introducing our Fandom 101 series.
A recent request on the YALSA-bklistserv caught my attention because it was asking for resources that would serve as an introduction to K-pop and K-drama for library staff who were unfamiliar with the culture and genre surrounding Korean music and movies but had teens in their library who were enthusiastic fans and wanted to start a club devoted to all things K-pop. These are some resources helpful members of the YA and library communities suggested as places to begin. Thanks for sharing your expertise!
I love books and I love music. That being said, it should not be a surprise to learn that I am a big fan of crossovers between the two.
The Hub is no stranger to this fantastic pairing, either: every Wednesday Diane Colson shares with us a book-and-song match in her Jukebooks series, Jennifer Rummel recently used country music as the basis for a booklist, and I referenced my love of book-themed playlists in a previous post.
While scanning through a list of new YA releases recently, I couldn’t help noticing that many of the titles seemed awfully familiar: quite a few of them share (or are very similar to) titles of songs. They may not be similar topically as the pairings in Diane’s posts, but there is no denying that some of these will have you humming the second you see the covers:
Since You’ve Been Gone
When you hear the title of this contemporary story of best friends, summer vacation, and list completion from author Morgan Matson, you may immediately think of Kelly Clarkson’s 2004 chart-topper, “Since U Been Gone.”
(Don’t You) Forget About Me
This new release from Kate Karyus Quinn is a near-match for the Simple Minds classic “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” but that is where the similarities end between this suspense-filled mystery and The Breakfast Club’s theme. Additionally, Quinn’s debut Another Little Piece immediately resulted in Janis Joplin singing “Piece of My Heart” in my head.
With the Common Core and it’s emphasis on nonfiction throughout all subjects being adopted across much of the country, nonfiction seems to be on everyone’s mind. In a lot of ways, I think it’s a great opportunity for libraries and schools to more robustly and interestingly use nonfiction. I’ve recently begun to really enjoy nonfiction – especially history, exploration, and stories of true survival – and I’m glad that we are making strides to promote nonfiction to teens.
Just a handful of titles the teens at my library have looked at recently.
This is not really the type of nonfiction I’m going to talk about today. The books I’m talking about may not check out the most often from the library, or they may not be the ones you’d necessarily pick up in the subject sections of your favorite bookstore. They may also be unlikely to win a Sibert medal. But this doesn’t mean that they aren’t great books, it just means that they are a different kind of book.
I’m talking about browsable, high-interest nonfiction. These are the type of books that you can page through for a few minutes, show a funny picture to your friends, and then go on with your day. You may check it out, or you may just look at it when you go to the library.
At my library, some nonfiction subjects that seem to get used a lot – that aren’t Common Core material – are Minecraft books (these definitely get checked out), music, cosplay, fandom related books like Doctor Who or Hunger Games materials, and crafts. Some teens also like to look through the books about music and dating. Here are some titles used by teens recently and I think are definitely work a look.
Rookie Yearbook One and Two: These editions collect some of the content from Tavi Gevinson’s brilliant rookie website. Focused on girls, indie, DIY, and alternative cultures there are some great essays, photoshoots, and songs lists in here. Plus, some of the books have goodies like stickers or tear out Tarot cards!
A recent request
Since You’ve Been Gone
(Don’t You) Forget About Me