(Part 3) Reddit mentions: The best teen young adult literatue fiction books

Okay so, YA books are my jam, and I'll get to those in a second. But if you want a fun summer read you'll have trouble putting down, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore is great. It's a really fun read, especially for people who like books. It's got mystery, humor, and you'll stay up way too late reading to figure out what's going to happen next. It's not the deepest or most challenging book in the world, but it's real fun and well paced.

For YA, anything by Laurie Halse-Anderson is amazing. I've read Speak more times than any other book. Her book Catalyst is also really awesome. And I just finished her book Twisted a few days ago, and it was a great, quick read. (I actually finished it in one lazy day!)

Jay Asher's Thirteen Reasons Why is heartbreaking. If you liked Fault in Our Stars, I'm sure you'll love this. It's a great concept (girl who kills herself gives a series of tapes to a boy to explain why she did it), and it's just superbly well written. Along the same lines, Markus Zusak's I am the Messenger is also a great high-concept, all-the-feels read.

If you like the more fantasy-esque YA books, the best series I've found is Clive Barker's Abarat series. If you end up getting these, make sure to get the hardcover versions. The writing is great itself, but what really makes the series is that each book has over 300 paintings and illustrations done by the author himself. It's a great epic, and the third book of five just came out last year. The series gets darker as it goes, which is great.

And, finally, not a YA novel, but Adam Rapp's The Metal Children is an awesome play about a guy who wrote a YA book that's the focus of a censorship argument in a small town. It's got some great points in it, and is a fast, fun read.

Hope this helps! Sorry if I used the word 'great' too much. :P

Oh! I love reading books!

It took me a really long time to really learn how to read/feel comfortable with reading. Writing took me even longer. But my father was an editor and he used to read to me all the time and sit with me while I struggled to read back to him.

My favorite books I remember him reading to me/reading with him were:

• Amelia Bedelia- when I was younger.
  
• I also made him read the Giving Tree to me a lot! Terribly sad book.
  
• the Harry Potter series(we both got bored after the 4th one but I finished them by myself).
  
• The Hobbit
  
• The Land of Oz(the Wizard of Oz was not as exciting to me)
  
  So, this is my list for the kids who have more trouble with keeping up, or who are too shy to read aloud. To ma' homies with the LD's. Or the ones who just like awesome stories, regardless of the age group they're directed towards.
  
  I don't think I really started reading on my own till 5th grade. Which is when I found some awesome book called Anastasia(I never watched the movie before I read this, but I dont think its anything like the Disney film)
  
  I found "The Royal Diaries series - Anastasia" book. It may be the first "real" chapter book I ever started and finished on my own, without anyone forcing it down my throat. I loved it. It changed everything because I remember attempting to read all of the books for the Newberry Award nominations like all the super fast readers were after that. Which led to me finding these AMAZING books. They may be the greatest books ever for little girls with ADHD or "memory retrieval" problems, as I had been diagnosed at the time. "A Mango Shaped Space" and "So B. It"
  
  After those, I came to the conclusion that reading is awesome. I read Eragon, I found the Maximum Ride series - that had a blind character that had super powers and was cool. I found that characters with a disability changed my whole perspective, because my father is blind and I had just found out I had a learning disability as well. I think that having characters to relate to was really key.
  
  
  
  I read Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series long after middle school... I read up to the 4th book. Those were great! Again, Percy Jackson's "Dyslexia" was taken and turned into this wonderful piece of relatable fiction(perhaps causing more kids to flip their desks over and say-"I'm a demi-god so I don't care about books", but they're at least exciting enough to get kids to that point of involvement with the characters)
  
  
  So, what brought me to love books were books with female protagonists. But as I got older it was harder to find awesome books that. Once I discovered YA novels and cheesy romance, I couldn’t stop. It has now lead to my demise and I read fanfiction on my phone. But before I found all of that, Kate Brian’s Megan Meade's Guide to the McGowan Boys
  really got me to like YA. And then I found spy series and fantasy books with female protagonists
  
  The Squad
  and the Gallagher Girls
  Were for slightly younger girls.
  The Hunger Games and the Uglies series were my favorites at the end of my time with YA novels.
  
  I will try to update this list. I have to go now but I hope this was helpful.
  
  TL;DR link to a goodreads list I put together

Sounds like fun! I'll have to do this later

1.) Something that is grey: Pelican Gray Nail Polish. (on private WL)

2.) Something reminiscent of rain: Shower Curtain is a barrier between the bathroom tiles and cascading, rain-like, waterfall that flows from the showerhead. (on dream WL)

3.) Something food related that is unusual: Candy Mold. Chocolate frogs, anyone? (on under $5 WL)

4.) Something on your list that is for someone other than yourself. Tell me who it's for and why. (Yes, pets count!): Ice Cream Maker. No ice cream for me because I started keto last week. My friends and family would benefit from this when I make them some delicious ice cream. (on dream WL)

5.) A book I should read! I am an avid reader, so take your best shot and tell me why I need to read it!: The Knife of Never Letting Go. It's book one of the Chaos Walking trilogy, which has rave reviews. Apparently it's a dark, dystopian book full of suspense. (on high priority WL)

6.) An item that is less than a dollar, including shipping... that is not jewelry, nail polish, and or hair related!: Laser Finger Beams (not on WL)

7.) Something related to cats. I love cats! (keep this SFW, you know who you are...): Westside Warrior Nail Polish. Lions, which are really big cats, are warriors of the jungle. (on under $5 WL)

8.) Something that is not useful, but so beautiful you must have it: Origami Star Paper. I like folding these, but once I make them into stars, I literally have nothing to do with them. There's jars of them all across my house and all I can do is look at them (on under $5 WL)

9.) A movie everyone should watch at least once in their life. Why?: Song from Iron Man 3 Soundtrack. Everyone should see it because Iron Man + Tony Stark + RDJ = <3 (on digital WL)

10.) Something that would be useful when the zombies attack. Explain.: Spin-the-shot. If zombies attack, I would need to be drunk, so this would come in handy for some last minute fun before I turn into a brain eating zombie. Let's face it, I'm not surviving a zombie attack... (on $5-$10 WL)

11.) Something that would have a profound impact on your life and help you to achieve your current goals: Coconut Oil. Everyone on the keto subreddit raves about this stuff. Being a newbie to this lifestyle, I feel that if so many people had great results using this oil, that it would help with my goals. (on $11-$25 WL)

12.) One of those pesky Add-On items: Anti-stress face mask (not surprisingly, found on my add-on WL)

13.) The most expensive thing on your list. Your dream item. Why?: Globe Bar. I would feel like a super cool James Bond-esque spy who would have a secret room hidden behind a bookshelf. Plus I love alcohol and globes. (on dream WL)

14.) Something bigger than a bread box: Desk Easel. (on $11-25 WL)

15.) Something smaller than a golf ball: Earrings. (on private WL)

16.) Something that smells wonderful: Pink Punch Baby Lips (on add-ons WL)

17.) A (SFW) toy: Kindle. I would consider this a techie toy. (on dream WL)

18.) Something that would be helpful for going back to school: Fun Colored Pens. (on add-on WL)

19.) Something related to your current obsession, whatever that may be: Paints. My current obsession is painting! (on $11-25 WL)

20.) Something that is just so amazing and awe-inspiring that I simply must see it. Explain why it is so grand: Mug. I love love love this literature mug. I not only love the varying typography all over it, but I think that there are some really striking first lines of literature. (on $11-25 WL)

BONUS

1.) Real name: PM sent

2.) Made in Oregon: Handwarmer Mug

Edit: raffle phrase - fear cuts deeper than swords

Favourite: Oh, so many, but the most recently read favourite/book I waited the whole summer for (School was closed-too lazy and unwilling to sign up for shitty local library) is Code Name Verity. Was worth the whole six week wait, I assure you. A simply stunning tale of friendship, Gestapo, WW2, the French Resistance and flying. Also other things, but I suck at describing books.

Currently reading: A book called Butterfly Summer. Halfway through, current rating: Okay, would maybe read once again if extremely bored. I don't regret starting to read it as such, but wouldn't recommend too heartily to anyone else as the fundemental plot idea is good but the writing itself needs improvement.

Would recommend: White Crow, the aforementioned Code Name Verity.

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams and the sequel to that (Both excellent reads).

Finding Cassie Crazy is quite good if you want something more teen-fiction-y, plot can get a bit confusing at times due to about six main characters but it's set out in a novel (excuse the pun) way- in the form of letters/diary entries/other stuff/ noticeboard notices all put together.

Torn is excellent- At first glance, the plot looks like it might rather predictable and done before. I assure you, it's not. The only annoying bit is the ending. The book seems to cut off a good chapter or two before I'd like it to, if you know what I mean, but I'll look past that for now.

Oh how I looove reading. Reading is a passion that I want to share with all. To let them know the pure beauty of it all. My favorite story is Alice and Wonderland. It's a beautiful, imaginative story that fueled my love of reading. The scenery, the world. The characters! Oh and the quotes! Why is a raven like a writing desk? I believe Alice and Wonderland lives in us all. I hope you enjoy the end of your book. :) thank you for the contests and bringing up happy memories.


This would be amazing. I have the paperback, but if I got the hardcover I would send the paperback to a loving home!


Or the Percy Jackson would help me see a new world that /u/bookishgeek wants me to dive in!

Gonna Copy/Paste from another thread:

Teen Superheros:

Please Don't Tell My Parents I'm a Supervillain by Richard Roberts (Three children of superheros develop powers and accidently become supervillains. Good writing, very clever worldbuilding and characterization. Interesting love triangle You've probably seen it advertised as "What if Harry Potter were steampunk?" but underneath the obvious cashgrab advertising is a great book)

Sidekicks by Jack Ferraiolo (Two sidekicks-One of a superhero, another of a supervillian, learn that they go to the same school, and develop a romance. Excellent Writing, especially for a children's book. Cute romance, and realistic characterization of the main characters at the age they're at without being either condescending or simplistic, interesting twist on superhero/supervillian dynamics. Be careful, since the title's genericness means its possible to get the wrong book)

The Vindico by Wesley King. (5 children are kidnapped by a team of supervillains in an attempt to train apprentices. Generally sold as "The Breakfast Club meets X-Men", which it somewhat lives up to. Good plot, nice twist both on traditional super villain roles and "school for supers" idea)

Realistic Fiction:

The Theif Lord by Cornelia Funke. (Two Orphans run away to Venice and join a group of runaways taken care of by "The Thief Lord", a child master thief. Clever Plot, and the writing really takes you in)

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton (Written by 16 year old who really lived in similar conditions. Plot revolves around "Ponyboy", a member of a Greaser gang in the 60s, and his life after a gang fight goes wrong. You really care about people who would otherwise serve as hoodlums in another novel)

Sci-fi:

A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix. (A Prince, one of a few million of the rulers of a galactic empire, becomes tangled in a web of plots and conspiracies. Good sci-fi with excellent world building. Watching the main character learn how dangerous his life has become and slowly adapt to it)

Red Rising by Pierce Brown (After the death of his wife, a member of the lowest Red caste is disguised and made into a member of the ruling Gold caste in order to infiltrate the ruling society. "Ender, Katniss, and now Darrow" was the quote that got me into this. Lives up to it. Reads like a more violent Hunger Games, and goes places the HG didn't. Excellent read, and the main character's intelligence make him more than just an angry revenger. Some slightly guessable "plot twists", but does a good job exploring the theme of unfairness and winning against a stacked deck.)

Levithan by Scott Westerfield. (Alternate World War One, where the allies use genetic manipulation to create huge beasts of burden and war, while the Central powers use huge steampunk machines. Plot follows a girl who dresses as a boy to join in the ranks of an air force, who meets an Austrian Prince on the run from the German Empire)

Fantasy/Horror:

The Spook's Apprentice by Joseph Delany (Seventh son gets appreticed to the local spook, a man who fights magical threats around the County. Does a unique job of showing its monsters and boogeymen, with a plot that builds over the course of the books.)

Cirque Du Freak (Boy becomes a half-vampire, traveling with a circus of freaks. Most action takes place away from the circus and towards the other vampires in the world. 12 books that are really 4 trilogies, which ought to be 4 books. Nice job of presenting unique vampires. Actual horror varies, although I've heard good things about the Demonata series by the same author, which I haven't read.)

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. (First line: "There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife." Plot is series of vignettes about boy being raised by a group of ghosts in a graveyard. Gaiman gets pretty good reviews overall, and for good reason.)

The Midnighters Series by Scott Westerfield (Girl moves to new town and discovers she is one of a very few who can access the "Secret Hour"- An extra hour when time is frozen at midnight, along with gaining new powers. Her and a few select others fight ancient beasts who were the last predators of ancient man.)

Hmmm... paranormal/supernatural tween reads with strong girl characters (not that Twilight had a strong female lead in it, but you may as well steer her in a better direction).

You really can't go wrong with the Hunger Games. Or you could get her the Japanese novel Battle Royale. It's also a dystopian novel about teenagers forced to battle each other to the death.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is worth checking out. It starts to lose some oomph towards the end, but is still a solid read with actual substance to the storyline. I'd get the hardback - the photography in it is just genius. Male lead, but there's a pretty cool chick who throws fireballs.

I enjoyed Anna Dressed in Blood. It's a bit like Supernatural, only with one male ghost hunter as the protaganist. He falls in love with a ghost, but she's a homicidal maniac.

The Rise of Renegade X - a boy raised by his evil supervillain mom discovers that he's the product of her one-night-stand with a superhero. That was pretty enjoyable...

Poison Study is a great book about a girl who's been sentenced to death and is offered a reprieve if she becomes the king's food taster. Her handler ends up subjecting her to a litany of poisons so that she can build up immunity. Didn't read the sequels, but the first book was pretty good.

Graceling is set in a world where certain people are born with random talents - the ability to hold their breath underwater for long periods of time, musical or dancing abilities, cooking the best food imaginable, etc. The main character is born with the talent to kill & becomes her uncle's assassin.

Stardust - Neil Gaiman... really nuff said, eh?

Howl's Moving Castle - A girl is turned into an old woman by an angry witch & takes refuge in the mysteriously moving castle of an "evil" wizard.

Okay. I'll stop now. :)

My favorite thing I have done in 2014 is come out of my shell. I decided I was going to try to not be so shy this year and I have made so many new friends (both in real life and on this subreddit). It has truly been a blessing and I feel a lot less alone! :)

I would love this book if I won. Thank you for the contest and welcome back!

Hi! So I'm not really sure exactly what genre of book you'd be interested in, but here are a couple of FREE Kindle books out right now from the bestseller list and with high reviews:

Highwater

Hope for Garbage

Truth Stained Lies

The Devil's Graveyards (This one has 11 5 star reviews and nothing else!)

The Timekeeper's Son

Reverb

A Family Affair

Pretty Little Liars (I watch the TV show...and so does my 32 year old husband...and we both really like it for being just fluff and teenage drama)

Unenchanted

Land

Hollowland

Nearly Departed in Deadwood

Hope you feel better!

Buying a book is not about obtaining a possession, but about securing a portal.

I need this book so that I can share my love of reading more fully with my daughter. I think we would both LOVE this book.

(Context for anyone else reading this comment: Tuftybee sent me Divergent, by Veronica Roth.)

I definitely recommend it! The idea of this whole society built off what are essentially Hogwarts-like "houses" ("factions" in the book) is really interesting. The protagonist is always analyzing her actions as being part of one faction or another, and constantly trying to figure out where she really belongs. It's really, really interesting so far! If you get a chance, check it out. Thanks again! :) ♥

All Ages (age ratings sourced from Comixology)

• The Backstagers | James Tynion IV
  
• Fable Comics | Charise Mericle Harper
  
• Fairy Tale Comics | Telgemeier, Thompson, Mazzucchelli, et al.
  
• Guinea Pig: Pet Shop Private Eye | Colleen AF Venable
  
• Hilda and the Troll, Hilda and the Midnight Giant, Hilda and the Black Hound, Hilda and the Bird Parade, Hilda on the Stone Forest | Luke Pearson
  
• Julia's House for Lost Creatures, Little Robot, Nobody Likes a Goblin | Ben Hatke
  
• Kiki's Delivery Service, My Neighbor Totoro, Ponyo, The Secret World of Arrietty | Yonebayashi & Miyazaki
  
• Lumberjanes | Stevenson, Watters, Ellis
  
• Marvel Age: Fantastic Four, Hulk, Spider-Man, Spider-Man Team-up | McKeever, Dezago, et al.
  
• Marvel Adventures: Fantastic Four, Hulk, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Superheroes, Super Heroes (2010), The Avengers | Sumerak, Tobin, David, Bejamin, et al.
  
• Marvel Universe: Guardians of the Galaxy, Ultimate Spider-Man, Avengers Assemble, Avengers Assemble Season Two | Caramagna
  
• Mighty Jack, Mighty Jack and the Goblin King | Ben Hatke
  
• Nightlights | Lorena Alvarez
  
• Nursery Rhyme Comics | Thompson, Mignola, Telgemeier, et al.
  
• Tamsin and the Deep | Brown & Cameron
  
• Thor: The Mighty Avenger | Roger Langridge
  
• TOON books: The Shark King | R. Kikuo Johnson
  
• Zita the Spacegirl, Legends of Zita the Spacegirl, The Return of Zita the Spacegirl | Ben Hatke
  
  Ages 9+
  
  
• Adventure Time | Ryan North
  
• The Adventures of Tintin | Herge
  
• Amulet | Kazu Kibuishi
  
• Asterix | Goscinny & Uderzo
  
• Atomic Robo | Brian Clevinger
  
• Bone | Jeff Smith
  
• Five Worlds | Siegel & Siegel
  
• Howl's Moving Castle, Spirited Away | Hayao Miyazaki
  
• Moomin | Tove Jansson
  
• The Nameless City, The Stone Heart | Faith Erin Hicks
  
• Power Pack | Simonson, Brigman, et al.
  
• Roller Girl | Victoria Jamieson
  
• Smile, Drama, Sisters, Ghosts | Raina Telgemeier
  
• Usagi Yojimbo | Stan Sakai
  
• A Wrinkle in Time | Madeleine L'Engle
  
  Ages 12+
  
  
• DC: The New Frontier | Darwyn Cooke
  
• Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant, Delilah Dirk and the King's Shilling | Tony Cliff
  
• Giant Days | Allison & Cogar
  
• Gotham Academy | Becky Cloonan
  
• The Legend of Wonder Woman | Renae De Liz
  
• Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur | Reeder & Montclare
  
• Mouse Guard: Fall 1152, Mouse Guard: Winter 1152, Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard | David Petersen
  
• Nimona | Noelle Stevenson
  
• Star Wars | Aaron
  
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Eastman & Waltz
  
• Ultimate Spider-Man | Bendis
  
• Most superhero comics at DC and Marvel
  
  Resources:
  
  
• goodokbad
  
• comicbookresources
  
• comicsintheclassroom
  
• ilovelibraries
  
• pastemagazine
  
• /u/urko37’s [Recommendation] “What comics are good for my kids?”

The Great Brain. AWESOME series , loved all of them at that age

The Great Brain https://www.amazon.com/dp/0803725906/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_kkb8ybEC2072M

That's a tricky one. Seems the majority of fantasy books with a female protagonist fall into either the ya or smut category

I would suggest:
Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

These are technically ya but I wouldn't say the relationships are stereotypical of ya
Graceling by Kristin Cashore

The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley

If you don't mind smutty then my goto in Kresley Cole and her immortals after dark series. Always a nice light paranormal romance. Not every book is a hit in my opinion but there's some gems. Plus it's fine to read then out of order/skip some.

So, basically a movie on a police-state, with the defenders of free speech fighting for their freedom? Hrm, with themes from the Matrix, Cloverfield, Fahrenheit 451, 1984, Little Brother (Haven't read it yet though), and possibly references to Monty Python, this movie would rock!

If it was done properly, I think that it could be propagated solely via word of mouth and the internet as its distributor. I know that I would watch it.


On the other hand, a novel would be better, as one would be able to see what one is thinking.


Whatever the case, this would be an interesting subject to see/read.

Cinnamon Toast Crunch is fantastic cereal! :D

I would LOVE this book. I was gifted the first book, Divergent, by someone here in RAOA and I ate it up in less than 24 hours, it was that good. I need to see where the story goes. :)

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. It is technically a children's book, but it is also one of my favorite books of all time, and really takes me back to seeing things as a child and not an adult. It's super imaginative, at times heartwarming in its simplicity, yet has razor-sharp wordplay throughout.

Okay, I love this question.

Padme suggests Lips Touch by Laini Tailor--it's a beautiful book of short stories that are strange but gorgeous, much like Naboo. And despite the title, it's not a romance so much as slices of lovely weirdness held together by the relationships people develop, which suits her. But Jyn and Rey vote this one down.

Leia suggests Passenger by Alex Bracken. It's a time travel book, but also about loss and displacement and people who don't have any real home left, so it makes her sad but hopeful.

Jyn and Rey team together to get the book club to read Six of Crows and then Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, a fantasy duology about the dregs of society. In SoC, a team of low-lifes from a hard city take on a con job--think Ocean's Eleven, but in a fantasy world and with a rag-tag misfit crew of criminals. CK is about the revenge they take after a double cross. These books are both brilliantly written but also perfect for the characters as they are dark but hopeful at the same time, and Jyn in particular like Kaz Brekker, who will basically do anything to win but still loves his people.

The next person they invite to the club is Dr. Aphra because she's so badass. She suggests Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. K2SO told him about this one. It's a story told through found documents--there's no straight narration, but instead transcripts of interviews, photographs, documentation from space ships, etc. It's about a small group of ships on the run from a random attack on their home planet, trying to outrun the remaining enemy ship chasing them. But it also features a psychotic AI and a lot of death and chaos, which is right up Dr. Aphra's alley.

I am definitely into Crimson more than Cardo, but they both look pretty great. Do you have any idea what type is used for the prose of this book?

For anyone interested, Pretty Little Liars (Book 1) on Kindle is FREE right now, it was marked down from almost $8!! I have a guilty please of reading books that are probably way to young for me, lol.


Shout out to /u/playhertwo for noticing that I had a book on my wishlist that was listed as free :)

• Good Omens by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, about an angel and demon dealing with the apocalypse when the Antichrist is accidentally raised as a perfectly normal 10-year old human.
  
• The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, which gets fairly philosophical.
  
• A Barrel of Laughs, A Vale of Tears by Jukes Feiffer, the illustrator for The Phantom Tollbooth, about a prince who makes everyone around him burst out laughing.
  
  Would also second David Sedaris' humorous essay collections.

If they don't already have one of the Viva Pinata games consider that! They're so cute and definitely spark some imagination!

For Rylee, my first thought was graphic novels if she's never tried them. My cousin loved A Wrinkle in Time even though he'd already read the book. Ghosts is very popular, too.

For Trinity, my first thought was a Bop It for some reason! Or maybe this gymnastics coloring book?

Horatio Hornblower series by C. S. Forester, most definitely! Then you'd have to list all the stuff that's been based off that series, which is down the bottom of the wikipedia page.

And I know this is a bit out there for you, but you could call this supplementary - it's historical fiction with dragons. His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire, Book 1) by Naomi Novik.

For the girls, you could get them to read the stuff by Georgette Heyer. Heyer was a romance novelist whose research library for British period customs and clothing was fiercely fought over by museums and libraries when she died. She wrote things that are both engaging and truly capture the flavor of the timeframe; she didn't impose modern morals and anachronisms onto her fiction.

Sherlock Holmes? Pick a few of the classic stories and maybe analyze the differences between society then in Victorian England and today. As a companion, you could get them to read the bit in A Bloody Business: An Anecdotal History of Scotland Yard which discusses Arthur Conan Doyle and his contributions to social change in Victorian London.

Then there's the Mabinogi, which has inspired tons of other works, and you could pair that with Susan Cooper's Dark Is Rising Series - there's only one book in there that really draws from/deals with Welsh myth, but it's a good one.

I've been looking that too, but just now I have too much to read both on my Kindle and outside it to start a completely new series before I've finished the last ones. You did like YA books? I could recommend this if you haven't read it yet :)

That being said, Graceling is one of the best books I have ever read. I don't know if you'd be interested, but so far everyone I've made read it has freaked out at how amazing it is. :)

I would looooooove Beastly! :) My email is on my wishlist if I win. The sunflower is my favorite flower!

I supplied my daughters with Lego and Lego Mindstorms kits and made sure they had a bottomless bucket of books. Both went on to STEM fields and they were some of their favorite things growing up.

At the risk of offending the for girls crowd, Lego has loads of kits targeted at girls.

Definitely check out Scratch as others have mentioned.


Two books I like to recommend for kids interested in STEM

The Phantom Tollboth
The Number Devil

I love the Abarat series by Clive Barker: Abarat, Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War and Abarat: Absolute Midnight

They're YA (well as much as HDM is YA), teen protagonist exploring a different world. I'm not very good at blurb, but they are in the same vein as His Dark Materials, and are fantastic books as well.

Happy Birthday!

• $5 or less
  
  
• 4$ or less
  
  
• 3$ or less
  
  
• 2$ or less
  
  
• 1$ or less
  
  Are you feeling 22? Because I'm not... haha

Has anyone read Illuminae? It seems like it would be a pretty good book for this sub. I was gonna grab the Kindle version but the physical copy seems the better way to go because of all the pics and charts in the book.

Anyone read it?

• Divergent/Insurgent (First two in an unfinished trilogy)
  
• The Maze Runner (This is a trilogy)
  
• Battle Royale
  
• I've heard good things about The Knife of Never Letting Go (The first part of the Chaos Walking trilogy)
  
  To be honest, these are just some dystopia themed books I recommended because of Hunger Games. However, I could give better recommendations if you tell me more of what she wants. Young adult? Fantasy? Romantic aspect?

Gregor the Overlander or Beastly would be awesome to read.

My favorite food would have to be Chicken Alfredo, it's so yummy.

Thanks! :3

opal

Hey, I didn't know amazon did this! Silly me! I would love to read Beastly, it sounds strange and brilliant.

There's a prime eligible copy of this for $3.83!

I'd love anything on my books list though!

Thank you for the contest!

The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Jester

this book revolutionized my world, learning about how language and syntax can be used was freaking FANTASTIC.



also, try the "His Dark Materials Trilogy" books....really cool magical worlds that I always got lost in.

EDIT: it makes me happy so many people read the dark materials trilogy, those books really opened my mind up to a lot of worldly concepts.

Veronica Roth wrote 4 books before Allegiant that takes place from the POV of Four. I guess she was getting herself ready to write in his POV for Allegiant. They're like one or two chapter "side books" that sell for like 1.99 a piece.

Heres one of them:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Transfer-Divergent-Insurgent-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00DG261BG/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1383201515&sr=8-5&keywords=veronica+roth

Definitely Little Brother by Cory Doctorow.

The stories in the Steal the Network series are fiction wrapped around realistic computer security themes and exploits. They even include screenshots where applicable. I especially enjoyed the last one in the series.

Susan Cooper has a great series called "The Dark is Rising" It starts with "over sea and under stone" and continues from there. They sell the whole series. This was my absolute favorite series as a kid and actually was the book that started my love of reading. (i was not too big into reading before that.)

http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Rising-Boxed-Set-Greenwitch/dp/1416949968

Do not be confused with the horrible movie they made based on the second book. That just sucked.

I'm almost positive that the 2nd book is The Phantom Tollbooth. Incredible book, one of my childhood favorites.

Edit: I didn't remember the hand-clapping thing which is why I wasn't 100% positive, but I found a synopsis that mentions it:


>Next on the tour is the laboratory where sounds are invented—and also become visible. Milo claps his hands and
sheets of paper begin shooting out. He tries to reason with the Soundkeeper about the silence in the valley, but she will not hear of it. At one point Milo tries to retort with "But!" and catches himself short, feeling the word form on his tongue and stay there. He quickly, and silently, makes for the door, smuggling his sound out with him.

So, now I am positive.

I am officially back stateside, and in the last 24 hours I have successfully fixed the water softener, shoveled a fine collection of oak logs, leaves, live plants, and raccoon shit off the roof, made bank tutoring o-chem, and taught the Verizon employee how to connect to their own 4G network. I was unaware the name of their APN was such a secret. Also, that 4 tiers of escalation would be so damn useless. I ended up guessing the name like some sort of movie cracking and then went back and made the guy write it down because I can't be the only person ever to have that problem and it was seriously a 10 second fix. See also: was feeling smug.

I also got a lot of reading done in the past month, apparently. Finished The Lies of Locke Lamora, The Name of the Wind, Matched, Graceling, Sapphique, Assassin's Apprentice, the first Circle of Magic book, and started a bunch of others.

If we're running out of discussion ideas, another book recommendation/rant/rambling thoughts thread might be fun.

Friends still have my MS and are being slow readers and I can't bug them about it because they have real work to do. Argh. I'm planning to cover my office in sticky notes and reorder some scenes that way while I wait on them.

I honestly can't remember a lot of the details from it, so this may be way off base but are you talking about one of the Cirque du Freak books by Darren Shaun? Main character is named Darren, the old vampire is Mr. Crepsley.

Hopefully the link works. On mobile.

Graceling has a really original concept and a fearless lady protagonist.

2 - 1.99 on my main list.

4 - 3.99 on my Kindle Book List.

6 - 6.00 on my main list.

8 - 8.00 on my main list.

Thanks for hosting the contest!!

This could be a very long list ... Will try to reign it in to some of my favourites. Most are popular enough that they won’t need explaining.

Springtime In Chernobyl

The Handmaid’s Tale: A Graphic Novel

Maus

Laika

Ichi-F: A Worker's Graphic Memoir of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant


Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation

To Kill A Mockingbird: A Graphic Novel

Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare Classics Graphic Novels)

The Hobbit Graphic Novel

Persepolis

The Kite Runner: A Graphic Novel

A Wrinkle In Time: A Graphic Novel

The Great Successor Kim Jong Un: a Political Cartoon, an Epic Comic of the Dark Kingdom and the Passing of Power to a Third Kim

Any of Guy Delisle’s travelogues

Could it be The Dark is Rising, by Susan Cooper? There are five books in the series, all of them are excellent.

Some of my fondest book memories from around that age come from this series.

The Great Brain

Great Brain books

http://www.amazon.com/The-Great-Brain-John-Fitzgerald/dp/0803725906

Right after I read Hunger Games I read Graceling by Kristin Cashore. The main character is another strong female. I'm not really good at explaining books so here is a link to Amazon to help you out.
http://www.amazon.com/Graceling-Kristin-Cashore/dp/015206396X

Lookie here! Amazon's got it for just 4 bucks! Woo!

Perhaps you could write it in an epistolary format.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OEXJARS/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Granted, this book is science-fiction, but there are certainly ways to write fantasy in a similar fashion.

[Demonata] (http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Loss-Demonata-Book-ebook/dp/B000SEWISU/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1377297988&sr=8-1&keywords=demonata) and [Cirque Du Freak] (http://www.amazon.com/Cirque-Freak-Saga-Darren-ebook/dp/B000SESJ0Q/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1377297957&sr=8-1&keywords=cirque+du+freak) have some really interesting themes.

I was caught off guard by how much I liked the Chaos Walking series by Patrick Ness.

a chapter from The Phantom Tollbooth might fit your bill...

The Phantom Tollbooth - You may have read it as a kid and thus think it is a kids book - but its still worth a read once in a while as an adult.

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow It is hard for me to put this book down once I start. If anyone knows of any books like this, please let me know.

the Abarat books by Clive Barker, make sure you get the illustrated editions!

The Thirteen and a Half Lives of Captain Bluebear by Walter Moers

Crusade in Jeans by Thea Beckman One of my all time favourites, the old translated editions weren't as good but a new version will be published in november.

The Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

Can't believe no one said The Phantom Tollbooth yet.

Take a look at Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising series.

That makes me think of the book Graceling.

Divergent by Veronica Roth. Second book comes out May 1.

Little Brother, by Cory Doctorow http://www.amazon.com/Little-Brother-Cory-Doctorow/dp/0765319853

The Phantom Tollbooth! I still reread this book.
http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-Tollbooth-Norton-Juster/dp/0394815009/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1248319158&sr=8-1

The Phantom Tollbooth

Book

Book 2

Book 3

Book 4

Book 5

Book 6

Book 7

Book 8

Book 9

Comes to about $91.

$7.99

[2] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0073XV3K8/ref=s9_al_ft_g351_ir019?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-5&pf_rd_r=1YTGGY3TMRPKFCJ7TNGZ&pf_rd_t=1401&pf_rd_p=1534288222&pf_rd_i=1000706171)
[4] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0307950654/ref=tmm_pap_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used)
[6] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0531095398/sr=/qid=/ref=olp_page_2?ie=UTF8&colid=&coliid=&condition=used&me=&qid=&shipPromoFilter=0&sort=sip&sr=&startIndex=15)
[8] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0689867042/sr=/qid=/ref=olp_page_8?ie=UTF8&colid=&coliid=&condition=used&me=&qid=&shipPromoFilter=0&sort=sip&sr=&startIndex=105)

I have The War of the Worlds and a collection of six Sherlock Holmes adventures, if either one interests you. I also have Little Brother by Cory Doctorow, Witch and Wizard, and The Gift by James Patterson.

Divergent by Veronica Roth, or the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Both feature strong female protagonists; both have action galore; both were devoured by my fiance who denies he has the ability to read. I think Divergent's better, but all three Hunger Games books are out and the second in the Divergent series won't be out till May.. :'(

I set of books that I read right before The Hunger games that I kept drawing parallels to was the Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness. The first book is called The Knife of Never Letting Go.