Tag / lena holoway

by Cicci

“Too many adults wish to ‘protect’ teenagers when they should be stimulating them to read of life as it is lived.”

I read a lot.
Like, a lot, a lot.

And one of my absolute favorite genres is young adult literature.
It might seem silly. Shouldn’t I read  classics or something like that? But I adore the many excellent books in the YA sphere, and I follow quite a few wonderful bloggers/authors.

And YA lit that’s norm critical or feature a strong heroine and some darkness? Even better.

Here are some of my favorites:

  • Tamora Pierce – I read her first book when I was twelve, and I’m still reading today. Historical fantasy with wonderful heroines, often struggling in a man’s profession (such as knight or police.) She’s an oldie but a goodie and just gets better for every book she writes. She isn’t afraid to put sex, violence and “real world” things in books for children/teenagers. Start with Song of the Lioness and move on to her other Tortall books.
    My favorites: Trickster’s Queen, and the Provost’s Dog series.
  • Vernoica Roth – Really young (my age, I’d guess) dystopian writer, with only two books published, but they are good. A lot of psychology and questions about nature vs nurture. Divergent is the first one, Insurgent the second.
    My favorite: Divergent
  • Lauren Oliver: Has written a very acclaimed series, starting with Delirium, about a dystopian future where love is a disease that must be cured.
    My favorite: Delirium
  • Kristen Cashore: Highly knowledgeable about YA and children’s lit. She’s written a fantasy triology about Gracelings, people born with very special skills. Katsa, the heroine in Graceling, has a gift for killing.
    My favorite: Bitterblue

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These are just some of my favorites, and they’re all pretty well-known and worth a read. All these authors have blogs, which I’ve linked, just click their names. If you like books, women’s issues and writing, read them!