Over on the Verla Kay Blueboards (which is a great place for aspiring writers, by the way), they were discussing the top ten books that every young adult author should read, and it got me thinking about my list. I don't know about calling it a "must read" list, but I do have ten books that I feel were influential for me. They influenced me in different ways. Some sparked an urge to read more by that author, some made me run to my computer and type out a chapter, others transported me back to being a teen and things were ok, and some just left me speechless.
In no particular order, I am listing them below.
1) Forever by Judy Blume
2) Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
3) Looking for Alaska by John Green
4) The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen
5) The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart
6) Vibes by Amy Kathleen Ryan
7) Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
8) The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
9) The New Girls by Beth Gutcheon
10)Seventh Heaven by Alice Hoffman (I know this isn't considered YA, but still influential to my writing.)
This will change soon; it is ever evolving. Maybe I should go read some of them now.
Good list, Aimee. I'll have to think about my top ten YAs... by the way, I love Seventh Heaven, too. A.H. is amazing.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ruth. I read Seventh Heaven when I was a junior in high school--it was the book I remember really grabbing me when I was younger. I can't wait to see your list!
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