Portia Maddox has just discovered she has a sister. Her dad had a previous brief marriage that led to the birth of a child he didn’t know about. Now, to the surprise of Portia’s parents, they had a 16-year-old daughter, Jasmine. Jasmine’s mother, Vivian, is involved in a new relationship. She could use some alone…
Emily Sanders, age 14, spends her summer vacation working at a bed and breakfast along the Appalachian Trail in Winton, North Carolina. Gigi Baird, an elderly woman dependent on her guests for sustenance, runs Baird’s Den. Emily was referred to the job by her best friend, Mary Carnell, Ms. Gigi’s granddaughter. From day one, Emily…
Time columnist, Joel Stein had this to say in a New York Times opinion piece about adults reading YA books: “The only thing more embarrassing than catching a guy on the plane looking at pornography on his computer is seeing a guy on the plane reading The Hunger Games. Or a Twilight book. Or Harry…
Remember the good old days when you could walk over to a local bookstore to see what’s up with your favorite YA author? Today, you can do that a lot quicker on the Internet and the Amazon website. However, the same emotional connection seems to be missing. On Sunday, October 4, 2015 you can regain…
Max Rigdon is forced by his mom to spend summer vacation with his reclusive grandfather. All of his dreams of being the starting pitcher for his little league’s all-star team are now shattered. And why all of a sudden quality time with crazy Grandpa Joe? Max only met him once at his father’s funeral, and…
Jennifer L. Gadd is the author of Cat Moon, a soon to be released YA paranormal novel. I asked Jennifer the inspiration behind her upcoming Were-Children series. Here’s what she had to say: On the one hand, asking someone what their inspirations were in writing a particular story or a specific character has a simple answer:…
YA readers come together at YA blogging sites to see what’s new on the book market, read reviews, browse through author interviews, and study spotlights on the prevalent themes in YA literature. YA writers come with a similar bent, but also seek reviewers for their upcoming novels or to boost readership of previous titles…
The best books published appeal to the heart of who we are. These parts are the links that connect our childhood to our adult lives. They connect the heart to the brain and the dream world to reality. Many of these books like The Wizard of Oz, To Kill a Mockingbird, and the Harry Potter…
Miranda Moon is a precocious eleven-year-old with an imagination that would be the envy of any novelist. Her popular younger brother, Marcus, is resentful about missing a huge Halloween party just because of his sister’s tall tales. She was suspended from school, so their parents whisked them away. Now they have to spend Halloween in…
Miss Wickware is a history teacher at Langdon Middle School in Phoenix, Arizona, but the sweet old lady is not exactly what she appears to be. Students with attitude problems and a lack of historical perspective can suddenly find themselves sent back through time to face a famous historical figure they coincidentally need to report about…