This Week Around The Web

January 27, 2017 |

Over on Book Riot this week…

I wrote about growing up as a library kid and the fond memories of being a kid of the library.

This week’s not-so “3 On A YA Theme” looked at YA spy stories.

And a round-up of 28 awesome bookish coffee mugs (including the Poe one I own and never can get enough of!).

With release week, there’s been a ton of other stuff around the web I’ve been a part of. Here’s a round-up of those pieces (note how patient the bunny is being in the above photo — usually he’s game with photos but he was not interested that night!):

At the Teen Librarian Toolbox blog, I’ve done a week-long series for their Social Justice in YA Lit project, which has included interviewing four of the contributors of Here We Are about their essays and about feminism and social justice more broadly. They also all include a tiny excerpt from the finished pieces. Since I’m writing this post pre-Thursday, not all are up yet, so I’ll share the rest next week. But you can read my take on how I’m an activist, Alida Nugent on using humor to do good work, and Brandy Colbert on finding her voice in feminism and on social justice. Amanda MacGregor also posted a really thoughtful, wonderful review of the anthology.

I was interviewed by Nadya Sarah Domingo for Teen Vogue and you can read her take on the book and our conversation here. That was such a delight, I can’t even explain. Great questions, great conversation, and what an honor to be featured on the leading source of actual news in the US right now.

Kayla Whaley, one of the contributors to Here We Are, wrote an unbelievably thoughtful post for the B&N teen blog about the anthology.

There’s more to come, some that I know about, and some that I don’t. Thanks for being along for the ride. I will ask this frequently, in part because it’s a thing I am resolving to be better at myself, but if you read and loved the book, can you drop a quick review on Amazon? Consumer reviews help the book land in the site’s algorithm, making it easier for other readers to discover the title. It doesn’t need to be long or intense. I appreciate it so, so much.

Find YA Books On Any Topic: A Resource Guide

January 16, 2017 |

Some of the best questions that land in my inbox or show up in my social media feed relate to finding YA books. Where can someone find books are X or Y or Z, or books that are about X or Y or Z written by people of color, queer writers, disabled writers, and so on. Often, those questions come with the (sometimes unspoken) caveat that the recommendations be vetted by those marginalized groups to ensure that good, solid representation shows up in the books that will ultimately end up in a young reader’s hands.

Many times, I can give the answer to these questions. Other times, I peruse some of the excellent resources out there in order to check and double check my recommendations. I realized rounding up the resources I use would be invaluable to fellow readers, both those who ware looking for book lists and those who may be looking for a good book.

This isn’t a comprehensive resource, and certainly, I’ll be missing some great stuff. I’d love more recommended resources in the comments if there are sites you use to look for YA books and book recommendations. I’ve broken this down by category, though please note there are plenty of crossover lists and intersectional explorations among these resources. Some of these are long-running resources and some are newer but look extremely promising. It’s also worth noting many of these sites don’t stick to YA alone, so there might be further resources available for those interested in books for older or younger readers.

A huge, huge thank you to those who work tirelessly to keep these resources excellent tools in furthering discussion and knowledge of young adult literature.

General Resources

The Ultimate List of YA Book Lists: I keep this guide on my Tumblr that rounds up the booklists many might find interesting or useful that I’ve written or that Kimberly has written.

YA Lit: This is an excellent tool for keeping on top of releases as they hit shelves, as well as those which will be publishing in the future.

Diversity: Race & Ethnicity

Diversity in YA: Book lists on about any topic that are completely stacked with diverse/inclusive titles.

We Need Diverse Books: WNDB’s summer reading series is an excellent place to go for read alike suggestions of inclusive titles from popular titles you may already know.

Edi Campbell: Edi keeps track of the inclusive titles published in any given year. She’s got the book lists on the side bar of her website, including a list of POC authors of YA and New Adult fiction.

Debbie Reese: Her American Indians in Children’s Literature site has a host of excellent resources and book recommendations by and about Natives.

Cynthia Leitich-Smith: She has been keeping incredible bibliographies for children’s list for ages and these resources are a treasure trove.

Rich in Color: They track the weekly new releases by authors of color and/or featuring inclusivity.

The Brown Bookshelf: I’ve been reading this site for a long, long time, and it continues to be a great resource for books by and about black writers and characters. They have a nice round-up of authors of color, and their 28 Days series, which happens every February, is a must-read.

Asian YA Lit: This one is not only new to me, but it’s pretty new all together. This Tumblr has round-ups and other posts of interest relating to Asian YA lit. Their intro post makes me so excited to see what all they highlight.

Latinxs in Kid Lit: If you’re looking for YA, middle grade, or other resources relating to Latinx books, writers, or readers, you can do no better than here.

Diversity: LGBTQIA+

Gay YA: This tumblr, started by two teenagers, is one of the best YA resources out there about queer YA lit and representation.

LGBTQ Reads: Book lists galore. This is a fabulous and ever-growing resource for queer YA (and sometimes “New Adult”) lit.

Lee Wind: Lee has been an advocate for LGBTQ+ children’s lit for a long, long time and the resources and booklists on his website are so useful.

Diversity: Disability

Disability in Kid Lit: Any and everything you ever wanted to know or learn about disability and disability representation in kid lit. Book reviews, book lists, and fabulous discussion posts.

Spooks, Scares, and Hauntings: A Horror Books & Reading Link Round-Up

October 31, 2016 |

Something I’ve been wanting to do more of is round-up links of interest for older posts we’ve written here at Stacked, as well as older posts you might be interested that Kimberly and I have written elsewhere. Being that we’re on year eight at STACKED, there are so many things we’ve touched upon and dug into, and much of it is perennially interesting.

In the spirit of Halloween — my favorite holiday! — I thought it’d be worth rounding up some of the backlist posts we’ve had here and elsewhere about horror, scary reads, and other spooky things.

Please note: when we changed blog hosting services last summer, some of our older posts got a little weird in their formatting. We’re working on updating those where possible. They’re entirely readable and usable; just sometimes, the images look funny or uneven.

A genre guide to all things YA horror and a handy genre guide to all things gothic fiction.

A round-up of YA horror reads that hit shelves in 2015.

On a similar note, here are some YA horror novels that hit shelves in 2014.

YA horror reboots and repacked covers.

Dracula‘s book covers through time. Similarly, this year on Book Riot, I showcased 40 awesome Frankenstein book covers.

YA and YA-appealing books about haunted houses.

A four-part “Horror 101” series from guest blogger Matthew Jackson can be read here, here, here, and here. Great for those just starting their journey into the world of horror, as well as those who love the genre and thinking about it even more.

Curious about the funeral business? Then these YA books will be up your alley.

Of course, we’ve talked about witches in YA fiction.

Horror talk and book lists we’ve shared elsewhere on the web:

Why YA horror is a staple and not a trend, which includes a big reading list and exploration of different themes within the genre, from School Library Journal.

At Book Riot, 65 great YA horror books written by women.

A crossword puzzle for YA zombie book fans.

What to read next for fans of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.

I helped put together this handy reading guide for fans of horror movies that want to try a horror book with a similar feel to their favorite flicks.

Great YA books for those who love the show Stranger Things.

And a few fitting “3 On A YA Theme” posts of interest: girls who love horror movies, pee-your-pants scary reads, what to read if you love Supernatural, and books for those who can’t get enough Twin Peaks.

This Week at Book Riot

April 15, 2016 |

Make this a round-up of the last two weeks at Book Riot! Last week, I had oral surgery, and following the aftercare instructions, I took their vicodin-laced pain reliever. I lost more than a single day of my life from that — and now I know it’s not the pain reliever for me. Which is to say, this is why there was no post last Friday and why today’s round-up is bigger than normal.

Why authors and other creative talent choosing to cancel their events in states like North Carolina because of LGBTQ hate bills are doing a huge disservice.

Here’s the round-up of YA books hitting shelves between April and June of this year. There are over 230 of them. This post about killed me.

For 3 On A YA Theme, books set in London…and a round-up of YA books centered around the Great San Francisco Earthquake (a curious microtrend right now!).

I also had the honor of being interviewed by writer Amparo Ortiz about Feminism for the Real World, librarianship, and what I’m working on right now. Check it out.

This Week at Book Riot

February 5, 2016 |

Over on Book Riot this week…

Here’s the last “What’s Up in YA?” post! Starting on the 15th, this will be launching into a newsletter, which you can subscribe to right in the post itself. Highlights include book awards, fat phobia, and the state of YA adaptations.

For this week’s “3 On A YA Theme,” I talked about books set in Alaska.

Perhaps one of my favorite posts to write and think about was this discussion and round-up of LGBTQ titles for middle grade readers.