SLJ SummerTeen Speaker: Marissa Meyer
Marissa Meyer’s debut YA novel, Cinder, came out on January 3, 2012 and is the first in her “The Lunar Chronicles,” a four-book series with future volumes focusing on Snow White, Little Red Riding...
View ArticleSLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Maggie Stiefvater
Photo: Robert Severi Waitress, calligraphy instructor, and technical editor are just some of the jobs Maggie Stiefvater had before becoming a writer. Now the New York Times bestselling author is busy...
View ArticleSLJ SummerTeen 2012: Keynote Speaker Caroline Cooney
Caroline Cooney fans will be pleased to know that the YA author has finished her fifth “Janie” book—a short story called Janie Face to Face. “I can’t tell you how astonishing it is to me that I have...
View ArticleSLJ’s SummerTeen: The Rockin’ Women of YA
Maggie Stiefvater, A.S. King, and other YA authors came together August 9 to talk about possible sequels to their novels, the role of social media in their lives, and their different approaches to...
View ArticleSLJ SummerTeen: Who Will Mend This Broken Heart?
Why can’t teens get enough of romance novels? Because they fill readers with much needed hope and guidance, say a group of YA authors speaking on the August 9 SLJ online event SummerTeen panel, “Who...
View ArticleSLJ SummerTeen: Classic Twists
Teens no longer have to moan when they’re assigned Shakespeare and Dickens, thanks in part to a group of YA authors who’ve revamped and modernized works by such classic authors, making them far more...
View ArticleWorld Builder: Edwards Winner Tamora Pierce
Photo by Michael J. Okoniewski /Getty Images for SLJ. When Tamora Pierce found out that she had won the 2013 Margaret A. Edwards Award, she was initially speechless. Murmuring too softly for Jamie...
View ArticleTamora Pierce’s Fantasy Novel Picks | SLJ SummerTeen
Acclaimed young adult fantasy author Tamora Pierce headlined SLJ’s SummerTeen online event on July 24, and shared her love for libraries and books during the conference’s opening keynote. The 2013...
View ArticleEmbracing Diversity in YA Lit
From social media to publishing industry-led initiatives, the call for diversity in children’s and young adult literature has steadily grown into a loud roar in the past months. As part of School...
View ArticleGayle Forman’s ‘If I Stay’ to Be Released in Theaters This August
It’s been a summer for taking beloved YA works from page-to-screen—from Divergent to The Fault in Our Stars—and now, author Gayle Forman is the next to see her novel—the poignant and award-winning If I...
View ArticleTeens Review ‘The Burnouts’, ‘Like No Other’, and ‘Illusive’
Two of the three titles reviewed in this column are written by authors being featured on SLJ’s SummerTeen 2014—Una LaMarche and Lex Thomas—happening live on July 24. But don’t ignore the review of...
View ArticleQ & A with Matthew Quick, Author of ‘Silver Linings Playbook’
Author Matthew Quick is most famous these days for his first novel, The Silver Linings Playbook (FSG, 2008), the basis for the award-winning 2012 film of the same name, written and directed by...
View ArticleSummerTeen 2014 Authors Hit the Mark with New Releases │ JLG’s Booktalks to Go
School Library Journal‘s SummerTeen 2014 is nearly upon us. This amazing free event features some of the best YA authors―up close and personal. It’s not too late to register. Round up some colleagues...
View ArticleCan You Hear Me Now? The Missing SummerTeen Chris Lynch Interview
The technology gods were not on Chris Lynch’s side on July 24, when he was scheduled to appear on a panel with Kwame Alexander discussing their sports genre YA titles. SLJTeen has been able to procure...
View ArticleThe Epicenter of Geek Culture: Planning a “Con” at the Library
Children’s librarian and 2015 Summer Teen speaker Marissa Lieberman shares how she successfully organized East Orange (NJ) Public Library’s first Tosho-con—a conference dedicated to anime and geek...
View Article#LoveOzYA, Romance, and Hijinks: Fiona Wood on “Six Impossible Things”
Photo by Giulia McGauran. Australian screenwriter Fiona Wood’s debut is finally appearing stateside. After publishing the acclaimed YA Wildlife (Little, Brown, 2014), the SummerTeen Romance panelist’s...
View ArticleStrike Up the Band | M.T. Anderson and the Story Behind the Leningrad Symphony
A new book from National Book Award winner M.T. Anderson is always sure to catch teens’ (and reviewers’) attention. Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad...
View ArticleSisterhood, Body Image, and Sexual Abuse | Carol Lynch Williams on “Never Said”
Known for her poignant portrayals of teen girls who come of age in a society that isn’t welcoming to them, Carol Lynch Williams has delivered in Never Said (Blink, 2015) a complex work about twin...
View ArticleJason Reynolds on Building Houses and Affirming Young Lives | SummerTeen 2015
“I want to tell you all a family story—two stories,” Jason Reynolds said in opening his riveting SummerTeen keynote speech on August 13. “As a storyteller, my job is to tell stories and to retain them...
View ArticleAuthors Talk About the Teen Transgender Experience | SummerTeen 2015
Authors Robin Talley, Susan Kuklin, and Alex Gino. Talking about the importance of transgender characters in young adult stories, three authors shared their experiences in crafting, publishing, and...
View Article