Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Well there's the question. My eldest is a sophomore in colleges and he requested "books" to read over January break. While he's in college, he feels he needs to "catch up" on personal reading.
My daughter's request is much the same. She's a Junior in H.S. and is currently taking AP English Lit, which gives her little time to read what she wants.
Both seem to enjoy books with protagonists who are in their teens and early 20s and anything that takes place in a university setting.
Look at Donna Tartt's books. I'm reading The Goldfinch right now and it has a teen protagonist. It looks like her other books have teens and college students as protagonists as well.
I LOVED Jane Eyre in high school. Admirable heroine. It's still one of my favorites.
Wildcard: I am Malala. Haven't read it yet, but it's high on my to read list. She's about your daughter's age. It might be interesting for her to read about life for other girls in a different culture.
The Hot Zone. This is what single-handedly put me on the path to be a biology major in college. No less than three of my high school essays for different classes were inspired by this book. It has absolutely nothing to do with teenagers or university though.
Well there's the question. My eldest is a sophomore in colleges and he requested "books" to read over January break. While he's in college, he feels he needs to "catch up" on personal reading.
My daughter's request is much the same. She's a Junior in H.S. and is currently taking AP English Lit, which gives her little time to read what she wants.
Both seem to enjoy books with protagonists who are in their teens and early 20s and anything that takes place in a university setting.
I'm looking forward to hearing your suggestions!
Get him a library card. Seriously.
Why would anyone buy books? It's mind boggling to spend money on something you already "own". About 99.69% of people read their book one time. Then it sits somewhere. Then you give it away or sell if for $0.69.
How about biographies on people involved in the career he is pursuing? They're readable at the same time they're informative and offer virtual work experience.
Why would anyone buy books? It's mind boggling to spend money on something you already "own". About 99.69% of people read their book one time. Then it sits somewhere. Then you give it away or sell if for $0.69.
Personally, I happily spend money on books by authors I love so that they can continue to, yanno...write more books. It's a vicious cycle, I know. But if we want more of their stories, authors really need to eat. Those books don't magically appear in libraries.
Personally, I happily spend money on books by authors I love so that they can continue to, yanno...write more books. It's a vicious cycle, I know. But if we want more of their stories, authors really need to eat. Those books don't magically appear in libraries.
I feel the same way, AnneWest. Book ownership is the norm in our family. We also support all of the arts, including literary artists. There is nothing, and I mean nothing like opening a package and finding a book inside!
Book ownership and using the library are not mutually exclusive either. We love the library. We also like to live surrounded by books. And art.
There are some wonderful suggestions here from Marlow and Ohio Hello. Keep 'em coming
Personally, I happily spend money on books by authors I love so that they can continue to, yanno...write more books. It's a vicious cycle, I know. But if we want more of their stories, authors really need to eat. Those books don't magically appear in libraries.
Nope, they sure don't - but guess what? We (I'm a librarian) BUY THEM for the shelves! So if everyone decided tomorrow to no longer purchase books, but were requesting them from the library, we'd just end up purchasing MORE to keep up with demand. Whenever a book becomes a "surprise hit," like Wild by Cheryl Strayed, we usually end up re-ordering 2-3x our original order. So while it's nice that you support authors (and I have no objections to people buying books), their sales wouldn't die without you. FYI: We also have to purchase our eBooks as individual copies, and they're checked out individually.
Now back to the OP, I'll try to list some suggestions since I am a teen librarian... lemme brainstorm for a minute, and then I will post a few ideas. But for starters, have you heard of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green? VERY popular among both teens and adults right now, and next on my own reading list.
Abandon - Meg Cabot Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - Ransom Riggs If I Stay and its sequel (which I didn't like quite as much, but it has a college setting), Where She Went - Gayle Forman The Raven Boys - Maggie Stiefvater Now I'll Tell You Everything - Phyllis Reynolds Naylor Fangirl - Rainbow Rowell Janie Face to Face - Caroline B. Cooney
(I haven't read most of these, but chose them based on popularity/ratings and subject content - like I was doing reader's advisory for a library patron )
I buy books. I down-load books. I check books out from the library. And sometimes I do two out of the three for the same book! I am definitely feeding the authors!
I would second the suggestion of The Goldfinch - perfect choice for both kids (and you could get your money's worth out of it that way). Here are a couple of other options:
City of Thieves by David Beninoff - Fiction that takes place during the Nazi's siege of Leningrad. I hate to use the word humor in the context of anything associated with Nazis, but the book is really the story of loyalty and determination that is told lightly and will make you smile in spite of yourself.
The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach - It is NOT all about baseball, but it is a lot about coming of age, the college experience and becoming who we are in the context of friendships and expectations.
Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn - especially for your daughter. A quirky little book that is very hard to explain, but very easy to enjoy!
I buy books. I down-load books. I check books out from the library. And sometimes I do two out of the three for the same book! I am definitely feeding the authors!
I would second the suggestion of The Goldfinch - perfect choice for both kids (and you could get your money's worth out of it that way). Here are a couple of other options:
City of Thieves by David Beninoff - Fiction that takes place during the Nazi's siege of Leningrad. I hate to use the word humor in the context of anything associated with Nazis, but the book is really the story of loyalty and determination that is told lightly and will make you smile in spite of yourself.
I second City of Thieves by Benioff. I recently re-read it for the third time. Very good coming of age story, filled with the tragedy of war and black humor. (fun trivia: Benioff is one of the co-creators of the HBO Game of Thrones production)
I downloaded The Goldfinch earlier last week to my husband's Kindle, meaning to start it after Xmas busy-ness was finished, but...well, heh. Started it Saturday night in a moment of impulsivity and after just the beginning...omg, I will need to get Donna Tartt's other books just because of her voice. Her writing is just beautiful, to the point of my stopping and re-reading the sentences that just flow.
Another book I'd recommend is The Magicians by Lev Grossman. My middle non-reader child was laid off a couple of summers ago and after he finished the Harry Potter series (ha! got him reading finally!) he asked me for something else, and came back after reading this in a few days demanding more. Think Narnia meeting contemporary New York wizard's school. There are 2 so far, and the author recently took time off from his regular day job at Time magazine to finish the third. Hoping it'll be out next summer (fingers crossed).
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Those books don't magically appear in libraries.
