YA Fresh

The 2007 Top Ten Quick Picks From YALSA

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA)has announced its 2007 annual recommended list of Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. The list was released during the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, January 19-23.

Compiled by an 11-member committee, the 76 titles on the list were published late 2005 through 2006 and represent over 35 different publishers. Thirty of the titles are non-fiction and forty-six are fiction.

The Quick Picks committee seeks books that teens, ages 12-18, will pick up on their own and read for pleasure. The list is geared to the teenager who, for whatever reason, does not like to read. The list is not intended for teenagers with reading disabilities, though some of the selected titles may be appropriate for those teens. Teen input is a vital aspect in the final decision of the committee.Committee members spend countless hours reading, selecting books to nominate, and working one-on-one with reluctant readers to gauge their interest in the books.

Wow, a great list! Looks like I have lots of catch-up reading to do. :)

• Cohn, Rachel and Levithan, David.Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. 2006. Random House/Alfred A. Knopf

• Davidson, Dana. Played. 2005. Hyperion/ Jump at the Sun,

• de la Cruz, Melissa. Blue Bloods. 2006. Hyperion

• Giles, Gail. What Happened to Cass McBride. 2006. Little, Brown

• Gruner, Jessica and Parker, Buzz. Emily the Strange: The Lost Issue. 2005. illus. Dark Horse

• Saltz, Ina. Body Type: Intimate Messages Etched in Flesh. 2006. illus. Abrams

• Seckel, Al. Optical Illusions: The Science of Visual Perception. 2006. illus. Firefly Books

• Sniegoski, Tom. The Sleeper Conspiracy. 2006. Penguin/Razorbill

• van Diepen, Allison. Street Pharm. 2006. Simon & Schuster/Simon Pulse

• Warren, Frank. PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives. 2006. illus. HarperCollins/Regan Books