New adult fiction authors

By Wally Bubelis

Every year brings more books and a lot of new authors to young adult fiction. What used to be a niche market is now a large industry unto itself within the publishing world. But with all those choices out there, who wants to spend their entire summer looking for just the right book? Here are some of the best new books for teens from the past year.

Joan Bauer's sequel to Rules of the Road is called Best Foot Forward, and it shines with Bauer's typical charm. Jenna continues her work as a shoe salesperson, and is given extra responsibility training a teen who was caught stealing from the store, even as she finds a mutual attraction between her and the Donut King, a young man who knows doughnuts as well as she knows shoes.

Another sequel is Rebel Angels, by Libba Bray, which follows A Great and Terrible Beauty, and continues the story of Gemma and her friends in a Victorian boarding school overflowing with magic and intrigue. In this book, the girls continue their journeys to the Realms, where they must rebuild the Order and fight the sorceress Circe while still returning to their classes on time.

David Lubar wrote one of the funniest introductions to high school life in Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie. Scott Hudson begins his life at high school by joining the newspaper, running for student council, and trying out for the school play, just to be near a girl he likes, but she is assigned a different beat, loses the election, and doesn't make it into the play. Still, this may be the best thing to happen to Scott, especially after he meets a green-haired girl with a great sense of humor.

Joseph Bruchac wrote Code Talker, which fictionalizes the true story of how Navajo Indians were able to help the American war effort in the Pacific by speaking their native language, of which the Japanese had no knowledge. This short novel brings home the idea that so many different kinds of people were able to help their country in a time of war, even though their country had not always been kind to them.

Julius Lester's book Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue follows the voice of each person involved in a slave auction held to cover the gambling debts of a plantation owner. Based on a historical event, this powerful novel will hold your attention long after you've finished reading.

A book that has received a lot of attention for its narrator alone is The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak. The narrator is Death, who really doesn't like to be around humans, despite his job, and who finds himself drawn to Liesel, a girl growing up in Nazi Germany who finds strength in words by stealing books, and eventually writing her own book.

Isabel Allende, who has written many popular adult novels, concludes her trilogy of young adult novels with Forest of the Pygmies, which follows Alex, his friend Nadia, and his journalist grandmother to Africa. There they help a tribe of pygmies defend their homes against a savage tyrant who wears a necklace of human fingers.

For something scary this summer, try Bloodline, by Kate Cary. This novel follows four people during World War One, one of whom is descended from the original Dracula, and who wants to keep the family going by marrying the narrator's sister.

Scott Westerfeld, always prolific, has come up with another winner, Uglies. Tally is about to turn 16 and have the operation that will turn her from an ordinary girl into one of the "pretties," but when her friend Shay runs away, Tally faces the choice of either turning in Shay or missing her one chance at joining the popular crowd. Be sure to read the sequels as well: Pretties and Specials.

This is just a sampling of all the great new books that you can find at your local library. Be sure to ask the librarian for other suggestions once you've read your way through these books, and have a great summer!

Wally Bubelis is teen services librarian at the West Seattle Library.