YALSA’s Teen Book Finder app now available in the Apple App Store

CHICAGO — Teen lit fans, library staff, educators, parents and teen readers with Apple devices can now visit the Apple App Store and download the free Teen Book Finder, the first app created by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association.

The free app, which highlights books and media from YALSA’s awards and selected book and media lists, can be run on an iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad. YALSA’s Teen Book Finder is available thanks to generous funding by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation.

“The Teen Book Finder is a great way for teens, parents, teachers and librarians to get suggested titles from our wonderful recommended lists and awards for teens,” said Sarah Flowers, YALSA president. “We're proud of the work our members do in selecting titles for lists and awards, and we want to share those excellent titles with a wide range of readers. I had the opportunity to demonstrate the app at the U.S. Science and Engineering Festival in Washington, D.C. while we were in beta testing, and the people who saw it were very excited about it—and so am I!”

The Teen Book Finder’s features include:

• books and media from all of YALSA’s awards, including the Alex, Edwards, Morris, Nonfiction, Odyssey and Printz;
• the past three years of YALSA’s selected book and media lists;
• all books selected for the Teens’ Top Ten;
• three Hot Picks, featuring different titles from the database, refreshed each day;
• the ability to search for books by author, title, award or list year, genre, by award and by book list;
• a Find It! button, powered by the OCLC WorldCat Search API, that will show users where to find the book in a nearby library and a book’s available format, including audiobook and e-book;
• a Favorites button, to create an individualized reading list;
• the ability to share books from the Teen Book Finder on Twitter and Facebook.

The app was developed by Ora Interactive. An Android version is planned for later in 2012.

For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the world leader in selecting books, videos and audiobooks for teens. For more information about YALSA or for lists of recommended reading, viewing and listening, go to www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists, or contact the YALSA office by phone, (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390, or email, yalsa@ala.org.