Best Books for Young Adults recognizes seventy-two books for 2003
Contact: Nichole Gilbert
312-280-4387
For Immediate Release
February 3, 2003
Best Books for Young Adults recognizes seventy-two books for 2003
From a conference room in Philadelphia, just blocks from the Liberty Bell, 72 books that honor the past, celebrate our freedom and look to the future have been selected by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA) for the 2003 Best Books for Young Adults list. The list was released during the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia, January 24-29.
The 15-member committee narrowed the list from over 900 submissions to 203 official nominations meeting the criteria of both good literary quality and popular reading appeal for teens, ages 12-18. Over 90 teens attended a special session to share their opinions with the committee. The winning titles include many multicultural books, adult books, and books from small and foreign presses. Two titles with graphic novel components and a fiction title with significant color artwork add visual appeal to the list.
Eleven books received a unanimous vote from the committee: "Feed," by M. T. Anderson, a cautionary tale about an overly-commercial future; "Overboard," by Elizabeth Fama, a fictionalized survival story of shipwreck victims off the coast of Sumatra; "The House of the Scorpion," by Nancy Farmer, in which Matt, a clone of 142-year-old drug lord El Patron, wonders what the future holds for him; "Out of the Fire," by Deborah Froese, in which an accident at a bon-fire party results in the disfigurement of a teen girl; "The Hunting of the Last Dragon," by Sherryl Jordan, where two unlikely allies set off on a quest; "Son of the Mob," by Gordon Korman, where a mafia son falls in love with the daughter of an FBI agent; "The Kite Rider," by Geraldine McCaughrean, an adventure in which Haoyou joins a 13th century traveling circus in a most dangerous role; "Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal," by Christopher Moore, which answers the question of WWJD as a teenager; "Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis," by Peter Nelson, a school history project that changes history; "19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East," by Naomi Shihab Nye, a strong collection from a Palestinian-American poet; and "Lucy the Giant," by Sherri L. Smith, which chronicles the adventures of a teen working on a commercial crabbing boat.
Top Ten
- Anderson, Laurie Halse. "Catalyst." Penguin Putnam/Viking, $17.99 (0-670-03566-1)
- Anderson, M. T. "Feed." Candlewick Press, $16.99 (0-7636-1726-1)
- Farmer, Nancy. "The House of the Scorpion." Simon & Schuster/Atheneum/A Richard Jackson Book, $17.95 (0-689-85222-3)
- Frank, E. R. "America." Simon & Schuster/Atheneum/A Richard Jackson Book, $18.00 (0-689-84729-7)
- Korman, Gordon. "Son of the Mob." Hyperion Books for Children, $15.99 (0-7868-0769-5); lib. ed., $15.95 (0-7868-2616-9)
- Lawrence, Iain. "The Lightkeeper's Daughter." Random House/Delacorte Press, $16.95 (0-385-72925-1); lib. ed., $18.99 (0-385-90062-7)
- Moore, Christopher. "Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal." HarperCollins/William Morrow, $25.95 (0-380-97840-7)
- Nelson, Peter. "Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis." illus. Random House/Delacorte Press, $15.95 (0-385-72959-6); lib. ed., $17.99 (0-385-90033-3)
- Nye, Naomi Shihab. "19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East." HarperCollins/Greenwillow, $16.95 (0-06-009765-5); lib. ed., $16.89 (0-06-009766-3)
- Partridge, Elizabeth. "This Land Was Made For You and Me: The Life & Songs of Woody Guthrie." illus. Penguin Putnam/Viking, $21.99 (0-670-03535-1)
Members of the 2003 Best Books for Young Adults committee are: Cynthia K. Dobrez, Chair, Harbor Lights Middle School, Holland, Mich.; Angelina M. Benedetti, King County Library System, Issaquah, Wash.; Margaret L. Butzler, Steel Center AVTS, Jefferson Hills, Pa.; Betsy J. Fraser, Calgary Public Library, Calgary, Canada; Diana Tixier Herald, The Center for Adolescent Reading, Grand Junction, Colo.; Andy Howe, Simms Library, Albuquerque (N.M.) Academy; Jennifer Hubert, Little Red School House & Elisabeth Irwin High School, New York City; Kathleen T. Isaacs, Edmund Burke School, Washington, D.C.; Betsy J. Levine, San Francisco Public Library; Cindy Lombardo, Orrville (Ohio) Public Library; Kimberly L. Paone, Free Public Library of Elizabeth (N.J.); Richie Partington, Richie's Picks, Sebastopol, Calif.; Erin Lynn Pierce, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (Pa.); Victor Lynn Schill, Harris County Public Library, Houston; Rochelle S. Sides-Renda, Birmingham (Ala.) Public Library; Stephanie Zvirin, consultant, Booklist, Chicago; Peter Butts, administrative assistant, East Middle School, Holland, Mich.
For more information, contact the YALSA office by phone at 800-545-2433 x 4390 or e-mail,
yalsa@ala.org.