Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers selects 80 titles
Contact: Nichole Gilbert
312-280-4387
For Immediate Release
January 21, 2005
Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers selects 80 titles
CHICAGO - The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), has announced its 2005 annual recommended list of Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers.
The list was released during the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Boston, January 14-18.
Compiled by a 12-member committee, the 80 titles on the list were published late 2003 through 2004 and represent over 30 different publishers.
Thirty-three of the titles are non-fiction and 47 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.
Teen input is a vital aspect in the final decision of the committee.
The visual appearance of a book and the standard considerations in the quality of content is equally important when selecting books for reluctant young readers.
The list is not intended for teenagers with reading disabilities, though some of the selected titles may be appropriate for those teens.
Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers include:
Flake, Sharon. "Who Am I Without Him? A Short Story Collection About Girls and the Boys in Their Lives." Hyperion, 2004. 0-7868-0693-1
Gottlieb, Andrew. "In the Paint: Tattoos of the NBA and the Stories Behind Them." Hyperion, 2003.
0-7868-8868-7
Heimberg, Jason and Justin Heimberg. "The Official Movie Plot Generator: 27,000 Hilarious Movie Plot Combinations." Brothers Heimberg Publishing, 2004. 0-9740439-1-5
Kenner, Rob and Pitts, George. "VX: 10 Years of Vibe Photography." Harry Abrams/Vibe Books, 2003. 0-8109-4546-0
Klancher, Lee. "Monster Garage: How to Customize Damn Near Everything." Motorbooks International/ MBI Publishing, 2003. 0-7603-1748-8
Riley, Andy. "The Book of Bunny Suicides." Penguin/Plume, 2004. 0-452-28518-6
Shaw, Tucker. "Confessions of a Backup Dancer." Simon and Schuster/Aladdin, 2004. 0-689-87075-2
Sleator, William. "The Boy Who Couldn't Die." Abrams/Amulet, 2004. 0-81094-824-9
Takaya, Natsuki. "Fruits Basket series." Tokyopop, 2004.
Volume 1. 1-59182-603-9;
Volume 2. 1-59182-604-7;
Volume 3. 1-59182-605-5;
Volume 4. 1-59182-606-3;
Volume 5. 1-59182-607-1
Woods, Brenda. "Emako Blue." Penguin Putnam, 2004. 0-399-24006-3.
Members of the YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers committee are:
Maureen Hartman, chair, Minneapolis Public Library; Ty R. Burns, Cypress Springs (Texas) High School; Sarah Couri, New York Public Library; Stacy L. Creel-Chavez, Harris County (Texas) Public Library; MaryAnn Harlan, Arcata High School (Calif.); Sara Catherine Howard, Sam Houston State University (Texas); Teri S. Lesesne, Sam Houston State University (Texas); Kimberly A. Patton, Lawrence (Kansas) Public Library; Jennifer M. Stencel, Akron-Summit County (Ohio) Public Library; Jamie Watson, Harford County (Maryland) Public Library; Rollie Welch, Cleveland Public Library; Jennifer Mattson, consultant Booklist, Chicago; Victor Schill, Harris County (Texas) Public Library.
An annotated list will appear in the March 15 issue of Booklist and on the YALSA Member's Only Web Site.
For more information, contact the YALSA office by phone at 800-545-2433 x 4390 or email,
yalsa@ala.org
.
