tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8162654.post3021578377707532125..comments2023-10-19T12:59:41.841-04:00Comments on nebulous age: Working on a fresh yearMaryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10823325004000574937noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8162654.post-10463217979408812052009-01-12T20:36:00.000-05:002009-01-12T20:36:00.000-05:00Thanks, Dana! I also have a class for tween lit, s...Thanks, Dana! I also have a class for tween lit, so I think this is going to be very helpful.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10823325004000574937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8162654.post-71583913339514807062009-01-09T13:20:00.000-05:002009-01-09T13:20:00.000-05:00Oh, yay! Here we go...On the graphic novel front, ...Oh, yay! Here we go...<BR/><BR/>On the graphic novel front, here's a fantasy one that's for adults, but will be most enjoyable to people who read a lot of fairy tales as a child - Bill Willingham's <I>Fables</I> series. There are 10 collected "books" in this now, all super-awesome. Fairy tale characters who are immortal and now live in a community in the middle of New York, having fled a war in the fairy tale kingdoms.<BR/><BR/>On a similar theme, but for YA readers, is the Sisters Grimm series. Two sisters are sent to live with their grandmother after their parents disappear, only to discover that they are the last of the Grimm family line, and as such have been charged with the protection of the fairy tale enclave in upstate NY. (Why NY has such an attraction for fairy tale characters, I don't know.) Plus, they have to save their parents.<BR/><BR/>You should definitely check out all the books by Terry Pratchett, especially in the <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworld" REL="nofollow">Discworld series</A>. (Link contains a chronology of books and explanation of character threads.) It started as a nominally adult series, but the lines between it and the spin-off YA sub-series starring Tiffany Aching are very thin. The YA books will appeal to adults and many of the adult books will appeal to YA readers.<BR/><BR/>Other standbys of my youth to check out are Robin McKinley (esp. <I>The Blue Sword</I>), Anne McCaffrey, Tamora Pierce, Mercedes Lackey (esp. the <I>Arrows of the Queen</I> trilogy), Susan Cooper. For newer YA talent, definitely read anything by Shannon Hale. I admit that almost everything in this paragraph is girl-oriented fantasy, but there isn't a whole lot of YA sci-fi that I can think of. McCaffrey is probably the closest, because she freely crosses the line between sci-fi and fantasy many times, but a lot of her stuff isn't really classified as YA, I just put it there because that's when I read it and I see no reason why it shouldn't be considered both.<BR/><BR/>You'll probably find a lot of recommendations out there for Phillip Pullman's <I>His Dark Materials</I> trilogy, which is more properly steampunk YA. I, however, loathed it and felt absolutely zero desire to continue on after the first book. I do not say this to discourage you from reading it, just to reassure you that if you end up not liking it despite all the critical acclaim you are not alone.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8162654.post-36724889353060981832009-01-08T22:15:00.000-05:002009-01-08T22:15:00.000-05:00Thanks for the book blog recommendation; I will ch...Thanks for the book blog recommendation; I will check it out. And yes, I was actually sort of hinting around for recommendations, so no need to restrain yourself :)Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10823325004000574937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8162654.post-30987259667628525462009-01-08T16:57:00.000-05:002009-01-08T16:57:00.000-05:00Do you read Jennie's book blog? It's about mostly ...Do you read Jennie's <A HREF="http://tushuguan.blogspot.com/" REL="nofollow">book blog</A>? It's about mostly YA stuff, since that's what she does for work at her librarian job, and she has lots of good recommendations.<BR/><BR/>Now, you know I like sci-fi/fantasy, so I can't restrain myself from saying, "You just haven't been reading the right books!" Do you want any recommendations to help your appreciation of this genre? Because I'm trying to restrain myself here. <BR/><BR/>Then again, you mention graphic novel format is better for this, and I have to say that when I read fiction, I see pictures and hear conversations, so all books become sort of like that anyway. Visualization is a powerful thing, especially in a genre built on fantastic imaginings, so it may well be that that's the way it works for you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com