The Teen Session at BBYA, or, "I really, really loved this book."

Fresh from the YALSA Best Book for Young Adults discussion today at ALA, here are some of the more memorable quotes from the wonderful, erudite, thoughtful, smart, eloquent, passionate, honest, remarkably-well-read teenagers. Here, too, is the whole list for those of you who want to look up authors and ISBN's. A huge thank you to the librarians who wrangled the teenagers and organized their visit to Denver in the snow. I wish I could thank each of the teenagers by name, but in lieu of that, here are their words, faithfully transcribed. (And note: for "rr" please read "really really." Or sometimes "really REALLY." Or else "REALLY REALLY!!!")

Graceling: When I found out there was a sequel I almost started hyperventilating.

Down to the Bone: It's a book about lesbianism and I am really really opinionated about that right now.

Gollywhopper Games: I really enjoyed this book, mostly because I never grew out of Roald Dahl.

Airman: We listened to this book on tape while we were driving up to Canada and I thought we'd hear half of it on the way there an half on the way back, but my family and I spent all day listening to this book sitting in the living room of in this really expensive house that we rented instead of going outside.

Little Brother: I rr loved this book. It's very similar to 1984 and I think the government could really do that to you.

The Luxe: I just finished it at 4 AM this morning. The author tells the end of the story first so for once I didn't have to read the end first.



Paper Towns: I'd read John Green and rr liked him but felt he hadn't reached his full potential, but in this book he does reach his full potential.

Ten Cents a Dance: This was an excellent book. I went to the library while I was reading it and found out what taxi-dancers were.

Forever Changes: Not what I expected at all. Rrrr thought provoking. It made me think.

Night Road: Very thought-provoking. A different point of view on vampires. It made you see them as just a different kind of person, not a monster.

Ivy-a-Novel [this is the charming way the two girls who read the book referred to it]: I really liked the dialogue because it was all written in British. And everything's better if it's British.

The Order of Oddfish [The teen who spoke on behalf of this book wore a 3-foot long red-and-white fish hat in its honor]: Incredibly, ridiculously funny. You just don't see books like this very often.


The Graveyard Book: I just read this and I understand now why there were 70 holds on this book.

Tender Morsels: When I read the ending I was like, "That's just mean."

How They Met: This is my favorite book by this author. I wasn't too excited to read it because the only short stories I had read were Metamorphosis which was really boring and something by the guy who wrote Madame Bovary. But I absolutely loved it. It made me decide to write my own collection of short stories.

Hunger Games: You can't really describe this book to anybody so you just have to give it to them and make them read it.

Ink Exchange: Once again Melissa Marr entranced me. This book is just short of addictive. I really loved the reappearance of Seth, who is one of my top fictional boyfriends.

Living Dead Girl: I loved it because it pissed me off.

The Smile: Awesome.

Knife of Never Letting Go: It made me giddy.

Lock and Key: I know some people who have talked about suicide and I can tell them to read this book and it gives them hope.