Teen Reading: Trends and Resources

I was pleased to have the opportunity to discuss trends in teen reading and young adult books with Paula Brehm-Heeger, the 2007-2008 President of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association. In addition to updating me on trends, she also provided information about a number of YALSA reading lists for YA readers. Below are the topics we discussed and Paula Brehm-Heeger's responses.

1. What are some of the trends in young adult literature?

The quantity of publishing for people ages 12–18 has increased quite a bit recently. As noted in the introduction of the 3rd edition of Best Books for Young Adults, edited by Holly Koelling, book sales for teens in the United States rose more than 20 percent between 1999 and 2005.

2. Do you see particular genres increasing in popularity?

Fantasy: The popularity of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series has helped increase the popularity of the fantasy genre overall. Some of the most popular books combine fantasy with other elements teens love, such as Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse titles that combine fantasy with doses of romance and horror and Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians series that combines Mythology and fantasy.

Graphic Novels and Manga: No discussion of popularity would be complete without a nod to graphic novels and manga. YALSA offers a Great Graphic Novels for Teens list in response to the demand in order to help librarians stay current with the latest series and titles. Well-known graphic novels series such as Spiderman and X-Men remain in demand but there is no doubt that Manga titles are one of the most read and browsed collection in just about any library’s teen section.

3. Are there certain themes or subjects that are particularly popular with certain, or all, YA groups?

Fantasy, as I mentioned, is popular with many teens. Romance never goes out of style and the large number of paperback romances and “chick lit” for teens being published and read proves this. For teen guys, an audience many librarians sometimes struggle to reach, non-fiction titles are often well-received. Guys who never dreamed of enjoying a book can find a biography of a famous sports figure or a detailed manual of how to build or repair something opens up an entirely new world.

4. When would you say a child is ready for at least some YA books?

This varies from person to person and family to family. Librarians are a great resource for offering suggestions. Additionally, many libraries offer access to online “reader’s advisory” databases that provide a wealth of information about titles in order to help lead teens to just the right book at the right time for them.

5. Since some YA fiction is suitable for mature ten year olds who read and comprehend well and other YA fiction is definitely geared to older teens, can you recommend good reading lists or other resources to help parents identify good YA books for 'tweens and young teens and good YA books for older teens?

Librarians looking to connect younger teens with great books find YALSA’s Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults list Books That Won’t Make You Blush an excellent resource. Also, YALSA's booklist task force has developed a booklist for younger teens that's available on our wiki.

Books published for adults often find an audience with older teens. Recent examples include The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. YALSA produces an annual list of ten titles to address just this situation – the Alex Awards – which highlight books published for adults but with special appeal to teens. Another great choice is YALSA’s list. Both feature a wide variety of titles of interest to older teens.

YALSA’s Best Books for Young Adults features recent, outstanding titles of interest across the age and interest spectrum.

And, don’t forget you can always ask your librarian for ideas. Librarians working in teen departments and areas are a fountain of knowledge – be sure to take advantage of that knowledge.

6. With all of the recent publicity about research showing that people are reading fewer and fewer books each year, I'm impressed by all that libraries are doing to serve teens.

Many public libraries have for years maintained separate shelving sections for teen material, but recently many libraries have worked to enhance these sections so that they are really “spaces” or “destinations” for teens to visit. These spaces include comfortable furniture, technology and group work space. A great example is Phoenix Public Library’s award-winning Teen Central.

7. What recommendations do you have for parents on keeping their kids reading during the busy middle and high school years?

Encourage teens to read for the fun of it! Visit the library with your teen. Spend quality time with your teen by sharing books and book ideas. Talk about what you read. If you show books are important to you, it sends a message that reading is fun. Set an example. Read in front of your teenager. Set aside a regular time for teens to read. Provide teens with a wide variety of reading material. Remember that reading takes many forms including magazines, newspapers and audio books.