500 Great Books for Teens

Author - Anita Silvey ... [Goo?] [Posters]

This Hardcover Book item from Houghton Mifflin was reviewed on 16-Oct-2008.

Search ISBN:0618612963 offer from Abebooks or used books from Alibris. 500 Great Books for Teens Reference Book. Classifications : Children's Literature Guides Literature Children's Books Subjects Books General AAS Children's Books Subjects Books General Criticism & Theory History & Criticism Literature & Fiction Subjects Books L . Click the following link to view the cover of 500 Great Books for Teens.

Related topics: Literature. Children´s Books. Subjects. Books. General AAS. Children´s Books. Subjects. Books. General. Criticism & Theory.

1) Hardcover Book 500 Great Books for Teens by Houghton Mifflin. There´s a new addition to my reference shelf that´s been really helpful when I or my daughters want to look for a new book to read. It´s called 500 Great Books for TEENS by Anita Silvey. I love the easy way books are categorized here. Age recommendations come right under the book title so I can easily see that The Whale Rider is best for 12 - 14-year olds while Bill Bryson´s A Walk in the Woods is probably more suited to older teens.

And the categories are great! I can look for humorous books, classics, mysteries and thrillers, war and conflict books and many more classifications that will help suit the mood for the type of book my daughters and I are looking for.

Silvey´s done a nice job, too, with the extras at the end. I can look up books that take place in certain states or countries or at certain historical times. My daughters and I are actually psyched about checking off the books on the lists we´ve already read then adding more as we read more.
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2) Hardcover Book 500 Great Books for Teens by Houghton Mifflin. This is an excellent book with far more interesting titles than Nancy Pearl´s book lust. It is incredibly well organized with sensible categories and writing. There are some excellent choices of books in there as well. I thought there were a few books that were misplaced and she revealed too much plot for many of the books, which is why I did not give her a five out of five.¤

3) Hardcover Book 500 Great Books for Teens by Houghton Mifflin. Any shopping for a book to give to a teen reader will welcome 500 Great Books for Teens, a guide to some of the newest in the young adult publishing world. Silvey is one of the nation´s foremost authorities on books for teens, has interviewed teen readers across the country, and emphasizes here books published in the past five years. It´s an excellent librarian´s or parents´ pick; especially considering how many books on ´best of pick for teens´ focus on those over published over ten years ago.¤

4) Hardcover Book 500 Great Books for Teens by Houghton Mifflin. I am usually skeptical when reviewing resources or ads because, as a shopper, I have to know what I´m recommending and stand by it. I was recently given carte blanche to handle several people´s gift lists AND review lists. The review buying is easy, it´s largely what juts came out. The gift selections need to be more specific, and with all the product out there shouting to be bought --well, the task is trying enough for those of us who just want a good read, let alone purchase them for other people.

THIS reference was an invaluable help to me, and will be to parents, teachers, librarians and anyone facing the huge variety of choices out there. The book lists 500 titles, and each one has a very readable and detailed essay about the selection.

It is further categorized in 21 different genre sections: adventure and survival, politics and social history, horror, romance, war and conflict, fantasy, plays, graphic novels, poetry, memoir, and spirituality.

This reference has a balanced mix of classics, but the majority of titles are new. Since many readers are familiar with classics, this volume does well in mostly sorting out what´s new. It also gets a parental recommendation because you can know what your teen is reading and promote discussion. If you´re a shopper, this is your bible!¤

5) Hardcover Book 500 Great Books for Teens by Houghton Mifflin. The first thing that I did when I saw this book was check the index to see if Harry Potter books was listed. It was. And the opening sentence about the book says: ´As a way to entice the young into reading, few stories surpass the Harry Potter novels.´ Again as Ms. Silvey says, the Harry Potter books will naturally ´find its detractors.´ Sure. But the first sentence is the key. More kids have gotten into reading by being introduced to Harry Potter than any other book ever.

OK, if she got this one right, how about other books? In this same section: ´Fantasy´ - Ms. Silvey talks about the Diana Wynne Jones Chrestomanci series. About these books she says: ´its advocates always argue its literary superiority to the Harry Potter saga.´ Right On! When the kid has finished the Harry Potter series and looking for something else, point him to the Jones books. Or to Narnia. Or to Anne McCaffrey -- all of which are discussed by Ms. Silvey.

This is exactly what a book like this should do. Give you the ideas to get the youngers to reading. And this is exactly what the book delivers. If not in Fantasy, then in advernture, history, mystery, science fiction and several other categories.

Complaints, a few - she doesn´t list Isaac Asimov´s Foundation series in the science fiction section. Things like that. But could you ever pick 500 titles upon which we would all agree.

An excellent resource book.¤

6) Hardcover Book 500 Great Books for Teens by Houghton Mifflin. If you are looking for a book to give to a teenage reader, here´s the reference you´ve been waiting for. Until now, there´s been no accepted guide to what´s good, bad, or indifferent in the flood of books coming off the presses in the hot new category of young-adult publishing. If it´s true that you can´t judge a book by its cover, it is especially true for teen books, as publishers take aim at a new class of readers. The books land on shelves without a history, and so there is no standard by which to judge them.

Anita Silvey, one of the country´s leading authorities on books for young people, has interviewed teenage readers all over the country and immersed herself in young-adult books, with an emphasis on books published in the last five years. The result is this invaluable and very readable guide for parents, teachers, librarians, booksellers, reading groups, and of course teens themselves.

With its extended essays describing 500 selections, parents will quickly see what their teenagers are actually reading -- and will be able to find good books to introduce them to. Teachers can spot excellent additions to summer reading lists. Booksellers can move customers from one favorite to a host of others in the same genre. Librarians can round out collections. Book groups -- for adults, teens, or both -- will have hundreds of new titles to consider.

500 Great Books for Teens is divided into twenty-one sections, including adventure and survival, politics and social history, horror, romance, war and conflict, fantasy, plays, graphic novels, poetry, memoir, and spirituality. Every section offers up classics, but the majority of titles are new. In "Beyond the 500," Silvey compiles a number of useful lists, including books organized by geographic location and historical period, as well as recommended audio books.¤

Page Updated: Robert N. Goolsby, 13-Nov-2008, 06186129639780618612963, 630-750-570-041-301-DGB-8

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