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The 2011 YA Fiction Nerdies Go To…
Since I cannot bear to watch award shows live because they drag out the moment of WHO WON the categories I most care about for what might seem like HOURS or DAYS, I will not inflict such unnecessary pain on you, the dedicated YA fiction lovers reading this post.
The winners for the 2011 YA Fiction Nerdies are…
The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner
Divergent by Veronica Roth
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Shine by Lauren Myracle
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Now that you know who won, you can scroll down to learn more about these incredible titles, their authors, and even check out some book trailers with a slightly calmer heart rate.
The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner
Her website: http://gaepolisner.com/
Her Twitter: @gaepol
We teachers get excited when we see that something new, set in the here and now, connects up to something we teach. No exception here when we see that this makes so many connections with Of Mice and Men.
But that doesn’t really give credit to how she manages to create these wonderfully quirky characters that you feel like you know them – or that you want to know them, help them, love them.
But Paul W. Hankins (@paulwhankins) takes this feeling of universality and relate-ability farther than that feeling of having met these people before:
Gae’s characters are us. We don’t always know that we’re about to go on a journey. Our friends, our stories, sustain us. Gae captures this. How, when, and why we share stories is what THE PULL OF GRAVITY really is. Delivering a book and being delivered by a book. Powerful.
Powerful indeed, Mr. Hankins.
“I live and write on Long Island with my two amazing boys, my handsome, smart husband who sings, and two very “enthusiastic” cockatiels, Taha and Bobo (who are screeching to me now to be included, way loud from the other room). When I’m not writing, I’m still a practicing family law attorney/mediator, and when I’m not doing that, I’m swimming, or reading in my hammock in the sun.” Bio from http://gaepolisner.com/html/about.html
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Her website: http://veronicarothbooks.blogspot.com/
Her Twitter: @veronicaroth
“There has only been one book that has not spent a single day this year on my classroom’s bookshelves: Divergent. Almost every day, I have a student see the dust jacket, left behind by the current borrower, and ask “Is Divergent in yet?” It is usually checked out within minutes of being checked in. The waiting list is longer than for any other book — by a wide margin. It may not win a Nerdy, but it definitely qualifies for an award from my students.”
“Veronica Roth is only 23, so her bio will be short. She’s from a Chicago suburb. She studied creative writing at Northwestern University, and wrote DIVERGENT (Katherine Tegen Books, May 2011). The second book in The Divergent Trilogy, INSURGENT, will come out in May 2012. In the meantime she will spend endless hours browsing Wikipedia in her pajamas as she eats corn flakes. (Or some other kind of bland breakfast cereal.)” Bio from http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4039811.Veronica_Roth
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
His website:http://www.patrickness.com
His Twitter: @Patrick_Ness
I remember Kim McCollum-Clark (@KimMcCollum) giving me a well-traveled copy of A Monster Calls in August and telling me that I needed to read it immediately. I struggled to stay up late enough to finish it that night, but succumbed to sleep a mere 40 pages from the end. The next day, I had a hard time focusing on much at the writing institute I was at because I just had to finish that book. I did not follow the instructions given to me by the many who had already been mesmerized by its powers – I did not have a box of tissues at the ready. But I learned two valuable lessons that day: crying at a large gathering of teachers will ensure not only concern but the necessary tissues and crying about a book while proclaiming it brilliant will guarantee that people start writing down the title.
I know how it felt to read this powerful book, but Teresa Rolfe Kravtin (@trkravtin) offered a much more eloquent review:
“A tour de force. Patrick Ness weaves a tale rich with layers of symbolism, paradox, and ultimately understanding, of grief and the incredible power love and acceptance. Illustrations by Jim Kay bring the images within the psyche of Conor to remarkable reality, and the graphic novel nature of the book allows the reader to experience Conor’s palpable, symbolic dream world. It takes a virtuoso to meet the difficult challenges inherent in such a project, and what Patrick Ness has delivered is an extraordinary gateway to understanding the process of love and loss.”
More briefly put by Lauren Peugh (@Lopopo5): “A beautiful, unexpectedly lovely novel about pain, loss, and forgiveness. The scary beginning will draw adventurous kids in, the heartfelt story will keep them there.”
As a side note, there is a hauntingly lovely audiobook version of this narrated by Jason Issacs that would be amazing if packaged with the book. I can’t imagine totally missing out on the illustrations since I read the book with them.
“Patrick Ness, an award-winning novelist, has written for England’s Radio 4 and SUNDAY TELEGRAPH and is a literary critic for THE GUARDIAN. He has written five books(Chaos Walking Trilogy, The Crash of Hennington, and Topics About Which I Know Nothing). Born in Virginia, he currently lives in London.” Bio from http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/370361.Patrick_Ness
Shine by Lauren Myracle
Her website: www.laurenmyracle.com
Twitter: @laurenmyracle
This book is not a light, easy read, but so many of the best YA novels are the ones that almost dare us to continue reading as we wrestle with the troubles and conflicts along with the characters on the pages. It reads like a mystery, but as Kellee Moye (@kelleemoye) points out in her review: “This is a book about more than just finding a criminal. This is a book about overcoming past injustices and obstacles and ultimately finding out the truth. The truth not only about the hate crime at hand, but also Cat finding out the truth about herself and others in her town. It is also about the thin line between good and bad. It is always not clear which side of the line someone falls. And sides change easily. This is an important book to have around and ranks up there with books like Speak as a book that is just so tough to read, but so important to share.”
“Lauren Myracle is the author of numerous young adult novels. She was born in 1969 in North Carolina. Lauren Myracle holds an MA in English from Colorado State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College. she has written many novels, including the famous IM books, ttyl, ttfn, and l8r, g8r.” Bio from http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/157676.Lauren_Myracle
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Her website: http://www.libbabray.com/
Twitter: @libbabray
Lauren Peugh (@Lopopo5) offered this review: “Told with Bray’s trademark caustic wit, it is the tale of a planeful of beauty queens who get stranded on a desert island. Think “Lost” meets “Miss America”. Add a healthy dose of reality tv (in my mind, only large doses of reality tv are healthy!) and a boat of sexy pirates and you’ve got a hilariously snarky don’t-miss read!”
If the words caustic wit and hilariously snarky sound like fun, then you must read this book if you haven’t already. I have to say that I couldn’t stop giggling as I listened to the audiobook version of this (read by the author herself!), but the footnotes were what nearly made me shoot coffee out of my nose. (If you’re prone to such unfortunate responses to funny things, do avoid listening to this on your commute to school. It’s hard to explain the coffee stains day after day…) The teacher in me couldn’t help but think about how nicely this would pair with Lord of the Flies or serve as a awesome example of satire, but I know that it’s more important that I put this in the hands of someone else who needs a good laugh.
If you’re up for an amazingly awesome interview of Libba by herself about Beauty Queens: http://www.omnivoracious.com/2011/04/ya-wednesday-a-conversation-between-libba-bray-and-libba-bray.html
“I lived in Texas for most of my life; I live in New York City with my husband and six-year-old son now; I have freckles and a lopsided smile; I’m allergic to penicillin.” Bio from http://www.libbabray.com/bio.html but you should really go online and read the whole thing. It’s so much more Libba.
Cindy Minnich is a high school English teacher who is more and more grateful every day for the authors who slave over their work to create opportunities for her to revitalize the readers in her classroom. Thank you especially to the ones on this list as well as those who were nominated.
Nerdy Book Club 
Love that you finished A Monster Calls at a gathering of teachers who comforted you AND wrote down the name of the book. Awesome. I’ve only read 3/5 of the YA winners – which means MORE books to add to my TBR stack. 🙂
Katherine
Great post, Cindy. The one book on this list I have yet to read is A Monster Calls. I think I’m avoiding it because I lost my own mom to cancer when I was younger. Maybe you, Katherine, and Donalyn can come hang at my house while I read it so you can comfort me! 🙂
I’d come over, Mindi! That would be a tough one. I was reading it last year when we were mailing the ARC around and a boy in my class wanted to borrow it. I couldn’t let him, I had to mail it on. After reading it I thought it wouldn’t be a great choice- his mom had just been diagnosed with breast cancer. She’s fighting it, and I think her odds are pretty good, but that would have been too close to home for him at that time.
K
Mindi, whenever you’re ready, it will be there. As potent as the subject matter is, it inevitably leaves the reader uplifted by the incredible power of love. Grief is a lonely and intimate place, and mostly we all avoid the depths of it’s power because it is so scary. Patrick shows in this book that to go with it and through it, we are left with love and arrive at the place where healing has a chance to start.
Hooray for The Pull of Gravity!
Thanks, Cindy for including my thoughts in the post? Is this what you wanted last night, silly rabbit?
Mr. Hankins has read all five of the winners, so for picture books, non-fiction, and YA Fiction winners, I am 15/15 in the reading year. I have to go back and capture a few other titles here and there. It’s been a great reading year.
And I love what Teresa has to say about A MONSTER CALLS. It’s the great comfort of books, yes? That they will be there? What a wonderful feeling. . .carried and sustained by stories. Stories that wait around corners waiting to be heard and those that reside within us just waiting to be told.
I love when the YA authors drop by the #nerdybookclub. Caroline Starr Rose has been a strong supporter of Gae Polisner’s THE PULL OF GRAVITY. In turn, Gae introduced me to Caroline and I got a real early look at MAY B. I think our nerdy readers will like this inner strength and survival story in verse that reads like INTO THE WILD and feels like OUT OF THE DUST. Hello, Caroline!
I just finished Pull of Gravity this morning–awesome book. I can’t wait to share it with my students. Wait, I had two copies, so I let one lucky reader take it home for Christmas reading. Beauty Queens will not stay on my shelf, either. Now to read the other three…
Looking at the list of YA Nerdy winners is like visiting new friends I made this year. Each book represents a wonderful reading experience for me and for the kids I know who have read them.
I was already in love with Patrick Ness after reading Chaos Walking, but A Monster Calls guarantees that I will read and promote every book he writes. Powerful, heart-wrenching, beautiful book. Mindi, I am here for you when you need me. It took me nine sodden tissues to get through the book. It’s hopeful and loving, though, not just sad.
If you want to laugh until milk (coffee, soda) comes out of your nose, read Beauty Queens. Growing up in Texas like I did, you can’t avoid the Miss Texas mystique. What makes Beauty Queens so funny is the truth in it. My daughter, Sarah, is too young to read this book, but I have a copy waiting for her when she is ready. Girl power on every page! I tell every teacher and librarian I meet to read Beauty Queens for themselves.
My students love Divergent and spend countless hours discussing which factions they would choose. Dauntless appeals to them because they are young and seemingly immortal, but they all agree I belong in Erudite. I suppose most nerdy readers would.
While the connections to Of Mice and Men are clear in The Pull of Gravity, Gae’s book offers so much more than a contemporary ladder to Steinbeck’s classic. She invites readers to examine the role our families and friends play in shaping our lives and our self-concepts.
I haven’t read Shine. The book stares at me every day from my TBR pile. I know that I will be changed by it and that it’s a remarkable book because so many readers I respect tell me. I will finish it before 2011 ends.
Congratulations to the winners. I know that your readers are the real winners. Thank you.
I dont know if it’s appropriate to comment here, or I’m supposed to act calm, and cool, and aloof, but I am truly beside-myself honored to be included here – not only with these other gorgeous, funny, exhilarating books, but to be read and “gotten” and loved and supported by so many of you who are so well-versed in YA fiction. And to be put in the hands of your students . . . that, that is the ultimate compliment. Donalyn, this: “She invites readers to examine the role our families and friends play in shaping our lives and our self-concepts,” is so very much what I was hoping to do with TPoG, and to remind teens/us that admidst the familial flaws and sometimes downright dysfunction, there are strengths to be gained and new things to be learned. The Nerdy recognition means everything to me. Thank you to all who read and voted.
– gae
Cindy,
Thanks for writing and collecting thinking about these books. Will probably have to add 4 of these to my list. Being a 4th grade teacher, YA usually keeps being pushed to the bottom of my stack. Divergent was the only true YA book I read in the past year, so I smiled when I found out it one a Nerdy. It might have been my favorite book published in 2011.
Tony
GREAT list — all well deserving! Now where’s the Nerdy Nonfiction list? : ) Seriously, I’ve read half of these books and now have the other half on top of my pile. Super helpful “award” from one nerd to another! But we as readers are the real winners. Thanks!
Kelly
The Nonfiction Nerdies were announced yesterday:)
I’m so excited that I’ve read 4 of the 5 titles! I better get myself a copy of Beauty Queens!
P.S. Congrats to all the winners!! 🙂
Adding The Pull Of Gravity to holiday #bookaday!
Can’t wait to read the 4 on the list that I’ve not gotten to yet. A Monster Calls is the only one I’ve read so far. Beauty Queens sounds like my kind of book since I live to snort diet pepsi out of my nose. 🙂 I love to read books that make me laugh or cry or laugh and cry!
Shannon
http://extremereadingandwriting.wordpress.com/
Hey, all you wonderful people of the NBC. I’m trying to lift that badge code to use places including my website and blog, but can’t seem to. Could someone email it to me at g.polisner@gmail.com? Thank you!
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Joyful New Year and long live the Nerdies! 🙂
– gae
I love seeing DIVERGENT as a winner! That was one of my favorites too.
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