What are teens checking out?
Do parents check out books with their teens?
Do more teen girls use the library than teen boys?
Look no further for these answers as fabulous teen librarian Melissa Wheelock is about to reveal all.
Now starting her seventh year at her local public library, Melissa has always loved to read, and is especially fond of reading YA books. (Woot!) Even cooler, she loves promoting books to teens and just about anyone she talks to.
In addition to her day job, she also has been seriously blogging at Mel’s Books and Info since January, and really enjoys getting the chance to share her thoughts on books with other bloggers, readers, and authors. And at home, she has a wonderful husband who puts up with her obsession with books and a sweet little boy who loves it when “Mommy or Daddy reads to him.”
So, first, tell us a bit about what a typical day in the life of a teen librarian is like?
Throughout the day, I do book orders, help teens and adults find books, and work on teen library programming. We have a lot of teens coming in for Accelerated Reader books, so I help them find books that they want to read.
Have you seen an increase in teen library use during the economic downturn?
That is a tricky question. We just finished remodeling our library, and for about a year we were in a temporary location, which decreased many of our statistics. But one thing that I have noticed is that teens are requesting more items for purchase, so in a sense that may reflect an increase in one aspect of library use.
What are teens checking out? What are some of the trends in YA literature that teens are steering towards and away from?
I am seeing a lot of requests for anything paranormal and Twilight related. I get a lot of requests for paranormal fiction whether it is faeries, vampires, werewolves, zombies, or even angels. Anything in that genre is popular.
On the other side of the spectrum, the dystopian books like Hunger Games have also been popular.
Chick lit is still big, but perhaps not as big as it was a couple of years ago.
Do you see more teen girls in the library, or is it pretty balanced with teen guys too? If one more than the other, why do you think that is?
This is an interesting question. I see a lot of both guys and girls in the library, but they come for different reasons. The guys come in primarily to use the computers in our new teen room. I can usually count on having several guys everyday using our computers. While the girls appreciate the computers too, many of them are here looking for books or to socialize.
What issues/themes are important to teens in the books they read?
Anything that is relevant to the way they live now. School violence and bullying are coming up in a lot of the books that are going out. Even though they may be wrapped in a paranormal shell, you still see the main character being picked on or isolated from the rest of the teens in their society.
Do you see a rising popularity in teen books with adults? If so, why do you think that is? Do you have a favorite YA author?
Definitely yes! I can’t tell you how many adults are now finding their books in the YA area. I think a lot of this started with Harry Potter, but then Twilight came along and made it more pronounced. It probably doesn’t help that I tell all the staff what I am reading and rave about it, then they all read it and do the same.
One of my coworkers told me today that she managed to get several members of her church choir reading Hunger Games and they are all adults. I think adults have started to realize what great literature is out there for teens. Our community’s ONE BOOK ONE CITY program this year even had a YA book on the top ten list.
As for my favorite YA author, there are several, but I will spare you pages and list my top two. Tamora Pierce has been my favorite author for a very long time. She is the author that really got me interested in reading when I was in Middle School. The other is a new favorite. Over the last year I have found myself loving Julie Kagawa’s Iron Fey series, and Iron Queen just may have solidified her spot as one of my favorite authors.
How often, if ever, do you see parents coming in with their teen to pick out books?
Usually when the teens are here for books, the parents aren’t far behind. I especially see this with the teens coming in to pick out Accelerated Reader books for their school lists.
Have you ever had to deal with challenges over YA’s that included sex or some other controversial issue from a teen’s parent?
At our library most challenges are dealt with by our Head of Collection development. Since we are a public library we don’t receive a lot of formal challenges. In the time I have been there, I can only recall having a couple. I also try to listen to both the teens and the parents when I recommend books so we can avoid books that would make them uncomfortable.
If you could give one piece of advice to YA writers, what would that be?
Make sure that whatever you write is relevant; whether it is realistic fiction, fantasy, or anything in between. It needs to reach the audience. If there is something in there that makes the book connect to the reader, you will find your audience. Teens are picky, but if your book is relevant to their lives, something they can relate to, or are familiar with, it will appeal to them.
Very interesting blog post, thank you! We at StorySnoops are always trying to get into the heads of teens to find out what they like to read. This is very helpful. (We have notices the whole zombie/paranormal trend, too).
Happy YA reading!
-Shannon
http://www.storysnoops.com
Hey Shannon,
Thanks for stopping by, and I’m glad the blog post was helpful. Also, thanks for the retweet on Twitter!
Happy YA reading to you too!
Shannon shared this with me too, and I love the interview! I have to say that as an adult reading only YA now for our site, I am quite happy with the literature that comes across my nightstand. More adults need to see what they’ve been missing 🙂
Thanks D.L. and Melissa!
What a great post! I have to say, during my time as a middle school teacher, I recognized how hard it is to motivate teen boys to pick up a book. Having been one once myself, I think this is partially the result of saturating reading lists and curriculums with female protagonists. Don’t get me wrong – there are some great books out there that fit this description, but I think boys would like to see more out there for them. I’ve found the majority of boy books fit the sci-fi and fantasy genres. If more realistic/relevant coming of age titles were offered to them, I think boys would be more likely to peruse bookshelves.
Also, I love the last question – writing a book that is relevant. I truly believe this is key, especially when looking at the YA genre and hoping to spark an interest in teens. They want to read authors who “get them.”
Eden: Thanks for commenting. Yes, YA has so much to offer. You are so right!
Paul: Thanks for your comments. A bunch of writers just had a conversation on teen lit for guys on Twitter (#yaboys). I posted some of the snippets on my Facebook page, but I think we became friends after that conversation. I will send you the link for it.
You totally hit the nail right on the head with teen guys and reading, I think. In fact, what you said above about sci-fi fantasy characters is the same thing we’ve been talking about on Twitter. Here are some snippets from author Mike Mullin (@Mike_Mullin) who is an amazing YA writer:
On boy readers skipping from MG to adult: “The characters teen boys identify with are more often found in adult fantasy, sci-fi and horror.”
On themes that are important to teen boys: “Heroism. Sex is important, not just the relationship. The search for respect. The tension btwn individualism & responsibility.”
On YA books that could appeal to teen boys, but have a more girl-centric cover: “For example, The DUFF. Awesome book for #yaboys. I would have loved it as a teen, but wouldn’t have been caught dead w/cover.” And “…my mother (librarian & owner of @kidsink) tells me she has a terrible time convincing boys to try YA w/girl photos on cover.”
As a middle school teacher, what books did you see guys picking up?
I always suggested S.E. Hinton’s novels. Even though they are a bit older, the boys related well to the characters and were engaged in the story. Some of the more popular selections were Ender’s Game and Deathwatch, but again, these are not in the genre of realistic fiction. I was impressed with Twisted, Right Behind You, and Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie – all of which I recommend for this audience, and Perks of Being a Wallflower for an older audience.
Also, I like what someone said above about book covers. Boys definitely will not be seen walking around with a “girly” book, even if the content isn’t. This has come up with two popular selections: Speak and Thirteen Reasons Why. It kills me because they are fantastic novels, but the boys can’t get past the girl on the cover.
Oh, I’ll also add that they are, generally, very interested in rough topics like the Holocaust. They are always willing to read and discuss these types of events.
I have to admit, I do have a hard time finding “boy books” these days. I have to specifically look for them when I go through the selection journals and when I look for reviews. Most of what I do find goes to that Sci Fi or Fantasy genre when a lot of boys just want realistic fiction. Gary Paulsen’s books, especially Hatchet still fly off the shelves and that is the number one request I get from guys in the teen area–do you have any books like Hatchet. (Will Hobbs has some great titles that fill the bill.) Still selecting for boys is definitely a challenge in today’s market. I would love to see the market better balanced, and some of the titles listed above are perfect examples of what we need more of.
As to the covers…you are so right–haven’t they thought about the guys at all when they design them? Covers are everything to teens–sorry to say they do judge books by their covers. If it is even remotely girly they won’t bite.
Thank you for inviting me to do the interview! It was fun!
Thanks for mentioning our fun #yaboys discussion the other day. I loved Ender’s Game and SE Hinton’s work–those are great suggestions, Paul. A new book I think teen boys will love is The Deathday Letter by Shaun Hutchinson.
On the cover question, does format matter too? I remember strongly preferring the small, mass-market format books because I could jam them in a pocket and not be seen carrying a book in high school. Is that still an issue for teens today? It’s a relevant concern, I think, since so much YA is moving to larger trade paperback sizes.
I’m also a huge fan of both Paulsen and Hobbs. I just about asphyxiated screaming for joy when the outside editor my publisher hired to work on ASHFALL compared it with Paulsen’s work. The Beet Fields is my all-time favorite coming-of-age story.
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Mike, I absolutely think format matters. First of all, the thicker a novel, the longer it’s going to sit on the shelf. Small print is a turn-off, and the number of chapters can make a kid pass. As writers, we all know this means nothing – a fat hardback could have a small word count, and vice-versa. But with kids, it’s all bout how long they think it will take them. They love “cheating the teacher.” They think if they tell us they read 20 pages, we don’t realize that includes blank spaces and pages along the way. So many things influence kids. I actually remember one time, a kid picked up a book because the author looked “cool” in his portrait. You just never know what they’re thinking. I laughed, but hey, it made him read it. And if I remember correctly, he liked it (I believe it was a John Green novel).
Paul: Those are some great book suggestions. Mike set up a list for the
“Best YA to Appeal to Boys” on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/7728.Best_YA_to_Appeal_to_Boys#top
Might want to take a gander and add any you mentioned that might not be on there, if you’d like. And speaking of which, do you have a Goodreads profile? I was looking for you the other day.
Melissa: This is so good to hear a librarian confirm what teen guys are reading, asking for, and how they view covers etc. Thanks so much for your input.
Mike: Thanks for stopping by! That is a good question on format. I hadn’t thought of that. I guess I hadn’t really thought that a guy might be embarrassed to carry a novel around high school either. It’d be interesting to find out the answer to this question.
That is really great that ASHFALL is compared to Paulsen’s work! Do you think you can get him to give you a blurb for your cover?
Paul: These are good points on font etc. I wrote a post on why SPEAK is destined to become a classic, and as I was discussing the book, I mentioned Halse Anderson’s short chapter approach.
Simply: Short chapters are addictive, and when I’m about to stop reading (nightime usually) I will immediately check to see how long the next chapter is. If it’s short, (especially in the case of SPEAK) then I can’t help but keep reading. If it’s long, I will close it.
And after what you said, it sounds like some teens read the same way. 😉
I really think that one of the most important goals of any book is that once it’s opened it won’t be shut, under any circumstance, till its end. This is our job, as writers, to make this happen, for better or for worse. 😉
Thanks for your response to my comment, Paul. The number of chapters question is really interesting. Is there a difference between what teens select for school-mandated choice reading and what they select for pleasure reading?
I’ve been writing books with a lot of short chapters, but given your comment I wonder if my rationale for them makes sense. The correspondence of one scene to one chapter makes the structure of the book easy to follow. And books like this feel like they read very fast, because there’s so much white space at the chapter breaks. ASHFALL has 58 chapters–I wonder if that will turn off some readers?
On the size/thickness question, do you have any books you stock in both mass and trade paper? Looking for Alaska is one that comes in both. Do teens prefer smaller and thicker or larger and thinner? Not that we, as authors, have any say or control over it, but it’s an interesting question to think about.
Would Gary Paulsen blurb ASHFALL? I don’t know if I have the cojones to ask. I’d give him my right arm, left kidney and firstborn, though.
Yes, there does seem to be a difference. In terms of pleasure reading, it’s no shock that vampires are the popular phase right now, especially where girls are concerned. But interestingly enough, Cut (Patricia McCormick) has become extremely popular with both genders, and I think it’s because the concept intrigues them. Interestingly enough, it also has a gender-neutral cover, so perhaps that plays into it.
I wouldn’t worry much about the number of chapters. There are times when kids don’t want a book to end because they are enjoying it so much. If they can get interested in something, they’ll at least give it a try. I also firmly believe that teachers and librarians who are gifted book talkers can “sell” a novel. It’s all about hooking them and using the buzz words appropriate to the age level. For example, I could make any high school kid in the world read Go Ask Alice because it has everything they want to read about.
A lot of my thoughts are based on reluctant readers, since I always have a personal goal of changing them (Not that it happens often, but I try). With these types of kids, they pay attention to the wrong elements – thickness, length, etc. – because they don’t want to read. It is our job as teachers to make them look beyond the surface and uncover a good story.
It’s important to remember there is no “one size fits all” solution. Kids are very different, and again, influenced by so many things. That is why it is impossible to select class novels – you just can’t appease everyone. I think this is where writers, teachers, and librarians all bond – we each have a different role. The author must publish the novel the way he/she thinks is best. Then, educators work with them to make the kids pick it up.
(Btw, I’m apologizing now. I tend to blab. I have a lot of opinions but I’m no expert. Half the time, I don’t even take my own advice when I sit down to write. Just somethign to keep in mind.)
Very good work D.L! Your interview questions and responses here are all so highly professional, that when read, it felt me feel like you were a pro interviewer.
To speak on the topic…
Up until last week, when I was part of that #yaboys chat on twitter, I had no idea how divided the sexes, and the age groups were for readers. I figured teen boys want to read adult books, since thats how I felt. Teen boys want to escape their teen-angst life and want to experience a story as an adult, since that is what they desire most… to be treated as an adult.
As a writer I think I would have written my novel SOUL BORN differently with all this knowledge. Good news is I fully intend to adjust its sequels with what I have learned here.
Thanks all! Great wisdom.
Sorry, I haven’t commented back sooner. I’m experiencing a nasty case of eye strain (I know you’ve all been there.).
Paul: Interesting opinions about reluctant readers and how educators and librarians can “sell” books to kids. I also agree with what you said about one size not fitting all, and that it can take literary detectives to help kids find what they like.
In my experience, working with kids in the America Reads and Washington Reading Corps programs, a lot of what I did was help kids and teens find books that interested them. I’d ask them a million questions about what they thought was fun and tried to match books to their tastes. And I wouldn’t want them to start reading until they found something they really loved. So many of the reluctant readers hadn’t benefited from positive reading experiences and I wanted them to enjoy the process.
And I think you’re right, I would see the kids pick books up and inspect fonts, page numbers, and the book’s thickness many times.
Kevin: Thanks for your complements and your honesty on what guys think. I really liked this: “Teen boys want to escape their teen-angst life and want to experience a story as an adult, since that is what they desire most… to be treated as an adult.”