(Note: Voting is closed, and Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is the selection. Join us on Sept 1 to discuss this YA book . See faintingviolet’s discussion topics to get ready — MsWas)
Hello my lovely Cannonballers, it’s that time again… Book Club Voting!
I’m so happy that so many of you are reading and enjoying (mostly!) the books we’ve been selecting, and I’m seeing some “runner-up” reviews as well.
For our September 1 discussion we’ll be adventuring to the land of Young Adult. When I decided on our genres for the year (Romance, Science Fiction, Young Adult, and Classics with Movie/TV adaptions) I didn’t realize that we don’t have a YA category on CBR! I feel like we read a lot of it as a group, based on a qualitative approach. (For a more quantitative look at our reading habits, check out ingres77’s massive stats and number crunching.)
As a general recap, and for our purposes, Young Adult will be defined as books either featuring a youthful protagonist (ages 13-20, give or take) or aimed at same audience, or designated as YA by the author/publisher. This is actually a much broader definition than I personally employ, and has already been a topic of conversation around here, dating back to early 2015, at least. Plan on the definition of YA being one of our topics of conversation, it’s definitely a safe bet.
With more than 55% of YA books being purchased by adults, there is a lot of overlap from the Adult reader to the YA genre, and let’s see if we can’t pick a good one and give it the Cannonball treatment.
Voting opens today, July 11, and will remain open until Sunday July 17 at 5 pm eastern. Our choice will be posted Monday July 18, and you will have all of August to read to your heart’s content. We’ll gather back here and over on the Facebook Group page to chat and chat on September 1.
Remember, only votes on the survey count.
Your Choices Are:
Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
- The story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author’s own experiences, coupled with poignant drawings by Ellen Forney that reflect the character’s art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he was destined to live.
Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E. K. Johnston
- Hermione Winters is captain of her cheerleading team, and in tiny Palermo Heights, this doesn’t mean what you think it means. At PHHS, the cheerleaders don’t cheer for the sports teams; they are the sports team—the pride and joy of a tiny town. The team’s summer training camp is Hermione’s last and marks the beginning of the end of…she’s not sure what. She does know this season could make her a legend. But during a camp party, someone slips something in her drink. And it all goes black. In every class, there’s a star cheerleader and a pariah pregnant girl. They’re never supposed to be the same person. Hermione struggles to regain the control she’s always had and faces a wrenching decision about how to move on. The assault wasn’t the beginning of Hermione Winter’s story and she’s not going to let it be the end. She won’t be anyone’s cautionary tale.
The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness
- What if you aren’t the Chosen One?The one who’s supposed to fight the zombies, or the soul-eating ghosts, or whatever the heck this new thing is, with the blue lights and the death?What if you’re like Mikey? Who just wants to graduate and go to prom and maybe finally work up the courage to ask Henna out before someone goes and blows up the high school. Again.Because sometimes there are problems bigger than this week’s end of the world, and sometimes you just have to find the extraordinary in your ordinary life.Even if your best friend is worshipped by mountain lions.
Saving Montgomery Sole by Mariko Tamaki
- Montgomery Sole is a square peg in a small town, forced to go to a school full of jocks and girls who don’t even know what irony is. It would all be impossible if it weren’t for her best friends, Thomas and Naoki. The three are also the only members of Jefferson High’s Mystery Club, dedicated to exploring the weird and unexplained, from ESP and astrology to super powers and mysterious objects. Then there’s the Eye of Know, the possibly powerful crystal amulet Monty bought online. Will it help her predict the future or fight back against the ignorant jerks who make fun of Thomas for being gay or Monty for having lesbian moms? Maybe the Eye is here just in time, because the newest resident of their small town is scarier than mothmen, poltergeists, or, you know, gym.
Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
- There’s only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that’s her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn’s company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June’s world is turned upside down. But Finn’s death brings a surprise acquaintance into June’s life – someone who will help her to heal and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and even her own heart. At Finn’s funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail. Inside is a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn’s apartment and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she’s not the only one who misses Finn, and if she can bring herself to trust this unexpected friend, he just might be the one she needs the most.
We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson
- There are a few things Henry Denton knows, and a few things he doesn’t. Henry knows that his mom is struggling to keep the family together, and coping by chain-smoking cigarettes. He knows that his older brother is a college dropout with a pregnant girlfriend. He knows that he is slowly losing his grandmother to Alzheimer’s. And he knows that his boyfriend committed suicide last year. What Henry doesn’t know is why the aliens chose to abduct him when he was thirteen, and he doesn’t know why they continue to steal him from his bed and take him aboard their ship. He doesn’t know why the world is going to end or why the aliens have offered him the opportunity to avert the impending disaster by pressing a big red button. But they have. And they’ve only given him 144 days to make up his mind. The question is whether Henry thinks the world is worth saving. That is, until he meets Diego Vega, an artist with a secret past who forces Henry to question his beliefs, his place in the universe, and whether any of it really matters. But before Henry can save the world, he’s got to figure out how to save himself, and the aliens haven’t given him a button for that.
P.S. The Amazon link above is for Rainbow Rowell’s Eleanor & Park which is not a choice for this discussion but something you should read if you like good YA books. 🙂