It’s YA lucky day! It’s Teen Thursday!
We’re bringing you YA news from around the globe and highlights from the BookPeople Teen Press Corps Blog! Don’t forget to check out the blog for new reviews, event reports, and other teen news!
TTBF 2016!
The Texas Teen Book Festival celebrates its eighth year in 2016: eight years of panel discussions, book signings, author meet-and-greets, and the general adoration of all things book-related.
The number eight holds a lot of significance. In numerology, the number eight represents balance and power. In Chinese culture, the lucky number eight signifies intuition and insight. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, Spanish traders used pieces of eight — silver coins that could be divided into eight pieces.
Imagine eight of your favorite authors – past or present – sitting together for dinner. Who would you invite? If you were stranded on a deserted island, which eight items would you have in your emergency backpack? If you were trapped in a zombie attack, which eight people would you need on your survival team?
For eight years, TTBF has been bringing teen readers and YA authors together in the spirit of celebrating and discussion young adult literature from local and award-winning authors. Mark your calendars for this free and open-to-all event, happening at St. Edward’s University on October 1.
Teen New Releases
Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here by Anna Breslaw
Scarlett Epstein is a world-class nobody at Melville High, but online, she has a powerful voice. She’s a Big Name Fan in her chosen fandom, and that suits her just fine. But when the show she loves is canceled, Scarlett has to turn her attentions elsewhere…and she lands on all the people around her. A cross between Veronica Mars, Harriet the Spy, and MTV’s Daria, Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here is ultimately about relationships, both online and off.
Copies of Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here are available via bookpeople.com.
The Land of 10,000 Madonnas by Kate Hattemer
After the death of one of their close friends, five teens take the European trip of a lifetime in this novel about mothers, grief, and road trips. Jesse Serrano dies at 17, leaving behind a fully planned trip to find his long-lost mother. His cousins, best friend, and girlfriend take the journey for him, in the hopes that fulfilling Jesse’s last wish will somehow make it easier to grieve for him.
The Land of 10,000 Madonnas is available via bookpeople.com.
The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas
Tessa and Callie haven’t seen each other for almost ten years. But when Tessa moves back to her hometown of Fayette, Pennsylvania, the mystery of what happened the summer before Tessa left starts to bring Cassie and Tessa together again. They hunt for someone they think to be a murderer, and find much more than they bargained for. If you’re in need of a thriller with winding twists and turns, check out The Darkest Corners!
Copies of The Darkest Corners are available via bookpeople.com
Upcoming YA Events
Sunday, May 8th at 2PM
– Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff, & Amy Tintera
Join us today for an amazing day of YA! Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff will be here speaking and signing Illuminae, the incredibly creative space epic! Amy Tintera will join them, speaking and signing Ruined, the first in a new series! Join us this afternoon and explore the wonderful world of YA.
Thursday, May 12th at 7PM – Shannon Messenger & Chris Howard
Join us this Teen Thursday for a fantastic joint event from Shannon Messenger and Chris Howard! Shannon Messenger is here speaking and signing Let the Wind Rise, the epic conclusion to the Sky Fall series! Chris Howard is here discussing and signing Night Speed, about an addictive new drug that gives its users superhuman strength and speed! Come out tonight for a magnificent YA event!
Friday, May 20th at 6PM – Jennifer Armentrout
BookPeople loves Jennifer Armentrout! We have had a blast with her in the past and we are looking forward to hosting her for her new young adult novel, about a shy young woman (nicknamed Mouse) and a boy she knew in another life, when they lived in the same foster home. Join us tonight as she speaks and signs The Problem With Forever.
News from The Bookosphere
From Publisher’s Weekly: “Girl in the Blue Coat, Monica Hesse’s debut novel, is the story of Hanneke, a teenager in 1943 Nazi-occupied Amsterdam who keeps her parents and herself fed by selling black market goods to those who can pay for the service. After one of her customers asks Hanneke to search for Mirjam, a 15-year-old Jewish girl under her care who has mysteriously disappeared, Hanneke finds herself desperately trying to save a girl she has never met. Here, Hesse talks to PW about the relevance of historical fiction, how her background as a journalist for theWashington Post informs her writing, and how she immersed herself in Dutch history and culture to research her book.”
More of PW’s Q&A with Monica Hesse here.
Also from Publisher’s Weekly: Judy Blume owns a bookstore in Key West!
“At 78, bestselling author Judy Blume has added a new occupation to her c.v.: that of bookseller. Most days she can be found plying her trade at Books & Books Key West, a two-month old independent bookstore in Florida that she and her husband, George Cooper, cofounded.”
Who wouldn’t want to be sold a book by Judy Blume herself? Road trip!
BookPeople 