YA Is Where It's At

My tweenage daughter read my absolute favorite book recently. Anne of Green Gables has been recreated in a new series on Netflix and I told her she can't watch it until she reads at least the first book. She huffed a little and then read the book in remarkable time. When I asked if she was going to read the next one in the series, she said, "Not yet."

"Why not?" I wondered. Shoot, I thought. I made her not like them by making her read them.

"Their way of speaking gets into my dreams. I need a break."

I laughed and laughed. It's true. Books worm their way into our dreams and speech cadences and eventually our every thought about life and the way of the world and how and who we should be. While reading Angela's Ashes, I did dream in an Irish accent. And even more to the point, I reread the Anne books so many times that I had in my subconscious that I would one day marry a boy from my hometown who knows me better than I know myself, like Anne and Gilbert. (I did, by the way.)

I recently read two young adult books that I think showcase this remarkable ability of books, and also why it's so important to get the right books in the hands of young people.

The Secret Language of Sisters

Young Adult Fiction by Luanne Rice

My daughter got this at my school's book fair. She reads beyond the level of most of the books at her elementary school, so I let her get books from my middle school. She'll be there as a sixth grader next year anyway, which I am so excited about. I still check her books somewhat carefully, mostly so I can talk to her about anything that I think would confuse her or that I want to have a say in how she hears about it. I have taken away a few books that are full of swearing and sex. If I Stay by Gayle Foreman is a recent one like that, and this cover was somewhat similar. So I skimmed this one, okayed it for her, but then decided to read it first. She was in the middle of something else anyway and it didn't feel like a punishment to her.

This is a decent book. Two teenage sisters are texting and one gets in a car accident because of it. She is paralyzed for life. Through the incident, they discover they are not as different from each other as they thought. It's quite clean as far as what I was screening for, and has the obvious messages of don't text and drive, and love your family. But the underlying themes of jealousy and girl fighting and parents not understanding you and keeping secrets are a little cloying. It's not what I DON'T want my daughter to be reading, but not exactly what I want to encourage. The whiny, angsty thoughts of the main character may be relatable to tweenagers, but they worked their way into my thoughts.

Wonder
Middle Grade Fiction by RJ Palacio

How have I not read this before? There are too many books and not enough time and I'm playing a constant game of catch up. This book is everything they say--a well written, delightful, eye opening peek at the world from the point of view of a boy with a craniofacial abnormality. Even better, you also see things from the point of view of his sister and a few friends. I love this look at middle school relationships and feelings; this is not angsty, nor is the fighting made to seem normal. The caring adults in the kids' lives call them out on how to behave and some kids rise to the top in kindness and courage. It's both real and instructive. This is the book I want to seep into my consciousness and my children's. I will even use some of the words I heard to teach my own kids about kindness. And over all, it's just a really sweet read, and quick. You have time to read it before the movie comes out. Quick, go get it!