Top Ten Teen Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books
(*editors note: these are books I have read. I know that there are many, many more out there, and I encourage your comments. I'm sure this list will change - it's an organic thing.)
10. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
As much as I hate to say it, when I first read this series I loved it. Loved it so much that I went out and bought it. However, after subsequent readings, I don't feel quite as warm and fuzzy towards it. The real question is, would I recommend this to a teen? The answer is yes, definitely. Except for the violence, it's a pretty tame book and appealing to a wide audience. Do you like romance? Try Twilight. Love vampires and werewolves? Twilight. Love whiny girls and guys that sparkle? Twilight.
9. Avalon High by Meg Cabot
Ellie has arrived at her new school - Avalon High. It's pretty typical, as far as high schools go. You have your popular jocks - Will and Lance. Your pretty cheerleader - Jennifer. And the crazy history teacher who believes his students are the embodiment of the Arthurian legends - Mr. Morton. We're not in Shalott anymore Toto. This is a great introduction to the Arthur myths and is good for middle or high school-aged teens. Plus, there is a manga series based on the novel!
8. The Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Everyone is considered "ugly" until they turn 16, when they move to out of the dorms, get plastic surgery and are graduated into the "Pretties" where their only chore is to party and be pretty. Tally is ready to become pretty, but before she can undergo surgery, her best friend runs away and she must find her, or she will be doomed to be ugly forever. In her quest, Tally discovers some disturbing procedures that are also performed when someone becomes "pretty." This book will hit home with lots of teens because, let's face it, who doesn't feel "ugly" at some point?
7. Impossible by Nancy Werlin
Simon and Garfunkel have nothing on this book. Centered around the ballad "Scarborough Fair," this book weaves a story of date rape, pregnancy, a curse, and madness into a great modern fairy-tale. Oh, and did I mention the fairy king?
6. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
What if you were born with the ability to kill people? What would you do? Poor Katsa is forced to be a henchman in her uncle's kingdom, but she wants out. She goes on an adventure gathering like-minded Gracelings who want to do something good with their gifts and along the way she meets Po, a prince with a secret. Romance, fighting, adventure. What more could you want?
5. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
After seeing her mother murdered in the streets of Bombay, Gemma Doyle is sent back to London to attend finishing school and become a proper lady. Gemma wins over the most popular girl in school, and soon becomes friends with Pippa, Felicity and Ann. The four girls accompany Gemma into a parallel world where all their dreams come true. However, things are not always as they seem and Gemma must try to figure out the mystery surrounding her mother's past as well as her own future.
4. Life As We Knew It by Beth Pfeffer
If a meteor crashed into the moon, what would happen? In this novel, Pfeffer answers that question, as well as many others. Told in journal entries written by Miranda, a teen in rural Pennsylvania, we get a glimpse of what life would be like after such a devastating natural disaster. This book had me mentally running to the grocery store and writing lists of everything I would possibly need to survive such an event. So scary, yet so good.
3. Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
I have yet to meet a kid who doesn't like Greek mythology. (I'm sure they're out there, but you know what I mean.) When this series came out, whoa boy, it was hot! Hotter than Zeus's lightning bolt. Percy finds out that he is the son of Poseidon, which is awesome! Percy also finds out that he is accused of stealing Zeus's lightning bolt, which is not awesome. Together with his friend Grover, a can-eating satyr, and Annabeth, daughter of Athena, the three travel the US in search of the lightning bolt and try to clear Percy's name. Who knew the opening to the Underworld was in LA?
2. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
If I had to pick my favorite from this series, Order of the Phoenix would be it. It was darker, Harry was angry, and the final climatic scene in the Ministry of Magic was fantastic. That's all I have to say about this book.
1. Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
1984 meets Logan's Run and together they have a baby: The Hunger Games. The thought of teens, some as young as twelve, competing in a battle royale to the death is pretty disturbing, but somehow it really, really works in this series. Katniss steps in when her sister is chosen to compete in the Hunger Games, and she is sent off to the Capital to train. This is one of those books where every library needs to own 20 copies in order to keep up with the demand. And now that the movie is in production, requests are only going to become more frequent.