-
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Presented a realistic view of adolescent psychology through strong, realistic characteristics. -
Period: to
History of YA LIT
-
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn
Considereed by many to the first distrinctively American works of literature; noted for their themes, social criticism, humor and colloquial language -
Formula series fiction such as Tom Swift, the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew
Some of the fist popular books with teenage protagonists -
Newbery Medal
John Newbery Medal established to honor the “Most distinguished contribution to American literature for children” -
Sue Barton seres about a nurse by Helen Boylston
Typified unrealistic, career-oriented books of the 1930s-1950s -
Terminology
Earliest documented use of the term YA for teen books -
Shuttered Windows by Flrence Crannell Means
First novel for young people to treat African-American Characters realistically -
John R. Tunis’ The Iron Duke
Called the “first sports novel that could legitimately be called ‘literary’ fiction” (Cart). -
Seventeenth Summer by Mareen Daly
Published as an adult novel by claimed by teenagers; regarded by some as the first young adult book, typifies teen romance stories popular in the 1940s -
The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger
Published as an adult novel but claimed by teenagers; opened the door to a more realistic depiction of adolescents. -
Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
Credited with ushering in a new era of realism in books for young people. -
The Outsiders by SE Hinton
Heralded the age of the realistic young adult novel; considered by many to be the prototypical young adutl book -
The Contender
Early young adult book with an African-American protagonist -
The Pigman
Young Adult book well-received by critics; counters the argument that young adult literature is of poor quality. -
My Darling, My Hamburger by Paul Zindel
One of the first young adult novels to address abortion. -
Are You There God, It's Me Margaret? Judy Blume
One of the first young adult books to feature a frank treatment of female puberty. -
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous (Beatrice Sparks)
Deals with the controversial topic of drug abuse; one of the first problem novels. -
Dinky Hocker Shoots Smack! by ME Kerr
One of the first YA books to realistically portray family dynamics. -
The Man without a Face by Isabel Holland
One of the first young adult novels to address homosexuality -
A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich by Alice Childress
One of the first young adult books to address drug abuse. -
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
Helps set a treand toward "dark" and "bleak" novels for young adults. -
Forever by Judy Blume
Deals with controversial topic of teenage sex; helps strike down the taboo against frank discussions of such topics in books for young adults. -
Mildred D. Taylor’s Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
One of the first YA books by a writer of color -
Sweet Valley High Series
The books chronicle the lives of identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield, who live in Sweet Valley, California. The twins and their friends attend Sweet Valley High. The series began in 1983 and ceased publication twenty years later with over 152 books to its name. -
Babysitters Club series
The series is about a group of middle school students living in the fictional town of Stoneybrook, Connecticut. They run a business called "The Baby-Sitters Club" that helps parents find babysitters from the club who are available for jobs by calling during their club meetings. he Baby-Sitters Club (BSC) is a series of novels written by Ann M. Martin and other ghost-writers, and published by Scholastic between 1986 and 2000, that sold 170 million copies. -
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
Signals the growing strength of multicultural wirters and their writing. -
Weezie Bat by Francesca Lia Block
Helps open writing for young adults to innovation and new forms; exemplifies the crossover novel (from adult to ya.) Also, introduced magical realism to YA lit -
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The prototype for all YA lit dystopian novels -
National Book Award
“Young People’s Literature” category of the National Book Award established. -
Harry Potter Series by jk rowling
All-time best-selling children’s series -
Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature
Now young adult literature had its own national award equal in status to the Newbery Medal. -
American Born Chinese
American Born Chinese is a graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang. Released in 2006 by First Second Books, it was a finalist for the 2006 National Book Awards in the category of Young People's Literature.[1] It won the 2007 Michael L. Printz Award,[2] the 2007 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album -
Ambassador for YA Literature
The Library of Congress creates the position of National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature -
YALSA and Non-fiction
YALSA establishes the Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Award
