Best Teen Books discussion

Hollie~What have you tried already?? My favorite is probably ENDER'S GAME, but I've read and loved SF since I was a kid. Another one that I like a lot is THE EAR, THE EYE, AND THE ARM (a Newbery Honor).

I am not a big sci-fi fan, but I do have some favorites:

The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld

It Came From Below by Blake Nelson

The Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix

I second Ender's Game and the Uglies series! And I will add:

Unwind by Neal Shusterman (I'm reading it right now and I can't put it down!)

City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau (maybe geared toward a bit younger crowd, but still great)

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (National Book Award winner and Printz and Newbery honor)

and

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis

(I'm not a big sci-fi person, but these are all books I really enjoyed!)

Garth Nix wrote a great sci fi---Shade's Children

I seldom comment, and then when I want to, I come here and see that everyone has already thrown in my favorites! I guess that means it's a good intro list.

Me, too, on endorsing Garth Nix's Shade's Children and Nancy Farmer's House of the Scorpion.

Hi Hollie,

I've already suggested these to you, but I vote for Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey, and Midnighters by Scott Westerfeld.

I wouldn't have thought of To Say Nothing of the Dog as a YA book, but I will say it's one of my favorites. :) It's a companion story to Willis' The Doomsday Book (loved it too) which is a heavier read, but it can be read independantly.

Hollie~THE EAR, THE EYE, AND THE ARM is by Nancy Farmer (the same one who wrote HOUSE OF THE SCORPION, which I also like, and which other people are recommending for your list). I have a "sciencefiction" shelf in my shelves of books if you want to take a look at it. Have you read lots of the other Orson Scott Card books? I've loved them all! And not to overwhelm you with suggestions, BUT two other authors you might like to try are Sylvia Engdahl and Karin Lowachee. I was a huge Heinlein fan when I was a teenager, but I don't necessarily recommend him for adults now.

Make sure to include something by Ray Bradbury on the list -- either Fahrenheit 451 or The Illustrated Man would be a great introduction to SF for someone not familiar with the genre. Since these are older titles, they're not read as much as the Enders series or the Uglies/Pretties/Specials/Extras books.

What about Piers Anthony? His books are hugely entertaining and fantastic for both young adults and adults :)

You can check on his many series and books from here - http://www.hipiers.com/

Have fun!

The Ear, The Eye and the Arm was a good book. I am also someone who doesn't really read much sci-fi, but two others are The Giver by Lois Lowry and Feed by M.T. Anderson

the host by stephenie meyer is described as science fiction for those who don't read science fiction, i read it and enjoyed it. I even cried at some parts. City of Ember is a also a great one...

Sequels to The Giver: Gathering Blue and Messenger.

Clare B. Dunkle's newest book, The Sky Inside is written for middle grade readers, but it's enjoyable for older people, too.