One thing you should know about me is that I’m a total dork. I obsess over TV shows, movies, books, and pretty much everything else you can obsess over. My poisons include graphic novels, Harry Potter, and everything Joss Whedon has ever made. I’ve got geek written all over me (especially when I wear my Gir t-shirt)

But the one hyped-up fantasy series I can’t understand is Twilight, the teen vampire romance by Stephenie Meyer. Well, since I haven’t actually read the books, it would be more accurate to say I just don’t get why my friends want to marry a pale, sunken-faced vampire by the name of Edward Cullen.

For the past few months, I’ve been receiving Facebook bumper stickers about it, the movie version of Twilight is slated for release in December (and already is generating an insane amount of buzz in the entertainment industry), and a library a couple of towns over from me is even hosting a freaking bridal shower for the two main characters when the fourth book, Breaking Dawn, is released on Saturday. Read More »

Ever heard of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight books? What about the Clique or Gossip Girl series? Or how about Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian?

Well, I have a little confession to make. I’ve read them, and I love them. And maybe you have, too.

I do have an excuse for having my nose stuck in YA novels half the time—I absolutely love children’s and YA literature, and it’s my ambition to become an editor and writer of children’s books. Even if I didn’t have that going for me, though, I think I would still love teen books.

They’re irresistible, you know? When you’re 16, it’s so great to read a book that lets you know that you’re not alone in being a drinker/a geek/the biggest loser in school/the most popular person in school/pregnant/generally weird/awkward. There are teen books for everybody.

And the best part is, once you’ve passed 18, you can read those books and think to yourself, “I am so glad I’m not in high school anymore.”

It’s tough to write a teen book, and it’s even tougher to write a teen book that’s successful. Sherman Alexie won the National Book Award in the young people’s literature category this year for his Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, but just check out this link to read about all the flack he got from adult authors for writing a teen book. Read More »