Angst, Anarchy and
Adventure:
Teen Collection Development
for Every Budget
Presented by Greer Macdonell
Lambton County Library
May 2009
Defining Your Collection!
Popular vs Comprehensive
YA Fiction
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Young-adult fiction, whether in the form of novels or short
stories, has distinct attributes that distinguish it from the
other age categories.
The vast majority of YA stories portray an adolescent as
the protagonist. The subject matter and story lines are
typically consistent with the age and experience of the
main character, but beyond that YA stories span the
entire spectrum of fiction genres.
Themes in YA stories often focus on the challenges of
youth, so much so that the entire age category is
sometimes referred to as problem novels or coming of
age novel.
Reading Habits of Teens
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Reading is a social act.
Teen readers have dry spells.
The right or wrong book can make or break a
lifelong reader.
Teens tend to read up a little.
Literary quality means zilch.
Gender influences reading preferences.
Personal culture impacts book selection.
Teens enjoy being read to.
What Teen Readers Need
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Literature they can relate to.
Support in reading difficult texts.
Authentic reading opportunities.
Literacy communities.
An understanding of the politics of
literacy and empowerment.
Reluctant Readers
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These readers need books that capture
their interest and overcome their “I hate
reading” mindset.
What to look for in books for reluctant
readers.
• Attractive and action-oriented covers.
• Larger and well spaced print.
• Illustrations are realistic.
Reluctant Readers
• Clear writing.
• High interest hook on the first few pages.
• Not too many characters.
• Plot driven and lots of action.
• Plot through dialogue not descriptive text.
• Realistic.
• Single point of view.
• Touches of humour.
Making your ¢a$e!
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Look at local census results and figure out
percentage of teens in your service area.
Your budget for teen materials should
account to the same percentage.
In Lambton County teens 12-18 years make
up 10% of the population. Twelve percent of
the book budget is earmarked for teen
materials.
If your system keeps statistics on patron age
groups, run a report on teen library usage.
Budgets
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Where did we find the money?
Half came from the adult book budget, half
from the children’s.
The budget breaks down into the following
percentages.
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Fiction 50%
Non-fiction 20%
Graphics 20%
AV 10%
Where to Buy!
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Shop around for the best discount.
LSC, Whitehots, Jack the Bookman,
your local book store, etc.
Review Sources
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VOYA
CM Magazine
Horn Book
Kirkus Reviews
School Library Journal
Publisher’s Weekly
Teacher Librarian
Quill and Quire
Tapping Into Teens
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Ask your teens to look through
publishers catalogues for feedback.
They will have an opinion about what
appeals to them and the authors they
enjoy.
Bring them to TAG meeting, manga
clubs, etc.
Leave some out to be marked up!
Request System
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How do teens and all patrons make
requests in your library system?
How can we make this easier for them?
Is there one person they can identify and
build a relationship with?
Follow up on the requests as quickly as
possible, teens live in the here and now!
Genre Fiction
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Genre fiction is a term for fictional works written with the
intent of fitting into a specific literary genre in order to
appeal to readers and fans already familiar with that
genre.
In contemporary fiction publishing, genre is an elastic
term used to group works sharing similarities of character,
theme, and setting—such as mystery, romance, or
horror—that have been proven to appeal to particular
groups of readers.
Genres continuously evolve, divide, and combine as
readers' tastes change and writers search for fresh ways
to tell stories.
What’s Hot
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Looking for the next great thing.
Here are some titles that may capture
your teens fancies.
Don’t delay, something new is sure to
take their place soon!
Classics
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Put away your copies of Pride and
Prejudice.
Here are some of the tried and true teen
novels that no collection should be
without.
Warning: edgy content ahead!
Literary
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Literary fiction is a term that has come into common
usage since around 1970, principally to distinguish
serious fiction (that is, work with claims to literary merit)
from the many types of genre fiction and popular fiction.
In broad terms, literary fiction focuses more on style,
psychological depth, and character, whereas mainstream
commercial fiction (the page-turner) focuses more on
narrative and plot.
What distinguishes literary fiction from other genres is
somewhat subjective, and as in other artistic media,
genres may overlap.
Action-Adventure
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Action-adventure fiction, traditionally (but not
exclusively) aimed at male readers, features
physical action and violence, often around a
quest or mission set in exotic or forbidding
locales such as jungles, deserts, or mountains.
The conflict typically involves commandos,
mercenaries, terrorists, smugglers, pirates,
spies and the like.
Stories often include elements of technology,
weapons, and other hardware.
Romance
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Romance is currently the largest and bestselling fiction genre in North America.
It has produced a wide array of subgenres, the
majority of which feature the mutual attraction
and love of a man and a woman as the main
plot, and have a happy ending.
This genre, much like fantasy fiction, is broad
enough in definition that it is easily and
commonly seen combined with other genres,
such as comedy, fantasy fiction, realistic
fiction, or action-adventure.
Mystery
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Mystery fiction, technically involving stories in which
characters try to discover a vital piece of information
which is kept hidden until the climax, is now considered
by many people almost a synonym for detective fiction.
These stories relate the solving of a crime, usually one or
more murders, by a protagonist who may or may not be a
professional investigator.
This large, popular genre has many subgenres, reflecting
differences in tone, character, and it always contains
criminal and detective settings.
The standard novel stocked in the mystery section of
bookstores is a whodunit.
Chick Lit
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Chick lit is a term used to denote genre fiction within
women's fiction written for and marketed to young
women.
It generally deals with the issues of modern women
humorously and lightheartedly.
Although usually including romantic elements, women's
fiction (including chick lit) is generally not considered a
direct subcategory of the romance novel genre, because
in women's fiction the heroine's relationship with her
family or friends may be equally as important as her
relationship with the hero.
Fantasy
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Fantasy fiction features stories set in fanciful, invented
worlds, an alternate and more fanciful version of our own
world, or in a legendary, mythic past.
Fantasy fiction stories generally involve magic, mystical
elements, or supernatural creatures such as vampires.
The genre's relatively loose definition means it includes a
large number of works in styles ranging from pseudomythological epics (Lord of the Rings) to more
deliberately modern works (such as Harry Potter or Buffy
the Vampire Slayer), and includes works which also fall
under other genres, such as horror fiction, comedy,
action-adventure or Romance.
History
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Historical fiction presents readers with a story
that takes place during a notable period in
history, and usually during a significant event
in that period.
Historical fiction often presents actual events
from the point of view of people living in that
time period.
Writers of stories in this genre, while penning
fiction, nominally attempt to capture the spirit,
manners, and social conditions of the persons
or time presented in the story, with due
attention paid to period detail and fidelity.
Bromance
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A bromance or "man-crush" is a close but non-sexual
relationship between two men, a form of homosocial
intimacy.
Coined in the 1990s, the term has historically referred to
a relationship between heterosexuals, but the term has
gained currency in describing such relationships when
one of the men is gay.
Editor Dave Carnie coined the term in the skateboard
magazine Big Brother in the 1990s to refer specifically to
the sort of relationships that develop between skaters
who spent a great deal of time together.
Science Fiction
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Science fiction is defined more by setting details than by
other story elements.
Science fiction by definition includes extrapolated or
theoretical future science and technology as a major
component, and is often set on other planets, in outer
space, or on a future version of Earth.
Within these setting details, however, the conventions of
almost any other genre may be used, including comedy,
action-adventure and mystery.
Science fiction is often referred to alongside fantasy
fiction, magical realism and some horror fiction under the
umbrella term speculative fiction.
Christian
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A Christian novel is any novel that
expounds and illustrates a Christian
world view in its plot, its characters, or
both, or which deals with Christian
themes in a positive way.
LGBT
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LGBT (or GLBT) refers collectively to lesbian,
gay, bisexual, and transgender people.
LGBT fiction range widely in sensitivity, topic,
quality, and political and social insight.
The market for children's and young adult
literature has expanded greatly in the last
twenty-five years, and now a proliferation of
materials is available to gay and lesbian
adolescents, including comic books with gay
characters.
Urban
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Urban fiction, also known as Street lit and Gangsta fiction,
is a literary genre set, as the name implies, in a city
landscape; however, the genre is as much defined by the
race and culture of its characters as the urban setting.
The tone for urban fiction is usually dark, focusing on the
underside.
Profanity, sex and violence are usually explicit, with the
writer not shying away from or watering-down the
material.
In this respect, urban fiction shares some common
threads with dystopian or survivalist fiction.
Undead
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The explosive popularity of the Twilight
series by Stephenie Meyer has sparked
a desire for books with all things undead!
Horror
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Horror fiction aims to evoke some
combination of fear, fascination, and
revulsion in its readers.
This genre, like others, continues to
develop, recently moving away from
stories with a religious or supernatural
basis to ones making use of medical or
psychological ideologies.
Sports
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The jocks and libraries do have something in
common.
Sports fiction is particularly appealing because
it reflects our cultural experience so well.
Sports fiction can also be used with sports
enthusiasts who have perhaps not realized that
reading about a game can be as exciting as
watching one on television or even playing the
game.
Books Turned into Movies
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Nothing can get teens to turn to a book
faster than seeing it on the big screen.
Here are some good sources for keeping
on top of what movies are being
produced.
• http://www.rottentomatoes.com/movie/upcomi
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ng.php
http://www.comingsoon.net/movies.php
http://www.imdb.com/Recent/USA
Manga
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Manga are comics and print cartoons in the
Japanese language and conforming to the
style developed in Japan in the late 20th
century.
The Japanese word manga, literally translated,
means "whimsical pictures".
"Manga" as a term outside of Japan refers
specifically to comics originally published in
Japan. However, manga and mangainfluenced comics, among original works, exist
in other parts of the world.
Graphics
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A graphic novel is a type of comic book, usually with a
lengthy and complex storyline similar to those of novels.
The term also encompasses comic short story
anthologies, and in some cases bound collections of
previously published comic book series (more commonly
referred to as trade paperbacks).
Graphic novels are typically bound in longer and more
durable formats than familiar comic magazines, using the
same materials and methods as printed books, and are
generally sold in bookstores and specialty comic book
shops rather than at newsstands.
Genre Nonfiction
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Nonfiction has become the preferred genre for
many teens.
Nonfiction may also be broken down by subject
and reading interests.
Don’t forget great browsing book traditionally
found in juvenile.
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Ripley’s Believe it or Not
Guinness Book of World Records
DK nonfiction in a variety of subjects!
Adventure
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Adventure nonfiction have the same
appeal as their fictional cousins, with the
added attraction of being true.
The protagonists face adversity and
danger, extreme hardship, demonstrate
bravery, endurance and fortitude.
May cover many subject areas including
survival, war, espionage, and sports.
True Crime
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True crime is a relatively new genre to
YA nonfiction.
Has seen huge popularity due to TV
shows like CSI and Veronica Mars.
A traditional true crime book focuses on
an actual crime and examines the
events, investigation, and the people
involved.
All About Others
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Memoirs, autobiographies and biographies fall into this
category.
Memoirs are a snapshot of certain events in a person’s
life and rely heavily on the author’s feeling and
impressions rather than impartial viewpoints.
Autobiographies tell the complete life story of the author
but are able to make use of primary and secondary
sources to offer a wider perspective.
Biographies are the history of an individual’s life and use
primary and secondary sources to ensure the events
recorded are factual and as complete as possible.
History
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Nonfiction history books recount events from
the past relating to a thing, person, time, or
country.
Readers are generally drawn to a particular
time period or subject matter and will find a
wealth of formats and styles to choose from.
These books describe a wide variety of people
and places and inspire contemplation about
how others lived.
Sciences
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Oxford English Dictionary: a branch of study concerned
with demonstrated truths, backed up by classified
observations, with the possibility of gathering new truths.
Provides answers about Earth’s many mysteries and
appeals to a reader’s curiosity.
Science nonfiction focuses on literature with scientific
themes and may include:
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Explanations of the natural world.
Chronicles of scientific endeavors.
Biographies of scientists and researchers who struggle to
gain new knowledge.
Sports
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Nonfiction titles in this area fulfill several
purposes.
Readers may find information about a
particular sport to make them better
participants or educated spectators.
May find spories about sport stars and role
models.
These books also feature heroes, high
endurance, fighting against the odds, and lots
of challenges.
All About You
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This genre contains books that contend
with physical changes and well-being, as
well as the issues that teens deal with in
their daily lives.
These books give teens the opportunity
to learn what is happening in their lives
and how to take control of their own
situations.
How To
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DIY is defined as those areas in which people
are creating things for themselves without the
aid of paid professionals.
The popularity is reflected in the number of
reality TV programs.
These books provide the opportunity to learn
something new and the satisfaction of finishing
a project that results in something tangible
Arts
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This genre includes books about art
history, music and film history, reviews,
and literature, as well as books about
some of the artists and musicians we
remember.
Readers will also find books about
popular culture, folklore and legends.
Understanding the World
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With the rise in modern media and the Internet
there has been an increase in books published
about consumerism.
May include books about popular culture,
folklore, media and consumer culture, social
concerns, and religions.
Strive to help teens get a better understanding
of the world in which they live.
Different Formats
Movies
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Movies are a great tie in to books.
Consider TV series box sets and anime
series to make your collection very teen
friendly (and the adults won’t mind
either!)
Movies are rated in Canada by Canadian
Home Video Rating.
Music
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Music is a huge part of a teen’s life.
Use your local teens to help select the music to
purchase for your library.
Listen to local radio stations to find the songs
on their play lists.
Watch Much Music, MTV, Country Music
Channel for the same reasons.
Parental Advisories – find out whether your
library policy allows these CDs to be added to
the collection. Many recording companies also
release a cleaned-up version of these CDs.
Games
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Surprise the teens that think the library has
nothing to offer them!
Need to assess the needs of your community
before investing in this collection. Teens
should have strong input.
PS3, Xbox, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, PSP
are the popular consoles right now.
Games are rated by Entertainment Software
Rating Board.
Magazines
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Survey your teens to see which
magazines would be most popular.
Magazines all have websites and
content can be looked at online.
Beware folding companies with the poor
economic situation.
Tabloids anyone? Not just for the
supermarket check-out.
Audio Debate
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There are a few formats to choose from now but all are
fairly expensive.
Books on CD are readily available for most popular titles
and authors however, their multi-disc sets make them
less user friendly for teens.
Playaways are very convenient for teens to just pick up
and use however there are issues with battery and
earbud replacement, longevity of the content and look of
the players.
MP3s are probably the best option for today’s teens and
are conveniently found on a single disk however, not all
teens have access to MP3 players and the different
manufacturers may not accept all MP3 formats.
E-book Readers
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An e-book reader is a device used to display e-books.
It may be a device specifically designed for that purpose,
or one intended for other purposes as well.
The term is restricted to hardware devices, not software
programs.
The main advantages of these devices are portability,
light diffusion, and long battery life.
It should be noted that any Personal Data Assistant
(PDA) capable of displaying text on a screen is capable of
being an e-book reader.
One popular Christmas gift from 2008 was the Kindle.
Award Winners
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Young Adult Canadian Book Award
Michael L. Printz Award honors excellence in
literature written for young adults.
Alex Awards are given annually to ten books
written for adults that have special appeal to
young adults.
The William C. Morris YA Debut Award honors
a debut book published by a first-time author
writing for teens.
YALSA Booklists
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Best Books for Young Adults
Fabulous Films for Young Adults
Great Graphic Novels for Teens
Outstanding Books for the College
Bound
Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults
Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult
Readers
Weeding
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CREW (Continuous Review, Evaluation,
and Weeding) in Ten Steps
• Make weeding a part of policy.
• Gather usage statistics of your library's
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collection.
Build weeding into the year's work calendar.
Gather the following materials on a book truck
at the shelves to be analyzed:
Study the area you will be weeding as a
whole.
Weeding
• Inventory the library's holdings.
• Check the pulled books against any standard
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indexes and bibliographic resources in the
library's reference collection or in databases
available to patrons.
Treat the books according to their slips.
Replacement checking and ordering.
Set up displays for low circulating, high quality
books that would benefit from exposure.
Weeding
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Keep this section very current. Any item that has not
circulated within two years should be considered ‘dead’
and removed.
Discard YA fiction with outdated illustrations, story lines,
or subjects.
Classics (such as The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier)
are not subject to the copyright guideline but should be
replaced with newer paperback editions.
Check for updated editions of popular classics like
Forever by Judy Blume that have had terminology and
situations updated for contemporary readers.
Discard any YA fiction that has been rebound and lacks
attractive cover art.
Bibliography
Works Cited
Fraser, Elizabeth. Reality Rules! a guide to teen nonfiction reading interests. Ed.
Diana T. Herald. Westport: Libraries Unlimited, 2008.
2006 Community Profiles - Census Division. 10 Mar. 2009. Government of Canada.
01 Apr. 2009 <http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dppd/prof/92591/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CD&Code1=3538&Geo2=PR&Code2=3
5&Data=Count&SearchText=Lambton&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B
1=All&GeoLevel=&GeoCode=3538>.
Cole, Pam B. Young Adult Literature in the 21st Century. Boston: McGraw Hill,
2009.
Gorman, Michele. Getting Graphic! using graphic novels to promote literacy with
preteens and teens. Worthington: Linworth Publishing, Ltd., 2003.
Hahn, Daniel. ed. The Ultimate Teen Book Guide. London: A & C Black, 2006.
Koelling, Holly. ed. Best Books for Young Adults, 3rd ed.. Chicago: American
Library Association, 2007.
Larson, Jeanette. Texas State Library & Archive Commissions Web Site. 2008. 15
Apr. 2009 <http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/pubs/crew/>.
Pearl, Nancy. Book Crush. Seattle: Sasquatch Books, 2007.
Useful Websites
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Young Adult Library Services Association
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http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/yalsa.cfm
http://www.teenreads.com/
http://seeme4books.com/
http://www.noflyingnotights.com/
http://www.genrefluent.com/
http://www.overbooked.org/
http://www.mcpl.lib.mo.us/readers/
www.guysread.com
Listservs
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YALSA-BK
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/electronicres
ourcesb/websitesmailing.cfm
PUBYAC http://www.pubyac.org/
Children child-l@accessola.com
Teens
youth-l@accessola.com Ontario Library
Association members may join the children’s and
youth services listservs by emailing Amanda Braun
abraun@accessola.com
Contact Me Anytime!
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Greer Macdonell
519 845-3324 ext 5230
greer.macdonell@county-lambton.on.ca
www.lclmg.org