For several years I’ve thought about setting aside my summer to finally read at least part of the ever-growing list of still-unread young adult novels that have been recommended to me. This is the year I’m finally doing it! For June, July, and August, all my pleasure reading will be books from our children’s section, books for readers aged 9-17. The books generally fall into three categories: books that I should’ve read as a child and somehow missed, books that have been recommended to me repeatedly during my time as a bookseller, and a couple rising stars that are just coming out.

So far, I’ve read an advance copy of Misty Gordon and the Mystery of the Ghost Pirates by Kim Kennedy (which is set to come out in August, so I’ll write more about it closer to the release date) and Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. I have been told to read Stargirl numerous times, by fellow booksellers, by teenagers, and by customers who read it as a teenager and still remember it well. I’m pleased to say that it lived up to the hype. Spinelli’s writing is easy-going, never forced, and makes it easy to believe that Stargirl, the girl that narrator Leo Borlock has fallen for, is truly magical.

Other titles on my list include: Weetzie Bat by Francesca Lia Block, The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo, and several others. I hope to post about this semi-regularly, throughout the summer. Please let me know if there are any books you think I should add to my list. If you have any special reading projects going for the summer, I’d love to hear about those, too.