This has been a great year for kid’s books and as usual I was completely conflicted about which books to choose! I’m at the point in my writing career where I’ve met some very spectacular published authors, soon-to-be authors, as well as aspiring authors. Knowing so many great people makes it tough to maintain a professional distance in writing my reactions to the book, so I’ve decided to include a few more categories.
Now all of these books are books I either read this year or came out this year, so these are not necessarily newly published. I’m ashamed to admit there were some books by friends that I wasn’t able to read this year (So sorry guys! Maybe next year?), and unfortunately I’m sure this will continue to happen. Each list is in alphabetical order by the author’s last name.
Spectacular Books by Author Friends
Top 3 Books for Young Adults
I also really loved Cinder by Marissa Meyer but have since been informed by a friend that many Asian Americans find this book offensive or at the least, just not a good enough representation of Asians in children’s literature due to its mixing of Asian cultures without many actual Asians in the storyline. I personally really loved this book, but I respect this opinion and can definitely see why they have said this. Still worth checking out if you love scifi and fairytales retellings!
Top 3 Middle Grade Books
A Hitch at the Fairmont by Jim Averbeck – while there were also some Asian American stereotypes portrayed in this one, I felt this was appropriate for the time period and for the main character’s POV.
Best Graphic Novels (Young Adult and Middle grade)
If none of the above appeal to you, you might find some more goodies in this more complete list.
The Best Books I Read This Year
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