Voracious YAppetite

Welcome back to the Women of YA tribute series! Yesterday we looked at the history of YA and some of the female authors who helped establish the category. We are continuing the series today with a fun question:

Which female YA authors did you love during childhood, and why?

Here are our responses! Join us and share your faves as well!

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Kris (Me)

I am only in my twenties but I have the worst memory. Sometimes it amazes me that I can function as such a scatterbrain. Still, I distinctly remember when I was a kid and my dad put a copy of one of his fantasy books from the 1970s in my hand. We went to the beach that day and I read that book the entire time. Needless to say, from that moment on I was hooked on adult fantasy.

Although I was  mostly a fan of adult fantasy and sci fi, there were a few YA series written by fabulous women that I absolutely loved and bring back loads of fond memories from childhood:

The Babysitters Club by Ann M. Martin – When you’re small, weekly allowances are meager and don’t go very far in the way of buying books.

My solution? Sit for hours on end in a corner of the bookstore and read, read, read.

Luckily my parents were very supportive of my reading habit, and they were more than willing to buy me pretty much every single BSB book that was published. I loved those Stoneybrook girls!

Sweet Valley High/Junior High/University by Francine Pascal - Reading these books when I was in middle school, I thought the Wakefield twins were the epitome of cool, mature, and oh-so-sophisticated. I loved Todd, Lila, Enid and all the other characters, too.

I used to hate having to put a book down to do other things, so I remember taking a copy of SVH with me on bike rides and when I went shopping. Ever see a kid navigating the busy walkways of a mall with their nose in a book? That was me.

Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene - When I was in elementary school, my mom used to work at a clothing store at the mall and sometimes I would accompany her during her shifts. Since I’m a huge art lover, I’d sit on a bench in front of the mall’s art gallery with a Nancy Drew book, lemon cookies, and Coke. Nancy made the hours pass by like the blink of an eye! Art, bookish mystery adventures, and food — the perfect combination.

I was also a huge fan of a few other female YA authors:

Beverly Cleary, Lois Lowry, and Judy Blume - No one should leave childhood without reading books by these feminine pillars of YA literature!

Beverly, Lois, and Judy greatly impacted my childhood and their books have become timeless YA classics.

I guess Beverly is technically an MG author, but I’m including her anyway because her books were incredibly fun and I read pretty much all of them!

Lois and Judy are amazingly talented authors and their stories — especially The Giver and Deenie – impacted me on a very personal level, challenging my youthful perceptions while also thoroughly entertaining me.

This probably sounds super corny, but I still have most of my copies of these books and I hope to pass them on to my children someday.

Christina at Confessions of a Book Addict

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery - When I was younger I was obsessed with Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery.  I came across the series when I was in upper elementary/middle school age.  Till this day, I LOVE this novel!  Even though it was written in the early 1900′s, I still find it to be one of the best young adult books out there.

I am still captivated by Gilbert Blythe and I hold a special place in my heart for Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert.  The setting is Prince Edward’s Island, which is simply magical.  After I read the book, the mini series aired on TV and that truly brought the story to life for me.  In fact, I think I still have the VHS tapes!  Lucy Maud Montgomery is one of my top five favorite authors of all time.

The Babysitters Club by Ann M. Martin - I would like to say that I only read classics as a child, but that would be a blatant lie.  I also read the popular series from the 80′s.

I read the entire Babysitters Club series by Ann M. Martin.  My friends and I loved this series and traded books.  We wanted to start our own Babysitters Club.

I found myself identifying with Kristy, the bossy girl in the group.  It all makes sense now since I am a teacher.

I believe they are re-issuing the first two books in the series sometime this year and there will be a prequel as well.

Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal – I also enjoyed the Sweet Valley High series by Francine Pascal.  Most girls in the 80′s read and enjoyed this series.

I even bought the board game.

I hear there will be more books coming out based on this series.  Most girls my age wanted to be transported to southern California and be friends with the Wakefields.

Anyone remember Bruce Patman?

Eleni at La Femme Readers

I was actually big on the Walt Disney
books (Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, etc.) which unfortunately aren’t 
written by women, unless you count the females who adapted the stories.

Hans Brinker by Mary Mapes Dodge - When I was a little
girl, my favorite book was Hans Brinker by Mary Mapes Dodge.

I still have the book to this
day

Now, once I hit around 10 yrs. old I was into reading horror stories. I loved 
reading R.L. Stine books  as I got older and the series by Alvin Schwartz. I remember the first 
book was called, In a Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories.

Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal - I wasn’t really introduced to female YA authors until I reached junior high and high school. I enjoyed reading Sweet Valley High books by Francine Pascal. I thought her on-going series was amazing. I never got tired of those characters.

One Last Wish by Lurlene McDaniel - Another series that stuck with me was Mother, Help Me Live / Let Him Live / Sixteen and Dying by Lurlene McDaniel. I absolutely adored this series, it was emotional and very touching.

Becky at The Bookette

The Faraway Tree stories by Enid Blyton – Enid Blyton was a prolific writer but it was the Faraway Tree stories that were my absolute favourites.

I am a dreamer and always have been.

The idea that I could climb a magic tree and end up in different world with different magical people really inspired me. My favourite character was the Saucepan Man.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee – The other writer who had the most dramatic impact on my journey into being a reader was Harper Lee.

To Kill a Mockingbird still has the same power to mesmerise me as it did when I first read it at 15. It told me so many things that matter about right and wrong, prejudice and injustice.

I always wonder if Harper had written a second book what it would be like. Would it have the same power to turn people into lifelong readers?

Alyssa at Teens Read and Write

The Mediator series by Meg Cabot – Growing up, the first and only female author that I loved was Meg Cabot – and I’m not talking about The Princess Diaries. I loved her urban fantasy stuff – the Mediator series still remains one of my favorites. I keep them around for as comfort reading.

She resonated because she was one of the first urban fantasy YA writers I could find and her protagonist was so much fun.

She had the superpower but it was her sarcastic sense of humor that cracked me up. She was also tough and smart, and could take care of herself physically. The romance was also great – lots of sexual tension without being explicit – I mean he was a ghost  - at least until the end.

The Gemma Doyle trilogy by Libba Bray – Later, I came to enjoy Libba Bray’s series, The Gemma Doyle trilogy, which includes A Great and Terrible Beauty, Rebel Angels, and The Sweet Far Thing.

• • •

Goodness, there are so many amazing female YA authors! Reading this post is like taking a trip down memory lane. We are really lucky to have been exposed to such great talent. Are any of the authors and books that we mentioned some of your favorites, too? Are there a few that you loved during childhood that we didn’t mention? Next up:

Current favorites! We read so many YA books, a lot of which are written by female authors. There are a few, though, that really stand out of the crowd. Who will we mention? Check back tomorrow to get a glimpse of our current favorite female YA authors! We encourage you to share your faves with us, too!