Reading Rants! Out of the Ordinary Teen Booklists!

Nic Lancaster thinks she knows exactly what she wants–to spend her life happily digging in the dirt as an archeologist. So to help her decide if she’s really meant to be a tomb raider, she’s goes to this advanced summer college program for high school students. There, she gets her own dorm room, a new pack of kooky-cool friends and an archeology professor who seems to really know her stuff–the whole college experience. Nic is only bothered by one thing–why isn’t she falling for Issac, a smart political-science guy who seems to be crushing on her? Instead, she’s finding herself uncomfortably and intensely attracted to Battle Davies, a North Carolina blonde who’s honeyed voice hides a cool intellect. For Nic, the summer will be one of realizing that while you may be able to categorize objects found on an archeological dig, you can’t always categorize your feelings or your sexuality the same way. Impressive first novel by Sara Ryan (who also happens to be a cool-kid YA librarian!!) Check out her web page at www.sararyan.com

Louie and Willa are like a lesbian Romeo and Juliet. Louie comes from a posh background, money, brilliant family, the whole works. Willa lives over the bar that her mum runs, practices fencing, and wants nothing more than be a chef with her own restaurant. When they meet and fall in love, they are forced to overcome Louie’s restrictive mother, hateful gossip, and a nearly fatal car crash. But unlike Romeo and Juliet, Dare Truth or Promise has a happier ending. Watch out for the language changes–New Zealand author Boock added a handy dandy glossary for those of you who aren’t sure what“ fair dinkum” means or what“ ranch sliders” are. A very literary, angsty lesbian love story, where the points of view sometimes confused me (wasn’t sure who was speaking, Louie or Willa) but the mature and descriptive writing always charmed me.

Everyone can remember the first time his or her best friend chose a girlfriend or boyfriend over him or her. It sucks. All of sudden, it’s like you don’t even exist. The only thing your best friend wants to talk about is how cute he is or what a great kisser she is. Emi-Lou is starting to feel that way, too, except that her best friend Yvonne hasn’t got a new guy, but has instead fallen in love with a girl on her softball team, the ironically nick-named Babes. Now, people in her school are starting to question and make fun of Emi-Lou’s sexuality as well. Add that to the already emotional backpack of having an absentee mom, an unknown dad and a massive weight problem, and Emi-Lou is not a happy camper. But through a series of painful experiences, she sheds most of that baggage and learns to think for and love herself. What’s so great about this book is watching Emi-Lou realize that it doesn’t matter if Yvonne is a lesbian or not, she (Emi-Lou) can be straight and still love Yvonne just as much. For all of you out there who are still a little bit uncomfortable with your friend’s sexuality, this one’s for you.

Suppose you had just met the girl of your dreams–she’s smart, funny, cute as hell, and a really good ‘zine writer. She seems perfect for you except for one little thing: she’s gay and you’re NOT a girl. John has totally lost it for Marisol, a cool, cute, completely out teenage lesbian. Even though he knows she only digs girls, he can’t help but wish that Marisol was different. But when he goes about trying to change things, John comes to the painful realization that the only person he can really change is himself. A real whizz-banger of a book–one of my favorites of 1999.

Charlie and Trent are own their own — they have no parents and older brother Trent is raising younger brother Charlie. Anyhoo, Charlie is pretty much a loner until he meets rich boy Brandon in detention. Brandon seems cool, so Charlie decides to take a chance and let Brandon be his bud. But when Charlie confides to Brandon that Trent is gay, Brandon backs off fast, leaving Charlie angry, confused and super cynical. Can Charlie learn to trust again? Should he forgive or just forget Brandon? A pretty original first novel about dealing with other people’s homophobia.

Folks, this is a SERIOUS problem novel, in every sense of the word. Not only is our main man Andy Logan gay, but he has an alcoholic father, an ineffective mother and hopeless crush on his sarcastic professor. In a series of flashbacks, college freshman Andy tells the reader how he dealt with the raging homophobia in his hometown (including the requisite gay-bashing, narrow-minded preacher) by confronting Daddy Dearest and having a fling with a cute football player. A bit on the angst-y side, but highly readable.

This creative collection contains short stories by some of the most heavy-hitting young adult authors around, including Francesca Lia Block, M.E. Kerr, Bruce Coville, and William Sleator. The title story (by Coville) asks the unusual question — what if everyone who was gay was identifiable, for example, by the color blue? Would you be surprised by how many “blue” people you may know and interact with on a daily basis? These stories look at teen homosexuality from every angle and destroy every gay stereotype you may have heard or read. This is a ground-breaking book, one of the first books published to address homosexual fiction for teens in a mainstream-kinda-way. An added bonus: Because so many great writers contributed to this book, you get a chance to check out the writing style of some of the best authors for teens in one shot!

Thirteen year old Melanin Sun was looking forward to spending the summer hanging out with his Brooklyn boys, Raphael and Sean, writing in his notebook and thinking about calling his crush, Angie. The last thing he’s prepared for is the load that his mom drops on him when she tells him that her new “date” isn’t a dude, but her close friend, a white woman named Kristin. Melanin is seriously confused — he likes Angie, but if his mom is gay, does that mean he is, too? And how is he going to explain this to his two best friends? And does he even WANT to explain it? Melanin may have to lose some friends and gain some understanding before he comes to painful terms with his mother’s lifestyle.

Dirk McDonald thinks that he may be in deep doo-doo. Since he was a little boy, he’s felt different from other kids. And now that he’s a teenager, he realizes that the difference has to do with who he’s attracted to — and it sure ain’t girls. When Dirk meets Pup Lambert, his secret attraction is pulled to the surface. As the boys get closer and closer, Dirk tries to decide if he can afford to reveal his secret — will it bind them closer together or will he lose Pup forever? Once he tells, he can never take that decision back. Follow Dirk on his journey of self-discovery as he goes on a mission in his mind to his family’s distant past and learns about the people who made him who and what he is. A magically-real book, like all the novels by Block. If you end up digging Dirk as much as I do, read more about him and his friends in Dangerous Angels, the collected Weetzie Bat books