image courtesy of Phaedra Wilkinson on morguefile.com
I recently ran across some blogs of preteen and teen bloggers because of MMGM (Marvelous Middle Grade Monday). Which made me interested in looking for more teens blogging about books.
It’s fun seeing how articulate these kid bloggers are and what they are interested in reading. These kids are promoting good books now, which is so exciting. It was also fun seeing the books we like in common. We may be many years apart in age, but we share a love for some of the same stories.
What does that mean for me as a writer? It’s a reminder that inside at some level we are still the same no matter what age we are. We still have hopes and dreams, struggle with issues of self-esteem or failure, have worries in our lives, etc. Those universal experiences are what make it possible for our stories to reach others and for others’ stories to reach us.
It also is giving me a chance to see what books are appealing to some of today’s kids. (I have grandsons and we discuss books they are reading, but no granddaughters, so don’t get much firsthand experience on the girl side.) And, yes, this means my to-be-read list is getting longer and longer.
In case you are interested in checking out these young reviewers yourself, here’s some I found.
Personal Websites:
The Paige Turner
Cindy Reads A Lot
Libraries:
This LA County Library has a teen review board! What a great idea!
Oh, look, the New Hampshire Nesmith Library does something similar.
Other:
Teen Ink is a magazine that features book reviews (and much more) by teens. Of course, at this age, many are reading “adult” books, too.
LitPick Student Book Reviews features reviews from kids all over the world.
Reader View Kids is a company that posts kids’ book reviews.
Like many blogs, I found ones started by teens that have lasted a number of years and then the teen (or now adult) quit posting. Even found one library system that quit having teen posts although the old ones are still up.
If you know of any teens blogging about books, I’d love to hear about it.