Saturday, March 31, 2012

Trends in Contemporary YA #2: Sister Stories

Trends in Contemporary YA is a feature I do every once in a while, and in each post, I talk about one trend in contemporary YA, whether or not I like it, and give some examples of books for this trend. You can check out some earlier posts in this feature here.


The links will take you to the Goodreads pages.


This week's topic is: sister stories!


There are loads and loads of YA books out there about sisters, especially ones told from the younger sister's point-of-view. There are also loads about the older sister dying, and it seems especially popular to have the younger, quieter sister tell the story of how she finds out the older, outgoing sister isn't as perfect as she'd always seemed. I really like these books, but I'd like to see some more books about other sibling relationships.


Here are some examples of sister stories I've read and loved:



Saving June by Hannah Harrington
That Summer by Sarah Dessen



Losing Faith by Denise Jaden
Between Here and Forever by Elizabeth Scott




The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
(I know this one isn't technically YA, but I decided to include it anyways.)

And here are some sister books I haven't read but that look great:


Tell Me a Secret by Holly Cupala
All These Lives by Sarah Wylie



The Space Between Us by Jessica Martinez
Waves by Sharon Dogar


Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma
Irises by Francisco X. Stork


Without Tess by Marcella Pixley
Never Enough by Denise Jaden


What do you think of sister stories in YA? Have you had enough, or do you want more? If you've read any of the books I mentioned, what did you think?

4 comments:

  1. Interesting post, I think the relationship between sisters is often so complex that it's great to explore in a stoy. I adored Saving June, one of the best books I read last year, I loved how you really got to know June through it, even though she was dead the whole time.

    The Cait Files

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  2. Patricia's ParticularityMarch 31, 2012 at 6:20 PM

    I never really thought of this!  But you are sooo right!!  Looking back I can remember almost all the Contemporary YA books I have read that have sisters told from the younger one's POV, and like you say, the older sister is dying or sick.   Having a younger sister that I don't know as much as I would want to, I love reading these types of books.  Sister relationships are very complex so I'm always looking for a way to learn more and explore some of my own complexities with my own sister.  Great post!!

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  3. I always like to read Sarah Dessen books, and I heard My Sister's Keeper is a worthwhile read. I mean, Jodi Picoult is a fantastic writer.

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