The children and teen segment of the book industry has grown by leaps and bounds in the past several years.  The number of young adult titles doubled between 2002 and 2012, with over 10,000 young adult books published in 2012 alone. The juvenile section of our store is taking over more and more space.  A recent survey showed that the majority of young adult books are purchased by adults and most of them are buying for themselves!
 
To my thinking, a major influence on this phenomena was the publication of the Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling.  The Harry Potter series has become the bestselling book series in history.  The books were well received by critics, hugely popular with young people, and made into blockbuster movies. Many parents like to read some of the same books as their children and then set aside a time for a family discussion. Adults became interested in what had so captivated their children and most loved the series as much as their kids did.
 
Another young adult series popular with both adults and teens is the Suzanne Collins Hunger Games series. The Katness Everdeen character is such a great role model for girls and I loved the movies. Along those same lines is the Divergent series by Veronica Roth. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, his classic fantasy series, was one of the first series to achieve popularity with both young people and adults.  A series not well received by reviewers, but very popular with teens and adults, is the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer.
 
I have noticed an upsurge in local book clubs choosing to read young adult books.  One very popular choice is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.  It was chosen by someone in my book club and all the members were impressed. It is a wonderful story of a young girl that takes place in Germany during World War Two. Another popular choice is The Fault Is In Our Stars by John Green.  It is a story of two teenage cancer survivors but really is a celebration of life. All the books mentioned so far were also made into popular movies, which definitely helps propel book sales and makes them more appealing to kids.  Some other juvenile books that could be appropriate for book club choices are:  The Giver by Lois Lowry, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, A Separate Peace by John Knowles, and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie.
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One other suggestion is to consider reading juvenile books written by your favorite adult writers.  Another fairly recent trend is for well established authors of adult fiction to write the occasional children's book.  As an avid mystery fan I can now read juvenile books written by my favorite writers in the mystery genre:  Harlen Coben, Robert Parker, Ridley Pearson, Carl Hiaasen and David Baldacci have all written books for kids/teens.  James Patterson has also written several series for young readers.  Readers of historical and contemporary fiction such as Phillipa Gregory, Margaret Atwood, Isabel Allende , Alice Hoffman, Jane Smiley and Judy Blume can also check out their favorite author's offerings in the young adult category. 
 
So to answer the question I posed at the beginning of this article, the answer is a resounding YES! Young adult books can make great summer escapism reading for you and it may be a good way to connect with your teenagers.  My daughter has a tradition of reading books with her children and then watching the movies based on the books.  The kids have always enjoyed knowing they were going to get to see a movie after the reading was done! 
This process will help your kids develop an appreciation for literature, it will help you gain insight into how your children think, and it can open the door to some great conversations with your kids or grandchildren.

​     As a baby boomer I was raised on westerns. I remember spending many nights in front of our old Sylvania black and white TV watching episodes of “Bonanza”,”Gunsmoke”,”the Rifleman”, and other western shows that were the staple of early television. I had on my cowboy hat and my cap gun and would disappear into the adventures of my favorite western heroes.
                                                                                                                                   Not much has changed, I still watch the repeats on TV of those same heroes. But I also read of their exploits in books. The great thing about books is that all the action takes place in my imagination. I’m riding the range on my favorite noble steed, upholding the virtue of a pioneer woman, and clinging to the code of the west. All of these things are available in the western section of our store.
                                                                                                                                   I first began my literary journey in the writings of Americas preeminent western writer, Louis L’amour.  In his series of novels about the Sackett family (many of which have been adapted for film) I was transported through the history of our nation. From the earliest settlers to the western expansion. Mr. L’amour has written well over 100 novels and short stories.
                                                                                                                                   There are many other western writers available in our western section. Max Brand, William Johnstone, Zane Grey, among others, but there are also authors that have written great western novels that are mostly known for their writings in other genres.
                                                                                                                                   Robert B. Parker, better known for his Spencer and Jesse Stone Mysteries, first wrote of the adventures of Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch in the novel “Appaloosa” (later adapted for film starring Ed Harris and Viggo Mortesen). He wrote three other Hitch and Cole novels before his passing and the mantel has been passed to Robert Knott. Check them out.
                                                                                                                                   Ron Hansen has also written three novels of western historical fiction. The first was “Desperados”, a telling of the Dalton Gangs failed attempt to rob two banks in Coffeyville, Ks. on the same day. “The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford” was next and made into a film starring Brad Pitt. His newest novel is “The Kid” (I bet you can figure out who it’s about).
                                                                                                                                   Then there’s Mary Doria Russell who has written two outstanding historical novels about two of the greatest western icons ever. “Doc” about the famed southern dentist Doc Holliday during his time before the history making shoot out at the OK corral and “Epitaph” on the life of Wyatt Earp.
                                                                                                                                   So come on in and lose yourself in the history of the old west. Maybe we’ll see each other down the trail.
Curtis