Audience/User

Users of WKU libraries seeking: information about young adult (YA) literature; reviews of young adult books; information about authors of YA literature; teaching or library resources concerning YA literature; or resources for identifying examples of YA literature in a specific genre, on a specific subject, etc.

Scope & Definition

Young adults are individuals junior to senior high school age, approximately 12-17 years. Young adult literature may be fiction or nonfiction, poetry or drama; written specifically for young adults; written for a more general audience but having adolescent protagonists; or especially appealing to young adults for other reasons. This pathfinder will help the user locate materials about young adult literature or young adult authors, reviews of young adult books, resources to aid in the selection of YA literature, and teaching and library resources concerning YA literature.

This list is not meant to be comprehensive, but rather a selective list of useful titles and strategies. There are lengthier bibliographies of resources related to YA literature on reserve at the Educational Resources Center in annotated and unannotated form.

Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults

This 5 volume set with a 3 volume update to volumes 1-3 includes lengthy descriptions of young adult books, addressing elements such as settings, themes and characters, and social sensitivity. Formats and genres included are mainstream novels and short story collections, historical novels, classics, biographies, autobiographies, nonfiction, science fiction, fantasy, adventure novels, myths, mysteries, and gothic novels.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A1 B38 1989

Best Books for Junior High Readers; Best Books for Senior High Readers

These books include fiction and nonfiction titles, and entries are annotated and include citations to the sources and dates of book reviews. Arrangement is by topic, and there are alphabetical listings of major subjects and combined subject/grade level indexes as well as author and title.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .B546 1991; Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .G483 1991

Masterplots II: Juvenile and Young Adult Fiction Series; Masterplots II: Juvenile and Young Adult Literature Series Supplement

Masterplots II provides in-depth information about literary works of interest to young adults, including biographies and autobiographies as well as fiction. Coverage of titles is selective, not comprehensive. Entries contain lengthy content descriptions and an analysis of themes, and relate the work to the author's canon and the broader context of young adult literature. Masterplots II includes bibliographies of general works on young adult literature. The Supplement includes individual bibliographies for particular authors.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A1 M377 1991; and Suppl.

Middle and Junior High School Library Catalog; Senior High School Library Catalog

These catalogs are arranged by Dewey Decimal Classification, and include thousands of fiction and nonfiction titles with brief annotations. Each catalog includes an outline of the classification, a directory of publishers and distributors, and an author, title, subject and analytical index, which provides access to works and their component parts (sections, chapters, poems, short stories, etc.).
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .J854 1995, w/updates; Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .S435 1992, w/updates

The Young Adult Reader's Adviser

This two volume work provides citations to books for young adults in the areas of literature and language arts, mathematics and computer science, social sciences, history, science and health. It has a subject arrangement with author, title, and notable individual profile indexes.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .Y674 1992

The Bookfinder

This multivolume work categorizes books according to more than 450 topics of concern to young people aged 2-15. The entries are annotated, and there are subject, author, and title indexes. Also see the one volume The Best of Bookfinder.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .D73x; The Best of Bookfinder Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A1 D67825 1992

Books By African-American Authors and Illustrators for Children and Young Adults

This annotated bibliography of works which were published between 1900 and 1990 includes a list of awards and prizes, a glossary of art terms, and an index.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .W672 1991

Fiction Index for Readers 10 to 16: Subject Access to Over 8200 Books (1960-1990)

This extensive annotated bibliography includes a lengthy subject index, an index to books with fewer than 100 pages, an index to books with more than 300 pages, an index to translations, and a title index.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A52 1992

Index to Collective Biographies for Young Readers

This index provides access to entries in collective biographies appropriate mainly for elementary and junior high school age readers, with some also appropriate for high school students. You may locate entries for a known individual or a person engaged in a particular field of activity or who lived or was born in a given nation.
Ed Center Ref Z 5301 .B77 1988

Juniorplots 4: A Booktalk Guide for Use with Readers Ages 12-16; Seniorplots: A Booktalk Guide for Use with Readers Ages 15-18

The Plots series includes only titles which have been recommended in several standard reviewing sources and bibliographies. Lengthy entries note related or similar books, include a description of thematic material, a list of review citations, and references to places where biographical information about the author may be found.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .G514 1993; Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A1 G524 1989

Our Family, Our Friends, Our World: An Annotated Guide to Significant Multicultural Books for Children and Teenagers

Includes about 1,000 fiction and nonfiction books published between 1970 and 1990 about people of foreign cultures or cultural groups in the U.S. Each chapter deals with a "major ethnic group" and is compiled by an expert in the area. Entries are annotated, and indexes are included.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .M654 1991

Plays for Children and Young Adults: an Evaluative Index and Guide; and Supplement

This index includes evaluative summaries of 3,560 plays, skits, musical reviews, and other types of productions appropriate for viewing and/or production by children and young adults, published between 1975 and 1989. Entries include grade indications and a positive or negative evaluation symbol. There are five indexes: author/original title; cast; grade level; subject/play type; and playing time. The supplement indexes 2,158 more pieces published between 1989 and 1994.
Ed Center Ref PN 1627 .K37 1991; Ed Center Ref PN 1627 .K37 1990 Suppl.

Portraying Persons with Disabilites: An Annotated Bibliography of Fiction for Children and Teenagers

There is also a nonfiction edition of this title. These works are arranged by "broad categories of disabling conditions." Lengthy entries include summary, analysis, reading level, review citation, and more.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037.9 .R63 1992 (Fiction); Ed Center Ref Z 1037.9 .F735 1992 (Nonfiction)

Science & Technology in Fact and Fiction: A Guide to Young Adult Books

Physical and earth sciences are included; life sciences are excluded. Annotated entries include summaries and evaluations. Author, title, subject and readability indexes are provided.
Ed Center Ref Z 7401 .K46 1990b

What Do Young Adults Read Next?: A Reader's Guide to Fiction for Young Adults

Includes about 1,500 titles published from 1988 to 1992. Entries suggest titles published before 1988. Other information found in entries includes appropriate age range, synopsis, suggestions for further reading, citations to reviews, etc. A special feature of this title is its ten indexes which provide access by: series; award; time period; geographic location; subject; character name; character description; age of reader; author; and title.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .S7575 1994

World History for Children and Young Adults: An Annotated Bibliographic Index

There is also an American History version of this title. World History includes 2,234 fiction and nonfiction titles arranged by topic and geographic region. Entries include grade level designation, citations to book reviews, brief descriptions, and more. Author, title, subject, series, and grade level indexes provide access to the entries.
Ed Center Ref Z 6201 .V28 1992 (World History); Ed Center Ref Z 1236 .V35 1990 (American History)

Book Review Digest 1905- (Monthly)

Index Table XII, Helm Reference Room

Book Review Index 1965- (Bi-monthly)

Index Table XII, Helm Reference Room

Books in Print with Book Reviews Plus

A CD-ROM available on the network

Children's Reference Plus

Here you can locate publication information, price, publisher data, and book reviews for children's and young adult books. You can search by various methods including author, title, subject/genre, keyword, or grade level. Search methods may be combined for more precise results. Reviews are not available for all titles.
A CD-ROM available in the ERC computer room

Children's Book Review Index (Annual)

Entries in this publication are extracted from Book Review Index. Titles appropriate for young adults are designated by a "y". Citations to reviews of nonfiction, fiction, reference, and periodicals are included.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A1 C475 (vol., year)

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See the Finding Biographical Information: Starting Points pathfinder on the WKU Libraries' web pages for more sources.

Children's Literature Review 1976- (Semiannual)

This series is international in scope and focuses on contemporary authors, but covers all eras and includes prominent illustrators. The lengthy entries contain biographical information and commentary on the author's works. This includes excerpts of material originally published elsewhere: author commentary written either by the author or an interviewer, and excerpts of general criticism and of commentary on individual works. Citations to the sources of excerpts are included. Each volume includes cumulative indexes to authors, titles, and nationalities.
Ed Center Juv Ref PN 1009 .A1 C5139 (vol.)

Junior Authors and Illustrators books

There are seven books in this series so far, beginning with The Junior Book of Authors in 1935 and continuing through The Seventh Book of Junior Authors & Illustrators in 1996. Entries include biographical sketches, discussion of selected works, a list of selected works, and places where further information about the individual may be found.
Ed Center Ref PN 1009 .A1 S3936 1996 (The Seventh Book of Junior Authors & Illustrators)

The 100 Most Popular Young Adult Authors: Biographical Sketches and Bibliographies

Five to ten page entries include bioigraphical sketches, bibliographies of the authors' works subdivided by audience, genre, theme, etc., and references to other works by and about the author.
Ed Center Ref PS 490 .D74 1996

Something About the Author 1971- (Series)

Covers all eras of young peoples' literature. Earlier entries are updated when appropriate. Entries include information about the person's life and work, plus illustrations and contact information. Alternating volumes contain cumulative author and illustration indexes.
Ed Center Juv Ref PN 451 .S6 (vol.)

Writers for Young Adults: Biographies Master Index, 3rd ed.

This index to biographical information covers writers of popular young adult fiction, writers of adult fiction and nonfiction whose work is considered appropriate for young adults, and songwriters, lyricists, and television and screenwriters of interest to young adults. The goal of WYA is comprehensive coverage of biographical reference works such as dictionaries. Non-reference periodical publications are generally excluded from indexing.
Ed Center Ref Z 1037 .A1 W74 1989

Writers of Multicultural Fiction for Young Adults: A Bio-critical Source Book

Includes lengthy (5-15 page) entries about 51 authors. Entries give biographical information, discuss critical reception of their books, and include bibliographies of their works and of criticism.
Ed Center Ref PS 374 .Y57 W75 1996

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Copyright 1998-2000 Holly Hedden