In my search to learn more about writing on the middle grade level, I made a list of titles that have won Newbery Medals as the logical place to begin my education. As the ALA site does not break the titles down by MG or YA, some of the selections I made turned out to be YA. I figured it was all good, and went for what appealed most. And I have a number of books with some good pointers for me.
I read the following – Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff , Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech, Clay by David Almond, Dogsong by Gary Paulsen, A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park, and now Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell. Each of these books is extraordinary and deserves a write-up of its own. And all are very powerful in their own way. What I noticed in the first four is that part of their power comes from being written in the first person. A Single Shard is historical fiction, and along with Dogsong and Island of the Blue Dolphins, (an older title), is about a way of life that is unique to their subjects and opened up new worlds to me, particularly A Single Shard.
I am a fan of David Almond, but have to say that with Clay, he has taken another step beyond the unknown, metaphysical or otherworldly, and was frightening even me. I believe a young YA reader 
will be frightened as well, but it is impossible to put the book down. So in Clay, I might not be finding quite what I’m looking for – I don’t think. Then again, I do have an evil antagonist, so perhaps I may reconsider.
Of all these books, I am most drawn to Pictures of Hollis Woods. What attracts me is the suspense, the easy identification with the main character, Hollis, and the continuous alternation of the character’s current story with pictures she has painted which tell, little by little, the story of why she most recently ran away. The story lines join in the end, building up a tremendous suspense and a great ending. What I’ve found in this book is something I want to learn as I, too, have 2 story lines in my tale that must intertwine.
There’s a lot to think about, and while I allowed myself to completely immerse myself in the books while reading them, in the aftermath I see that they are teaching me and helping me with my writing. It is what the editor and agents we meet continue to recommend – read, read read in our genre. Clearly, it can only enrich our writing.
Here’s a fun little diversion for those of you who are mightily drawn to cheese and/or fonts. Play the 
Here’s the full title – Angus, thongs and full-frontal snogging – confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison. (Yeah – a tad too long for a post title!) My last trip to my local library had my very wonderful librarian, Jennifer, suggest a book to me in addition to my list of MG and YA titles. So far her suggestions have been great, and this book is no exception. I am writing this very short post to recommend this book to you if you read/enjoy YA. Written in diary format, Georgia, who is British, writes about her life and its typical teenage issues, which are not nearly so racy as the title would suggest. But funny. Very funny.
By the time I’d come back out, Pumpkin, the orange cat next door, was coming over to say hello and see what was happening, and was now right next to the praying mantis. I figured the mantis was a goner, but Pumpkin was totally oblivious to her presence. What was more amazing was that the mantis, while watching Pumpkin’s every move, (she’s actually looking right at him in this photo), only made one tiny move herself. It was quite easy to catch a couple photos after which I quickly lured Pumpkin to my back door and away from the mantis.
She appeared out of nowhere. She was clearly hungry and looking for food. She was also, as best I could tell, feral, although immaculately clean, as even the wildest of cats can be.
Still A Dreamer 