February SeriesCAT: Children’s/Young Adult Series

Children’s/Young Adult Series

Most of my suggestions are ones I’ve read (or I’ve read portions of these series). Some are very popular, some fit into various genres, some are or might be considered “classics”.

Whether or not you want to consider some YA or children’s varies, but I used tagmashes to help, then put them where I thought they (mostly) fit.

The nice thing about most of these books is that they won’t take a lot of time to try.

Suggestions:

Young Adult:


- Harry Potter / J.K. Rowling http://www.librarything.com/series/Harry+Potter
- Divergent / Veronica Roth http://www.librarything.com/series/Divergent
- Twilight / Stephenie Meyer http://www.librarything.com/series/Twilight
- The Hunger Games / Susanne Collins http://www.librarything.com/series/The+Hunger+Games
- Anne of Green Gables / L.M. Montgomery http://www.librarything.com/series/Anne+of+Green+Gables
- Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Rick Riordan http://www.librarything.com/series/Percy+Jackson+and+the+Olympians
- The Giver Quartet / Lois Lowry http://www.librarything.com/series/The+Giver+Quartet
- Little Women / Louisa May Alcott http://www.librarything.com/series/Little+Women
- Unwind / Neal Shusterman http://www.librarything.com/series/Unwind
- Brian Robeson / Gary Paulsen http://www.librarything.com/series/Brian+Robeson
- The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants http://www.librarything.com/series/The+Sisterhood+of+the+Traveling+Pants
- Uglies / Scott Westerfeld http://www.librarything.com/series/Uglies
- Trixie Belden http://www.librarything.com/series/Trixie+Belden+mysteries
- Nancy Drew http://www.librarything.com/series/Nancy+Drew
- Books of Bayern / Shannon Hale http://www.librarything.com/series/Books+of+Bayern
- Gemma Doyle / Libba Bray http://www.librarything.com/series/Gemma+Doyle
- Julie of the Wolves / Jean Craighead George http://www.librarything.com/series/Julie+of+the+Wolves
- The Dark is Rising / Susan Cooper http://www.librarything.com/series/The+Dark+is+Rising+Sequence
- His Dark Materials / Phillip Pullman http://www.librarything.com/series/His+Dark+Materials

Children’s:


- Chronicles of Narnia / C.S. Lewis http://www.librarything.com/series/Chronicles+of+Narnia%3A+Chronological+by+stor...
- Little House / Laura Ingalls Wilder http://www.librarything.com/series/Little+House
- The Birchbark House / Louise Erdrich http://www.librarything.com/series/The+Birchbark+House
- Peter Rabbit / Beatrix Potter http://www.librarything.com/series/Peter+Rabbit
- Frog and Toad Together / Arnold Lobel http://www.librarything.com/series/Frog+and+Toad
- A Series of Unfortunate Events / Lemony Snicket http://www.librarything.com/series/A+Series+of+Unfortunate+Events
- The Rats of NIMH http://www.librarything.com/series/The+Rats+of+NIMH
- Ramona Quimby / Beverly Cleary http://www.librarything.com/series/Ramona+Quimby
- Fudge series / Judy Blume http://www.librarything.com/series/Fudge+Series

Please don't forget to update the wiki:
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2019_SeriesCAT#February:_-_Theme:_YA.2FC...

I was going to do a “touchstone” using html links for the series page for each of these, but at this point, I’d rather just post this than take time to add in the html. (It's late and just about my bedtime!) I have included the link to the series page as text.

And, I think just about everyone posted their February CATs today! I might have waited until tomorrow, except I'll be out at my f2f book club.

I'll probably have to come back on the weekend (busy week!), and figure out what I'll be reading for each CAT (including this one!) then. (As much as I really want to start planning, I'll be too tired tomorrow if I do!)

I am going to be reading Their Fractured Light by Ami Kaufman.

Oh my! Too many wonderful choices here! I love childrens and young adult and cannot think what I want to read!
Probably go with re-reading Narnia as I have one child left who hasn't heard them yet.

I'm planning on The Poppy War for this challenge.

I've decided to read Torn by Erica O'Rourke which will also work for the Alpha Kit.

I'll be reading The Subtle Knife, the second book in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy.

I have way too many choices for this! I would like to reread Megan Whalen Turner's series beginning with The Thief, since the sixth and final book is coming out in March. But I may sneak in a few other books too (or instead)!

I'm planning on Allure by Lea Nolan--I loved the first book in this series, The Hoodoo Apprentice Series, and have been meaning to get to the second one for ages, so this is a great excuse :) I'm also planning on reading The Lair by Emily McKay--I didn't enjoy the first one in that series anywhere near so much, but was interested enough in the plot that I want to keep going anyway.

I'm going to FINALLY read my copy of First Term at Malory Towers, by Enid Blyton.

My choice for this challenge is Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome. I enjoyed his books as a child but when I semi-watched the film of "Swallows and Amazons" on TV one day last year there was a whole plot line I had no memory of whatsoever, so I am going to re-read it.

I have a hold on the audio of Little Men that should be available sometime in February. I also plan to read Betsy-Tacy and Tib from my own shelves.

>12 Robertgreaves: I agree! I loved these books as a kid. But as I watched the movie with my boys, I was wondering if I they had changed the plot or I just couldn't remember it properly!

I’ve finished reading the series but I recommend The Penderwicks by Jeanette Birdsall.
I also always recommend Anne of Green Gables!

I'm planning to read Mistress Pat, the second of two in the Pat of Silver Bush series by L. M. Montgomery. Then I willhave read all but a couple of Lucy Maud's books.

I've been thinking I'd reread the Montmaray YA series so this is the perfect time to start. I'll read the first in the series, A Brief History of Montmaray this month.

>15 raidergirl3: I loved the Penderwicks series. Highly recommended. It sort of reminded me of the Bobbsey Twins books I read when I was young.

I am reading Carney's House Party by Maud Hart Lovelace, part of the Betsy-Tacy series.

> I was totally a Bobbsey Twins reader rather than Nancy Drew. I didn’t make that connection but it’s a good one.

I'll be (re-)reading The Reptile Room (Series of Unfortunate Events #2 by Lemony Snicket.) One of my goals for 2019 is to read the series all the way through! I've read and listened to the first four in print and audio a few times, but somehow I always seem to get stuck in the next grouping of four, and I've yet to make it to the last quartet!

I'll probably read a Louisa May Alcott, since she is the featured February author of the American Authors Challenge in the 75ers group and I have several of her books (Eight Cousins, Rose In Bloom, Under the Lilacs). They are old editions from the 1930s that belonged to my mother.

>18 LadyoftheLodge: >13 cbl_tn: Betsy and Tacy rank high in my childhood reading. I was fascinated by the notion of making paper dolls from the Sears catalog, as Betsy did.

I'll be especially interested to hear about Carney's House Party, since I don't think I ever read it.

>18 LadyoftheLodge:, I loved Betsy Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace

I had never heard of it but I've put The Penderwicks on hold at the library. It looks like a fun read.

I'm not a huge reader of YA but a series I thoroughly enjoyed starts with The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg. When looking this up to make sure it was YA, I saw a fourth book has been released set in the same world - that's probably my choice here. The Plastic Magician

I have way too many options for this! The ones that I think are most likely and/or appealing right now are:

The Forgotten Sisters / Shannon Hale
Sweet Valley Confidential / Francine Pascal
Once Every Never / Lesley Livingston
Neverwas / Kelly Moore

>22 NinieB: My sisters and I actually made paper dolls from the Sears and Penneys catalogs. Great fun for a rainy day, and all you need is a pair of scissors.

Carney's House Party is about a month-long party of college kids during summer break, set in the early 1900's. It sounds like they did a lot of fun things, none of them involving drugs, alcohol, or sex. And Carney is a student at Vassar. The book ties in characters from the Betsy-Tacy books too.

Just FYI - the link on The Birchbark House is wrong. My intended read is the second in that series.

If anyone is interested in a unique young adult trilogy, I really liked The Colors of Madeleine, first book is A Corner of White. There is lots of science - main character is a fan of Newton, two worlds - the here, London, and a parallel world, Cello; kings and princesses, divorced parents, and just good plotting, as I never saw the next reveal coming.
It takes a little white to figure out what is going on, but patience is rewarded.

>28 countrylife: I'm so sorry! Thank you for catching that. It has been fixed!

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland is considered a teenage or YA book. I'll be listening for the ScaredyKIT and it will fit this challenge as well. It's book one in the Dread Nation series.

>24 EBT1002: I love The Penderwicks!

I can highly recommend the Kingdom of Silk series by Glenda Millard - first book is The Naming of Tishkin Silk. A lovely, gentle read.

I also love the Little Fur series by Isobelle Carmody. And the books are gorgeous - velvet covers!

I can think of millions of series we love, but these are some that you may not have heard of.

I finished The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy.
Delightful.

>33 EBT1002: Fantastic! I am looking forward to reading it aloud again soon to my next age group! When I read them with my girls, we binge read the whole series as they couldn't get enough.

I don't know what I will read yet, but I love this topic (that is why I don't know, many choices!)

I could add an author suggestion, Joan Aiken who hasn't been mentioned yet. She wrote a sort of alternate-historical semi-magical adventure series about a girl called Dido Twite. And some other less-well-known series, including ones that are mostly short stories, like the Armitage stories and the Arabel's Raven books, which are both humorous.

Edit: Another humorous option is Gordon Korman's Macdonald Hall series.

Edit 2: And (not especially humorous), Jonathan Stroud's Bartimaeus series, which I really might reread, it's excellent.

Edit 3: Can't forget Helen Cresswell's Bagthorpe Saga, which is humorous again! I already reread the whole thing last year though...

>35 amaranthe: Oh yes, we love The Wolves of Willoughby Chase series by Joan Aiken, although it can be hard to get hold of the later books in the series. Great series, as you say, as it covers so many aspects.

And I just thought of The Children of Green Knowe series by L.M. Boston, The Saturdays series by Elizabeth Enright and the First Aid For Fairies by Lari Don.

I think I want to spend all of February just reading childrens' series!

I totally get that! I often binge read kids' books. I am currently doing that with the Who Was. . .? series. Reading Who Was Queen Elizabeth? and Who Was Beatrix Potter?

I also got reacquainted with the Lives of. . . series and am reading those again, such as Lives of the Artists and Lives of the Writers. They have hilarious caricature drawings that go with each of the biographies in the books. I may take two of them on my upcoming trip to read on the plane. I am a nervous flyer and need to read things in short bursts in order to concentrate on anything. (Once I read The Lightning Thief on a flight when I had a migraine headache and just wanted to get off the plane--I think that book saved my sanity.) But alas, I digress. . . .again.

>36 JayneCM: I don't find much of anything by Joan Aiken in bookshops here in Seattle, except reprints of two or three of the most popular books, but there are always used copies online.

More series. Animals? Lad of Sunnybank, The Black Stallion, The Wind in the Willows, Redwall.
And The Wizard of Oz, we were reading through the whole series last year but only got halfway through.

I read In an Absent Dream from the YA series "Wayward Children" by Seanan McGuire.

>38 amaranthe: Until you mentioned animal series I hadn't thought of the Big Red series by Jim Kjelgaard. Isn't it amazing he died in 1959 and his books are still in print? In December I was cashiering at our library's vintage and collectible book sale and carefully watching a first edition of Big Red because I only wanted it to go to a certain kind of person. It was almost time to close (this sale goes over a week of afternoons and evenings) when a man and his wife came in and when he saw Big Red from the door he made a beeline for it. I "interviewed" him as he was checking out and I decided he was indeed just the kind of person who should have this book. He'd read it and all other Kjelgaard's several times and was excited about having found it. I had planned to reread another book from my shelves this month but I think now I need to add a Jim Kjelgaard to the mix.

I just read some of the picture book Madeline series by Ludwig Bemelmans, but decided not to count them for this challenge. I read: Madeline, Madeline's Rescue, Madeline and the Bad Hat, and Madeline in London. Although I enjoyed the first two, the last two I felt seemed very forced, particularly with the rhyming of the lines. At the closest branch to me of our public library system, there were many more copies of the first two titles than of any of the other titles on the shelf so perhaps others prefer the first two. It took very little time to read these books.

I'm going to read the second in the Morrigan Crow series, Wundersmith.

>40 clue: So would you refuse to sell if the wrong sort of person tried to buy it?? I know what you mean about favorite books at sales though! I haven't read that one yet.

I hope, for this challenge, to read the Tiffany Aching series by Terry Pratchett, as I have unaccountably failed to read the last two books before now, and have forgotten the details of the first three.

I’m listening to the second book in the Al Capone series by Gennifer Choldenko, Al Capone Shines My Shoes. It’s a cute series set in 1930s on Alcatraz where Moose’s father is a prison guard. Moose deals with making friends, his sister who had autism, and life near the prison.

Neverwas / Kelly Moore, Tucker Reed, Larkin Reed
3 stars

This is the 2nd book in a trilogy. Sarah has moved from Oregon to Maryland with her family to take over her grandmother’s old house (from book 1). It’s been too long since I read book 1 to remember what led to the current “situation”, and I don’t want to give too much away, but Sarah seems to be seeing things. Her best friend since childhood (and a neighbour), Jackson, also sees things, but different things.

Ok, I was confused through parts of it, and kind of lost interest a bit (mostly in the things Sarah was “seeing”, but not as much in her “here and now”), and I’m sure the losing interest helped with the confusion. Ultimately, I decided on an “ok” rating, simply because I’m still interested enough to find out what happens in the last book. This one isn’t nearly as good as the first book, though.

I finished Der kleine Vampir verreist from a series very popular in the 1980s and was surprised to find it so much shorter than my memory led me to believe.

>43 amaranthe: Oh no, I wouldn't t have refused any sale but after talking to them I might have shown them something that might suit them better. Lots of people that come into library sales just want to buy a book, sometimes for decorating purposes, and don't have the vaguest idea what they are buying.

>47 clue: Decorating purposes? My heart sickens. . . although I know people would buy whole walls full of books with the only requirement that they look nice, fit with the decor, or have matching bindings. I did not know people still do that.

I've read All-of-a-Kind Family, the first book in her All-of-a-Kind Family series, by Sydney Taylor. I had read this book as a child many years ago, and enjoyed rereading it. It is about a immigrant Jewish family living Lower East Side of New York City around 1912; many Jewish customs are explained. Although the family was poor, they were rich in love for each other.

>27 LadyoftheLodge: I need to read Carney's House Party! Sounds so fun. I read all the Betsy-Tacy books over & over as a kid but never read any others of hers. (I actually re-read the whole series a few years ago, planning to give them away when I was done, but I couldn't quite do it. :)

>49 sallylou61: I love that series. They always seemed to be having the best time. :)

I've been wanting to re-read the Little House series before I read Prairie Fires so maybe I'll start that.

I have also finished Goth Girl and the fete worse than death which I enjoyed very much, mostly because of the literary allusions and of course the famous cooks. And the gorgeous ilustrations! I think I'll try and hunt down the rest of the series.

>47 clue: >48 LadyoftheLodge: I have been in our local bookstore before, where I spend a lot of time chatting books with the owner, when a man came in and wanted books of a certain colour, height and thickness so they would all match and fit in with his decor. I think the bookshop owner wanted to slap him!! Or do a Bernard from Black Books and sweep him out the door!!

>47 clue: >48 LadyoftheLodge: >52 JayneCM: The Two Ronnies in the library: https://youtu.be/IF8uZQNMWl8

Just started The Poppy War for this challenge.

Finished The Lair by Emily McKay. It was better than the first book, but not by much, and while I looked forward to an improvement coming from the author focusing on a different character, who I'd like more than the protag from the first book... well, let's just say that the blurb was extremely misleading. I would absolutely NOT recommend this series. Full review written. (The one upside is that the main character of these first two books cannot be the focus for the third book, so I guess that's good, though I still doubt I'll bother with it.)

I'm revisiting my favorite British fantasy series for J/YA.

These I'm still reading -
Dragon Keeper by Carol Wilkinson.

Tales of Gom in the Legends of Ulm, Grace Chetwin

The Mennyms, Sylvia Waugh.

The Borrowers, Mary Norton (American)

Some I finished and recommend!
Touchstone trilogy by Steve Augarde

Harper Hall trilogy, Anne McCaffrey

Ormingat, Sylvia Waugh. (Sci Fi)

I finally got around to reading The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale which has been on my to read list for quite a while now. I was slightly disappointed in this. I didn't care for the audio full cast narration. Not sure if I'll continue with the rest of the series.
I also read the first three books in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket; The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room and The Wide Window. This was my first experience with this series. They're cute. I'll eventually finish the rest of them.

I read Rose in Bloom which is the second book in the Eight Cousins series by Louisa May Alcott. Cute, predictable, and very much dated.

>58 LittleTaiko: I have such a soft spot for Rose in Bloom! Definitely dated, but so sweet!

I just realized my next read, King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo, will work for this CAT -- it's the first book in a planned duology.

I read Rot and Ruin the first in the Benny Imura series by Jonathan Maberry which also fits this month's ScaredyKIT too as it's a YA novel featuring zombies.

I read The Poppy War.

Starting Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome, the first in a series featuring the Walker and Blackett children.

Finished the Tiffany Aching series by Terry Pratchett. I had read the first three books but not the last two (I think I felt there was too much kissing in Wintersmith,* and so I didn't get around to reading book 4 for eight years according to my library.) However, I Shall Wear Midnight is excellent and as a bonus tells you whatever happened to Eskarina Smith from Equal Rites, which was published in 1987, after which that character is never mentioned again, which always bothered me. And The Shepherd's Crown, which is Pratchett's last book, is even better. It has gender-nonconforming characters too, which I appreciate.** One of them seems to be what I would call nonbinary. (If it has a couple of small issues, that is likely because of the author not quite having had time to polish it up.)

*there is not actually very much kissing. also it was more complicated than that.
**Discworld doesn't really have any explicitly queer characters in the usual sense, but there are lots who challenge gender expectations. And there are the dwarves, of course.

Finished A Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis for the first book for this CAT. Hope I can get to another yet this month but I am way behind in this short month of books I need to finish. Vacation got in the way.

March SeriesCat is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/303826#

I finished the second book in the His Dark Materials trilogy; The Subtle Knife starts off on our world, with Will trying to find a place to keep his mother safe. Eventually Will meets up with Lyra, and learns that his destiny is linked with hers. They travel back and forth between his world and another parallel world, running from enemies everywhere. It ends in a cliffhanger, and I'm definitely interested in what happens to Will and Lyra. Knowing this has been marketed to a YA audience, I was a bit surprised with some of the disturbing imagery and plot turns.

COMPLETED Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome. Children sailing in the Lake District and playing explorers and pirates, with very loose adult supervision.

Delirium / Lauren Oliver
4 stars

Lena’s mom and dad died when she was young, so Lena was raised by her aunt. Lena’s 18th birthday is coming up soon, and it will be such a relief to be able to have the surgery done – the cure! – to prevent the sickness “amor deliria nervosa” (aka love). Everyone gets the cure on their 18th birthday. She’ll be matched with someone to marry and her life will be perfect. But, before her birthday (and the surgery) arrives, she meets Alex…

I really liked this. It seems an odd premise, but I went with it, and quite enjoyed it. I liked Lena’s best friend, Hana, and her young cousin(?), Grace, although a bit more interaction with Grace might have been nice. Maybe one of the upcoming books in the series will have more about her? I will definitely be continuing.

Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend is the second in this children's series which has been on numerous bestseller and top children's books of the year. Nevermoor, the first in the season, dealt with Morrigan's arrival in that mysterious country and her competition to win entrance to the Wundrous Society. This book deals with her adjustment. No, it's not at all like Harry Potter. Yes, it is very good. There will be more, and I am looking forward to them.

I've completed The Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper. It's the first in a YA trilogy, The Journals of Montmaray and reminiscent of I Capture the Castle. It's been about ten years since I read this the first time and I wasn't disappointed in it at all with the second reading. I hope to read the other two in the trilogy later in the year.

Now reading Mennyms under siege by Sylvia Waugh, 3rd in the wonderful British fantasy series about a family of life-size ragdolls living in a house in London, unbeknownst to the humans around them!

I have completed my read of Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott, this is the first book in the series.

Finished treasure of Green Knowe by L.M. Boston

Next up
the Borrowers afloat Mary Norton

I finished the second book in the YA series, The Hoodoo Apprentice--Allure (Hoodoo Apprentice). For me, it didn't quite live up to the first book, but in all honesty, that may be because I read the first book a year ago, and LOVED it, so I had incredibly high expectations going into it. And, of course, there's always something about the first book in a series you fall in love with--meeting the characters, getting to know the world (especially in spec lit like this)--so it could be this was bound to happen. One way or another, I still can't wait to read the third book, which is already sitting on my shelf. Full review written if you're interested. Genre-wise, I'd say this is YA Speculative lit., but I suppose it's balanced between fantasy, paranormal, and horror. It's hoodoo, after all... and I recommend it :) The first book in the series is Conjure (Hoodoo Apprentice).

I am currently reading the first book in a YA series; A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro. These are the offspring of Sherlock Holmes and Watson in a crime solving duo. I don't like the language in this one but I do enjoy all the references to Sherlock Holmes Adventures.

The Last Little Blue Envelope / Maureen Johnson
4 stars

This is a continuation of “13 Little Blue Envelopes”. Potential spoilers for the first book: Ginny didn’t get to finish her aunt’s “treasure hunt” when her backpack with the envelopes was stolen in Greece. She had one envelope left.. Back at home in the US, Ginny hears from someone who has that last envelope, and he’s in London. Ginny decides to travel back to London to get her hands on that last envelope and keep going. While in London, she looks up the boy she’d been dating, Keith. Ginny, Keith, and two others set off to follow the instructions on the last envelope that brings them to a few different European countries.

I really enjoyed this one. It appears I read the first book 6 years ago!! I found it interesting that I commented in that review that I wasn’t a fan of Keith; still not in this book, either. However, I did like the new guy, Oliver, who was the one who found Ginny’s envelopes. Also enjoyed “travelling” around Europe with Ginny and her friends; I particularly enjoyed the B&B in… I think it was Belgium (cats!).

>76 LibraryCin: I've had the first one on TBR for about as many years as I obtained my dreaded. Sounds like I should read it some day. I like travel. Do they travel in the first book?

>77 Kristelh: Yes, there is also a lot of travel in the first book. I hope you enjoy it!

I’m re-reading Gom on Windy Mountain by Grace Chetwin.
First one of a fantasy series.

I read Five Little Peppers Midway for this category. It's the second of 12 books in the series. It lacks some of the charm of the first book, I think because the Peppers are now living in material comfort in the city.

I’ve managed to finish Torn by Erica O’Rourke, a paranormal YA book.

I finished The Four Just Men by Edgar Wallace. I enjoyed this adventurous crime fiction/detective/mystery. I started Freakling another audio, YA series and I will not finished this before February is out the door. I'm 57% done but I will post it here anyway. This one is also pretty enoyable.

I was unaware of how many YA/children series books I owned. I was happy to have this month to get some of those read. Thanks Cindy. >1 LibraryCin:.

I did a reread of Anne of Windy Poplars from the Anne of Green Gables series. I didn't like it as much as the other Anne books but it was still enjoyable and entertaining.

>83 Kristelh: Glad you ended up enjoying and I'm glad you got a few off your tbr! If I didn't participate in so many monthly challenges, I could have read far more myself!

I read Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. Humorous and enjoyable - I don't read much YA but I'll likely finish reading the series because fun. :D

Oh, and thank you to everyone who participated this month! Children's/YA was the one that almost didn't make it into the SeriesCAT! I really wanted it to, knowing I had a TON that would fit!