My Top 5 YA Nonfiction Picks

Yesterday I shared what we decided were the top 5 Cybils YA Nonfiction for 2013. Some amazing reads.

One of my favorite parts of being a part of the Cybils is yes, getting the nominated books to read. But I also LOVE getting together with the other panelists which include librarians, educators, parents, and bloggers. It's so fun to have others discuss why a book spoke to them and also why it didn't. Also fun to hear feedback from the different experiences each panelist brought to the Cybils.

The nominated books for 2013 were amazing and it was hard to come to our final decision. I thought I'd share what picks were on my top 5 list:


1. THE BOY ON THE WOODEN BOX:



I admit, I'm not a huge fan of books set in WW2. Maybe because my uncles and grandfather fought in that war and we heard stories about it ALL THE TIME. But this book was beyond amazing. I felt the pain, anguish this young boy felt during the holocaust. A must add to any MS and HS library.

2. RAPTURE PRACTICE:



What appealed to me about this memoir was how the author showed his struggle/conflict with his faith as a teen. This story resonated so much with me as I did the same thing with my Mormon faith during my teens. I questioned why certain things were done and weren't: like women not having the priesthood or why I couldn't drink caffeine(the church has now said it's okay to drink Coke). I know other teens question during this time of their lives too. This story is a must read.

3. OPEN MIC:



I'm a huge fan of diversity in YA novels. This collection of essays addresses this in a very creative way.

4. ANDREW JENKS:



What appealed to me about this book had to be the format of photographs that detailed this young filmmaker's career. I especially loved how he thought outside the box: You'll see a trend here on how I love these kinds of stories.
His film on living with the elderly in an assistant living facility is also very insightful.

5. BAD GIRLS:



This is a fan collection of 'bad' girls throughout time told in a graphic novel format. A fun twist on a nonfiction tale.


**I also loved:



A very fun collection of essays. I wish I could have done essays like this in high school and even college!

And another 'fun' discovery:



This book fascinated me. My own sister has used DNA to find our family roots which is 25% Navajo and another very high percent of Mexican/Italian. This book shows how scientists use DNA to solve some famous mysteries. A great book for upper elementary as well as middle school classrooms.




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