“Good stories are good stories, no matter how they’re categorized.” —Octavia Butler
Why yes, we YA! What about you?
Generally—or perhaps historically—speaking Young Adult works were written for audiences in the 12-17 age range. Even while the popularity of YA fiction has grown across all age ranges over the last decade, some adults still snub YA fiction, writing it off as lacking the maturity necessary for a grown up audience. We know however, that a great YA novel or series can be sophisticated and well written enough for the discerning reader of any age. This, for starters, requires the author to have a little faith in the younger generation and their capacity to attend to a multi-layered narrative. It requires them to choose interesting themes and write those themes in a way that is accessible while also having depth; and, it requires them to choose their language with care. Failing that, it requires them to write something appealing to youth, while sparking something like a sense of adventure (for example) that might provoke the adult reader's feelings of nostalgia. Or, it could just be down right fun. In today's world, sometimes that is plenty; sometimes that is more than enough.
This week's poll asks for you to ponder young adult science fiction books and series. Which ones might be considered the very best? Add your nomination(s) below and then vote on your favorite(s).
We base our lists on the votes and nominations from this blog and our Facebook Reader group, and we want to hear your opinion!
What are the best young adult science fiction books or series of all time?
Foundation series by I Asimov*18%, 24 votes
24 votes18%
24 votes - 18% of all votes
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins*14%, 19 votes
19 votes14%
19 votes - 14% of all votes
Robert Heinlein's Juveniles*13%, 18 votes
18 votes13%
18 votes - 13% of all votes
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle 10%, 13 votes
13 votes10%
13 votes - 10% of all votes
Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy series by Doulgas Adams*7%, 9 votes
9 votes7%
9 votes - 7% of all votes
Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow series by Orson Scott Card*6%, 8 votes
8 votes6%
8 votes - 6% of all votes
Alanna the Lioness series by Tamara Pierce*5%, 7 votes
7 votes5%
7 votes - 5% of all votes
John Carter of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs*4%, 6 votes
6 votes4%
6 votes - 4% of all votes
The Emperor's Edge Series by Lindsay Buroker 3%, 4 votes
4 votes3%
4 votes - 3% of all votes
The Free Trader series by Craig Martelle*3%, 4 votes
4 votes3%
4 votes - 3% of all votes
Doc Savage*3%, 4 votes
4 votes3%
4 votes - 3% of all votes
The Divergent Series by Veronica Roth*2%, 3 votes
3 votes2%
3 votes - 2% of all votes
James H. Schmitz: the Telzey Amberdon Series and/or the Witches of Jarred series*2%, 3 votes
3 votes2%
3 votes - 2% of all votes
The Patternmaster Series by Octavia Butler 1%, 2 votes
2 votes1%
2 votes - 1% of all votes
The Atlantis Grail Series,by Vera Nazarian*1%, 2 votes
2 votes1%
2 votes - 1% of all votes
Maze Runner*1%, 2 votes
2 votes1%
2 votes - 1% of all votes
Red Rising Saga*1%, 2 votes
2 votes1%
2 votes - 1% of all votes
The inheritance saga, by Christopher Paolini*1%, 1 vote
1 vote1%
1 vote - 1% of all votes
Pendragon Cycle by Stephen R. Lawhead*1%, 1 vote
1 vote1%
1 vote - 1% of all votes
All 6 Tom Swift series by Victor Appleton*1%, 1 vote
1 vote1%
1 vote - 1% of all votes
Phillip Pullman’s Golden Compass Series*1%, 1 vote
1 vote1%
1 vote - 1% of all votes
The Variant Saga by JN Chaney 0%, 0 votes
0 votes
0 votes - 0% of all votes
Total Votes: 134
February 5, 2020
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https://discoverscifi.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/What-are-the-best-YA-sci-fi-books_series_.png6801200Discover Sci-Fihttps://discoverscifi.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/discover-scifi.pngDiscover Sci-Fi2020-02-06 13:11:552020-02-06 13:30:21What are the Best YA Sci-Fi Books or Series?
5replies
Greg M says:
Interesting choice of books. Disappointing that neither Card’s Ender series isn’t represented given it’s status in the gifted children world. McCaffrey’s Pern books are not listed either which celebrate the growing into ‘human’, for lack of a better term. I won’t even try and start on M Lackey and the contributions she has made into the YA category. i realize that there can only be so many, but some of the masters should be given the nod also. G
Hi Greg, you’re in luck! As this is the nominations round, feel free to add all of those incredible suggestions to the poll. Next week we’ll be back to vote on the top 10, but for this week it’s an open nominations round.
“Interesting”. The first three I’ve never heard of; I assume they are peculiar to this site (which gets my vote for “most relentless self-promotion”). Of the others, only the L’Engle, the Hunger Games, and the Heinlein are actually juveniles. How about Andre Norton, for whom the award is named? She wrote oodles of YA SF.
I have to agree with the above mentioned authors/series. To add my own two cents, I think you should acknowledge James H Schmitz to be one of the masters of early YA SF. His Telzey Amberdon and, “Witches of Karres,” series were stellar stories. I also loved Andre Norton, Anne McCaffrey , and Heinlein! There are just so many good stories and authors, how can you leave any of them out?
[…] As always, these top ten lists are not meant to be all-inclusive or definitive, but give a great finger on the pulse of our communities interests and favorites. Want to see who missed out? Here's the original nomination list from the blog. […]
Interesting choice of books. Disappointing that neither Card’s Ender series isn’t represented given it’s status in the gifted children world. McCaffrey’s Pern books are not listed either which celebrate the growing into ‘human’, for lack of a better term. I won’t even try and start on M Lackey and the contributions she has made into the YA category. i realize that there can only be so many, but some of the masters should be given the nod also.
G
Hi Greg, you’re in luck! As this is the nominations round, feel free to add all of those incredible suggestions to the poll. Next week we’ll be back to vote on the top 10, but for this week it’s an open nominations round.
“Interesting”. The first three I’ve never heard of; I assume they are peculiar to this site (which gets my vote for “most relentless self-promotion”). Of the others, only the L’Engle, the Hunger Games, and the Heinlein are actually juveniles. How about Andre Norton, for whom the award is named? She wrote oodles of YA SF.
I have to agree with the above mentioned authors/series. To add my own two cents, I think you should acknowledge James H Schmitz to be one of the masters of early YA SF. His Telzey Amberdon and, “Witches of Karres,” series were stellar stories. I also loved Andre Norton, Anne McCaffrey , and Heinlein! There are just so many good stories and authors, how can you leave any of them out?