Why YA? To never forget… The List (Siobhan Vivian) as discussed by Stephanie Wilkes
Today, TLT member Stephanie Wilkes shares her Why YA? post. You can write one too. Here’s how.
I’ve contemplated this post for several weeks now because the reason I read YA didn’t seem like something I could just pin down for a blog post. There are so many different reasons and in my interview when I joined the TLT team, I gave away the book that made me into a YA reader. I kept telling Karen that I was going to write this post and for several days I have just stared at my reminder post-it, seeking inspiration. Then, during a recent outreach visit to my old high school, I found it.
![](https://www.teenlibrariantoolbox.com/files/2012/05/668c9-photo28629.jpg?w=300)
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It is these types of books that give teens power. And especially the girls in the book. Each one of them is empowered because of this list in some way, shape or form and it is up to them to learn how to use this power wisely (and now I feel like the whole ‘with great power comes great responsibility’ Spiderman-quotey). So, not only these 8 girls are affected by The List but also their friends, their boyfriends, and everyone around them. It makes you remember that so much of your high school life is dictated by others opinions of you or what people say behind your back and at times, it is extremely painful. And sometimes we make decisions that we might not have made otherwise and I know we have all been there.
Filed under: Siobhan Vivan, The List, Why YA?
![](https://teenlibrariantoolbox.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/karenjensenmls-300x300.jpg)
About Karen Jensen, MLS
Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 30 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).
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I love this post. And I love that you have real happiness. You rock and I am so glad that you are there to help your teens navigate the teen years. And that you are a part of TLT! Love ya.
I really love this post. I love the heck out of my job as a teen librarian and reading this made me really look at exactly why I love all aspects of my job. When people look at me like I am crazy when I tell them I am a teen librarian it just makes me laugh because it makes me realize we really are a unique bunch of people. People who truly CARE about their jobs and know what they're doing versus just sitting at a desk behind the scenes all day. GO US!