Girls' YA Fiction

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I remember reading the early Alice books. I think I actually was 11 at the time, which is how old the character was in the beginning. Sort of "Judy Blume lite" because it dealt with bras and periods, though in a much milder type of way and with a way more innocuous cover and book jacket (which is why I got away with reading it openly, as my mom was pretty strict about what constituted "appropriate" reading material). As the series went on (and I stopped reading them after the first few) they seemed to focus pretty heavily on sexual issues, but even so, became less interesting, imo (not much plot).

[proper stranger]

linared said:

Did anyone else read those YA historical romances, where the book was named after the female character? Each book set in a different time period? I still have Susannah, the brave Virginia belle, who falls in love with a Yankee soldier during the American Civil War. Craptastic!

I did, I did! I think I still have some down in my basement. I seem remember one of about this high society girl who is sneaking out of her house to be a nurse. Her parents don't approve and the hot, brooding doctor thinks she is a spoiled brat, but she is determined to prove them all wrong. I think it was set in the 30s and of course very, very realistic.

Late to the party, but those are the Sunfire books and I loved those damned things! Between my sister and I, we owned the entire set. (Emily was the society-girl-turned-nurse and it was actually set at the turn of the century.) The books could be kind of sappy, but they introduced young-teenage me to several events in American history (i.e., the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in Rachel), so I have a soft spot for them. They were a training wheels version of the adult historical romances I would grow up to read.

I have an unusual first name and I remember being bummed that there would never be a "Sunfire girl" with my name. ;D

Dwan--I TOTALLY remember that cover for Class Pictures. I vaguely remember the storyline: wasn't it about two friends as they grew up (kindergarten-high school)?

Random (and unrelated) trivia: wasn't Courtney Cox a cover model for one of the early Canby Hall books? I swear I remember reading that once a long time ago. Why does this stuff take up space in my memory?

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Something like that. According to the Fug Girls it was "Sweet Dreams." I don't know that one. Does anyone?

[linared]

(Emily was the society-girl-turned-nurse and it was actually set at the turn of the century.)

Cool, I might have to re-read the book. Slightly off topic- but why is it that in these YA romance novels, the girls always fall for the surly, older doctor. Is it father issues? Does anyone remember the Christy book about a girl who goes to the Mountain country to teach? She had the choice between a hot young guy and the crusty old doctor. I think that book may have been based on real life experiences, but still even as a pre teen I was thinking, Christy chose the hot young guy! The old doctor is boring and doesn't let you do anything fun.

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larisa said:

Something like that. According to the Fug Girls it was "Sweet Dreams." I don't know that one. Does anyone?

The series was "Sweet Dreams," which was an endless parade of teenage romance novels. Most were stand alones, although a few were sequels. It looks like Courtney's modeling job ended up on the cover of "The Last Word," which I may have read (I can't find a description to see if it sounds vaguely familiar.) I read a boatload of them as a teenager (also "First Love by Silhouette," which is same crap, different publisher.)

[dwanollah]

You and me both, dear. *shaking head*

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stargirl said:

I remember reading the early Alice books. I think I actually was 11 at the time, which is how old the character was in the beginning. Sort of "Judy Blume lite" because it dealt with bras and periods, though in a much milder type of way and with a way more innocuous cover and book jacket (which is why I got away with reading it openly, as my mom was pretty strict about what constituted "appropriate" reading material). As the series went on (and I stopped reading them after the first few) they seemed to focus pretty heavily on sexual issues, but even so, became less interesting, imo (not much plot).

Hmm...interesting. I've read other Naylor stuff, but recently heard about the Alice books and found out they were pretty popular (apparently, I'm out of the loop these days). I think it's fun they're turning them into a movie! I loved the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (even though I was much older than the targeted age group when I read it) and loved the movie, too. I bet the Alice movie will be great, and how exciting it would be to be part of the filming for a young fan. What a fun sweepstakes prize!

[lyrasilver]

Huuuuge bump!

I went looking on Amazon for a series that I used to read when I was ten or so, called Love Stories, which were YA romance novels all written by different authors. Most of them were pretty innocuous, but there was one that I read where the girl falls in love with this guy, but they find out that her dad and his mom are dating and plan on marrying. I fully expected the end of the book to be like, "And when our parents married, we ended our relationship," but instead it was a scene with them cuddling on the couch and the girl thinking how great it was that they lived together and could be around each other all the time. Uh, ew. You're stepsiblings.

I finally found it on Amazon:linky

Going through all those pages made me realize that I read practically every book in the series. Which is sad.

[gimmeshelter]

The SVH series was what I mainly read growing up. Although I also really liked Freshman Dorm, too.

My favorite stand alones were: "Missing: Carrie Phillips Age: 15" and its sequel, "Don't Tell Mom." It was about a young girl named Carrie Phillips who ran away and how it affects her family.

I also read the "Megan The Klutz" series. All I remember are the funny covers of Megan with flour all over her and falling in the kitchen.

[lolad]

This thread is awesome and is bringing up so many memories! When I was a kid I was a big fan of many of Marilyn Sach's books. I recently reread some of these and man are they disturbing! The two in particular that were really weird were "A Secret Friend" and "The Fat Girl." In "Secret Friend" the main character invents a secret admirer to get the attention of her former best friend who has dropped her for another classmate. What's creepy is that the relationship between Jess, the main character and Wendy, the friend she's trying to win back is really unhealthy and almost emotionally abusive. Not to mention, Jess has a creepily close relationship with her overprotective Mom.
In "The Fat Girl" the main character initially makes fun of an obese classmate, then takes pity on her and ends up dating her. But he is very controlling and as she loses weight, he becomes more and more possessive. In the end, they break up and the book ends with him being really bitter and angry. I don't think I realized as a kid how weird and dysfunctional the relationships portrayed in these books were. It's interesting the things you find when you reread books as a adult!