It’s been a minute since you’ve heard from us. Since our newsletter in early 2020, our lives have been crazy and different, as we’re sure yours has been, too. But we’ve been searching for clean reads and other important resources this whole time and are excited to share our finds with you as we near the end of the year. So stay tuned for gift ideas for book lovers and (the oft requested) book recommendations for teen boys as well as our usual highlights of new clean books on our list, parent corner, and more!
*If you are not signed up for our Clean Reads Newsletter, you can do so on this page…
New list! Clean books for teen boys
One of the common requests we receive is book recommendations for teen boys, so we’ve compiled a list of clean YA reads that are teen boy-approved. We haven’t read each of the books on this list; some were suggestions from trusted websites as well as from our readers. Please send us your recommendations! We’d love for this list to grow quickly since our readers ask us for it often.
Review of Song Birds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
While Song Birds and Snakes contains no sex and only mild language, readers should know that this installment is just as violent as the original Hunger Games trilogy.
“It was incredible to be back in this world again; I never thought I’d get to read another book set in Panem. Immersing myself in Collins’ crisp prose again was great, too, though I wish she’d told the story in first person again.” Read the full review…
Exclusive Interview with Nadine Brandes, author of Romanov
I recently had the privilege of interviewing Nadine Brandes, author of Romanov, Fawkes, and the Out of Time trilogy. I love what she had to say about her latest fantasy retelling, as well as her writing process. Read the full interview here.
Sara (Book Series Recaps): I LOVE the cover of Romanov. Can you tell me the process of deciding on cover art? Who ultimately decides? Were there many revisions?
Nadine Brandes: The first step is to…more.
Gift ideas for book lovers
Whether shopping for others or yourself, here are a few great gift ideas for the book lover in your life. From mugs to clothes to jewelry, we have you covered! Click to take a look at our full list, and get inspired by our ideas for fun gifts for book lovers.
“So many books, so little time” socks!
Ladies “Book nerd” hoodie shirt.
Teabags individually tagged with literary quotes!
Organize your home library with a library kit.
Top 100 books scratch off poster.
“Bookmarks are for quitters” mug
We found even more ideas and listed them here…
New to our clean reads list
Maybe you haven’t visited our clean YA pages in a while. We’ve added a few new titles to our reader-recommended clean teen page that we wanted to let you know about. See even more here.
*Our site contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases*
Read a synopsis or buy.
Read a synopsis or buy.
Read a synopsis or buy.
Read a synopsis or buy.
See all of our reader-recommended clean teen titles.
Or visit our editor-recommended clean YA books for teens page.
Writing Update
Read excerpts from Sara’s This Dreamer and Stacy’s Fulfilled, and then PLEASE let us know what you think in the comments! Your input might just help us land an agent.
We are looking for recap contributors (particularly, clean novels)
Many of our readers have responded to our call to write for Book Series Recaps. Whether you’re an aspiring author wanting to flex those writing muscles or an avid reader who would like to help us out, click here to request more information, including our current recap wish list!
Want to see what a contributor recap looks like? Check out this great recap of The Hunger Games by a regular contributor. We include a shout-out with a link to her blog at the beginning of the post and then link to her bookish social media accounts at the end.
Parent Corner:
If you’re a parent receiving this newsletter, we’re going to guess you’ve wrestled with the idea of whether your teenager should have social media accounts. Whether you’ve decided “yes” or “no,” have we got a documentary for you! The Social Dilemma is a new documentary on Netflix that, according to its blurb on IMDb, “Explores the dangerous human impact of social networking, with tech experts sounding the alarm on their own creations.” Both BSR editors watched the documentary recently and agree it’s a must-watch for parents of teens as well as anyone who is a social media user.
Thanks again for your valuable suggestions.
Until next time,
~ Sara and Stacy
