October 24 & 25, 2026 ◆ Seattle, WA
Passes on sale now!
Written by Guest Contributor Marissa Brantley
Before She Ignites by Jodi Meadows is doing the good work of bringing dragons back in the lives of YA readers. Have we had a good dragon series since Eragon? I don’t thinks so. Even better, the main character is a woman of color who struggles with mental illness, while still getting’ it done.
Written by Guest Contributor Marissa Brantley
Owlcrate is monthly subscription box for Young Adult book lovers. Each OwlCrate box theme centers around a chosen book. Each book is a newly released Young Adult novel, and according to the creators, they will be releasing exclusive covers for the rest of the year. You also get a signed bookplate and a letter from the author with each book received. I’ve received Owlcrate boxes since, August 2016 and, I’ll be honest, I don’t always like the book. In fact, there’s maybe four so far I would have chosen for myself, but that’s the risk you take with subscription boxes. However, even if I don’t like the book, there’s usually something in the box that I do like. They also give peeks throughout the month on their Instagram of what will be in the next box so you can decide if you want it that month.
This month’s theme was MAKE IT OUT ALIVE, or as I like to call it, celebrating women who most definitely don’t need a man to survive. This box is a little different from other OwlCrates, as it contained two books, one that was released in the United States in January 2016 called New World Rising by Jennifer Wilson, and another that was released this month by Harperteen called The Sandcastle Empire by Kayla Olson. Both books feature seventeen-year-old protagonists who are trying to survive in a world that seems hell-bent on killing them. Although there are two books, you only receive the exclusive cover, book plate, and letter, from The Sandcastle Empire.
One of the five panels starting our Sunday morning at GeekGirlCon ‘14 was Diversity in Young Adult Literature. As the GeekGirlCon Strategy Guide explained, “Representation is vital for people of all races, sexualities, gender identities, and abilities. According to Malinda Lo’s 2013 Diversity in YA website, only 15% of NYT Bestselling YA Books had people of color as main characters, and only 12% of books had LGBTQ main characters. This panel will examine the market today, what readers want versus the disconnect with publisher’s diversity, and what we can do to improve the number of diverse books for teens.”
