Our teen book spotlight this week is on books that feature books with artistic characters!!! When I think about being artistic, it is more than just painting and drawing and we have titles that feature not just those but photography, movie making, and collages to just name a few!! Maybe some of these books will inspire you to explore your inner artist as well; we have an amazing offering of realistic, fantasy, and even historical so there is something for everyone. These books and more can be found by searching the catalog using the search tag #yaartists as well as on Libby and Hoopla. Check back next week for a new teen book spotlight and if you have any book suggestions, please let us know!!
An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson--Seventeen-year-old Isobel's ability to paint portraits has garnered her a strong following of faerie clients. When one of her paintings angers Rook, the autumn faerie prince, she finds herself facing a criminal trial. But Rook's anger is transformed into love when the two find themselves relying on one another to survive. Unfortunately, their romance puts a target on both their heads, and only Isobel's talent for painting can save them.
The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone by Adele Griffin--When a celebrated New York City teenager, known for her subversive street art, mysteriously dies, her life is examined in a series of interviews with her parents, friends, boyfriends, mentors, and critics.
Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough--Artemisia Gentileschi is only twelve when her mother dies. She is given a choice--become a nun, or commit to a life of grinding pigment for her father's paints. She chooses the paint. By seventeen, Artemisia has become one of Italy's most talented painters--but in Rome in 1610 men take whatever credit they want from women, and Artemisia's work goes unnoticed. After she is raped, she decides to take her future into her own hands.
From Twinkle, With Love by Sandhya Menon--Aspiring teen filmmaker Twinkle Mehra is asked by fellow film geek Sahil Roy to direct a movie for a summer arts festival. Twinkle is thrilled to show off her talent and get close to Sahil's twin brother, Neil. Then a mystery man begins emailing her, causing Twinkle to rethink who and what she wants. And before she knows it, she finds herself falling for Sahil instead. Told through text messages, emails, blog posts, and letters, Twinkle writes to her favorite female filmmakers, trying to express herself while deciphering what her heart is telling her.
I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson--Growing up, fraternal twins Jude and Noah were inseparable, but in their teen years something happened to tear their family apart, and the siblings each have only half the answer as to what happened. Noah tells the story from when they were 13, when he was figuring out his sexual identity and his sister Jude was playing the part of daredevil; Jude takes over the narrative when they are 16, when a boy comes between her and Noah. As healing begins between the siblings, it is a shared passion for art that pulls them together again.
Page by Paige by Laura Lee Gulledge--Sixteen-year-old Paige Turner reveals her secret identity when she and her mother move from Virginia to New York. As an artist, Paige refuses to make any more excuses for not drawing and decides to record her new experiences in a sketchbook. Over the course of eight months, she documents her new environment, friendships, romantic interest, relationship with her mother and self-discovery.