Dear Teen Me: Authors Write Letters to Their Teen Selves

by E. Kristin Anderson, Miranda Kenneally, Julia Whelan (Read by), MacLeod Andrews (Read by)

Overview

Growing pains are an essential part of teenage life, for better and for worse. Some “mistakes” turn into positive, life-changing experiences, and some apparent triumphs seem, in retrospect, like low points. Some first kisses leave you feeling on top of the world, and others can make you want to hide under a rock. In Dear Teen Me, your favorite YA authors — including Lauren Oliver, Ellen Hopkins, Tom Angleberger, and Carrie Jones — revisit critical moments from their young lives and offer advice and guidance to their teenage selves. Listen to find out...

• Who had a really bad first kiss?
• Who found her true love at 18?
• Who wishes she’d had more fun in high school instead of studying so hard?
• And who skipped prom to go to a Grateful Dead concert, only to wind up stranded and alone?

The letters cover a wide range of topics, including physical abuse, body issues, bullying, friendship, love, and enough insecurities to fill an auditorium. Some authors focus on a hilarious mistake or one especially big day, others offer words of hope for desperate times. So whether you’re a theater kid, a band geek, a bad boy, a good girl, a loner, a stoner, a nerd, or a jock, you’ll find friends — and a lot of familiar faces — in Dear Teen Me.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781469253039
Publisher:	Brilliance Audio
Publication date:	10/01/2013
Series:	True Stories Series
Edition description:	Unabridged
Pages:	6
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 5.60(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Earphones award winner Julia Whelan grew up in the Pacific Northwest, but currently resides in Los Angeles. She is a former child actor, having appeared in multiple television shows, most notably ABC's "Once and Again." After receiving her college degree, she returned to acting and is pursuing a career in the film industry, as well as creative writing. Her audiobook credits include romance, supernatural thrillers, young adult and adult fiction.

MacLeod Andrews' award-winning audio credits include fantasy, young adult, and fiction titles. He has performed on stage in award winning off-broadway shows and is a company member of Rising Phoenix Rep theater company. He has been in a number of independent films.

Table of Contents

Want. Take. Have E. Kristin Anderson 10

Contents Under Pressure Jessica Lee Anderson 14

Shhhhhh! Tom Angleberger 16

Frame Me and Nail Me to the Wall Sean Beaudoin 18

Re-inventing Me Charles Benoit 20

9 Things You Should Know About Your Life Robin Benway 22

The Knife Ilsa J. Bick 28

Dance Dance Revolution Marke Bieschke 32

First Kiss…Ish Joseph Bruchac 34

Trust is as Important as Love Jessica Burkhart 36

Thank You, Oily Pizza Josh A. Cagan 38

There's No Such Thing as Impossible Riley Carney 40

The Future Isn't Everything Terra Lynn Childs 42

The Principal's Office Jessica Corra 44

Raising Me Heather Davis 46

Getting Stood Up Daniel Ehrenhaft 48

Losing Your Sight Shouldn't Mean Losing Your Rights Laura Ellen 50

I Hope You Dance-to the Theme from Bonanza Beth Fantaskey 54

Jekyll & Hyde Caridad Ferrer 56

Be Honest With Yourself Michael Griffo 58

The Skinny GirlcJanet Gurtler 60

It is About to Get Worse Kersten Hamilton 62

Going All the Way Bethany Hegedus 64

You Are the Electric Boogaloo Geoff Herbach 66

No Calls from Spielberg Yet Faith Erin Hicks 68

When Dance Was Your World Nancy Holder 72

Lois Lowry and the Space-Time Continuum vs. Boys K.A. Holt 76

Seeping Through the Cracks P.J. Hoover 78

Finding Your Voice Ellen Hopkins 80

Who Needs Luck? Stacey Jay 88

Seizures Carrie Jones 90

Regarding Your Commendable Decision to Live Mike Jung 94

Getting Past the Fear Stasia Ward Kehoe 98

Bad Girl Tara Kelly 100

Pick Up the Phone and Call Him Back. Right. Now. Miranda Kenneally 102

He Broke More Than Your Heart Stephanie Kuehnert 106

Hope Until the Last Second Mary Lindsey 108

The Ramifications of Mouthing Off to Cute Boys Nikki Loftin 110

What Will Define You Katherine Longshore 112

Winging It Ken Lowery 114

Balancing Black and White Kekla Magoon 116

What the Bully Stole Mari Mancusi 118

All the World's a Stage Gretchen McNeil 120

The Pursuit of (Moments of) Happiness Jodi Meadows 122

This is Not Your Story Saundra Mitchell 124

Get Better Hannah Moskowitz 130

What I Really Want Jenny Moss 134

Dancing With the Dead Sarah Ockler 136

Best Friends Forever (For Real) Lauren Oliver Elizabeth Miles 140

Just Be Yourself Stephanie Pellegrin 144

First Kiss Mitali Perkins 146

Keep Hold of Your Strength Cheryl Rainfield 148

Special Delivery from Your Excellent Future Dave Roman 150

Stop Obsessing, Kiss That Guy, and Party Like it's 1999 Jess Rothenberg 154

All Roads Lead Somewhere Jennifer Rush 158

Smile! Amy Kathleen Ryan 160

Sing It Out Tom Ryan 162

I'm Not Going to Give You Any Good Advice Leila Sales 164

The Friend I Thought Was Long Gone Cynthia Leitich-Smith 166

Finding Him Jessica Spotswood 168

Boys Boys Boys Erika Stalder 170

Chunky Rhonda Stapleton 172

Keeping Quiet Mariko Tamaki 174

Stolen Jeans, Smoke Rings and Self-Esteem Don Tate 176

You're So Right But So Wrong Melissa Walker 178

100% True, Guaranteed Tracy White 180

All Kinds of Sexy Jo Whittemore 182

What is a Friend? Sara Zarr 184

Facing Facts: Make-Overs Jennifer Ziegler 188

Editorial Reviews

"These letters from 70 YA authors were originally published in a still-active blog of the same name. Though supposedly writing to themselves as teens, the contributors offer not private messages but public advice and reassurance, usually on topics of widespread interest ranging from the lighthearted—hair care and fashion choices—to abuse, bullying, bulimia, and boyfriend behavior (probably the most common theme, as only 14 of the 70 are men, and some of those are gay). Perhaps because the lineup leans heavily toward younger white writers of paranormal fantasy, there is a certain uniformity of tone and outlook that comes through in frequent references to dance and theater experiences, college plans, and traumatic memories often related to bad parents or being smart or shy, rather than racial or ethnic identity. Nonetheless, along with plenty of (now) amusing anecdotes and hard-won insights, the letters dish up proof that, as Mike Jung puts it, 'time was on your side, though, and you made it!' Each letter ends with a brief biography and photo."—Booklist

From the Publisher

Gr 6 Up—Fact: The teenage experience doesn't play out like it does in the movies. Stripped of its Hollywood gloss and thrown into harsh reality, it is a daily gauntlet of angst and anxiety and trial, but also of hard-won triumph. Here, in letters to their former teen selves, more than 60 young adult authors discuss friendship, first love, body image, abuse, depression, glory days, horror days, and how the experiences they had as teenagers helped shape them into the (mostly) well-adjusted adults they grew to be. These letters range from humorous to heartbreaking, and teens past, present, and future will find something they can relate to. Julia Whelan and Macleod Andrews do an admirable of job narrating the various letters (Zest Books, 2012) by authors such as Beth Fantaskey, Carrie Jones, Joseph Bruchac, Ilse Bick, and a host of others. The concept is creative, and listeners will love getting to know their favorite YA authors better. Unfortunately, the discs consistently end mid-letter, giving the recording a choppy, interrupted feel. Additionally, graphic segments don't translate well into audio format. This makes a nice supplement to the print version, but is not a necessary purchase. For additional letters, visit dearteenme.com.—Alissa Bach, Oxford Public Library, MI

School Library Journal - Audio

Julia Whelan and MacLeod Andrews narrate a collection of letters from authors to their teen selves, with Whelan reading those of female authorship, Andrews those of males. Most letters are about 4 minutes, but a few are over 12 minutes. The material illustrates that while the experience of being a teenager is universal, there are infinite incarnations of the specific pains and longings, losses and victories. In particular, hearing Whelan recount such a wide variety of girls having issues with body image and eating disorders brings the commonalities alive while leaving the listener feeling not so alone. The magic of the production, however, lies in keeping each story and character fresh and distinct, a feat in the face of so many stories told in such compact form. A.M.P. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2013 - AudioFile