Guest Book List #3: Khy of Frenetic Reader on Best Contemporary

Khy of Frenetic Reader is one of my favorite teen bloggers. Her blog is honest, humorous, and heartfelt. She's here to tell you about--what else?--all things contemporary!

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My Favorite Contemporary of the Year

When I sat down to write this post, I couldn't decide whether I wanted to dedicate my list to my new YA best friends, the books that made me cry, or the books that made me laugh. However, I quickly realized that every single book I would put in those categories was a contemporary/realistic fiction novel. It was then that I knew that I had to combine all three categories to come up with My Favorite Contemporary Fiction of 2010. Dystopia and paranormal are the hottest genres in YA fiction right now, but I'm a contemporary fan through and through because of their more realistic, less melodramatic, and easy-to-relate-to stories and narrators.

In no particular order, my favorite contemporary of the year:

The Naughty List by Suzanne Young
I'm sure that this book's bright pink cover and cheerleaders have scared away more than one reader, but those readers sure are missing out. This book is a blast to read-- it's fun, it's fast, and it's unbearably cute. Plus, it has spies.

A Match Made in High School by Kristin Walker
It's like a novelization of a John Hughes movie, but funnier. I read this book over a year ago but can still remember most of it, which is rare for me. Fiona's hilarious voice and pranks definitely left an impression.

Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales
I'm not usually a fan of vignette-style novels, but this book is so realistic that I didn't mind. I loved reading about Violet's junior year antics because they are much, much more hilarious than my own, and yet I can still relate to them so much that it's sad.

Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart
The fourth (and final?) book in the Ruby Oliver does not disappoint. Seeing Roo finally figure things out and grow up made me cry, cry, cry. One of my absolute favorite series. (If you haven't read book one, The Boyfriend List, do it!)

Sea by Heidi R. Kling
Another book that made me cry, but more because it was actually sad and not because I had spent so long with the main character, like Ruby Oliver. This is a beautiful book inside and out, with a swoon-worthy romance and heart-wrenching ending.

Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler
This book's manages to be both sad and hopeful, much like Ockler's debut novel Twenty Boy Summer. It also portrays family much more accurately than I've seen many YA novels do.

Fall For Anything by Courtney Summers
Summers totally owes me some tissues, because this book messed with my emotions SO MUCH. It's sad, it's well-written, and, really, it's just plain spectacular.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
My absolute favorite of the year! I wish I was Anna, and not only because it means I would be friends with St. Clair. She's so normal but so not boring, and she manages to make even the most unassuming story amazing.

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Thanks, Khy! (And how did she get to read Real Live Boyfriends before its release date?! Lucky duck.) Be sure to visit her blog at Frenetic Reader.

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