Aussie YA Blog Hop 2016 ~ My #LoveOzYA Recommendations & Highlights

It's time for the Aussie YA Blog Hop!

This week, the Aussie YA Bloggers Group is sharing the #LoveOzYA love across the blogosphere by sharing our favourite Aussie YA reads. It's a chance to shine a spotlight on the diverse and incredible range of Aussie YA books and authors - re-living old favourites and helping you guys find new ones!

A big thank you to Jeann over at Happy Indulgence, as well as her fellow mods Genie in a Book, Loony Literate, Thoughts by J and My Life in Books for hosting this fun challenge (make sure you visit their blogs as well for more awesome Aussie YA recs).

Also don't forget to join the Twitter chat on Sunday 14 August at 6pm on #AusYABlogChat and @AusYABloggers!

Hmm...where do I even start?!

There is so much I love about Aussie YA that it's difficult to put it all into words. I think the best way to phrase it is that there is this strong, unyielding connection that I feel when I read it. Every Aussie YA novel has a unique voice but that voice speaks of a shared Australian experience that always makes me feel like I'm visiting with an old friend.

I also love how Aussie YA authors test boundaries and experiment with YA fiction, creating new niches and sub-genres, and breathing life into raw characters who have the depth and the mettle to deal with whatever trials lie ahead.

Another hard question to answer!

At the top of my list has to be the incredible Melina Marchetta (who gave me life with her Lumatere Chronicles, as well as On the Jellicoe Road, Saving Francesca, and my absolute fave Looking for Alibrandi).

Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff most certainly make the list as well (am so in love with their book Illuminae).

And last but not least, I have to include the talented Garth Nix (for his Abhorsen series) and Lara Morgan (for her series that made me laugh/cry/both at the same time, The Rosie Black Chronicles).

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is not only an Aussie YA book I grew up with, but it's one that accompanied me into adulthood and remains one of my go-to reads.

The book was an epic roller-coaster that put into words the emotions of a young girl during World War II. But it wasn't like other war/historical fiction novels I'd read before - it had heart. It made you feel for and connect with the story's characters. It also ensnared the imagination with its unique narration by none other than Death itself. This book was a winner from start to finish.

My top Aussie YA read of 2016 so far has to be Threader by Rebekah Turner.

Rebekah Turner makes me so, so proud to call myself Australian. Using her stellar writing abilities in Threader, she wove together a vivid and gritty image of the year 2050. Nothing is cliche. You're not force fed information - instead Ms. Turner encourages readers to accept Threader's world as an extension of their own.

Overall, Threader was a fine balance of the down-to-earth and the advanced, making for a unique and thrilling reading experience.

I am probably most excited for Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff which comes out October 18th 2016!

Gemina is to follow in the steps of its predecessor Illuminae - once again bringing readers an entertaining mix of dossier of emails, IMs, classified files, transcripts, and schematics. I cannot even begin to express how excited I am for this beauty to be on my bookshelf ASAP!

No Aussie YA series has ever captured my imagination the way Isobelle Carmody's awe-inspiring Obernewtyn Chronicles has.

Obernewtyn is actually one of the first books I ever reviewed on this blog (the review is basically 9% review and 91% awkward newbie blogger formatting lol). I couldn't contain my fangirling and had to share my love for this unique series. It features one of the most badass and independent heroines in YA to date, as well as a rich, detailed dystopian world that will blow you away with its magic and sense of realism.

This one is actually quite a recent read & review: The Boundless Sublime by Lili Wilkinson.

I did not expect to enjoy a book centred on cults as much as I did! I entered my reading of the The Boundless Sublime fully expecting a lot of lagging and over-explaining...but was quickly proven wrong page after page, chapter after chapter. Lili is such a talented author - her characters have explored (and unexplored) depths that really bring an element of realism to this perspective-changing novel.

Oh my gosh if you haven't read this book yet then I order you to run/skip/Apparate to your nearest bookstore and grab yourself a copy!

I'm not exaggerating when I say that Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah is a life-changing book.

We live in a world where every day prejudice and blind hate lead to such heartbreak, such needless conflict. We often fail to concentrate on the person - regardless of what religion someone belongs to, or what race or ethnicity, they are human and have human experiences.

This book brings into reader's lives Amal - a funny, bright young woman with the typical teenager troubles (a.k.a boys and homework!). When she decides to start wearing the hijab full-time, her life changes.

What filled me with such love for this book was that not once did Amal allow others to control her free will. She embraced her faith and decided to live her life the way she chose - despite the taunts, despite the controversy. She's such an inspiring fictional heroine and one that will definitely find a spot in your heart.

(I am going to write-whisper this next bit...because it totally ruins my Aussie YA lover cred!)

*clears throat* I may...or may not...have not gotten around to reading the Tomorrow series by John Marsden.

I know it's an Aussie YA staple! If Aussie YA was a crown, this series would be the centrepiece, the star jewel - it has over 37, 760 ratings/reviews on Goodreads, and I know for a fact that nearly everyone I know has tuned in to the tv series. But I just haven't gotten around to starting it. Which needs to change, and fast!

I honestly love each and ever Aussie YA blogger I've had the pleasure of meeting (both online and in person). So if you're not on this list please forgive me - I realised too late that this post couldn't go on for 157877856587587323232 metres of scrolling so that meant I had to shorten my list slightly!

My list of fave Aussie YA bloggers (The Short and Extremely Incomplete Version)

Cait from Paper Fury

Jeann from Happy Indulgence

Eugenia from Genie in a Book

Gina from Behind The Pages

Sunny from A Sunny Spot

All the lovely people over at Read3r'z Re-Vu

Kristy from Book Nerd Reviews

Emily from Loony Literate

Don't forget to check out the rest of the posts on the blog hop!