Welcome to TEENtober!

Every October, public and school libraries across the country celebrate TEENtober, a month-long celebration that highlights teens, their voices, and the importance of reading.

I'm celebrating TEENtober with a special E Train Talks interview featuring Christina Chatel and Marcia Kochel, the founders of IT'S TIME FOR YOUNG TEEN LIT, a movement advocating for a dedicated book category that bridges the gap between middle grade and young adult literature.

Christina, a middle-school librarian librarian in Troy, Michigan, who began advocating for a dedicated book category bridging middle grade and young adult fiction, and Marcia, a school librarian in Georgia who shared the same vision as Christina and joined forces to launch the TEEN LIT movement.

In this episode, we discuss why libraries, bookstores, and publishers should recognize Young Teen Lit as its own category, and why it's so important for teens to have access to stories that reflect their interests, experiences, and challenges.

This conversation really hits home for me because, as a teen reader myself, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to find books that are engaging, relatable, and right for my age.

Join me for a great conversation with Christina and Marcia, two passionate librarians who are working to bring more attention to the need for engaging, age-appropriate books for younger teens, because every teen deserves to discover stories that speak to them and make them excited about reading!

To find out more or support the young teen cause, check out the IT'S TIME FOR YOUNG TEEN LIT website at: https://youngteenlit.com/

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