The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) has announced that it just launched an updated version of its free Teen Book Finder app—which debuted in June, 2012—to include all of the books the association honored in 2013. The first of its kind, Teen Book Finder gives teens, librarians, parents, and young adult literature aficionados access to YALSA’s recommended reading and award-winning titles from the past three years.
“The Teen Book Finder is a great resource for library workers, educators, parents, and teens to utilize to find award-winning books and recommended reading,” says Shannon Peterson, YALSA president, in the announcement. “We’re really happy it has received such a great response since our members work so hard and enthusiastically to identify the best in young adult literature.”
The app, available as a free download through iTunes, is currently compatible on the iPhone, iPod, or iPad, with an Android version in the works for 2014, according to YALSA, the young adult division of the American Library Association. It has already been downloaded approximately 6,000 times in 2013. The organization plans to update the app again in January, 2014, following ALA’s Midwinter Meeting and Youth Media Awards.
The Teen Book Finder enables users to search for books by title, author, award or list, award or list year, or genre, and its “Find It!” button, powered by the OCLC WorldCat Search API, shows users where to locate a book in a nearby library. Each day, “Three Hot Picks” are featured from the database. The “Favorites” button allows users to create individualized reading lists; users are also able to share titles found via Twitter and Facebook.
The development and launch of YALSA’s Teen Book Finder was made possible through a grant funded by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation.
