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They've Gotta Have Faith When readers come to you looking for Christian fiction, how do you point them in the right direction? Readers may have a hard time describing what they want, and you may not know the best way to help them. As a librarian who has explored Christian fiction, I know how difficult it can be to find good quality books of this type for teens. Here are some tools you may find useful. Yours in reading,
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Award Winners
There are several literary awards for young adult Christian fiction. In addition to the Christy Awards, there are the Carol, Illumination, and Christian Retailing's Best awards. This bookmark lists the young adult Christy Award winners since 2010. Print and post to help readers identify award-winning Christian fiction for teens. LibraryAware users can switch out the title and books to highlight any award!
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Different Flavors of Christian Fiction
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The spectrum of Christian fiction: While these terms are unofficial and can't be used to search in NoveList, they may prove handy during reader's advisory interviews with teens searching for Christian fiction.
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Overtly Christian: These books don't shy away from bringing God into the picture. The main character openly prays, speaks about faith, and uses Biblical tenets to make decisions. Allegorical: Rather than speak openly about God or Christianity, themes are explored through symbolic characters and situations that echo the stories of the Bible. Often, these stories are fantasy, science fiction, or dystopian. Struggling with Faith: These characters aren't sure where they stand when it comes to faith and have a push/pull relationship with religion. Print this flyer to introduce teen readers to the many flavors of Christian fiction being published.
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Need more books for your display? The Recommended Reads list "Christian Lives" tracks the latest teen books in this genre. The list is updated regularly. Find the list with this code: UI 441406
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Search Strings:
Find more books with search strings. Type the searches into a NoveList search box: Straight up Christian: GN "Christian fiction" AND RL 2 To cast a wide net on book about faith (both positive and negative views): SU ("Faith" OR "Religion" OR "Spirituality") AND RL 2
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A Note from Youth Book Squad: While this email focuses exclusively on Christian fiction, we know that you have readers of all faiths in your midst. Let us know what you are interested in by using the email button, and we can send you a search string, booklist, or possibly both. Let us know how we can help you. Yours in reading,
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