Young Adults Deserve the Best

This essential guide for library professionals tackles the critical need for effective young adult services as teen populations grow, offering concrete competencies developed by YALSA for serving adolescent patrons. Sarah Flowers expands these foundational principles with practical anecdotes and actionable strategies that transform theoretical concepts into daily practice for librarians working with teenagers. The book systematically addresses collection development, programming, and community engagement specifically designed for young adult audiences. It serves as both a professional development tool and a manifesto for elevating library services to meet the unique needs of today's teens.

What distinguishes this resource is its dual focus on professional standards and real-world application, making it invaluable for both new librarians and seasoned professionals seeking to refresh their youth services approach. The competencies framework provides measurable benchmarks while the anecdotal evidence illustrates successful implementation in diverse library settings. School librarians, public library youth specialists, and library science students will find particularly relevant guidance for creating teen-centered spaces and collections. Ultimately, this work champions the philosophy that adolescent library patrons warrant specialized, respectful service that acknowledges their evolving literacy needs and intellectual curiosity.