what's your favourite coming of age book

[pigoons]

It is a long long time since I was an angst ridden teenager (or should I say young adult) but I was wondering what your favourite coming of age book is?

You know the type of thing - unrequited love, disastrous first love (usually with an unsuitable), growing up and gaining new perspectives (maybe losing a few friends or ideals) along the way, wanting more from life, learning a few hard lessons etc etc ....

I have a soft spot for Jonathon Coe's The Rotters Club simply because it is so good at evoking the feeling of being young, and restless, and wanting there to be more to life ...

What's yours?

The Greengage Summer, by Rumer Godden. I still love it now, and will be giving my DD a copy when she's a bit older.

All of Judy Blume- Must've been about ten when I read 'forever', every girl in my class did (we were all waiting for someone to find out what a 'sheath' was!)

Bilgewater (Jane Gardam), like dancewithemma. Although constantinoplegardener has just reminded me of Rumer Godden. Loved that one and 'Peacock spring'. Also 'Amber' by Jacqueline Wilson (who I presume is the one who is so popular now but this book is for older teens).

Now I Know - Aidan Chambers
The Adrian Mole diaries

Please don’t go by Peggy Woodford
Bonjour Tristesse
Adrian Mole
The Bell Jar

These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder. The final book of the Little House series . Laura becomes a school teacher aged only 15, determined to complete her appointment and earn money to keep her blind sister Mary at her special college. Taught me a lot about growing up and being serious in a first job, resourceful and focussed .

The Pigman by Paul Zindel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, The Twelfth Day of July by Joan Lingard. All quite different!

The Pigman made me cry.

I would say all the Tales of the city books

Ah people have already mentioned I capture the castle. I read it at 21, too old really, I will force it on my daughters at 14 I think.

The Outsiders by SE Hinton

ThomasinaandSeptimus I loved A Little Love Song as a teenager, I haven’t read it in years and don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone else mention it, thanks for the reminder!

'Forever' by Judy Blume is so moving and wonderful. There was a movie of it apparently!

Brideshead Revisited

Oh lots of things on this thread I haven't read - am off to investigate further - and yes I agree with Brideshead revisited ... think I first read this age 16 ...

Fifteen by Beverly Cleary. A sweet story of first love.

I love the Homecoming series by Cynthia Voigt. Homecoming is the first one, then Dicey’s song (I think). There are 5/6 in the series in total.

I love the teenage years Little House books - Little Town on the Prairie, Happy Golden Years, The First Four Years.
I am a Judy Blume fan too but those who loved Forever - don't re read it as an adult. You will be soooo disappointed. It's actually terrible!

Great thread!

I loved
A Peacock Spring
The Greengage summer
A little love song
The Outsiders
Bonjour Tristesse
Catcher in the Rye

I also liked The Tricksters by Margaret Mahy.

The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
Of a Boy - Sonya Hartnett
Pigeon English - Stephen Kelman

We were liars. Modern and only read as an adult.

I read a lot of Youth (or YA) Fiction.
I can't choose between...
Boy21
The Book Thief
The Highest Tide (Jim Lynch)
Pigtopia is great.
(several books by & including) The Pigman by Paul Zindel are great.
One by Sarah Crossan
Panic

Jane Gardam, A Long Way from Verona
Colette, Claudine at School
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Purple Hibiscus
K M Peyton, Flambards (and the sequels)
Esther Hautzig, The Endless Steppe - a memoir of growing up in Siberia, in a family of Polish Jewish deportees
Muriel Spark, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Others already mentioned:
I Capture the Castle
Frost in May
Rumer Godden's books Peacock Spring and Greengage Summer

Summer of my German soldier (Bette Greene) is my all time favourite.

I also like How I live now (Meg Rosoff), Adrian Mole and The Country Girls (Edna O'Brien). Can't stand Catcher in the Rye.

Remembered a couple more: Life isn't all ha ha hee hee (Meera Syal), A High Wind in Jamaica (Richard Hughes), Cat's Eye (Margaret Attwood).