The Best Young Adult Books I've Read as a Grownup

Last week I wrote about young adult lit. This week I'm following up with a list of my favorites. I am classifying any book with a teenage protagonist as young adult lit, but I'm sure there are people who would argue with that classification.
Anyhoo....
7. Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants - I love these characters, and how well they're written. They're all so different, but I find each one believable.

6. Special Topics in Calamity Physics -  I think the only reason more teens didn't get into this book is because they were intimidated by its length. But I couldn't put it down.







5. Sloppy Firsts - I read the whole series, but nothing compared to the first Jessica Darling novel.

4. To Kill a Mockingbird - I reread this as an adult when I taught it to 9th graders. My students were disappointed that Atticus didn't kick some ass at the end, but I still think it's one of the most beautifully written books I've ever read.

3. The Secret History - From the prologue I was hooked. Murder, ancient Greek rituals, intrigue - what could be better?

2. The Hunger Games

1. Harry Potter Series

Number one and number two are pretty obvious choices, but I can't think of any books, young-adult or otherwise, that I've enjoyed more. The best part is, millions of people feel the same way.