About
Young at Heart is a newsletter written by a lover of young adult and middle grade literature, mostly about books and reading/writing.
Why YA & MG? Well, I read it and I write it; I talk about it with my kids and their friends and my students, and so, I write about it here.
As a writer, young people are my target audience, but I truly believe that we as readers never outgrow children’s literature, and that enjoying it is one way we ourselves stay young at heart.
As an undergrad and a grad student I studied languages and literature, and now, I’m an elementary library media specialist, who generally enjoys nerding out on all things bookish.
My free bi-weekly1 newsletter, That’s Noteworthy, includes mini-reviews2 of YA and MG books, a peek into the library where I work, and something(s) bringing me joy (which is often, but not always, something bookish).
Oh! And my name is Nicole Bennett, and this is also where I share personal writing updates. Nice to meet you!
You can also visit my website to learn more about me, and my bookstagram account to see more of what I’m reading.
In October 2023, I introduced a paid tier of subscription which includes a serialized novel, and other content (such as potentially: more long-form articles, library content, book lists, and book clubs).
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To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.
This is a vague English word which can mean multiple things. I’m using it to mean every 2 weeks/every other week/fortnightly, if you will… rather than twice a week. English is weird!
I rate books with a 5-star system, that can be described as follows:
5 ⭐s: I absolutely loved it and it hit some of my favorite tropes/story elements. I heartily recommend it!
4.5 ⭐s: I loved it but it may have had one element or trope that’s not my personal fave. I strongly recommend it!
4 ⭐s: I really liked it (though it probably had more than one element that I don’t always love)… I can see this would be a good fit for _________ and will recommend it.
3-3.5 ⭐s: I liked it. I can see it would be a good fit for ____________ even though it wasn’t just right for me.
2 ⭐s: It was okay, but definitely not for me. I still finished it (though maybe reluctantly).
1 ⭐: I regret finishing it because it was really not for me and/or it had specific things I really didn’t like. I may have DNF’d it.
