The Seymour Library will be celebrating Teen Read Week from Oct. 18 to 24. Teen Read Week is a national literacy initiative of the Young Adult Library Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, and is aimed at teenagers, parents, educators, librarians, booksellers and concerned adults.

The goal of Teen Read Week is to persuade teenagers to choose reading as an option for entertainment. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, there have been only modest gains in reading achievement during the past 20 years. There are very few literacy campaigns that focus on teenagers. Research shows that teens who read for fun perform better on tests and are more likely to be successful in the workforce. This year, the theme of Teen Read Week is “Read Beyond Reality,” and teens are encouraged to read something out of this world.

The following is a list of suggested reading from the Young Adult Library Services Association, including science fiction, fantasy, virtual reality and horror. All of the books are part of the collection at Seymour Library.

• Anderson, M. T.: “Feed.” Titus and Violet live in a future where prosperous parents commonly endow their newborn children with Feed: minicomputers with wireless connections implanted in their heads.

• Bradbury, Ray: “Fahrenheit 451.” In this futuristic society, reading is a crime and firefighters burn books.

• Doctorow, Cory: “Little Brother.” There's been another major terrorist attack and the Department of Homeland Security has clamped down. It's up to Marcus, computer geek, to save everyone from this police state.

• Giles, Gail: “What Happened to Cass McBride?” After his younger brother commits suicide, Kyle Kirby decides to take revenge on the person he holds responsible.

• Halam, Ann: “Dr. Franklin's Island.” Three teens survive a plane crash on a deserted island, but they aren't as alone as they think.

• L'Engle, Madeleine: “A Wrinkle in Time.” Meg travels through a wrinkle in time while working with her friends and extraterrestrials to free her missing father from an evil force.

• Lowry, Lois: “The Giver.” Jonas, designated his community's memory-keeper, lives in a future where differences have been erased and strict rules govern society.

• Malley, Gemma: “The Declaration.” It's 2140 and Anna is a Surplus, an unwanted child forced into slavery.

• Meyer, Stephenie: “The Host.” Wanderer takes over Melanie's body. As Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of Jared, a human who still lives in hiding, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she's never met.

• Reeve, Philip: “Here Lies Arthur.” A fresh look at the Arthur legend, told through the eyes of a young girl who pretends to be a boy to survive.

• Rosoff, Meg: “How I Live Now.” Set during a shocking occupation by terrorist forces, 15-year-old Daisy finds true love, mystical connections and a sense of home with her cousins in England.

• Skurzynski, Gloria: “Virtual War.” Fourteen-year-old Corgan is a genetically engineered soldier, raised in an isolated computer-generated environment for the purpose of one war. But he discovers he must question everything he's been taught to believe and learn to think for himself.

• Vande Velde, Vivian: “Being Dead.” Follow the haunted souls of yesterday beyond the grave and into our world.

• Yancey, Rick: “The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp.” Fast cars, monks with swords and an unexpected destiny await 15-year-old Alfred Kropp.

Sheila Mikkelson is director of Seymour Library in Auburn