The Literary YA Box is a book subscription service from Quarterly Co. that is curated by a different young adult author each quarter. The author fills the box will their new release, at least two other books of their choosing and fun bookish goods related to themselves or the story. The inaugural box, LYA01, went out in July and was curated by Beth Revis. I was able to get my hands on a box to review and share with our readers. Here’s what was inside!
As you can see from the top of this article, the goodies were shipped in a plain brown box with Quarterly Co.’s tape around the edges. Not the most beautiful packaging, but everything got here in good shape, so you’ll hear no complaints from me.
The first things I pulled from the box were the bookish add-ons and a nice long letter from Beth Revis to her subscribers. The letter explains what’s in the box and why including a little about the novel itself. The two book-related items in the package were a red magnetic string photo holder by Kikkerland and a Quotable Notables Emily Dickinson blank note card with sticker quotes. Revis explains in the letter that the photo string is supposed to be a stand-in for the red time thread in her novel. Both strings connect you to your loved ones. The blank card is to remind you that you’re not alone, a theme from her book. You can send the card to a loved one for any occasion. Emily Dickinson is Revis’s favorite poet.
Next in the package were the two additional books Revis chose to include with her novel. One is Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer. The other is The End or Something Like That by Ann Dee Ellis. Both novels push the boundary of what’s real, adding magical situations to real life and tragedy. It’s something that Revis explores in her new release, which we’ll get to in a moment. The books look great. I haven’t read either of them before, although Belzhar has been on my To-Be-Read pile for a while. While both books look to have dark moments, Ellis’s book also includes a good bit of comedy to lighten the load. I look forward to getting into them.
Last in the box is Revis’s own new release, A World Without You. It comes with a signed bookplate. The novel is about a mentally ill teenage boy who believes he has the power to turn back time. His girlfriend has passed away, but he believes he accidentally lost her in the past. The book is written like a paranormal novel from his point of view as he tries to save her and also explores the theme of family and the toll of mental illness from the point of view of his sister. I started the book last night and had a hard time putting it down so I could go to sleep. I know the story is going to break my heart, but I love a book that can evoke so many feelings.
As a bonus, the book is full of post-it notes on the pages where Revis has written about how parts of the story came to be. Reasons behind character names or the color of the thread, bits about her life as she was writing the book, etc. It adds so much more to the story and I’m enjoying it immensely. I’ve never seen another book club do this.
Overall, I loved this book service. The book selections were amazing as were the additional little touches like the post-its and the photo hanger that ties into the story. I love that they included the author’s signature for the book too. I don’t really have any friends who are into Emily Dickinson, so I’m not sure what I’ll do with the card, but the quotes on the stickers are actually really cool, so I may use them elsewhere.
The box costs $50 plus $5 shipping. The price is quarterly and the boxes go out every 3 months. If you were to pay full price for everything in the box, it adds up to around $50. You might be able to get things cheaper at a discount Webstore, but you wouldn’t get the personal service like the post-its or the signed bookplate which really add to the experience. I really think the service is worth the extra money for the personal touches.
If you want to dive into the mind of an author and love young adult literature, this subscription is for you. Literary YA Box will be announcing their next curator on Sept. 29 and the next box will go out at the end of October. The last day to subscribe to it is October 30. If you’re interested in getting on board, you can sign up here.
Maybe you don’t read young adult books or maybe books aren’t your thing. Quarterly Co. also has a grown-up Literary Box and various other curated boxes, so take your pick.
See our review of the Quarterly Co. Culinary Box here.