ListManiac: Favorite Parents of YA

Once again I'm cutting it very close to the mark, aren't I?

But! Never the less, here it comes: Favorite/Best Parents of YA!!!!

This is a topic that is very near and dear to my heart since the crappy parents of YA are one of my biggest pet peeves when it comes to the genre (and to Kristan Higgins' books). I just hate how the parents are usually a) totally clueless, b) cartoonish to the point of being stupid or c) totally neglectful; and I probably couldn't tell you the names of about 80% of the parents in the YA books I've read. 

But there are some parents that really stand out because of their presence in their kids' lives and the love they show them, and those are the ones who are going into this list. 

Side Note: I made a conscious decision to not include parents/adults from Melina Marchetta's books because I kind of always put her books / characters into these lists and I could probably fill the list just with them, but! I decided not to do that and go in a different direction. Still, big shot out to Beatriss and Trevanion and Jude Scanlon and company. 

#5 - Joe Mastriani (1-800-Where-R-U / Lighting Girl series by Meg Cabot).

Meg Cabot generally writes good parents into her books, but Joe Mastriani will always be my favorite. He knows his three children pretty well, and lets our leading lady Jess be who she is without trying to push her into a mold of "perfect girlhood" the way her mom does (I don't very much care for Toni Mastriani, I'm afraid). He trusts Jess to make good choices for herself and is generally a cool dad, he doesn't hover but he's always there when his kids need him. 

#4 Arthur Weasley (Harry Potter Series)

Yup! only Arthur gets mentioned. While Molly Weasley is easily one of my least liked characters from the Harry Potter series, Arthur is one of my favorites. Once again, he accepts all his children and shows them the same amount of love - while Molly is busy playing favorites - plus, he's a very curious person and I just love that. 

#3 Jess's parents from Into the Wild Nerd Yonder.

I don't remember if they ever get mentioned by name, but it doesn't matter, they are pretty terrific as Mom and Dad. They always try to show their daughter that it's OK that she's growing at her own pace and finding new and different interests other than chasing boys like most of her friends. Plus, her mom has this awesome quote:

"I just want you to know that there are a lot of really great people out there. You might not meet them in high school, but you'll find them and hopefully they won't be concerned with how cool they are rather than how much they like to be around you." 

So, yeah, even though I'm very on the fence about Julie Halpern in general, i love this book.

#2 Mr. and Mrs. Hovarth (The True Meaning of Cleavage)

First off, I love The True Meaning of Cleavage which, along with The Earth, My Butt and Other Big Round Things, is one of those books I think should be a "MUST" for younger teens. And I love Mr and Mrs Hovarth - Jess's parents -because they are remarkably unremarkable yet they are always looking out for their daughter and let her know that growing up at her own pace is perfectly okay. Again, they don't hover but they are always around. 

#1 Wei and Craing Hwong and Ted Keller (My Most Excellent Year)

These three are actually the ones that inspired this list and they are probably the strangest addition to it. Wei, Craig and Ted formed a sort of co-parenting unit when their six-year-old kids Augie and T.C. decided they were going to be brothers; and now, 8 years later they have assimilated each other into their families and formed one big family unit. Yet, Wei and Craig are still in charge of Augie and would never dream of telling Ted how to raise T.C. and viceversa, they just help each other out and let their kids enjoy their brotherly bond.

I love these three parents because they are not afraid to show their kids how much they love them, they have this wonderful mindset of "I'm going to shower you with my love, so, deal!". And there is also the fact that you can really see that they are friends with each other, and that they have lives other than just being their kids' parents.

So, that's my list for this month! Don't forget to vote on the left sidebar, and please let me know what your favorite parents of YA are in the comments.