The Best YA movie I've seen in ages

I know this is the YA Galley blog and I should be posting about books but I just have to post about True Grit (the movie, which is based on a book)!

Mattie Ross, played in the Coen brothers version of the movie by Hailee Steinfeld, might just be my favorite YA heroine of all-time. When you take into consideration both the genre of film (Western) and the time-period, she really stands out as such a kick-butt protagonist. I mean, she heads out with a drunken marshal and surprisingly Texan version of Matt Damon to avenge her father's death. How cool is that?

If there's one complaint with YA that I have from time to time, it's the dearth of truly strong female characters. Yes, there are some books with standout characters, but I find that there are a few too many books with Bella Swan type characters, who are so wishy-washy and flighty.

Mattie Ross is none of these things. She has swagger and determination, and she can out-talk and out-wit nearly everyone in town. I know I don't have time to read a lot of grownup books these days, with my second year of being on the YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults committee just underway, but seeing True Grit this weekend sure made me want to revisit the source material.

In the meantime, I sure hope to find more Mattie Rosses in my reading this year. If you come across any, please let me know!