Annabelle Chang recommends books for a living. If you were to ask which one she finds most \u201ccriminally underrated,\u201d she\u2019d tell you it\u2019s Katie Henry\u2019s \u201cThis Will Be Funny Someday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is truly one of my favorite books I\u2019ve ever read, not just my favorite YA books, just one of my favorite books that I think will really appeal to everyone,\u201d Annabelle, 19, told The Times. \u201cI read it at such an important time in my life. I was 16. The protagonist is also 16.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnnabelle\u2019s love for this book actually inspired our entire family to read it,\u201d her older sister Alexandra Brown Chang, 25, added. \u201cI think it\u2019s absolutely fantastic. I read it when I was 23, but I still resonate with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Annabelle\u2019s knack for recommending great young adult books led her to start an Instagram and blog during the COVID-19 pandemic. After seeing the positive response from readers of all ages, she began selling titles online and at pop-up events, including the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. At 16, she opened a brick-and-mortar store in Studio City: Annabelle\u2019s Book Club LA, the first young adult-focused bookstore in the country. <\/p>\n
\u201cI actually had my heart set on this one space in West Hollywood and I was so sad when it didn\u2019t work out. The landlord at the time said that nobody would ever come to a bookstore, which I was very sad to hear,\u201d Annabelle said. \u201cBut it all worked out for the best and I truly could not imagine a better place for the bookstore.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
At 16, Annabelle Chang opened a brick-and-mortar store in Studio City: Annabelle\u2019s Book Club LA, the first young adult-focused bookstore in the country.<\/p>\n
(Annie Noelker \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
On Sept. 2, Annabelle\u2019s Book Club, which was recently featured in a scene in the film \u201cFreakier Friday,\u201d will host an extra special event: a launch party for her sister\u2019s debut novel, \u201cBy Invitation Only<\/a>.\u201d Inspired by Alexandra\u2019s own experience as a \u201cdebutante dropout,\u201d the coming-of-age story follows two seemingly different female protagonists, Piper and Chapin, whose worlds collide at the elite La Danse des D\u00e9butantes in Paris. Together, Annabelle and Alexandra strive to amplify young adult narratives.<\/p>\n \u201cHistorically, YA hasn\u2019t been taken as seriously as it should be, but I think we are at a moment where that is changing and people are really recognizing the power of these stories,\u201d Annabelle said. \u201cThey\u2019re impactful for readers of all ages, and they address universal themes and are just incredibly important for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve wanted to write a young adult novel for a very long time, and I think that coming-of-age stories have pretty much proven to be evergreen because every generation seems to be finding new ways to tell them,\u201d added Alexandra, who graduated from Stanford in 2022. \u201cI think that we don\u2019t really come of age once. We keep coming of age because every single new stage of life, whether it\u2019s going to college or experiencing your 20s, it forces you to reevaluate who you are and who you want to be.\u201d <\/p>\n Annabelle and Alexandra grew up in a literary household. Their mom, Amanda Brown, wrote the 2001 book \u201cLegally Blonde,\u201d which was later adapted into the Reese Witherspoon-starring blockbuster and a Broadway musical. The girls recall their mom and dad, technology investor Justin Chang, reading to them every night, which helped inspire their love for books and storytelling. Among Alexandra\u2019s favorites were \u201cEloise,\u201d \u201cMadeline\u201d and \u201cSweet Dream Pie.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI loved \u2018Pinkalicious,\u2019 which I think makes sense as the bookstore is also very pink,\u201d Annabelle added. \u201cIt\u2019s always been my favorite color and one of my favorite stories to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve wanted to write a young adult novel for a very long time, and I think that coming-of-age stories have pretty much proven to be evergreen because every generation seems to be finding new ways to tell them,\u201d said Alexandra Brown Chang.<\/p>\n (Annie Noelker \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n At 14, Alexandra started the fashion blog Alex and Ella with her close friend, and later launched her own site, the Zeitgeist<\/a>, where she continued to write about fashion, art, travel and more. While in high school, she interned for designer Zac Posen in New York, an experience she called \u201clife-changing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt really allowed me to learn so much more about fashion, the business side of fashion, but also the design aspect,\u201d Alexandra said. \u201cAnd it really helped me see fashion in all of its amazing ways and as an art form.\u201d<\/p>\n In \u201cBy Invitation Only,\u201d fashion takes center stage as the girls prepare for their debutante debuts. Especially through Chapin\u2019s character, Alexandra argues that fashion should be treated as a serious craft \u2014 similar to young adult literature. <\/p>\n \u201cWhen all of the debutantes are wearing custom gowns, it makes sense that all of them would have an incredible amount of time and thought put into them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n