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Find something new to read with our YA book lists!

New Teen Titles

Under the Same Stars by Libba Bray
The Scorpion and the Night Blossom by Amelie Wen Zhao
Interabled: True Stories About Love and Disability by Shane and Hannah Burcaw
Song of a Blackbird by Maria van Lieshout
Heavenly Tyrant by Xiran Jay Zhao

The Title Sounds Familiar: [Blank] of [Blank] and [Blank]

House of Roots & Ruin by Erin A. Craig
Lifestyle of Gods & Monsters by Emily Roberson
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
The Ballad of Darcy & Russell by Morgan Matson
House of Salt and Sorrow by Erin A. Craig

Find a love story during Read a Romance Month!

Stay With My Heart by Tashie Bhuiyan
Betting On You by Lynn Painter
Love Off the Record by Samantha Markum
Joined at the Joints by Marissa Eller
On the Bright Side by Anna Sortino

It’s Showtime: Books featuring bands, concerts, and pop stars

Super Fake Love Song
Forward March
I Was Born For This
The Montague Twins: The Devil's Music
Suncatcher

Read the Rainbow!

So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole
We Got the Beat by Jenna Miller
Just Another Epic Love Poem by Parisa Akhbari
Infinity Alchemist by Kacen Callender
Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa

May is National Water Safety Month. Dive in, if you dare…

The River Has Teeth by Erica Waters
We Don't Swim Here by Vincent Tirado
And the Ocean Was Our Sky by Patrick Ness
The Narrows by Kate Alice Marshall
The Stranded by Sarah Daniels

Short on time? These books have 300 pages – or less!

The Grimmer by Naben Ruthnum
My Throat an Open Grave by Tori Bovalino
Actually Super by Adi Alsaid
The Search for Us by Susan Azim Boyer
Rhythm & Muse by India Hill Brown

2024 ALA Youth Media Award Winners & Honor Books

Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Europe, by Steve Sheinkin
Wrath Becomes Her, by Aden Polydoros
Nigeria Jones by Ibi Zoboi
There Goes the Neighborhood, written by Jade Adia
The Collectors: Stories, edited by A.S. King,

Books to Read for Native American Heritage Month!

Into the Bright Open by Cherie Dimaline
Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Trickster: Native American Tales
Pemmican Wars: A Girl Called Echo by Katherena Vermette
Harvest House by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Halloween 2023: Monsters, Murders, and Malevolence

Harvest House by Cynthia Leitich SMith
She Is A Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran
Together We Rot by Skyla Arndt
Reader, I Murdered Him by Betsy Cornwell
This Delicious Death by Kayla Cottingham

It’s Back-to-School Season!

The Legacies by Jessica Goodman
Something More by Jackie Khalilieh
Jasmine Zumideh Needs A Win by Susan Azim Boyer
Promise Boys by Nick Brooks
The Headmaster's List by Melissa de la Cruz

It’s ARRR-gust – Read A Pirate’s Tale!

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtues by Mackenzie Lee
Clash of Steel by C.B. Lee
Seafire by Natalie C. Parker
Fable by Adrienne Young
Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser

Happy Pride Month 2023!

Destination Unknown by Bill Konigsberg
The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
Aces Wild by Amanda DeWitt
6 Times We Almost Kissed (and 1 Time We Did) by Tess Sharpe
Spell Bound by F.T. Lukens

2023 ALA Youth Media Award Winners & Honor Books

Some Kind of Hate, written by Sarah Darer Littman
Eight Nights of Flirting, written by Hannah Reynolds
Ain't Burned All That Bright by Jason Griffin, Jason Reynolds
We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds
Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice, written by Tommie Smith and Derrick Barnes

Books to read during Hispanic Heritage Month!

Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Saenz
Suncatcher by Jose Pimienta
Food Related Stories by Gaby Melian
Diamond Park by Phillippe Diederich
Flirting with Fate by J.C. Cervantes

Read about friendship in all its forms during National Friendship Month!

When We Were Infinite by Kelly Loy Gilbet
Beauty and the Besharam by Lily Vale
Kings of B'More by R. Eric Thomas
Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee
We Can Be Heroes b Kylie McCauley

Water You Going to Read Today?

Freedom Swimmer by Wai Chim
The Light At the Bottom of the World by London Shah
The Sea Knows My Name by Laura Brook Robson
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh
The Girl From the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag

Happy Pride Month 2022!

Nate Plus One by Kevin van Whye
Needlework by Julie Watts
The Heartbreak Bakery by A.R. Capetta
All That's Left in the World by Erik J. Brown
If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales

Happy Asian Pacific American Heritage Month!

The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker
A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin
Messy Roots by Laura Gao
A Thousand Steps into Night by Traci Chee
Counting Down with You by Tashie Bhuiyan

Reading Recs for Black History Month

Notes from a Young Black Chef by Kwame Onwuachi, Joshua David Stein
The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights
Black Birds in the Sky: The Story and Legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre by Brandy Colbert
Revolution in Our Time by Kekla Magoon
Race Against Time: The Untold Story of Scipio Jones and the Battle to Save Twelve Innocent Men by Sandra Neil Wallace, Rich Wallace

Fall in love with these YA romance titles!

Some Girls Do by Jennifer Dugan
The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons
Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun by Jonny Garza Villa
Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon
Radha & Jai’s Recipe for Romance by Nisha Sharma

2022 ALA Youth Media Award Winners & Honor Books

Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero by E. Lockhart
The Summer of Lost Letters by Hannah Reynolds
A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger
Home is Not A Country by Safia Elhillo
Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon

YA Fabulism – Realism with a Touch of Fantasy

The Wide Starlight by Nicole Lesperance
A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcy Little Badger
The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris
Summer in the City of Roses by Michelle Ruiz Keil
Bad Witch Burning by Jessica Lewis

YA Adaptations of Literary Classics

So Many Beginnings by Bethany C. Morrow
Night Spinner by Addie Thorley
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Once & Future by A.R. Capetta
A Clash of Steel by C.B. Lee

Recognizing Native Authors for Native American Heritage Month

Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band by Christian Staebler
Pemmican Wars (A Girl Called Echo) by Katherena Vermette
The Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger
One Real American: The Life of Ely S. Parker, Seneca Sachem and Civil War General by Joseph Bruchac

Titles to Read For Hispanic Heritage Month!

Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore
Lobizona by Romina Garber
Each of Us a Desert by Mark Oshiro
Never Look Back by Lilliam Rivera
Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

Prep School Page Turners

Don't Breathe a Word by Jordyn Taylor
How We Fall Apart by Katie Zhao
The Castle School (for Troubled Girls) by Alyssa B. Sheinmel
Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

The United States: Many Voices, Many People

Mazie by Melanie Crowder
An Emotion of Great Delight by Tahareh Mafi
The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed
We Are Not Free by Traci Chee
The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

YA Books Perfect for Pride!

The Fire Never Goes Out by Noelle Stevenson
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
Girl Crushed by Kate Heaney
The State of Us by Shaun David Hutchinson
The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Resources for Mental Health Awareness Month

Grief recovery for teens : letting go of painful emotions with body-based practices by Coral Popowitz, MSW
Project Semicolon : your story isn't over with Amy Bleuel
Beneath the surface : a teen's guide to reaching out when you or your friend is in crisis by Kristi Hugstad
The anxiety survival guide for teens : CBT skills to overcome fear, worry & panic by Jennifer Shannon, LMFT
Heads up : changing minds on mental health by Melanie Siebert

#OwnVoices Novels for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Super Fake Love Song
The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman
We Are Not Free by Traci Chee
The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim

Celebrate National Poetry Month with these YA Novels in Verse!

Your Heart, My Sky by Margarita Engle
When We Make It by Elisabet Velasquez
Ain't Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds
Me (Moth) by Amber McBride
If I Tell You the Truth by Jasmin Kaur

30 Books to Read this Black History Month

Daughters of Jubilation by Kara Lee Corthron
This Is My America by Kim Johnson
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender
Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant
The Awakening of Malcolm X by Ilyasah Shabazz and Tiffany D. Jackson

2021 ALA Youth Media Award Books – YA Finalists and Honor Titles

Never Look Back, written by Lilliam Rivera
We Are Not From Here, written by Jenny Torres Sanchez
Legendborn, written by Tracy Deonn
All the Days Past, All the Days to Come by Mildred D. Taylor
Lifting as We Climb: Black Women's Battle for the Ballot Box by Evette Dionne

⚓ Nautical Novels to Pair with Your Favorite Sea Shanty ⚓

Fable by Adrienne Young
Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen
The Mermaid, The Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe by Ally Condie
The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig

Ease into the New Year with Short Stories!

The pick-up game : a full day of full court edited by Marc Aronson & Charles R. Smith
Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan
His Hideous Heart edited by Dahlia Adler
After: nineteen stories of apocalypse and dystopia edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling
It's a Whole Spiel edited by Katherine Locke and Laura Silverman

YA Books for Comfort Reading

All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater
Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant by Tony Cliff
You'd Be Mine by Erin Hahn
Lumberjanes: Beware the Kitten Holy by Noelle Stevenson
The Supervillain and Me by Danielle Banas

Native American Heritage Month

Dreaming in Indian by Lisa Charleyboy
Apple: Skin to the Core by Eric Gansworth
Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger
Killer of Enemies by Joseph Bruchac
An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People by Debbie Reese

Delightful Debuts of 2020

A Breath Too Late by Rocky Callen
Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibanez
Rebelwing by Andrea Tang
Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown

Black Voices Matter

Light It Up by Kekla Magoon
Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Dr. Ibram X. Kendi
Just Mercy: A True Story of the Fight for Justice by Bryan Stevenson
I'm Not Dying With You Tonight by Gilly Segal

March Through Women’s History Month

Because I Was a Girl by Melissa de la Cruz
A Thousand Sisters: The Heroic Airwomen of the Soviet Union in World Warr II by Elizabeth Wein
Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide by Isabel Quintero and Zeke Pena
Dissenter on the Bench: Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Life & Work by Victoria Ortiz
Shout by Laurie Halse Anderson

“It’s Complicated”

Wicked Fox by Kat Cho
The Importance of Being Wilde At Heart by R. Zamora Linmark
Since We Last Spoke by Brenda Rufener
Night Music by Jenn Marie Thorne
Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee by Jeff Zentner

New Year, New Hobbies!

The Green Teen Cookbook by Laurane Marchive & Pam McElroy
The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook by Rosanna Pansino
Why? by Joel Levy
The Weird World of Words by Mitchell Symons
97 Things to Do Before You Finish High School by Steven Jenkins and Erika Stalder

Warm Up with a Fiery Book!

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein
The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad
Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh
Fireborne by Rosaria Munda
Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Featured Titles for Native American Heritage Month

#Not Your Princess by Lisa Charleyboy
Dreaming in Indian by Lisa Charleyboy
This Place: 150 Years Retold, foreword by Alicia Elliott
Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline
Killer of Enemies by Joseph Bruchac

Autumn Books for Thrills & Chills

You May Now Kill the Bride by R. L. Stine
Not Even Bones by Rebecca Shaeffer
Wilder Girls by Rory Power
Five Midnights by Ann Davila Cardinal
His Hideous Heart: Thirteen of Edgar Allan Poe's Most Unsettling Takes Reimagined

Back-to-School Reads

Don't Date Rosa Santos by Nina Moreno
Your Own Worst Enemy by Gordon Jack
Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli
The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas
Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry