FOR THE YOUNG ADULT AND THE YOUNG AT HEART
1. Each of Us a Desert by Mark Oshiro
Xochitl is destined to wander the desert alone, speaking her troubled village’s stories into its arid winds. Her only companions are the blessed stars above and enigmatic lines of poetry magically strewn across dusty dunes.
2. The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
When Dimple Met Rishi meets Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda in this rom-com about two teen girls with rival henna businesses.
Sixteen tales by bestselling and award-winning authors that explore the Black experience through fantasy, science fiction, and magic. With stories by: Elizabeth Acevedo, Amerie, Patrice Caldwell, Dhonielle Clayton, J. Marcelle Corrie, Somaiya Daud, Charlotte Nicole Davis, Justina Ireland, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Danny Lore, L. L. McKinney, Danielle Paige, Rebecca Roanhorse, Karen Strong, Ashley Woodfolk, and Ibi Zoboi.
Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, and a mystery. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell novel — but far, far more monsters.
5. Who I Was with Her by Nita Tyndall
Who I Was with Her is a lyrical contemporary YA novel about the complexities of grief, sexuality, and the secrets we choose to keep, perfect for fans of Nina LaCour.
6. All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
A powerful debut YA memoir-manifesto about growing up Black and queer in America—for teen fans of Moonlight and I Can’t Date Jesus.
7. Sasha Masha by Agnes Borinsky
In this #OwnVoices LGBTQ young adult debut, Alex comes to realize his true identity as a young woman named Sasha Masha.
8. Most Likely by Sarah Watson
From the creator of the hit TV series The Bold Type comes an empowering and heartfelt novel about a future female president’s senior year of high school.
9. Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore
Dumplin’ meets Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe in this own voices standalone novel about two best friends, two enormous secrets, and one beauty pageant, cowritten by Tehlor Kay Mejia (5 starred reviews for her debut novel!) and award-winning author Anna-Marie McLemore.
10. Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi, Yusef Salaam
From award-winning, bestselling author Ibi Zoboi and prison reform activist Yusef Salaam of the Exonerated Five, comes a powerful YA novel in verse about a boy who is wrongfully incarcerated. Perfect for fans of Jason Reynolds, Walter Dean Myers, and Elizabeth Acevedo.
Filled with all of the action, emotion, and lyrical writing that brought readers to Sky in the Deep, New York Times bestselling author Adrienne Young returns with a new captivating duology. Welcome to a world made dangerous by the sea and by those who wish to profit from it. Where a young girl must find her place and her family while trying to survive in a world built for men.
12. Camp by LC Rosen
From the author of the acclaimed Jack of Hearts (and other parts) comes a sweet and sharp screwball comedy that critiques the culture of toxic masculinity within the queer community.
13. Wayward Witch by Zoraida Córdova
The heart-stopping final installment in the highly original award-winning Brooklyn Brujas series! Rose has always been a fixer. But lately she’s been feeling lost; she has brand new powers that she doesn’t understand, and her family is still trying to figure out how to function in the wake of her amnesiac father’s return home.
14. Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Shadow of Kyoshi by F.C.Yee
This thrilling follow-up continues Kyoshi’s journey from a girl of humble origins to the merciless pursuer of justice still feared and admired centuries after becoming the Avatar. Get the first in the series HERE.
15. Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
A trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family summons a ghost who refuses to leave in this Own Voices LGBT paranormal YA novel, described as “Groundbreaking” by Entertainment Weekly.
Filled with mystery and an intriguingly rich magic system, Tracy Deonn’s YA contemporary fantasy Legendborn offers the dark allure of City of Bones with a modern-day twist on a classic legend and a lot of Southern Black Girl Magic-on UNC’s campus!
17. My True Love Gave to Me : Twelve Holiday Stories Edited by Stephanie Perkins
Twelve romantic holiday stories by twelve bestselling young adult authors edited by Stephanie Perkins. If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with this collection.
18. This Is All Your Fault by Aminah Mae Safi
Set over the course of one day, this smart and voice-driven YA novel follows three young women determined to save their indie bookstore.
19. Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
A powerful, #ownvoices contemporary YA for fans of The Poet X and I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter set in Argentina, about a rising soccer star who must put everything on the line—even her blooming love story—to follow her dreams.
20. Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson
Award-winning author Tiffany D. Jackson delivers another classic: a riveting, ripped-from-the-headlines stand-alone mystery that exposes horrific secrets hiding behind the limelight and the power of a young woman’s voice.
21. We are Not Free by Traci Chee
From New York Times best-selling and acclaimed author Traci Chee comes We Are Not Free, the collective account of a tight-knit group of young Nisei, second-generation Japanese American citizens, whose lives are irrevocably changed by the mass U.S. incarcerations of World War II.
An anthology of short stories by new and up-and-coming YA authors featured in the online magazine Foreshadow, along with craft advice for writing YA from New York Times bestselling authors Nova Ren Suma and Emily X. R. Pan.
23. A Song Of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown
The first in the immersive, New York Times bestselling fantasy duology inspired by West African folklore in which a grieving crown princess and a desperate refugee find themselves on a collision course to murder each other despite their growing attraction—from debut author Roseanne A. Brown. Perfect for fans of Tomi Adeyemi, Renée Ahdieh, and Sabaa Tahir.
24. The Daughters of Ys by M. T. Anderson, Jo Rioux (Illustrated by)
Ys, an Atlantis-like city from Celtic legend, is the setting of this mythical graphic novel fantasy from National Book Award winner M. T. Anderson.
