by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed

This collaborative novel from authors Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed is a light-hearted love story that deals with weighty issues. Canvassing for a candidate for state senate might bring Jamie Goldberg and Maya Rehman together. But are they prepared to navigate the cross-cultural crush of the century?

by Chandler Baker and Wesley King

This witty, entertaining romance accurately depicts the ways that teens have had to figure out friendships, dating, and planning for the future during the coronavirus pandemic. 

by Nicola Yoon

After witnessing a couple kiss, Yvette thinks of how their romance will end in heartbreak, then while taking dance lessons, she starts to fall for an adventurous boy, and she starts to question all she thought she knew about love.

by Isaac Blum

Hoodie Rosen’s entire Orthodox Jewish community has just picked up and moved to a new town that is not at all welcoming. When he meets and falls for the mayor’s daughter, his community turns on him. This is a wry and witty story of worlds colliding in friendship, betrayal, and hatred.

by Kenneth M. Cadow

A lyrical tale about a rural Vermont teen dealing with abandonment, addicted family members, and crushing poverty.  Then a large stray dog complicates, and maybe saves, his life. Narrator Ian spins a profanity-laced, heart-filled account of the difficulties he faces and how his community comes together to help him.

by Stephen Chbosky

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a coming-of-age novel told through letters written by an introspective teenager named Charlie. Charlie navigates the complexities of high school, including friendships, first love, loss, and mental health struggles. He finds solace and support in an unconventional group of friends who help him discover himself and embrace life's "infinite possibilities."

by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon

A collection of related short stories about the love that blossoms when a summer heatwave causes a blackout in New York City.

by Olivia A. Cole

This searing and intimate novel in verse follows a sixteen-year-old girl coping with sexual abuse as she grapples with how to reclaim her story, her anger, and her body in a world that seems determined to punish her for the sin of surviving.

by Marianne Cronin

Both patients in a Glasgow hospital, 17-year-old Lenni and 83-year-old Margot devise a plan to create one hundred paintings showcasing the stories of the century they have lived—stories of love and loss, of courage and kindness, of unexpected tenderness and pure joy.

by Alan Gratz

Two Degrees introduces readers to three teenagers, each of whom is forced to contend with a separate climate disaster and find safety. Both suspenseful and engaging, this new book by Alan Gratz is guaranteed to entertain. 

by Emma Lord

A YA rom-com about Pepper (an overachiever) and Jack (the class clown), who get caught in a viral online feud defending their family businesses. At the same time they are corresponding anonymously. The pair unknowingly fall for each other through witty tweets and memes, despite their real-life rivalry.

by Amber McBride

This novel-in-verse is about a teen girl who is grieving the deaths of her family, and a teen boy who crosses her path. Moth has lost her family in an accident. Then she meets Sani, a boy who is also searching for his roots.

by Daniel Nayeri

In this brilliant novel, Daniel Nayeri offers a fictionalized memoir of his childhood as an Iranian refugee, spinning tales like Scheherazade in One Thousand and One Nights for his sympathetic teacher and skeptical classmates at his Oklahoma middle school, creating a vivid tapestry of memory and myth.

by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

Follows two teenagers, Rashad, an African-American student brutally beaten by a police officer, and Quinn, a white student who witnesses the incident. The novel explores the impact of this event on both boys, their families, and their community, highlighting the complexities of race, prejudice, and the fight for justice.

(More info)

by Randy Ribay

This poignant coming-of-age novel is about Jay, a Filipino-American teenager who travels to the Philippines to uncover the truth about his cousin Jun's mysterious death during President Duterte's war on drugs. As Jay navigates his grief and guilt, he confronts uncomfortable truths about family, identity, and privilege. The story offers a powerful exploration of justice, cultural identity, and the complexities of familial relationships.

by Randy Ribay

A multi-generational novel that follows four Filipino American men across nearly a century, exploring their struggles with identity, masculinity, and complex father-son relationships. Set against historical backdrops from the 1930s to the 2020s, the narrative delves into themes of immigration, cultural heritage, and the impact of societal expectations on personal growth.

by Gary D. Schmidt

A companion novel to Orbiting Jupiter, this book continues the story of Jack Hurd. The book follows Jack as he navigates eighth grade, establishes a running partnership with a former enemy, and grapples with the news that his foster sister Jupiter's biological grandparents are seeking custody.

by Sabaa Tahir

Winner of the 2022 National Book Award and Printz Award, All My Rage is a stunning book that follows the lives of two Pakistani-American teens. It is a love story, a tragedy, and an infectious fever dream about what home means when you feel you don't fit in.

by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

Moon Fuentez accepts her fate as the ugly, unwanted sister even though she is the camerawoman behind her twin’s social media stardom. But this summer, Moon takes a job as the “merch girl” on a tour bus full of beautiful influencers and her fate begins to shift in the best way possible.

by Nicola Yoon

Maddie is literally allergic to the outside world. When a new family moves in next door, she begins a complicated romance that challenges everything she’s ever known. The narrative unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, texts, charts, lists, illustrations, and more.

by Nic Stone

Justyce is seventeen, an honors student, and college-bound, but none of that matters to the officer who unjustly arrests him. Writing letters to the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Justyce struggles to face the reality of race relations today and how they are shaping him.

by Katharine McGee

American Royals reimagines what America would be like as a monarchy passed on from King George Washington. Princess Beatrice and her younger twin siblings seek to balance their royal duties and matters of the heart. Perfect for fans of Gossip Girl and the British Royal Family. 

by Jason Reynolds

60 seconds is how long it takes for Will to decide whether or not to avenge his brother Shawn's death. After witnessing Shawn's fatal shooting, Will gets in an elevator seeking revenge. Seven ghosts who knew Shawn board the elevator and reveal truths Will needs to know. Told in fast-paced narrative verse, this engaging and suspenseful novel explores violence and what it takes to end the cycle.

by Jeff Zentner

Cash's life in small-town Appalachia is anything but easy. When his brilliant best friend, Delaney, makes a scientific discovery and lands them both full-ride scholarships to an elite prep school, Cash struggles to find a balance between leaving his grandparents behind and supporting his best friend. Young love and grief are portrayed in beautifully poetic language. 

by Neal Shusterman

Caden Bosch is outwardly a brilliant high school student and inwardly on a ship heading toward the Marianas Trench. He is beginning to show signs of his inward turmoil.  Inspired by his son's diagnosis of schizophrenia, Shusterman explores a young man's mental health struggles.