15 More YAs That Get it Right
One of our favorite things to zero in on here at the B&N Teen Blog is YA’s that “Get it Right,” i.e. that seem to perfectly portray some element of the human experience. As new YAs emerge, we get to add more and more of them to the small but illustrious list, though of course, there are some “classics” whose accuracy shines as timeless, too. We asked authors, bloggers, agents, and editors to tell us which YA stands out to them as one that seriously gets it right, for a total of 15 more books you need to be reading and sharing ASAP.
See more YA books that get it right here and here.
Invincible, by Amy Reed
Very few books really get the complexity that is addiction. Amy Reed’s Invincible goes deep down into the particular mix of anger, hopelessness, isolation, and longing that can breed addiction and the result is astonishing. Books that deal with mental health can go a lot of places, but Reed’s book ventures somewhere I’ve never been before in a book. If you want to know what it’s really, truly like to love someone struggling with addiction, this book is it. To write about addiction you can’t be afraid of showing something ugly and unrelenting and powerful and frustrating. Reed has that bravery and paints a challenging portrait that makes it easy to understand how one disease (cancer) could lead so seamlessly into another (addiction).
–Corey Haydu, author of Making Pretty
Wonders of the Invisible World, by Christopher Barzak
For me, growing up gay in a family of straight people (a funny way of phrasing it, but that’s the heart of the matter) meant trying to find myself in precedents—in previous generations, in fiction. Christopher Barzak’s Wonders of the Invisible World—a gay love story, magical and wise—nails the scary but empowering moment when you realize you might be unprecedented, but your history is no less a part of you for that.
–Andrew Harwell, Senior Editor at HarperCollins
Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass, by Meg Medina
Meg Medina’s Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass is one of the most sensitive, affecting stories about bullying I’ve ever read. All her details are perfect—the arbitrariness of the bully’s target, the slow burn of apprehension and the visceral terror of the victim. Piddy Sanchez’s story isn’t always easy to read, but it’s complicated, refreshingly honest and emotionally resonant.
–I.W. Gregorio, author of None of the Above
Fake ID and Endangered by Lamar Giles
Lamar Giles’ debut, Fake ID, was a Young Adult finalist for the Edgar Awards (for excellent mystery novels), and his sophomore title Endangered is nominated for the same. And for good reason. I was so delighted when Giles came on the scene writing smart, fast-paced, and intriguing thrillers, while creating an inclusive cast. He handles identity and race with assured deftness. It never feels heavy-handed or awkward, and is simply another facet of his protagonists, among many other facets. Giles is an auto-buy author for me, and I do not have many of those. I look forward to his future works!
–Cindy Pon, author of Serpentine and cofounder of Diversity in YA
This Song Is (Not) For You, by Laura Nowlin
This Song Is (Not) For You by Laura Nowlin is what I’ve been waiting for ever since I first learned there was a term for asexuality—a warmhearted, fun contemporary read that shows an asexual character who can form great relationships with people and has the support of those around him. I loved it, wished it had been around years ago when I was a teen, and am extremely happy that ace teens can read about a character like this.
–Jim, blogger at YA Yeah Yeah
Infandous, by Elana K. Arnold
Infandous by Elana K. Arnold took me by surprise in all the best ways. A nuanced, layered novel about a teen artist living in a rundown apartment in Venice Beach with her caring but flighty single mother, it tackles the social contradictions put on teen girls’ sexuality (and the complicated feelings those contradictions inspire in the girls who have to navigate them) in one of the smartest, most beautiful ways I’ve seen. I’m reluctant to say anything more for fear of giving away the completely unexpected twists this one has waiting for you, but trust me: you should read this book.
–Patricia Nelson, agent at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel, by Sara Farizan
What I love about this book is that it’s insightful, charming, and extremely validating for someone like me. Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel is about being torn between identities and feeling like an outsider—Leila, being the only Iranian and the only lesbian at her school (as far as she knows; she admits her gaydar is terrible), doesn’t quite feel like she fits in anywhere—but it’s also about friendship; family; love and its depths; Iranian culture; the headache that is high school; and, most importantly, how people are so much fuller, so much more complex, than you could ever imagine.
–Marilla Mirak, Blogger at Gay YA and Editorial Intern at Entangled
This Song Will Save Your Life, by Leila Sales
Leila Sales’ This Song Will Save Your Life is one of those books that pulls no punches. Elise’s voice is genuine and so incredibly true to all of the messy emotions that accompany high school. I think what this book really gets right is that vague but perpetual sense of being sort of trapped—that everyone in your life is already so sure of who you are and where you’ll go that there’s no alternative. This Song Will Save Your Life shows that this doesn’t ever need to be true. Reading it during my senior year of high school really helped put things in perspective for me.
–Amy Zhang, author of This is Where the World Ends (and the below-mentioned Falling Into Place)
The Unintentional Time Traveler, by Everett Maroon
Trans YA can be very helpful and important, whether it’s written by a trans or cis person. However, most cis-authored trans YA books tend to simplify the experience of being trans in order to make it more understandable for cis readers. By doing this, these books often alienate trans readers who don’t fit into easily definable/understandable boxes (which, arguably, is most trans people). After reading dozens of books that alienated me and invalidated my experiences, The Unintentional Time Traveler was a breath of fresh air. Written by a trans man, Time Traveler doesn’t even attempt to make Jack/Jacqueline’s experiences with gender understandable; it dares to present them in all their glorious enigmaticness and nuance. By the end, you have no idea what name to call the main character, how they identify, or even what pronouns to use. In the midst of an engaging story about time traveling and mystery, Time Traveler will challenge cis readers and validate trans readers.
–Vee S., cofounder of Gay YA
Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy
When I think about Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy, I think about a scene early on in which our heroine, Willowdean, is grateful that while she may be fat, she’s not as fat as another character. To skinny readers, this line was confusing and off-putting, but fat readers recognized this moment instantly: how society teaches us that as long as you’re not “the fattest,” you’re safe. Dumplin’ is a book all about unlearning the lies society tells you about your fat body and learning, instead, how to celebrate not just yourself but every body. It’s the best book about life as a fat girl I’ve ever read, because it knows all our secrets and our triumphs. I hope it will be the first of many to come.
–Angie Manfredi, librarian and blogger at Fat Girl Reading
Playing With Matches by Suri Rosen
In Suri Rosen’s Playing with Matches, Raina Resnick is always the fish out of water. After breaking up her sister’s engagement and getting kicked out of her school, she’s sent to live with her aunt and uncle, but that’s not an immediate fix for her problems. Her sister—whom Raina adores—isn’t talking to her, and the new school is nothing like her old one. But when she discovers she has a knack for matchmaking, Raina’s secret life takes off and becomes the place in the world where she’s not the one who’s always screwing things up. Raina makes a place for herself in her community and heals the rift with her sister, all while figuring herself out. Woven neatly into an Orthodox Jewish setting with heart and authenticity, Playing with Matches is heartwarming and laugh-out-loud fun in equal turns!
–Katherine Locke, author of Second Position and blogger at Gay YA
(Blogger’s Note: As a Modern Orthodox Jewish woman myself, I cosign this one hard.)
Falling Into Place by Amy Zhang
Amy Zhang’s Falling Into Place is at once poetic and raw, difficult to read and impossible to put down. You’d think all the rotating viewpoints would give you a clear, full picture, but they only prove how complicated and contradictory life, and people, can be. Remembering my own issues of suicide, eating disorders, and destructiveness from my teen years, this novel certainly resonated in its haunting, unapologetic ugliness.
–Beth Phelan, agent at The Bent Agency
Conviction by Kelly Loy Gilbert
Kelly Loy Gilbert’s Conviction is a quiet but impactful novel. While some readers will find the characters “unlikable,” they are complex and realistically drawn—so much that it’s easy to lose yourself in their small town in Northern California’s Central Valley, where everyone knows the intimate details of their neighbors’ lives. Gilbert has created a story that masterfully blends themes of religion, sports, and family, and its powerful ending will leave readers questioning the importance of loyalty to themselves and the ones they love.
–Brandy Colbert, author of Pointe
The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness
Reading The Rest of Us Just Live Here was a life-changing experience for me, because I’d never read a book with a main character dealing with anxiety before. He’s talking to his therapist, and I’m just sitting there nodding along like, “oh my god, I do that too….and I didn’t even know it was an anxiety thing.” The therapy scenes in the book actually made me cry, and I refer to them when I’m having a really anxious day.
–Christina Megan, blogger at A Reader of Fictions
Gena/Finn by Kat Helgeson and Hannah Moskowitz
Gena/Finn is the first book I’ve read that captures the unique and strange intensity that can come with online relationships. The intimacy that constant but long-distance contact creates can be exhilarating, comforting, and terrifying all at once. This is particularly true when you’re questioning your sexuality and find your online friendships starting to blur into…something else, something you can’t quite describe. Gena/Finn understands all of these complexities and presents them in a way that felt more than familiar—it felt true.
–Kayla Whaley, Editor at Disability in KidLit
Internet fandom was an impossibly huge part of my life in high school and college—and, let’s be real, it still is. Very few books accurately capture the near-instantaneous closeness that can come of obsessively loving the same TV show, or trading theories about fictional characters, or reading and writing fanfiction, and Gena/Finn by Kat Helgeson and Hannah Moskowitz absolutely does. The two titular characters and their wonderful/complicated friendship feel like a love letter to superfans everywhere.
–Lindsay Ribar, Associate Agent at Greenburger Associates and author of Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies