Great Fiction for Teens 2018-2019

Every year the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) selects the best new fiction for young adults. The following titles were winners in 2018 and 2019. All are available here at MC-NPL.

	The poet X : a novel by Elizabeth Acevedo Novel-in-verse by an award-winning slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo, about Afro-Latina Xiomara Batista who turns to journalling poetry.
	Children of blood and bone by Tomi Adeyemi Seventeen-year-old Zélie, her older brother Tzain, and rogue princess Amari fight to restore magic to the land and activate a new generation of magi, but they are ruthlessly pursued by the crown prince, who believes the return of magic will mean the end of the monarchy.
	The Hazel Wood : a novel by Melissa Albert When the scary, magical world in her grandmother's book of dark feminist fairy tales becomes real, seventeen-year-old Alice, partnered with Ellery, an obsessed fan of the fairy tales, must enter the world to rescue Alice's kidnapped mother.
	The wicker king by Kayla Ancrum Best friends August and Jack struggle to cope as one spirals into madness.
	Midnight at the Electric by Jodi Lynn Anderson Adri's, Catherine's, and Lenore's lives are intertwined but not in the way that one would think. Adri lives in 2065 Kansas, Catherine lives in 1930s Kansas, and Lenore lives in England in 1919.
	The strange fascinations of Noah Hypnotik by David Arnold This is Noah Oakman, sixteen, Bowie believer, concise historian, disillusioned swimmer, son, brother, friend. Then Noah gets hypnotized.
	Far from the tree by Robin Benway Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovers that she is the middle child in her biological family after she gives up her own child for adoption, and she struggles to find belonging as she tries to bond with her stoic older brother and outspoken younger sister.
	The cruel prince by Holly Black Jude, seventeen and mortal, gets tangled in palace intrigues while trying to win a place in the treacherous High Court of Faerie, where she and her sisters have lived for a decade.
	Ivy Aberdeen's letter to the world by Ashley Herring Blake Twelve-year-old Ivy Aberdeen's house is destroyed in a tornado, and in the aftermath of the storm, she begins to develop feelings for another girl at school.
	Girl made of stars by Ashley Herring Blake When Mara's twin brother Owen is accused of rape by her friend Hannah, Mara is forced to confront her feelings about her family, her sense of right and wrong, a trauma from her past, and the future with her girlfriend, Charlie.
	A heart in a body in the world by Deb Caletti Followed by Grandpa Ed in his RV and backed by her brother and friends, Annabelle, eighteen, runs from Seattle to Washington, D.C., becoming a reluctant activist as people connect her journey to her recent trauma.
	Jane, unlimited by Kristin Cashore Recently orphaned Jane accepts an unexpected invitation from an old acquaintance to an island mansion where she will face five choices that could ultimately determine the course of her newly untethered life.
	Bad romance by Heather Demetrios When Grace and Gavin fall in love, Grace is sure it's too good to be true. She has no idea their relationship will become a prison she's unable to escape.
	Bull : a novel by David Elliott A modern twist on the Theseus and Minotaur myth, told in verse.
	Overturned by L. R. (Lamar R.) Giles When her father is cleared of murder charges and released from death row, Nikki, who has been saving money to get out of Vegas by playing illegal poker games, joins her father's obsessive search to find the person who framed him.
	Refugee by Alan Gratz Separated by decades, Josef, a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany; Isabel, a girl trying to escape unrest in 1994 Cuba; and Mahmoud, a Syrian boy in 2015 whose homeland is torn apart by violence, embark on journeys in search of refuge.
	Turtles all the way down by John Green Aza Holmes, a high school student with obsessive-compulsive disorder, becomes focused on searching for a fugitive billionaire.
	Between the lines by Nikki Grimes A group of high school students grow in understanding of each other's challenges and forge unexpected connections as they prepare for a boys vs. girls poetry slam. Includes author's note about foster home care.
	A face like glass by Frances Hardinge When Neverfell, who has no memory, arrives in Caverna, her facial expressions make her very dangerous to the people who live with blank faces or pay dearly to learn to simulate emotions.
	Slider by Pete Hautman Hoping to win a cash prize in a pizza eating contest after racking up a tab on his mother's credit card, David must juggle his competitive eating training with the responsibility of looking after his autistic younger brother.
	Everything else in the universe by Tracy Holczer When her father returns from Vietnam after losing part of his arm, twelve-year-old Lucy Rossi struggles with the changes in her family, and it takes her friend Milo, a mysterious packet of photographs, and an eye-opening mission to help Lucy adjust.
	Soldier boy by Keely Hutton Follows Ricky from 1987-1991, and Samuel in 2006, as they are abducted to serve as child-soldiers in Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda.
	The librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe Follows Dita Kraus from age fourteen, when she is put in charge of a few forbidden books at Auschwitz concentration camp, through the end of World War II and beyond. Based on a true story.
	The fashion committee : a novel of art, crime and applied design by Susan Juby Charlie and John are both gunning for the same scholarship to a private arts high school. For this coveted spot, they must compete in a fashion competition–and only one can win.
	Exo by Fonda Lee Donovan Reyes is a loyal member of an alien security force on Earth, but after a routine search and seizure goes bad, Donovan finds himself a captive of the human revolutionary group, Sapience, terrorists who seem to prefer war to alien rule.
	The gentleman's guide to vice and virtue by Mackenzi Lee Vowing to make his yearlong escapade across Europe his last hurrah before taking over the family estate, Henry “Monty” Montague and his best friend Percy find themselves in the middle of a dangerous manhunt involving pirates and highwaymen.
	Sawkill girls by Claire Legrand After girls mysteriously disappear on the island of Sawkill Rock, three unlikely friends come together to destroy the Collector, a monster from another world who grows stronger with each kill.
	Warcross by Marie Lu When teenage coder Emika Chen hacks her way into the opening tournament of the Warcross Championships, she glitches herself into the game as well as a sinister plot with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.
	Isle of blood and stone by Makiia Lucier When two maps surface, each bearing the same hidden riddle, nineteen-year-old Elias, a royal mapmaker, sets sail with King Ulises to uncover long-held secrets behind the mysterious disappearance of the king's two young brothers eighteen years earlier.
	Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore Profoundly different sisters Blanca and Roja del Cisne, who know that due to a family curse, they are tied to a flock of swans, and one day one will become a swan while the other remains human, become involved with two local boys.
	A lite too bright by Samuel Miller After losing his college scholarship, Arthur discovers a journal written by his deceased grandfather and decides to follow the train route to the destination mentioned in the last sentence of the journal.
	Foolish hearts by Emma Mills Claudia agrees to coach actors in her high school's production of “A Midsummer Night's Dream,” leading to new friendships–and maybe even new love.
	Sparrow by Sarah Moon The story of a sensitive, gifted African American girl named Sparrow who tells us with mordant humor what it feels like to spend every day wishing so hard that you could fly away from it all.
	The stars beneath our feet by David Barclay Moore Unable to celebrate the holidays in the wake of his older brother's death in a gang-related shooting, Lolly Rachpaul struggles to avoid being forced into a gang himself while constructing a fantastically creative LEGO city at the Harlem community center.
	Frogkisser! by Garth Nix Princess Anya sets out to defeat her step-stepfather Duke Rikard, who is an evil wizard determined to rule the kingdom, with help from the librarian Gotfried and the Royal Dogs.
	Broken things by Lauren Oliver It's been five years since Summer Marks was brutally murdered in the woods. Everyone thinks Mia and Brynn killed their best friend. The only thing is: they didn't do it.
	Book of dust. La belle sauvage by Philip Pullman When Malcolm finds a secret message inquiring about a dangerous substance called Dust, he finds himself embroiled in a tale of intrigue featuring enforcement agents from the Magisterium, a woman with an evil monkey daemon, and a baby named Lyra.
	Long way down by Jason Reynolds As Will, fifteen, sets out to avenge his brother Shawn's fatal shooting, seven ghosts who knew Shawn board the elevator and reveal truths Will needs to know.
	The shadow cipher by Laura Ruby In an alternate history of New York, three kids try to solve a modern-world puzzle and complete a treasure hunt laid into the streets and buildings of the city.
	The inexplicable logic of my life : a novel by Benjamin Alire Sáenz A story set on the American border with Mexico, about family and friendship, life and death, and one teen struggling to understand what his adoption does and doesn't mean about who he is.
	City of ghosts by Victoria Schwab After surviving a near-fatal drowning that gives her the ability to enter the spirit world, Cassidy, the daughter of television ghost-hunters, visits Edinburgh where the encounters with the city's old ghosts reveals the dangers that come with her powers.
	Saint Death by Marcus Sedgwick Living in the outskirts of Juarez on the U.S.-Mexican border, Arturo works odd jobs to make a living and stays out of sight until his friend Faustino lands himself in trouble and needs help paying back narcos from whom he's stolen money.
	Dry by Neal Shusterman A lengthy California drought escalates to catastrophic proportions, turning Alyssa's quiet suburban street into a warzone, and she is forced to make impossible choices if she and her brother are to survive.
	Disappeared by Francisco X. Stork When Sara uses her job as a reporter to draw attention to the girls who have been kidnapped, she becomes a target; meanwhile her brother, Emiliano, finds himself being lured into the narcotics business by the promise of big money.
	The hate U give by Angie Thomas After witnessing her friend's death at the hands of a police officer, Starr Carter's life is complicated when the police and a local drug lord try to intimidate her in an effort to learn what happened the night Kahlil died.
	Piecing me together by Renée Watson Tired of being singled out at her mostly-white private school as someone who needs support, high school junior Jade would rather participate in the school's amazing Study Abroad program than join Women to Women, a mentorship program for at-risk girls.
	The murderer's ape by Jakob Wegelius When her best friend, the sailor Henry Koskela, is falsely accused of murder, a gorilla named Sally Jones visits the run-down docks of Lisbon, embarks on a dizzying journey across the seven seas, and calls on the Maharaja of Bhapur's magnificent court–all in an attempt to clear Henry's name.
	Harbor me by Jacqueline Woodson When six students are chosen to participate in a weekly talk with no adults allowed, they discover that when they're together, it's safe to share the hopes and fears they have to hide from the rest of the world.
	Goodbye days : a novel by Jeff Zentner Looks at a teen's life after the death of his best friends and how he navigates through the guilt and pain by celebrating their lives–and ultimately learning to forgive himself.
	Flying lessons & other stories by various writers Whether it is basketball dreams, family fiascos, first crushes, or new neighborhoods, this bold anthology — written by the best children’s authors — celebrates the uniqueness and universality in all of us.