December 2023 YA New Releases
1. Caught in a Bad Fauxmance / Rose Elle Gonzalez: Agreeing to fake date the son of his family’s longtime enemy, Devin Báez uses this opportunity to gather intel strong enough to take them down and keep the family cabin they gambled on a risky bet until he realizes love is in the cards. 2. Dark Heir / C.S. Pacat: In this much anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestseller Dark Rise, Will travels to the heart of the ancient world where he must keep his true identity hidden as he’s tempted by the darkness within. 3. Defiant / Brandon Sanderson: To…
A Short Nonfiction November Booklist
Happy Nonfiction November! Nonfiction November is a month-long challenge to read more nonfiction books. Here are five books to read this month: 1. From Here : a memoir by Luma Mufleh: In her coming-of-age memoir, refugee advocate Luma Mufleh writes of her tumultuous journey to reconcile her identity as a gay Muslim woman and a proud Arab-turned-American refugee. 2. Hidden Systems: Water, Electricity, the Internet and the Secrets Behind the Systems We Use Everyday by Dan Nott: This non-fiction graphic novel illustrates the hidden history for every…
Ten Books to Read During Native American and Native Alaskan Heritage Month
November is National Native American and Native Alaskan Heritage Month. First approved by former President George H. W. Bush in November 1990, it has been observed yearly as both "Native American Heritage Month" and "National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month" since 1994. Below are ten books that celebrate Native American and Indigenous voices and history of North America. Fiction 1. Funeral Songs for Dying Girls by Cherie Dimaline: To save her father’s job at the crematorium and the only home she’s ever known, Winifred and her con-…
Happy Halloween: A Horror Booklist
Happy Halloween, everyone! Is anyone wearing a costume this year? If you enjoy horror or thrillers, be sure to check out this booklist: 1. All These Sunken Souls : a black horror anthology edited by Circe Moskowitz: Welcome to the Dark. We are all familiar with tropes of the horror genre: slasher and victims, demon and the possessed. Bloody screams, haunted visions, and the peddler of wares we aren’t sure we can trust. In this young adult horror anthology, fans of Jordan Peele, Lovecraft Country, and Horror Noire will get a little bit of everything they love—and a…
Five Graphic Novels to Read Now
As someone who loves graphic novels, I'm happily sharing five 2023 releases to check out. 1. Brooms by Jasmine Walls and Teo Duvall: It’s 1930s Mississippi. Magic is permitted only in certain circumstances, and by certain people. Unsanctioned broom racing is banned. But for those who need the money, or the thrills...it's there to be found. Meet Billie Mae, captain of the Night Storms racing team, and Loretta, her best friend and second-in-command. They’re determined to make enough money to move out west to a state that allows Black folks to legally use magic and take…
Ten Spooky Ghost Stories for Fall
Fall is finally here, and Halloween is only two weeks away! If you enjoy spooky ghost stories, check out any of these titles below: 1. Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas: Yadriel, a trans boy, summons the angry spirit of his high school's bad boy, and agrees to help him learn how he died, thereby proving himself a brujo, not a bruja, to his conservative family. 2. Delicious Monsters by Liselle Sambury: Told in alternating timelines, seventeen-year-old Daisy and her mother move into her deceased uncle's mansion, only to find horrors waiting inside, and ten years later,…
October is LGBTQ+ History Month
First celebrated in the United States in 1994, LGBTQ+ History Month is a month-long celebration in October of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer history. It also honors the ongoing history of queer and trans rights. Below are ten books that celebrate the lives of both real (and fictional) LGBTQ+ people of the past. A Million to One by Adiba Jaigirdar: Josefa is an unapologetic and charismatic thief, who loves the thrill of the chase. She has her eye on her biggest mark yet—the RMS Titanic, the most luxurious ship in the world. But she isn’t interested in…
October 2023 YA Book Releases
And Don't Look Back by Rebecca Barrow: After her mother's death, teen Harlow pieces together the truth of her family's past and what her mom was hiding from. Beholder by Ryan La Sala: The only survivor of a NYC penthouse party massacre where dead bodies were arranged into disturbingly elegant sculpture, Athan becomes the prime suspect and, desperate to prove his innocence, must confront an ancient evil compelling its victims toward violence, chaos and self-destruction. The Blackwoods by Brandy Colbert: Told from multiple points of view, Ardith and Hollis Blackwood's…
Hispanic Heritage Month Booklist
“I’ve put up with too much, too long, and now I’m just too intelligent, too powerful, too beautiful, too sure of who I am finally to deserve anything less.”— Sandra Cisneros Did you know that National Hispanic Heritage Month is observed every year in the U.S. from September 15 to October 15? Why? To "celebrate the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America." Below are ten awesome books written by Hispanic American writers with Hispanic American main characters…
Ten Upcoming YA Releases to Put on Hold!
1. All Alone With You by Amelia Diane Coombs: Eloise Deane is the worst and doesn't care who knows it. She's grumpy, prefers to be alone, and is just slogging through senior year with one goal: get accepted to USC and move to California. So when her guidance counselor drops the bombshell that to score a scholarship she'll desperately need, her applications require volunteer hours, Eloise is up for the challenge. Until she's paired with LifeCare, a volunteer agency that offers social support to lonely seniors through phone calls and visits. Basically, it's a total nightmare for Eloise's…
August is Romance Awareness Month
August is the start of Romance Awareness Month, but it’s not just another time of the year to stress about your romantic prospects (or lack thereof). Romance Awareness Month has come to represent a time to enjoy the meet-cutes, enemies to lovers, and forced proximity love stories created by some of our favorite authors. As we move into the dog days of summer, now is the perfect time to curl up with a romance novel on the beach or binge watch your favorite rom-com movies under the artic blast of your air conditioner. Streaming platforms are offering us movie adaptations of some of the most…
Summer 2023 Teen Book Releases
A Guide to the Dark by Meriam Metoui: Stranded at the Wildwood Motel while on their spring break road trip, Mira and Layla discover eight people died in their room and set out to find the connection between the deaths and the unexplainable things that keep happening inside Room 9. All the Yellow Suns by Malavika Kannan: Sixteen-year-old queer Indian American, Maya, who falls for her white, wealthy, and complicated female classmate, Juneau, is asked to join a secret society of artists, vandals, and mischief-makers who fight for justice at their school. Give Me a Sign by Anna…
A Non-Fiction Booklist
Do you also like to read about science, history, people, etc? Be sure to check out these twelve titles listed below: All Boys Aren't Blue: a memoir-manifesto by George M Johnson: A first book by the prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist shares personal essays that chronicle his childhood, adolescence and college years as a Black queer youth, exploring subjects ranging from gender identity and toxic masculinity to structural marginalization and Black joy. Black Birds in the Sky: the story and legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre by Brandy Colbert: A searing new work of…
July is Disability Pride Month!
Happy Disability Pride Month! It's held every year in July to recognize the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 26th, 1990. The featured image is the disability pride flag and each color symbolizes a type of disability: The 2021 disability flag colors each represent a type of disability: Green: sensory disabilities Blue: emotional and psychiatric disabilities White: non-visible and undiagnosed disabilities Gold: neurodiversity Red: physical disabilities Below are five books that have disabled characters, or are written by people…
Five Books on Grief and Loss
Less than two weeks ago, my Grandma Betty passed away at 101 years old. She lived a long and active life. She and I were also quite close. I moved into her building in 2021 to help take care of her. I'm grieving her death but I'm also relieved to know she is now at peace. Below are five books that address grief and loss well. 1. Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo: Camino Rios lives for the summers when her father visits her in the Dominican Republic. But this time, on the day when his plane is supposed to land, Camino arrives at the airport to see…
June 2023 Teen Book Releases
Basil and Oregano by Melissa Capriglione: Basil Eyres and Arabella Oregano are both students of cooking with magic at Porta Bella Magiculinary Academy, and although the two are instantly smitten with each other, Arabella has a secret with the potential to throw Basil's future aspirations into jeopardy. Darkhearts by James L Sutter: When his former bandmate dies, David is thrown back into contact with singer Chance, forcing him to rediscover all the things that once made them so close—and that tore them apart—as he attempts to claim the celebrity he’s been denied. Family Style…
(New) AAPI LGBTQIA+ Reads to Check Out!
Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month is almost over, and Pride Month is fast approaching. Below are ten (newer!) books with characters of both identities. Beating Heart Baby by Lio Min: Seventeen-year-old Santi Arboleda finally feels settled in his new life in Los Angeles with a growing found family and a relationship with musical prodigy Suwa--until Suwa is offered the chance to step into the spotlight that he has always denied himselfand they must finally face their dreams, their pasts, and their futures, whether together or apart. Chasing Pacquiao by Rod…
May is (Also) Jewish American Heritage Month
May is Jewish American Heritage Month. One way to celebrate is to read books with Jewish protagonists, ideally by written Jewish-identified authors. Here are ten books I recommend checking out! Color Me In by Natasha Diaz: Fifteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz is torn between two worlds, passing for white while living in Harlem, being called Jewish while attending her mother's Baptist church, and experiencing first love while watching her parents' marriage crumble. Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler: Anticipating a romantic summer with her football star crush, Lara struggles…
Happy Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month!
In May, the U.S. celebrates Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month. According to asianpacificheritage.gov/, the month is one for “paying tribute to the generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America’s history and are instrumental in its future success.” In honor of this special occasion, pick up a book (or 10) written by an AANHPI writer and enjoy! Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram: Clinically-depressed Darius Kellner, a high school sophomore, travels to Iran to meet his grandparents, but it…
Five Books to Read During Autism Acceptance Month
Did you know April is also Autism Acceptance Month? Over 7 million people in the United States are on the Autism spectrum; Autism is the fastest-growing developmental disability in the U.S. What is autism? Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a complex, lifelong developmental condition that typically appears during early childhood and can impact a person’s social skills, communication, relationships, and self-regulation. The Autism experience is different for everyone. It is defined by a certain set of behaviors and is often referred to as a “spectrum condition” that affects people…