2021 Best Fiction for Young Adults YALSALike this list

83 items

• Agnes at the End of the World

  McWilliams, Kelly,

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  White eldest daughter Agnes has always been a faithful, obedient follower of the Prophet, but she is forced to leave home when her diabetic brother’s life is at stake, only to discover the world outside is battling a deadly plague.

• All These Monsters

  Tintera, Amy,

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  Clara Pratt (white, 17) flees her abusive father to join a cadre of monster-hunters fronted by a Kardashian-like celebrity. There she finds friends, empowerment and training, romance, and a better sense of self, all while fighting off freakish…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• All-American Muslim Girl

  Courtney, Nadine Jolie, 1980-

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  After her Circassian Muslim father endures a racist interaction on an airplane, white-passing Allie decides to dig deeper into her faith and background and to embrace her culture.

• Be Not Far From Me

  McGinnis, Mindy,

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  *Top Ten Winner. Ashley Hawkins (white, 17) has spent a lot of time learning survival skills, but they may not be enough when she takes off on her own during a camping trip; a nasty fall leaves her alone with a broken foot and nothing but the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Before the Ever After

  Woodson, Jacqueline,

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  ZJ's pro-football-player dad is everyone’s hero. But ZJ’s reality is different. His dad has become forgetful and grumpy due to multiple concussions sustained while playing. Can his dad remember the good days, much less get back to them?

• The Black Flamingo

  Atta, Dean,

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  A Greek Jamaican gay teen living with a single working mother in London, Michael is an outsider in his own life. But when he goes to university, Michael discovers the Drag Society. Reborn as “The Black Flamingo,” he has the chance to showcase all…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Black Girl Unlimited

  the Remarkable Story of a Teenage Wizard

  Brown, Echo,

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  In this novel based on the author’s life and brimming with magical realism, Echo Brown takes readers through her journey with depression and introduces the coping skills she developed to survive as a Black girl in America.

• The Black Kids

  Hammonds Reed, Christina,

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  In 1992 Los Angeles, wealthy Black teen Ashley is barely aware of the ongoing Rodney King trial. But when the cops involved are acquitted and riots rock her city, Ashley is forced to rethink everything she thought she knew (or could ignore or…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Blood Moon

  Cuthew, Lucy,

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  Astronomy buff Frankie has her first intimate encounter with her crush Benjamin (both white)—and gets her period. They agree that it’s only blood, but then a cruel meme goes viral and what was a tender experience becomes a sordid joke. As the online…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Break the Fall

  Iacopelli, Jennifer,

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  A comeback success, Audrey Lee is on the cusp of making the Olympic gymnastics team when scandal breaks, tearing the team apart. Now training with a new coach mere weeks before competition, Rey and her teammates must stay focused while in a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Burn Our Bodies Down

  Power, Rory,

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  When Margot discovers the grandmother her mother has kept hidden from her, she runs away in search of the one thing she wants most—a family. But things are not as they seem at Fairhaven Farm, and now that Margot has found her family she may never be…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Call Down the Hawk

  Stiefvater, Maggie, 1981-

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  Ronan Lynch and Jordan Hennessy are dreamers, having the unique ability to pull objects from their dreams into reality. When a prophecy reveals that a dreamer will cause the apocalypse, government agents begin to hunt dreamers like Ronan and Jordan…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Cemetery Boys

  Thomas, Aiden,

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  *Top Ten Winner. When trans Latinx teen Yadriel accidentally summons the wrong ghost while trying to prove to his family that he is a real brujo, he must find a way to help Julian get what he wants so he can release him to the afterlife.

• Charming as a Verb

  Philippe, Ben,

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  Charming and popular Henri Haltiwanger has a smile that can dazzle anyone. But when fellow classmate Corinne Troy blackmails him into helping her increase her social standing at school, Henri may lose everything he has been working toward.

• Clap When You Land

  Acevedo, Elizabeth,

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  *Top Ten Winner. Camino Rios waits at the airport for a flight that never arrives, while Yahaira Rios finds out that her father has died in a plane crash. Little do these girls know, they are sisters sharing a father who lived a double life with…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Cousins

  McManus, Karen M.,

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  Cousins Aubrey, Jonah, and Milly have never met the reclusive grandmother who disinherited their parents. Now they've been invited to work at Gran’s Gull Cove Island resort. Secrets start to spill, and the cousins’ attempts to solve the mystery of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Darius the Great Deserves Better

  Khorram, Adib,

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  Things have been better since Darius’s family trip to Iran. He has a best friend—halfway across the world. He has friends and teammates—and a bully. Darius even has a boyfriend—and a lot of confused feelings for classmate Chip. Things are better,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dear Haiti, Love Alaine

  Moulite, Maika

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  The Haitian equivalent of political royalty, Alaine Beauparlant's life is not what it seems. After acting out in class in the States over an assignment about family history, she is suspended and sent to Haiti to stay with family, which is an…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dear Justyce

  Stone, Nic,

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  After a cop is shot and killed, Quan is grilled into making a false confession and sent to prison. Quan is no snitch, but maybe his childhood friend and college prelaw student Justyce is his way back to freedom.

• Deeplight

  Hardinge, Frances,

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  *Top Ten Title. The gods are gone, but pieces of them remain. When Hark finds the still-beating heart of a dead god, he uses it to save his friend Jelt’s life. As Jelt slowly transforms into a monstrous version of himself, Hark must decide if the…Read moreRead more of this annotation