American Library
Association
Best Books for Young Adults
The books, recommended for those ages
12-18, meet the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading for
teens. The list comprises a wide range of genres and styles, including
contemporary realistic fiction that reflects the diversity of the teen
experience, nonfiction that brings to teens an awareness of the world they live
in and its history, and fantastical stories told in both narrative and graphic
formats. (Young Adults Library Services Association)
2010
Allen: Mr. Lincoln's High Tech War
By Thomas Allen
2009, 144 pages, $19 list
Breaking new historical ground, this book explores how
Julia Alvarez
2009, 336 pages, $17 list
When
By Nora Raleigh Baskin
2010, 208 pages, $7 list
Jason, a 12-year-old with autism
spectrum disorder, finds life in a “neurotypical” world
daunting but achieves success through his creative writing online.
By Clay Carmichael
2009, 241 pages, $19 list
Spunky eleven-year-old Zoe comes
to live with Uncle Henry who is a metal sculptor and
learns that a safe home and acceptance are possible, even for wild things like
her.
By Ellen Datlow
2009, 200 pages, $17 list
Fifteen deeply twisted, fantastically funny, and hauntingly
human fairy tales are told from the point of view of the villain in this
excellent collection of very grim short stories.
Fleming: The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous,
Stupendous Life of a Showman
By Candace Fleming
2009, 160 pages, $19 list
This sweeping biography of a famous, sometimes infamous,
trickster and businessman who left no stone unturned to bring the famous Barnum
& Bailey Circus to an eager 19th century audience.
By Frances Hardinge
2009, 576 pages, $17 list
A complex political puzzle filled with subterfuge and
intrigue is at the center of this enticing fantasy set on a remote tropical
island about two sisters who must grapple with an unknown evil.
Hoose: Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
By Phillip Hoose
2009, 144 pages, $20 list
Nine months before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on
a bus, a 15-year-old girl was arrested for defying the same
By Iain Lawrence
2009, 304 pages, $17 list
An epic narrative spun for the residents of a polio ward in
1955 becomes personal for the young storyteller Laurie Valentine.
Magoon: The Rock and the River
By Kekla Magoon
2009, 304 pages, $16 list
Seeing the injustice in his 1968
By Albert Marrin
2009, 128 pages, $23 list
This ecological disaster created by human misdeed forces
a grim choice upon the people of the plains during the depths of the Great
Depression.
By Jim Murphy
2009, 144 pages, $20 list
In the middle of World War I, British and German forces quit
fighting to celebrate Christmas together peacefully. First person details
present the human side of this bloody war.
By Marilyn Nelson
2009, 80 pages, $22 list
Unique poetry and creative illustrations bring to life the
story of an integrated all-girl swing band that traveled the
Partridge: Marching for Freedom: Walk Together Children
Don't You Grow Weary
By Elizabeth Partridge
2009, 80 pages, $20 list
Haunting illustrations and moving text tell the story of
children leading the way on freedom marches, through voter registration drives,
and even to jail during the quest for civil rights.
By Ching Yeung
Russell
2009, 136 pages, $17 list
In a patchwork ‘quilt’ of free verse poems the author
recounts her struggle to become a writer growing up in 1960s
By Hope Anita Smith
2009, 80 pages, $17 list
This touching collection of free verse poems explores a
child’s view of her mother and their life together, then
expresses raw emotions after her mother’s death.
Stone: Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream
By Tanya Lee Stone
2009, 144 pages, $25 list
In the early 1960s, 13 women endured
rigorous testing and training for the space program, as well as prejudice.
Numerous photographs and a revealing text chronicle their difficulties and
achievements.
Tan: Tales from Outer Suburbia
By Shaun Tan
2009, 96 pages, $20 list
Fifteen ‘radically’ and surrealistically illustrated tales guide
readers in unexpected directions in this quirky, thoughtful, and sometimes even
disturbing collection of stories and art.
Uehashi: Moribito II: Guardian of the
Darkness
By Nahoko Uehashi
2009, 245 pages, $11 list
Bodyguard-for-hire Balsa returns in this tale of redemption
and political intrigue set in a fantasy world reminiscent of medieval
By Sally Walker
2009, 144 pages, $23 list
Crime Scene Investigation meets early American
History—exposing ancient crimes and describing patterns of everyday life as
told and written on the bones of the early
By Scott Westerfeld
2009, 448 pages, $20 list
A hunted young Prince Aleksander
Ferdinand and a girl disguised as a boy must form an unlikely alliance to
survive in this steampunk version of WWI.
End of 2010