young adult time travel books

40 Best Time Travel Books To Read Right Now (2024)

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Travel back in time with the best time travel books, including engrossing thrillers, romance, contemporary lit, and mind-bending sci-fi.

What We Recommend

Best Time Travel Books

Books about time travel promise to not only transport you across time periods and space – Doctor Who-style – but also tesser you into new dimensions and around the world. Most readers already know about classics like The Time Traveler’s Wife , A Christmas Carol , and The Time Machine .

For romance time travel, grab In A Holidaze or One Last Stop . For contemporary and new time travel books, Haig’s The Midnight Library and Serle’s In Five Years captivated our hearts and minds.

Recursion re-kindled our love for science fiction, and Ruby Red transported us to 18th-century London. Books like Displacement promise intuitive and raw commentary about generational trauma and racism in graphic novel form.

Below, find the best time travel novels across genres for adults and teens, including history, romance, classics, sci-fi, YA, and thrilling fiction. Get ready to travel in the blink of an eye, and be sure to let us know your favorites in the comments. Let’s get started!

Contemporary & Literary Fiction

If you enjoy contemporary and literary fiction filled with strong main characters, these are some of the best books in the time travel genre. Uncover new releases as well as books on the bestseller lists. Of course, we’ll share a few lesser-known gems too.

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle

Would your life change if you had one seemingly real dream or premonition? What if some key facts were missing but you had no idea? Can we change the future?

One of the best books about time travel and friendship, don’t skip In Five Years . In fact, we read this New York City-based novel in half a day. Have the tissue box ready.

Dannie nails an important job interview and is hoping to get engaged. Of course, this is all a part of her perfect 5-year plan. Dannie has arranged every minute of her life ever since her brother died in a drunk driving accident.

On the night of Dannie’s “scheduled” engagement, she falls asleep only to have a vision of herself 5 years into the future in the arms of another man. Did she just time travel or could this be a dream? When Dannie arrives back in 2020, her life goes back to normal. …That is until she meets the man from her dream.

We were expecting In Five Years to be a time travel romance story; however, this is a different type of love and one of the best books about strong friendships .

Read In Five Years : Amazon | Goodreads

Before the coffee gets cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Translated by Geoffrey Trousselot | We just love Japanese literature . One of the most debated time travel books among our readers – you’ll either love it or hate it – Before the coffee gets cold takes place at a cafe in Tokyo, Japan.

Along with coffee, this 140-year-old, back-alley cafe lets visitors travel back in time. Four visitors at the cafe are hoping to time travel to see someone for the last (or first) time. The way each patron views the cafe says a lot about them. The details and repetition are everything.

True to the title, visits may only last as long as it takes for the coffee to grow cold. If they don’t finish their coffee in time, there are ghostly consequences.

Before the coffee gets cold asks, who would you want to see one last time, and what issues you would confront?

Along with the many rules of time travel, these visitors are warned that the present will not change. Would you still travel back knowing this? Can something, anything, still change – even within you?

The story has a drop of humor with a beautiful message. We shed a tear or two. Discover even more terrific and thought-provoking Japanese fantasy novels here .

Read Before the coffee gets cold : Amazon | Goodreads

If you are looking for the most inspiring take on time travel in books, Haig’s The Midnight Library is it. This is one of those profound stories that make you think more deeply . TWs for pet death (early on) and suicide ideation.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Imagine if you could see your other possible lives and fix your regrets. Would that path be better? Would these changes make you happier?

Set in Bedford, England, and at a library , Nora answers these questions as she intentionally overdoses on pills. Caught in the Midnight Library – a purgatory of sorts – Nora explores books filled with the ways her life could have turned out. She tries on these alternative lives, pursuing different dreams, marrying different people, and realizing that some parts of her root life were not as they seemed on the surface.

Find hope and simplicity in one of the most authentic and heaviest time travel novels on this list. Haig addresses mental health through a new lens that is both beautiful and moving.

With a team full of avid readers and librarians, discover our top selections featuring more books about books .

Read The Midnight Library : Amazon | Goodreads

The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver

Some of the best time travel books are those with alternate realities, including The Two Lives of Lydia Bird . There are content warnings for prescription pill addiction and more.

Set in England, Lydia and Freddie are planning their marriage when the unthinkable happens. Freddie dies in a car accident on the way to Lydia’s birthday dinner. In a matter of seconds, Lydia’s world falls apart. She isn’t sure how she will survive. When Lydia starts taking magical pink sleeping pills, she enters an alternate universe where Freddie is alive and well.

Caught between her dream world and real life, Lydia must decide if she will give in to her addiction – living in a temporary fantasy world – or give it up completely.

While the repetitive and predictable plot drags a bit – slightly hurting the pacing – the overall story shows emotional growth and the nature of healing after loss. And, as Lydia soon learns via her dreams, no love is perfect. Maybe her future was destined to be different anyway, which is reminiscent of Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library .

Read The Two Lives of Lydia Bird Jose Silver : Amazon | Goodreads

The First Fifteen Lives Of Harry August by Claire North

If you are looking for more suspenseful books about time travel and like Groundhog Day , check out The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August. However, this is not just one day on repeat; instead, this is a lifetime.

Harry August is repeatedly reborn into the same life, retaining his memories each time. No matter what Harry does or says, when he lands on his deathbed, he always returns back to his childhood, again and again. On the verge of his eleventh death, though, a girl changes the course of his life. He must use his accumulated wisdom to prevent catastrophe.

Read The First Fifteen Lives Of Harry August : Amazon | Goodreads

An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim

When it comes to time travel books, An Ocean of Minutes is one of the most original takes about time travel’s effects on alternate history.

Polly and Frank are deeply in love in 1981 when a pandemic devastates the planet. By the end of 1981, time travel (invented in this alternate reality in 1993) has been made available.

Because of this invention, individuals can sign on to work for the TimeRaiser corporation in order to escape or save their loved ones in the present. Due to a flaw in the technology, though, they can only transport people for 12 years. This prevents them from stopping the pandemic by just 6 months.

When Frank gets ill, Polly signs up, both agreeing they will meet back up in 1993. Now alone in the future, Polly has to learn to navigate a world she has less than zero preparation for. In this world, she is a time refugee, bonded to TimeRaiser without a physical cent to her name.

Lim uses the time travel mechanic to cleverly explore the subject of immigration, forcing the reader to follow Polly blindly into a world they should know, but don’t. This is what makes An Ocean of Minutes one of the most unique time travel novels on this reading list.

Read An Ocean of Minutes : Amazon | Goodreads

Time Travel In Science Fiction

For fantasy and sci-fi lovers, take a quantum leap into fictional worlds, quantum physics, possible futures, black holes, and endless possibilities. See if you can tell the difference between the real world and new dimensions.

Recursion by Blake Crouch

Recursion is one of our all-time favorite time travel books to gift to dads who love sci-fi. Can you tell what we gave our dad for Christmas one year?

In Recursion, no one actually physically time travels – well, sort of. Instead, memories become the time-traveling reality.

Detective Barry Sutton is investigating False Memory Syndrome. Neuroscientist Helena Smith might have the answers he needs. The disease drives people crazy – and to their deaths – by causing them to remember entire lives that aren’t theirs. Or are they!?

All goes to heck when the government gets its hands on this mind-blowing technology. Can Barry and Helena stop this endless loop?

Recursion is also a (2019) Goodreads Best Book for Science Fiction.

Read Recursion : Amazon | Goodreads

This Is How You Lose The War by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar 

A Goodreads runner-up for one of the best science fiction novels (of 2019) – and one of the shortest time travel novels on this list – This Is How You Lose The Time War follows two warring time-traveling agents falling in love through a letter exchange.

Red and Blue have nothing in common except that they travel across time and space and are alone. Their growing and forbidden love is punishable by death and their agencies might be onto them.

In a somewhat beautiful yet bizarre story, we watch as Red and Blue slowly fall for each other and confess their love. They engage in playful banter and nicknames. Every shade of red and blue reminds them of each other.

The first half of the novel is a bit abstract. You might wonder what the heck you’ve gotten yourself into. However, once you get your feet planted firmly on the ground of the plot, the story picks up and starts making more sense.

We can’t promise you’ll love or even understand This Is How You Lose The Time War – we aren’t sure we do. However, this is truly one of the most unique sci-fi and LGBTQ+ time travel romance books on this reading list – written by two authors. Also, maybe crack out the dictionary…

Explore even more of the best LGBTQ+ fantasy books to read next.

Read This Is How You Lose The War : Amazon | Goodreads

All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai

A debut novel, All Our Wrong Todays is both a humorous and entertaining time travel book that speaks to how we become who we are.

In 2016, technology perfected the world for Tom Barren. However, we all know that perfection doesn’t equate to happiness. Barren has lost his girlfriend, and he just happens to own a time machine… Now, Barren has to decide if he wants to keep his new, manipulated future or if he just wants to go back home to his depressing but normal life.

Read All Our Wrong Todays : Amazon | Goodreads

Here And Now And Then by Mike Chen

Imagine getting trapped in time and starting over. That’s exactly what happens to IT worker, Kin Stewart, in one of the bestselling science fiction time travel books, Here And Now And Then .

Stewart has two lives since he is a displaced time-traveling agent stuck in San Francisco in the 1990s. He has a family that knows nothing about his past; or, should we say future. When a rescue team arrives to take him back, Stewart has to decide what he is willing to risk for his new family.

Here And Now And Then is a time travel book filled with emotional depth surrounding themes of bonds, identity, and sacrifice. Find even more books set in San Francisco, California (and more!).

Read Here And Now And Then : Amazon | Goodreads

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe is one of the most unusual books about time travel out there.

Our protagonist Charles Yu lives in a world where time travel exists and is readily available to the average person. And yes, he is named after the author, and yes, it is as meta as it sounds; and yes, this is just the beginning of this speculative fiction time travel book.

Charles Yu’s day job is spent repairing time machines for Time Warner Time. But in his free time, he tries to help the people who use time travel to do so safely and to counsel them if things have gone wrong.

It’s no surprise that Charles’ entire life revolves around time travel since his father invented the technology many years ago. And then he disappeared. In fact, Charles is also trying to find out just what happened to his dad, and where – or when – he’s gone.

How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe won’t be for everyone, but it’s one of the best time travel books if you want delightfully meta, fantastically non-linear, and very very weird.

Read How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe : Amazon | Goodreads

The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez

For beautiful, lyrical time travel novels about found family and love, The Vanished Birds is a must-read.

Nia Imani exists outside of time and space. She travels in and out of the world through a pocket of time with her space crew. They emerge to trade or sell goods every eight months. But eight months for them is 15 years for everyone else.

She has lived this way for hundreds of years. Though she has her crew, and there are people she shares connections with sporadically throughout their lives, she is lonely. And although she barely ages, she watches friends and lovers grow old and die.

One such person is Kaeda, who meets Nia for the first time when he is 7. The next time he sees her, he has aged 15 years, while she is only months older. She continues to come every 15 years of his life, always looking the same.

Then one day a mysterious, mute boy falls from the sky into Nia’s life. His name is Ahro, and there’s something extra special about him. Something that could revolutionize space travel forever. And now there might be people after Ahro who won’t love him the way Nia does.

If you love a character-driven book with exquisite prose – and a few time warps – this is one of the best time travel books for you.

Read The Vanished Birds : Amazon | Goodreads

Night Watch by Terry Pratchett

Night Watch is one of the most fun and thrilling books about time travel. It’s also a bit ridiculous and very very British.

Why can’t policing just be simple? All Sam Vimes wanted to do was capture and arrest a dangerous murderer. But thanks to those damned wizards and their experiments, he and the killer have both been accidentally thrown back in time thirty years.

And to top it off, the man who would have become a mentor to young Sam Vimes in the past has been killed in the process! How’s Vimes going to get this all sorted out?

The City Watch he’s spent years improving is just a bunch of semi-competent volunteers at this point. He’s got no money, no clothes, and no friends. But at least he’s making enemies fast. Can he catch the killer, stop history from not repeating itself, and get home to his family? Oh, and the city’s about to dissolve into civil war. Typical.

Night Watch is perfect if you prefer your time travel books to be fantasy-based.

P.S. There may be mild spoilers for previous books in the Discworld series, but this can be read as a standalone. And if you only ever read one Discworld novel, this is one of the best there is – and so far the only one of the Discworld books with time travel!

Read Night Watch : Amazon | Goodreads

The Future of Another Timeline by Annalee Newitz

The Future of Another Timeline is one of the few time travel books to explore history through a feminist lens.

In 1992, Beth – a high school senior – and her friends Heather, Lizzy, and Soojin attend a riot grrl concert with Heather’s boyfriend Scott. But afterward, one of Scott’s not-so-funny sexist jokes gets out of hand and Lizzy accidentally kills him. Now they’re on the run, and the bodies just keep piling up.

Meanwhile, in 2022, Tess is part of a group of women and non-binary people working together to change history. They have the use of five time devices which only allow them to travel backward and back to the present day – but never forwards.

Beth and Tess come from two wildly different times (1992, and 2022, respectively). But, while Beth is busy making history, Tess is quite literally trying to change it. However, both of them want the same thing: a better world. When their worlds collide, will they be able to save each other – and the world?

The Future of Another Timeline is a time travel fiction celebration of feminism and queerness with lots of sci-fi and punk rock thrown in. This is one of the best time travel novels for those who enjoy stellar women making history .

Read The Future of Another Timeline : Amazon | Goodreads

The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley

The Kingdoms is wildly imaginative and sure to enchant fans of time travel books, alternative history stories, and tales about parallel universes.

In 1898 Joe Tournier steps off a train and suddenly can’t remember anything that comes before that moment. The world he now finds himself in is as foreign to him as it is to us: an alternate history/reality where the UK lost the Battle of Trafalgar and is now a French colony.

In this world, the British are kept as slaves. Napoleon is a popular name for pets, and tartan is outlawed. Since Joe arrives on a train from Glasgow speaking English and wearing tartan, there is some speculation he might be from The Saints, a terrorist group based in Edinburgh fighting for freedom.

But all Joe remembers is the fading image of a woman and the name Madeline. Although he is identified by his owner and brought “home,” Joe is determined to find this Madeline. And his resolve is only strengthened when he receives a postcard signed ‘– M’ and dated 90 years in the past.

Discover even more books about Scottish culture, history, and everyday life.

Read The Kingdoms : Amazon | Goodreads

The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley

The Light Brigade is one of the best time travel stories for anyone who loves character-driven tales or books about war and conflict.

As war wages on Mars, the military has devised the perfect soldier to fight on the frontlines: being made of light. The Light Brigade, as they’re called back home, is made up of soldiers who have undergone a procedure that breaks them down into atoms capable of traveling at the speed of light. They are the perfect soldiers, but broken people.

The book follows one such soldier, Dietz, an eager new recruit who is experiencing battle out of sync with everyone else. Because of this, she – and we – see a different reality of the war than the one presented by the Corporate Corps. As Dietz becomes more and more unstuck in time, she becomes more and more unsure of her own sanity and the role she is playing in this war.

Read The Light Brigade : Amazon | Goodreads

The Umbrella Academy by Gerard Way

You Look Like Death Volume 1 | Now a popular (and excellent) Netflix TV show, The Umbrella Academy is one of the best time travel books of all time.

One day, forty-seven children are suddenly and inexplicably born to women who were not previously pregnant. Eccentric millionaire Reginald Hargreeves goes around the world buying as many of the surviving children as he possibly can. He is able to get seven.

These children, it turns out, all have superpowers (except, it seems, for the unremarkable Number Seven aka Vanya). They become the crime-fighting group: The Umbrella Academy.

Fast forward several years, and Number Five, whose special power is that he can travel in time a few seconds or minutes per go, has mysteriously appeared after Hargreeves dies. And now he brings warning of an apocalypse – one which he insists none of his siblings will survive.

The Umbrella Academy series currently has three volumes, all packed with tales of time travel, parallel worlds, family drama, and lots of epic battles. We’ve absolutely loved this time travel book series so far; we can’t wait to see what Gerard Way does with future installments.

Discover even more great books with music, musicians, and bands.

Read The Umbrella Academy : Amazon | Goodreads

Historical Fiction

Travel back in time to witness wars and history. See what happens if you try to rewrite the future. Many of these historical fiction books with time travel promise to teach you more.

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

We have a plethora of Agatha Christie fans amongst our Uncorked Readers , and Turton’s The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evenlyn Hardcastle is inspired by Christie.

Similar to Levithan’s Every Day , each day, Aiden wakes up in a different body from the guests of the Blackheath Manor. Trapped in a time loop, Aiden must solve Evelyn Hardcastle’s murder to escape. In the process, he navigates the tangled web of secrets, lies, and interconnected lives of the guests. Can he identify the killer and break the cycle?

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is an award-winning historical thriller and one of the best time travel novels if you enjoy Downton Abbey and Groundhog’s Day . Discover even more great books set at hotels, mansions, and more.

Read The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle : Amazon | Goodreads

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Travel back in time to Scotland in one of the most well-known time travel book series (and now TV series) of all time. Outlander is a part of pop culture. A New York Times bestseller and one of the top 10 most loved books according to The Great America Read, get ready to enter Scotland in 1743.

Claire Randall, a former British combat nurse, walks through an ancient circle of stones and is transported into a world of love, death, and war. This is a place of political intrigue, clan conflicts, and romantic entanglements. Claire must navigate the unfamiliar landscape while grappling with her feelings for the dashing Jamie Fraser.

Encounter even more cult-classic books from the ’90s like A Game Of Thrones , which is perfect for fantasy map lovers .

Read Outlander : Amazon | Goodreads

11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King

Written by bestselling author, Stephen King, 11/22/63 is one of the best award-winning time travel books for historical fiction lovers. Set in 1963 when President Kennedy is shot, 11/22/63 begs the question: what if you could go back in time and change history?

Enter Jake Epping in Lisbon Falls, Maine.  Epping asks his students to write about a time that altered the course of their lives. Inspired by one of those haunting essays, Epping enlists to prevent Kennedy’s assassination.  How is this time travel possible? With the discovery of a time portal in a local diner’s storeroom…

11/22/63 is one of the most thrilling and realistic books about time travel, according to both critics and readers.

Read 11/22/63 : Amazon | Goodreads

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

If you are looking for historical fiction novels about time travel that address slavery and racism, be sure to check out Butler’s Kindred. This is also one of the best books published in the 1970s .

One minute Dana is celebrating her birthday in modern-day California. The next, she finds herself in the Antebellum South on a Pre-Civil War Maryland plantation. Dana is expected to save the plantation owner’s son from drowning. Each time Dana finds herself back in this time period as well as the slave quarters, her stays grow longer and longer as well as more dangerous.

Examine the haunting legacy and trauma of slavery across time. For younger readers, there is also a graphic novel adaptation . Discover more books that will transport you to the South .

Read Kindred : Amazon | Goodreads

What The Wind Knows by Amy Harmon

A bestseller and Goodreads top choice book, if you devour historical Irish fiction, What The Wind Knows will transport you to Ireland in the 1920s.

Anne Gallagher heads to Ireland to spread her grandfather’s ashes. Devastated, her grief pulls her into another time. Ireland is on the verge of entering a war, and Anne embraces a case of mistaken identity. She finds herself pulled into Ireland’s fight for Independence at the risk of losing her future life. She also falls for another main character and doctor, Thomas Smith.

What The Wind Knows is one of the best time travel novels that both romance and fantasy readers can appreciate. Witness connections that transcend time.

Read What The Wind Knows : Amazon | Goodreads

The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes

Known for being one of the best time travel books for thriller lovers, The Shining Girls also has the reputation as the spookiest novel on this reading list.

Kirby Mazrachi is the last shining girl – a girl with a future and so much potential. Harper Curtis is a murderer from the past meant to kill Mazrachi. However, Kirby is not about to easily go out without a fight, leading her on one violent quantum leap through multiple decades.

As Kirby races against time to track down a serial killer and unravel the mysteries of the House, encounter themes of resilience, fate, and the shining spirit that can transcend even the darkest forces.

Read The Shining Girls : Amazon | Goodreads

Time Travel Romance Books

We love a good time-travel romance novel, but we also understand how hard it can be to hold onto love when time is so unstable. From queer love stories set on trains to holiday celebrations, fall in love across time with these books.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

From bestselling author, Casey McQuiston of Red, White, & Royal Blue – one of our favorite LGBTQ+ books for new adults – don’t miss the most-talked-about book (from 2021), One Last Stop.

Twenty-three-year-old August is quite the cynic and living in New York City. Up until now, August has jumped schools and towns as often as you change a pair of socks. August has also never been in a serious relationship and wants to find “her person.” August’s life suddenly changes, though, when she meets a beautiful and mysterious woman on the train.

Jane looks a little…out of date… and for good reason; she’s from the 1970s and trapped in the train’s energy. August wants nothing more than to help Jane leave the train, but does that mean leaving her too?

A feel-good, older coming-of-age story, laugh out loud and be utterly dazzled as you follow love across time and space. You’ll cozy (and drink) up in the parties and community surrounding August. One Last Stop is one of the all-time best LGBTQ+ time travel books – and perfect if you enjoy books that take place on trains .

Read One Last Stop : Amazon | Goodreads

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

The Time Traveler’s Wife is one the top time travel romance novels – and not just because the story features a librarian . We are so biased.

Henry and Clare have loved each other pretty much forever. Unfortunately, Henry has Chrono-Displacement Disorder, sporadically misplacing him in time. Of course, this time-traveling dilemma makes Clare’s and Henry’s marriage and future together pretty darn interesting.

Grab some Kleenex as they attempt to live normal lives and survive impending devastation. The Time Traveler’s Wife has also been made into a romantic movie classic . Watch even more fantasy movies with romance .

Read The Time Traveler’s Wife : Amazon | Goodreads

In A Holidaze by Christina Lauren

If you are looking for a sweet and sexy holiday rom-com set in Utah, grab In A Holidaze by Christina Lauren.

Mae leaves her family and friend’s Christmas vacation home after drunkenly making out with an old childhood friend. Blame the spiked eggnog. Unfortunately, Mae’s secretly in love with her best friend’s brother, Andrew. On the ride to the airport, Mae wishes for happiness just as a truck hits her parent’s car. 

Mae lands in a time-travel loop where her dreams start coming true.  Is it too good to last?   What happens when she isn’t happy once again? Is she trapped?

For holiday books about time travel, this one is sure to put you in the Christmas spirit if you enjoy movies like Holidates  or  Groundhog’s Day . It’s light with a happy ending – typical of this author duo. We also recommend In A Holidaze if you are looking for Christmas family gathering books – a big request we see here at TUL.

P.S. Did you know that Christina Lauren is a pen name for a writing duo, Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings? Christina Lauren also wrote The Unhoneymooners , which was also hilariously enjoyable and set on an island .

Read In A Holidaze : Amazon | Goodreads

A Knight In Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux

For cozy time travel romance books and a feminist tale set abroad, try A Knight In Shining Armor .

Dougless Montgomery is weeping on top of a tombstone when Nicholas Stafford, Earl of Thornwyck, appears. Although this armor-clad hunk allegedly died in 1564, he stands before her about to embark on a journey to clear his name. Convicted of treason, Montgomery vows to help her soon-to-be lover find his accuser and set the record straight.

Read A Knight In Shining Armor : Amazon | Goodreads

The Night Mark by Tiffany Reisz

Set in South Carolina, if you love lighthouses and beach vibes, you’ll find something enjoyable in the time travel romance, The Night Mark .

After Faye’s husband dies, she cannot move on and recover. Accepting a photographer job in SC, Faye becomes obsessed with the local lighthouse’s myth, The Lady of the Light.

Back in 1921, the lighthouse keeper’s daughter mysteriously drowned. Faye is drawn into a love story that isn’t hers and becomes entangled in a passionate and forbidden love affair.

Read The Night Mark : Amazon | Goodreads

The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston

Anyone who likes their time travel books to have a magical love story should pick up The Seven Year Slip for their next read. It’s one of our favorite magical realism novels .

When Clementine’s aunt dies, she inherits her fancy New York apartment on the Upper East Side. Although Clementine would really rather have her aunt back and can’t imagine living in her home, she eventually forces herself to move in and inhabit her aunt’s space.

And not long after, she wakes up to discover a strange man in her living room… except it’s not her living room, it’s her aunt’s… from seven years ago. Clementine’s aunt always said her apartment held a touch of magic; sometimes it created time slips that brought two people together when they were at a crossroads.

But what happens when you start to fall for someone stuck seven years in the past? Clementine knows there’s no future together, but she also can’t let go of this link to her aunt.

Like her previous speculative fiction romance, The Dead Romantics , Ashely Poston’s unique time travel tale is full of heartache and grief. However, it will also make you swoon. Basically, this one is a must if you are a fan of time travel romance books.

Read The Seven Year Slip : Amazon | Goodreads

Classic Books

No time travel reading list would be complete without the classics. Below, uncover just a few great time travel novels that started it all.

The End of Eternity by Issac Asimov

The End of Eternity is said to be one of Asimov’s science fiction masterpieces. This is also one of the most spellbinding books about time travel – although some criticize the story for its loopholes.

Harlan is a member of the elite future known as an Eternal. He lives and works in Eternity, which like any good time travel novel, is located separately from time and space.

Harlan makes small changes in the timeline in order to better history. Of course, altering the course of the world is dangerous and comes with repercussions, especially when Harlan falls in love.

Read The End of Eternity : Amazon | Goodreads

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

It goes without saying that Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is one of the most famous and best time travel books for classic lovers – and a literary canon-worthy Christmas novel.

Ebenezer Scrooge is a greedy, lonely, and cruel man who truly has no Christmas spirit. Haunted by the ghosts of the past, present, and future, Scrooge must find the ultimate redemption before it’s too late. Does he have a heart?

Find even more classic and contemporary ghost books , including a few unique takes on ghosts.

Read A Christmas Carol : Amazon | Goodreads

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Slaughterhouse-Five is a somewhat bizarre time travel book about finding meaning in our sometimes fractured and broken lives. It’s also one of the most popular books published in the ’60s .

Similar to The Time Traveler’s Wife, Billy Pilgrim is “unstuck” in time in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five. Drafted into World War II, Pilgrim serves as a Chaplain’s assistant until he is captured by the Germans. He survives the bombing at Dresden and ultimately becomes a married optometrist. Things get a little wild…

Suffering from PTSD, Billy claims that he is kidnapped by aliens in a different dimension. Like most time travel novels, the story is out of order and Billy travels to different parts of his life.

Aliens come in all shapes and sizes; have more alien encounters with this reading list .

Read Slaughterhouse-Five : Amazon | Goodreads

A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain

First published in 1889, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court is one of the most popular classic and satirical time travel novels that’s set close to our childhood home. Having grown up in CT close to the old Colt factory, this story makes us smile.

Hank Morgan supervises the gun factory and is knocked unconscious. Upon waking, he finds himself in Britain about to be executed by the Knights of King Arthur’s Round Table in Camelot.

Morgan uses his future knowledge to his advantage, making him a powerful and revered wizard, which unfortunately doesn’t quite save him as he hopes. Not to mention that Morgan tries to introduce modern-day conveniences and luxuries to a time period that isn’t quite ready for them.

Read A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur’s Court : Amazon | Goodreads

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

The Time Machine is one of the best frontrunner time travel books of all time. Published in 1895, the Time Traveler recalls his exhausting time travel adventures to incredulous believers. He even disappears in front of them.

Blended with fantasy and science fiction over the course of 800,000 years, the Time Traveler battles “bad guys.” He also loses his time machine, debatably falls in love, and meets the underground dwelling Morlocks.

Read The Time Machine : Amazon | Goodreads

Young Adults Books

For young adults and teens – plus adults who appreciate YA – read the best middle-grade and high school time travel books. We’ve included more time travel graphic novels and manga here too.

Displacement by Kiku Hughes

For historical YA graphic novels , Displacement is one of the must-read books about time travel that will teach young readers about generational trauma, racism, politics, and war.

Follow Kiku, who is displaced in time, back to the period of U.S. Japanese incarceration [internment] camps – essentially glorified prisons – during WW2. Kiku begins learning more about her deceased grandmother’s history, which mirrors the horrid actions under former President Donald Trump. How can Kiku help stop the past from repeating itself, and more so, how can we?

In a simplistic but powerful style of storytelling, Hughes’s emotional YA WW2 book is accessible to young readers. Displacement is also one of the shorter and quicker books with time travel on this list. Find even more LGBT+ graphic novels to read – one of our favorite genres.

Read Displacement : Amazon | Goodreads

The Girl From Everywhere by Heidi Heilig

Changing the past can be pretty tempting. We’ve even seen that The Flash cannot resist. However, altering the course of history can be dangerous…

The first of two YA time travel books, Nix is the daughter of a time traveler. Her dad can sail anywhere on his ship, The Temptation. Her dad has his own temptation, though: to travel back to Honolulu in 1868, the year before her mom dies in childbirth. Nix’s father threatens to possibly erase her life and destroy a relationship with her only friend.

Discover even more great books about maps. Or, travel via armchair with these ship books.

Read The Girl From Everywhere : Amazon | Goodreads

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

Translated by Anthea Bell | If you are looking for time travel in books and enjoy YA historical fiction, try Ruby Red , which is the first in the Ruby Red Trilogy.

Gwyneth Shepherd quickly learns that she can easily time travel, unlike her cousin who has been preparing her entire life for the feat. Gwyneth wants to know why such a secret was kept from her. There are so many lies. Gwyneth time travels with the handsome Gideon back and forth between modern-day and 18th-century London to uncover secrets from the past.

Back in our MLIS and library days, Ruby Red was one of our favorite YA time travel books to recommend since so few knew about the series. Just a small warning that this enemies-to-lovers trope is a tad sexist, though. Find books like Ruby Red on our books with red (and more colors) in the title reading list .

Read Ruby Red : Amazon | Goodreads

Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

A little creepier for young adult time travel novels, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is all about time loops. We’ve only read the first in this eerie series that mixes manipulated vintage photography with a suspenseful and chilling story.

Jacob discovers a decaying orphanage on a mysterious island off the coast of Wales. Known as Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, the building isn’t exactly abandoned… Jacob runs into peculiar children who might be more than just ghosts.

If you are looking for Kurt Vonnegut-esque time travel books for teenagers, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is for you. Find even more great adult and YA haunted house books to add to your reading list .

Read Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children : Amazon | Goodreads

A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L’Engle

One of the most well-known books about time travel for families – made even more popular by Oprah and Mindy Kaling, A Wrinkle In Time , is the first book in The Time Quintet .

Although a time travel book series for elementary and middle-grade students – and also a 1963 Newbery Medal winner – adults will love the lessons and whimsical sci-fi quality of A Wrinkle In Time.

Meg Murray and her brother, Charles Wallace, go on an adventure in time to find and rescue their father. Their dad disappeared while working for the government on a mysterious tesseract project.

Watch this thrilling time travel adventure mixed with a coming-of-age story and a little girl power, too.

Read A Wrinkle in Time : Amazon | Goodreads

Orange by Ichigo Takano

Translated by Lasse Christian Christiansen and Amber Tamosaitis | This YA sci-fi romance manga is one of the most endearing time travel books you’ll ever read.

On the first day of 11th grade, Naho oversleeps for the first time ever. She also receives a letter that claims to be sent from herself 10 years in the future. The letter tells her both of the two big things that will happen to her that day as proof of sender: she will be late, and there will be a new kid in class named Naruse Kakeru from Tokyo who will sit next to her.

Naho is unsure if she trusts the letter, or whether or not she should heed its warnings – especially since it talks about past regrets and trying to undo them.

Orange is an adorable, but heartbreaking time travel manga that teaches us the meaning of friendship, love, regret, and so much more. If you’re looking for the best books about time travel for teens, Orange is the perfect option (and adults will love it too).

Read Orange : Amazon | Goodreads

If you devour the time travel genre, don’t miss these great movies…

If you enjoy books that take you back in time, you might also appreciate these top movies with time loops . Would you be able to fix past mistakes, fall in love, and you know, maybe not die this time? Find out if these protagonists succeed.

Travel Back In Time With These Reading Lists:

• Best ’90s Books
• Iconic ’80s Books
• Best WWII Historical Fiction

Christine Frascarelli

Christine (she/her) is the owner, lead editor, and tipsy book sommelier of The Uncorked Librarian LLC, an online literary publication showcasing books and movies to inspire travel and home to the famed Uncorked Reading Challenge. With a BA in English & History from Smith College, an MLIS from USF-Tampa, and a U.S. Fulbright Fellowship in Christine's back pocket, there isn't a bookstore, library, or winery that can hide from her. Christine loves brewery yoga, adopting all of the kitties, and a glass of oaked Chardonnay. Charcuterie is her favorite food group.

Dagney McKinney

Dagney (pronouns: any) is a neurodivergent writer and book nerd who is drawn to all things weird and macabre. She also loves anything to do with fast cars, unhinged anti-heroes, and salt. When she isn’t working or reading, you’re likely to find her eating Indian food, playing board games, or hiding out somewhere dark and quiet, stuck down an internet rabbit hole. The easiest way to win her over is through cats and camels.

45 Comments

Hi, nice list but just FYI you have one of the novels named incorrectly: it should be All Our Wrong Todays, not All Our Wrongs Today.

Thanks for letting us know! Every year, this list grows, and sometimes we miss a few mistakes.

The Things Are Bad Series by Paul L Giles is the funniest, most insightful time travel books I’ve ever read. It has everything!

Thanks so much for the review and rec!

Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain is an engrossing time travel book that I enjoyed immensely.

Our readers and contributors are big Diane Chamberlain fans. Thanks!

A huge time travel fan. A great list. Another time travel book recommendation: Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montemore. Wonderful story.

Thank you so much for the kind words and recommendation! We’ll have to check it out.

Great list, thanks. I also love seeing all the recommendations in the comments. I would add the Chronos Files series to your list. And, of course, the film ABOUT TIME, which is fantastic!

Thanks so much for the recommendations. We appreciate it!

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20 YA Travel Books For The Adventurer In You

I’ve recently been on a bit of a young adult reading kick, which is why, over the past week, I’ve accumulated a giant stack of YA travel books. I love young adult travelogues. They’re an escape through unique, (often) breathtaking and dramatic storytelling. And I feel a different experience when I step into each journey.

Right now, my TBR is piled with young adult travel romance novels and coming-of-age adventures and heartwarming tales from the road. And this year, I’m dedicated to reading as many YA travel books as I can.

2020 Update: I finished most of the ya travel books on this list! And my favorite turned out to be a reader recommended addition: Wanderlove . Thanks Amanda!

So without further ado, here are 20 YA travel books for the adventurer in you. 

P.S. Please support your local independent bookstore or library if you can!

Quick Note: The affiliate links below are powered by Bookshop (not sponsored but I do get a small commission), an online bookstore that financially supports independent bookshops around the US and gives back to the indie book community. They’ve raised over four million dollars for independent bookstores thus far. And if you decide to buy a physical copy of any of the YA travel books below, you’ll be giving back to an indie bookstore as well (they’re very transparent and disclose exactly how much you’ll be giving back before purchase). I found this service whilst looking for alternatives to Amazon (since my local indie bookshop is closed right now) and I absolutely love it.

Table of Contents

Love & Luck

I first read Jenna Evan Welch’s novel, Love & Gelato , while on a road trip to San Antonio (not exactly Venice, but definitely the closest you’ll get in Texas). Welch uses simple, evocative writing to build up a feel-good romance. Love & Luck , her second novel, follows a brother and sister’s mayhem-filled tour through Ireland . I love how Welch mixed in snippets of a laugh-out-loud guidebook , Ireland For The Heartbroken (seriously, can I get a copy of this?), into Addie’s story. I’m only about three chapters into Love & Luck, right now, but the warm, bubbly feelings have already emerged. And let’s just say, I’m drowning in (shamrock-shaped) charm.  Update: I finished reading Love & Luck and I’m happy to report, this is now one of my all-time favorite YA travel novels. I enjoyed it even more than Love & Gelato.

I’ve been avoiding Wanderlost for so long, but I’ve finally decided enough is enough. I’m reading this book this month. I originally picked the novel up after seeing it pop up all over YouTube as one of the top YA travel books. Then, I let it sit on my e-shelf and collect the equivalent of electronic dust. Jen Malone weaves the tale of Aubree Sadler, a young Ohio girl pretending to be her sister on a bus tour to Europe . A seemingly cliche love story, Wanderlost gives me serious Monte Carlo ( do you remember the 2011 chick flick starring Katie Cassidy, Leighton Meester, and Selena Gomez? ) vibes.

Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour

Don’t judge a book by its title. Too late. Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour sounds like a classic swoon-worthy road trip romance. I fell in love with the small details thrown into this novel. More than words, Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour is told in part through receipts, postcards, and playlists ( which I’ll be compiling on Spotify at some poin t). Morgan Matson narrates a cross-country road trip with two ( almost ) strangers. But despite the lighthearted storyline, there is an underlying note of grief that Amy is realistically grappling with throughout the trip. I’ve heard the novel is a bit of a tear-jerker ( luckily, I’m all stocked up on tissues and vats of ice cream ). 

Let’s Get Lost

I actually read Let’s Get Lost when it was first released in 2014 ( which I completely forgot about until I poked through the first chapter last week ). Part-novel and part-anthology. Adi Alsaid sows together five separate threads with the needle of Laila . While Alsaid’s writing is beautifully crafted, I wish the characters were a little more rounded and the connection between the different stories was a little less loose. But if you’re looking for a breezy YA travel book , Let’s Get Lost is the perfect coming-of-age story to kick off your adventures.

I See London, I See France

I See London, I See France paints a cartoonish sketch of a young girl’s adventures through Europe . I vaguely remember reading Sarah Mlynowski’s previous novel, Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn’t Have), and absolutely loving it. Mlynowski masters the balance between presenting overtly comical situations and moral acceptance . While her writing falls more on the abrupt side, her expert storytelling swayed me into picking up one of her travel YA books. Update: This is now my lowest rated book on Goodreads. It reads like a middle-grade novel but is plagued with adult concepts. The writing is forced. The characters are fueled by lust (which oddly enough is their defining character trait). The lead (and her best friend) are extremely disrespectful travelers and their bad decisions are glorified. I wish I didn’t chug through this and I’m not sure why I read until the end. The plot just got worse and worse.

13 Little Blue Envelopes

I’m currently halfway through this book and oh my goodness, I think I’m in love. I just want to take a plane and make a break for Europe right now. 13 Little Blue Envelopes follows Ginny Blackstone, a young girl backpacking through Europe based on letters sent by her eccentric aunt. Here’s the catch: her aunt is dead. I love how Maureen Johnson gives us hints of Aunt Peg’s personality, makes us fall in love with her wild, I-don’t-care nature, without Aunt Peg ever making a physical appearance. One of the must-read YA travel books, 13 Little Blue Envelopes will immediately send you to all the places you dream about.   Update: Yes. Yes. Yes. I think I love everything by Maureen Johnson.

Girl At Sea

I was so in love with 13 Little Blue Envelopes that I went ahead and picked up another Maureen Johnson novel, Girl At Sea . I know, I know, I should read one book at a time. This one takes place in a boat in Italy – which, according to the back cover, the main character gripes about. How could you be irritated by being on a boat in Italy? I don’t understand. I’d love to be in Italy….eating gelato ( gelato sounds so good right now ). Anyway, Maureen Johnson is fantastic at capturing teen angst and drama and I’m sure this book will be ship-shape and sea-worthy.

9 Days & 9 Nights

9 Days and 9 Nights caught me by the cover first. I fall so hard for books that have polaroid-esque collages on the front. Then, I read the description and it said: “ for fans of Jenny Han .” I stopped there. If you don’t know, I absolutely love Jenny Han’s writing style (I was so stoked for the Netflix adaptation of To All The Boys I Ever Loved and for once, a book to movie adaptation delivered ). And while I usually hate “ exes meeting in chance in an exotic location and feelings come rushing back ” novels, I’m hoping to give 9 Days and 9 Nights a chance ( hopefully, it lives up to the hype ).

Love & Other Train Wrecks

Love and Other Train Wrecks starts off with an Amtrak ride from Virginia to New York. Since I’ve actually been on that journey ( once upon a time ), I wanted to reminisce a little with this novel. In the story, Noah and Ammy, polar opposites, are coincidentally in the same Amtrak car . Cue events that throw them together – a crazy snowstorm and a broken-down Amtrak car. I love situations like this where the main characters are forced to interact with each other . Instead of a game of lust, I’m hoping for open and honest conversations that spill details about each lead’s past.

The Distance From A to Z

The Distance from A to Z ( this is an Amazon affiliate link as it’s only available on the Kindle. You can find out more about affiliate links here ) is a quick contemporary romance. Epic Reads brings a breezy story (b y debut author Natalie Blitt ) about a young girl hoping to get away from it all and learn French . If you’re in love with France, this is one of the best YA travel books to read. The protagonist (Abby) describes her Francophilia in a truly wholesome and meaningful and relatable way.

More than travel infused, The Distance from A to Z is wanderlust infused. Abby falls slowly and so hard for Zeke ( a boy who is everything she despises in life ). There’s teetering chemistry and a side character who I’m 100% obsessed with (love Alice).

There You’ll Find Me

The premise of There You’ll Find Me is unlike any other YA novel I’ve ever seen. Finley Sinclair isn’t a damsel in distress. She knows what she wants in life and where she is going. Career driven, creative, Finley only loses her spark when she hears about the death of her older brother . Then, Finley journeys to Ireland, following her brother’s travel log. This is where her brother felt closest to God and where Finley tries to seek what he found. Jenny Jones weaves a beautiful tale around one single question – how do you forgive God?

Meant To Be

I get so sappy over hate to love romance novels ( this is what happens after you read Pride and Prejudice two hundred times ). I picked up Meant To Be because I felt so many classic YA travel book elements pouring through the pages – comedy, history, an exotic setting . While I find Julia’s character to be pretentious, stuck-up, judgemental, and flat-out annoying ( right now ), I’m hoping that Lauren Morrill is playing the “travel opens your eyes” angle in this novel.

Anna And The French Kiss

I’m rereading all of Stephanie Perkins novels right now. I just reread Lola and the Boy Next Door ( my favorite book by her ) and now, I’m picking up all the France feels with Anna and The French Kiss. While the title sounds like a lusty, hormonal driven, steamy romance, Anna And The French Kiss is anything but that. Cute as a button, the characters, Anna and Etienne, are so incredibly lovable ( Update: I reread this book and just now realized how disconcerting Anna and Etienne’s relationship is. Their relationship depicts a very weird lesson: actual cheating on your partner isn’t okay, but thinking about it is. That idea is wrong on so many levels. I no longer stand by this book ). And Stephanie Perkins elegantly sweeps you through the famous French attractions. Seriously, every time I read this novel, I imagine that I’m on a whirlwind tour of Paris (this much is still true. I’ll admit to that ).

Airports, Exes, And Other Things I’m Over

The title of this book is so sassy and angry, I know I’m going to love the female lead in this novel. A comedy of errors, Airports, Exes, and Other Things I’m Over is one of the top YA travel books I’m looking forward to reading the most this month. I can totally imagine Sari sitting in the airport with a “stank face” ( the immortal words of Kelly Clarkson – I can’t imagine The Voice without her ), fed up with the crazy situation she’s somehow straddled in .  

Up To This Pointe

Up To This Pointe is all about romance, science, and dance, a unique combination in an even more unique setting – Antarctica . While most YA travel books discuss hopping around Europe and summer flings during an all-American road trip, Jennifer Longo uses the harsh extreme of Antarctica as the backdrop of her story about a young girl, who thought she found herself, trying to find herself. There’s something about the plot that resonated with me and I can’t wait to dig beneath the iceberg and discover the full depths of this novel.

The Gentleman’s Guide To Vice And Virtue

Set in the 1700s, A Gentleman’s Guide To Vice And Virtue is about one young man’s hilarious romp through Europe. A cute LGBTQIAP+ travel romance , the novel is deftly written. Despite Monty wanting nothing more than a hedonistic European escapade, he somehow ends up in the mess of an 18th-century manhunt . A story about finding true love over the course of harrowing events, A Gentleman’s Guide To Vice And Virtue pushes the limits of the term morality.  P.S. This is one of our January 2020 travel book club picks!

Girl Off The Grid

Girl Off The Grid ( this is an Amazon affiliate link as it’s a self-published book. You can find out more about how and why we use affiliate links here ) is the story of a city girl meeting a wild world . The tale follows fashion blogger, Camille Caldwell, who is offered a press trip to Costa Rica. She’s imagining Pina Coladas and cute beach-side photoshoots. But when she’s paired with wildlife photographer, Adam Lloyd, she realizes the trip is a “little more off the grid.” As a blogger, I’m hoping Camille is fun and relatable ( AKA she doesn’t fall into the category of shallow and high maintenance – this is such a common blogger stereotype that I’m sick of seeing ). Side note: the author, Kenzie Hart, has pledged to donate 10% of the book proceeds to a sea turtle conservation and research group.

18 Hours To Us

So I’ll admit, I picked up this book thinking it was a yoga beach romance. Uh, no. And I’m really glad it isn’t. 18 Hours To Us is about two classmates who miss a field trip bus and are forced to drive together from Michigan to Virginia Beach . The book slowly reveals little details about each character – their back story, their talents, and their secrets. I love how there isn’t any information dumping in this title and all the pieces slowly fall into place. I haven’t gotten too deep into the book but I’m absolutely in love with what I’ve read so far.

See You In The Cosmos

I knew I wanted to read this book when I found out the main character has a dog named Carl Sagan . A complex and well-connected web, See You In The Cosmos is about a nerdy boy who sets out on a trip, recording on his iPod what Earth looks like ( so other life forms can hopefully see it one day ). While the novel shifts beautifully between landscapes from Colorado to California , at heart, See You In The Cosmos is a journey about rediscovering family.

Mosquitoland

The captivating art style of Mosquitoland drew me to the book ( yes, I judge books by their covers ). The story of a girl who climbs aboard a Greyhound bus and journeys to find her sick mom, Mosquitoland isn’t all roses. Through thorny relationships, Mimi Malone is forced to untangle her prickly life, confront her inner demons, and search for hope along a thousand-mile journey . The novel deals with heavy subjects ( I know, I was trying to aim for more light-hearted books this month ) but the writing ( on the first page alone ) is so evocative and beautiful, I can’t wait to finish the novel.

P.S. If you love reading, feel free to join the Eden Travel Book Club ( shameless plug) . We read one YA travel book together every month!

Did you enjoy this post on YA travel books? Have you read any YA travel books that I should add to my TBR? What books are you reading this month? Let me know in the comments below!

Editor-In-Chief

Anshula grew up with a love of stories and places. Thirty-five states and 100 bookstores later, she's made her hobbit home in Middle Tennessee. Her Tookish side still takes over and leaves her chasing window seats, literary destinations, adventure books, sunrise coffee, and indie bookshops. She's appeared as a travel source on HuffPost, Reader's Digest, and MSN.

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16 comments.

Wow that’s a lot of books, you’ve been busy and had time on your hands. I do envy that you have had the opportunity to read so many books. I used to read all the time but more horrors and thrillers myself. It’s nice to be able to relax and read every so often.

Yes, it is nice to sit down and read! xx – Anshula

You should read “Wanderlove” by Jen Malone and “wanderlost” by Kirsten Hubbard. These are my FAVORITE travel books, they make my heart happy.

Wow! I love reading books! can’t wait to check all of these! Thank you for sharing!

Have fun, dear! Hope you enjoy them! xx – Anshula

Wow nice. Thats a lot of books to choose to but maybe one day i will buy one of them. Maybe the Let’s Get Lost 🙂 🙂 🙂

Let’s Get Lost is really good (and the writing is just….beautiful) xx – Anshula

This is a great list! My daughter would love these books.

Thanks, Cyndi! xx – Anshula

I definitly need to get back into reading so these should help me out! Thanks for the post!

I was in a reading slump for the longest time so I just went all out to get out of it! xx – Anshula

These sound like so much fun! I always love to find new reads 🙂

Me too! xx – Anshula

I am a bookworm but I always go for the crime mystery and romance ones. I’ve never read a travel book but I like some of your suggestions.

Thanks, love! Most of these are travel romance so they should be right up your alley! xx – Anshula

As a reading specialist, I’m always on the lookout for good YA books for my charges. This has a few I’d love to share with them

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Booklist: Time Travel Reads for Teens

Time travel has been a popular subject of fiction since The Time Machine by H.G. Wells was published in 1895. Over a century later, it still captures the imagination of many readers. The mix of philosophy and theoretical physics allows for endless combinations to explore parallel universes, to go back and forward in time, and is an especially great backdrop for both adventure and star-crossed love.

There is no shortage of time travel stories in young adult fiction. With so many great time travel novels coming out this year, it’s a great time to some time bending novels to your “to read” list. You won’t even need to build a time machine to read most of these right now!

If you like your time travel with a time-crossed romance

Until We Meet Again by Renee Collins

Cassandra’s summer takes a strange turn when she meets a stranger who claims her family’s beach house belongs to him and that the year is 1925. As Cassandra tries to solve the mystery of Lawrence’s appearance she will also have to try to find a way to change history if the two hope to have any kind of future together.

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

Gwyneth Shepherd’s cousin has been preparing to time travel for her entire life. Until both girls find out that it’s Gwyneth, not Charlotte, who carries the rare time travel gene.

The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

Something strange is happening in Natalie’s hometown. Little things at first like her front door being green instead of red. Then a strange apparition Natalie calls “Grandmother” appears and tells he she has three months to save a boy she hasn’t met yet.

Return Once More by Trisha Leigh

Kaia is an apprentice with The Historians–a group of time travelers who observe and record history. Kaia doesn’t see the harm in catching a glimpse of her long-dead soulmate in Ancient Egypt but that one search sets off a series of events that will leave Kaia scrambling to save her future.

Timeless by Alexandra Monir

After her parents’ death Michele is sent across the country to live with her grandparents in New York and finds a diary that transports her to 1910 where she meets a blue-eyed stranger who has haunted her dreams for as long as she can remember.

Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor

Hope will have to learn how to conquer her fears before she can try to work with a group of time travelers to save her mother who is trapped in 12th Century England.

If you you want high stakes adventures across time

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

Traveling across centuries and around the world, Etta and Nicholas will have to trust each other as they hunt down a long-lost artifact and uncover a truth that could threaten their natural times and everything in between.

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray

Determined to get revenge for her father’s murder and the theft of his universe-crossing device, Marguerite embarks on a multi-universal hunt for Paul. The closer Marguerite gets to Paul, the more she begins to wonder if he really is the villain she thought.

The Glass Sentence by S. E. Grove

Nearly a century ago the Great Disruption remade the world and threw all of the continents into different Ages. When her renowned mapmaker uncle is kidnapped, Sophia Tims will have to travel across Ages to rescue him.

The Girl From Everywhere by Heidi Heilig

Nix Song has spent all of her sixteen years watching her father, Slate, use historical and mythical maps to travel to distant lands and times most people can only imagine. Slate’s quest to return to a time and place where Nix’s mother is still alive has driven him to desperate acts before. When the promise of another map surfaces, Nix will have to decide how far she is willing to go to help Slate this time.

Erasing Time by C. J. Hill

Twins Taylor and Sheridan wake up 400 years in the future to find a world they barely recognize and a totalitarian government that will stop at nothing to find out their secrets.

Wildwing by Emily Whitman

An elevator transports Addy from her dreary life in 1913 London to a castle in 1240 where she is mistaken for royalty.

If you’re looking for some time travelers who have to save the day

Loop by Karen Akins

Bree Bennis lives in the twenty-third century where, because of a special gene mutation, she can travel anywhere in time. After her solo midterm to the twenty-first century goes spectacularly wrong, Bree knows she’s in big trouble. Failing to complete her mission is one thing. Accidentally revealing herself to a boy and sort of taking him hostage? That could get Bree expelled. Or worse.

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

Prenna came to New York when she was twelve after immigrating from a disastrous future. In order to try and change that future, Prenna and her community have to follow certain rules: Never reveal where they’re from, never interfere, never get involved with someone outside of the community. The only problem is Prenna might be in love with a boy from the present.

Tempest by Julie Cross

Jackson can travel through time. It’s never been a problem until his girlfriend Holly is fatally shot and Jackson accidentally travels back two years and can’t return to his present to try and save her.

Longbow Girl by Linda Davies

Merry Owen will have to use her archery skills to save her family’s land when she travels to the year 1537 and solve their current financial problems in the present.

Hourglass by Myra McEntire

For the past four years Emerson Cole has seen strange apparitions from the past that seem to be hallucinations. Instead, Emerson learns that she can manipulate time and, with help from the mysterious Michael, she might even be able to prevent a murder that happened six months ago.

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill

Em and Marina stand on opposite sides in a race to protect time and keep a time machine from ever being built. Only one of them can come out alive.

If you want a book about accidental time travel:

Waterfall by Lisa Tawn Bergren

While fighting off boredom at yet another of their parent’s archaeological sites, sisters Gabi and Lia touch the wrong handprint in an ancient tomb and find themselves transported to 14th Century Italy.

The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare by M.G. Buehrlen

Alex Wayfare is used to getting in trouble because of her visions of the past. Turns out Alex is a Descender able to travel through time by accessing her past lives–all 56 of them.

Shadows Fall Away by Kit Forbes

Mark’s stay with his eccentric, Jack the Ripper obsessed, aunt is cut short when he is struck by lightning and wakes up in 1888. When his knowledge of the Ripper murders single him out as a suspect, Mark decides to try to solve the murders himself to clear his name and return to his own time.

My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris

Cat Crawford definitely doesn’t want an elaborate party for her sixteenth birthday. Instead she welcomes her father and stepmother’s offer of a trip to Italy. The only problem comes when an unusual tent transports her to Renaissance Firenze.

Proof of Forever by Lexa Hillyer

After a photo booth camera sends them back in time, four estranged friends will have to relive their summer from two years ago if they want to get back to their present.

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

Anna’s world is turned upside down when Bennett–a time traveler–shows up in her perfectly ordered life in 1995 Evanston, Illinois.

If you want a novel about parallel lives/worlds

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

In 1996 best friends Josh and Emma use a free AOL CD to go online for the first time where they get a glimpse of their Facebook pages–and their lives–fifteen years in the future.

Tandem by Anna Jarzab

Thrust into a life that isn’t her own, Sasha has to play the part of a princess in a world that shouldn’t exist if she ever wants a chance to return to her own world.

Planesrunner by Ian McDonald

Everett Singh will have to use the Infundibulum–a map of parallel earths–to travel across worlds to try and rescue his kidnapped scientist father.

Now That You’re Here by Amy K. Nichols

Thrown together by the most unlikely of circumstances, Danny and Eevee will have to work together to get Danny back home to his own universe before time runs out.

Just Like Fate by Cat Patrick and Suzanne Young

Caroline can stay at her grandmother’s side in the hospital waiting for the worse. Or she can go to a party and try to forget for a little while. One decision might bring closure and one might bring something unexpected. But only one is the right choice.

Pivot Point by Kasie West

At a crossroad that will change everything, Addie will have to user her psychic ability to live both outcomes for every decision she makes to decide what she is willing to live through and who she is willing to lose.

If you want to test out your own time machine, you can check out these books later this year

Future Shock by Elizabeth Briggs

Everything goes wrong when Elena and her team look into their own fates on a routine data gathering mission in the future. With only 24 hours left to get back to the present can Elena save her team and the future?

Two Summers by Aimee Friedman

What happens if Summer Everett picks up her phone and stays home all summer? What if she doesn’t answer and ends up on her planned trip to France? In both summers there will be first love and self-discovery. But how will a shocking family secret play out in each parallel world?

It Wasn’t Always Like This by Joy Preble

Emma and Charlie haven’t aged for a hundred years. Seventeen forever, the two should have a perfect romance. But dangerous forces have kept the two apart until a series of murders suggest that Emma might have the chance to find the threat–and her lost love–at last.

The Square Root of Summer by Harrier Reuter Hapgood

Gottie H. Oppenheimer begins traveling back to key moments in her past through wormholes opening around her small seaside town. She returns to moments of first love and regret while she struggles with the loss of her grandfather in the present. When two boys from her past return, Gottie will have to confront her past–and her future–head on.

— Emma Carbone, currently reading The Winner’s Kiss by Marie Rutkoski

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2 thoughts on “Booklist: Time Travel Reads for Teens”

Omg all of these look AMAZING!! and have been on my radar and haven’t picked them up yet and I don’t know why. Most of these sound super intriguing.

Jumana @ Books by Jay

This is a great collection with awesome headings/organization. Thank you!

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25 Best Time Travel Books That Defy Time and Genre

By looking at the earliest iterations of traveling through time to the modern interpretations, we’ve collected the best time travel books. These best books vary from classic middle grade to contemporary romance. Each book defies a single timeline and a single defining genre.

25 Best Time Travel Books

The following books all feature time travel as a foundational element to the plot. In some, time travel is a narrative device which reveals more about the main character. Meanwhile, in others it is the hard-and-fast time machine that perhaps springs to mind. The inner workings of how the time travels functions are explained, or not explained, to various degrees.

Books about time travel have been around for more than a century and dip into almost every other genre. The picks on this list can also be categorized as romance or thriller, from middle grade to young adult to adult.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but is our recommendations for the best time travel books. If your favorite book about time travel isn’t on this list, leave a comment below to let other readers know your recommendation.

25. The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes

Most time traveling books imbue a lesson about life and the importance of the small moments. This often occurs through a protagonist who, even if they aren’t perfect, is trying to be better. But what if the ability to travel through time landed in the hands of someone evil? That’s what Lauren Beukes explores in The Shining Girls.

This horror sci-fi is about a killer who finds a portal to the past. He then uses it to track, visit, and murder his victims.

Except one victim, Kirby Mazrachi, survives his attack. Now Kirby will do whatever it takes, no matter how improbable, to bring her attacker to justice.

24. Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister

In a similar vein, Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister is a combination of the 1993 movie Groundhog Day and murder. That’s because the main character is up late waiting for her son to return home when she sees the impossible. Her son kills a stranger right in front of their house.

With her son in custody and a million questions swirling in her mind, the main character goes to sleep and wakes up the day before yesterday. Each morning she wakes up one day earlier searching for the reason her son committed the murder, determined to find it.

23. Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

The first book in the Ruby Red Trilogy veers slightly from the previous mystery thriller recommendations. That’s because Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier is a young adult romance with a historical fiction timeline. The trilogy is translated into English by Anthea Bell.

It follows sixteen-year-old Gwen who lives with her eccentric family in London. A time traveling gene runs through the female half of her lineage. However, Gwen was never introduced to the secrets of time travel as the gene was supposed to have skipped Gwen.

So, she is completely unprepared when she starts taking uncontrolled leaps into the past. Gwen needs to learn the ropes fast, while also dealing with her incredibly attractive time traveling partner Gideon.

22. Recursion by Blake Crouch

The time travel in the world of Recursion by Blake Crouch is slightly different than other recommendations, but the importance of memory is still paramount in this setting.

Barry Sutton, a cop in New York City, is investigating False Memory Syndrome. This is a new phenomenon that is driving victims to insanity.

The mysterious affliction is inserting memories into the minds of its victims. Most cannot cope with the onslaught of trauma. Barry and neuroscientist Helena Smith are the only ones who stand a chance at defeating this terrifying opponent.

21. Hyperion by Dan Simmons

Next in our list of the best time travel books is a classic: Hyperion by Dan Simmons. This is a sci-fi space opera which takes place on the world of Hyperion. It is the first book in a quartet with an additional prequel and sequel.

In this world there is a creature called the Shrike. Some worship it, some fear it, and some wish to destroy it. Structures move backward through time in the Valley of the Time Tombs and this is where the Shrike waits.

But on the eve of Armageddon, seven pilgrims set forth to Hyperion. They seek answers to the unsolved riddles of their lives. Each pilgrim carries hope and a secret, and one may hold the fate of humanity in his hands.

20. An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim

This is a story about love and the endurance of humanity. It unfolds against a backdrop of time travel, a flu pandemic, and sacrifice. An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim follows two people separated by time.

When Polly’s boyfriend Frank catches the deadly flu virus that is rampaging its way across America, she will do anything to save him. Even agree to a radical contract with a company that has invented time travel to work as a bonded laborer. If she agrees, the company will pay for Frank’s treatment.

Polly and Frank agree to meet in twelve years’ time in Galveston, Texas. But when Polly is sent an additional five years in the future, everything is thrown into question. Now Polly must try to find Frank, see if he is alive, and if their love still rings true.

19. The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley

The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley is another romance that involves themes of loss, grief, and identity.

Eva and Katrina spent their summers as children in Cornwall, so when Katrina dies that is where Eva returns to spread her ashes. But Eva must confront the metaphorical ghosts of her past. As well as the very real ghosts she finds in the home where she is staying.

That’s because in this home Eva can travel through time back to the eighteenth century. She finds herself interacting with the inhabitants who lived there then. She also finds herself falling for one of them, Daniel Butler, and needing to choose between the life she knows and the past she feels so drawn towards.

18. This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Another romance, This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone is equally ethereal and unexpected. It is written in the form of letters between two enemies from opposing sides of a war who slowly, through their shared correspondence, fall in love.

Known only as Red and Blue, their letters begin as taunts, then praise, and then something more. The prose in this book feels more like poetry. As Red and Blue traverse the strands of time and history to weave their own attacks in this War or snip others, we learn more about them, the intimacy of their correspondence, and the chances of their happily-ever-after.

17. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

No list of the best time travel books would be complete without Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, because it has become a beloved modern classic. Claire and Jamie’s love story has sold millions of copies and sprung from the pages into a hit TV adaptation. But this is where it all began.

In 1945, as Claire enjoys a second honeymoon with her husband in Scotland, she walks through an ancient stone circle and finds herself in 1743. Claire does not understand the forces which propelled her back in time, nor does she fully understand the fiery passion she feels for James Fraser, who has her questioning her vows of holy matrimony.

16. The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Another book that has become synonymous with time travel and likely immediately springs to mind is The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. It too has a popular screen adaptation with a 2009 movie and a more recent 2022 television series.

It follows the love story of Clare and Henry as they try to navigate their lives with Henry’s genetic condition that causes him to travel sporadically through time. They first met when Clare was six and Henry 36, then married when Clare was 22 and Henry was 30. Their fight for each other is moving and unforgettable.

15. All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai

The future imagined by those in the 1950s was remarkable. In the world of All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai, it was also accurate. What we think of as the real world is actually an offshoot that feels like a dystopian wasteland when Tom Barren finds himself in our version of 2016 after a time traveling mishap.

But in this alternate reality Tom finds versions of his family, his career, and the love of his life. Now, Tom must make a decision on whether to he needs to fix his mistake, or if he should forge out a new life in this unpredictable reality.

14. The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells by Andrew Sean Greer

The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells by Andrew Sean Greer opens in 1985 and depicts the various lives Greta might have lived, if she had been born in a different time.

It all starts when Greta begins psychiatric treatment for her depression after the death of her twin brother and a difficult break up. Through her treatment she begins to experience alternative versions of her life in 1918 and 1941. Each comes with its own hardships and losses, but if she had a chance to choose, where would Greta stay?

13. Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor

The next recommendation in our list of the best time travel books is the first in The Chronicles of St Mary’s series. Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor follows a group of time traveling historians who try to stay under the radar, but don’t always succeed. It is a fun adventure-filled read.

That’s because the members of St Mary’s Institute of Historical Research have a penchant for disaster as they investigate major historical events in contemporary time. While they always intend to observe quietly, they quickly realize it’s not just History they’re fighting.

12. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis

This is another book which follows scholars and academics through time travel and is also the first book in a series. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis is the first book in the Oxford Time Travel series. It explores universal themes of evil, suffering, and the resilience of the human spirit.

Kivrin prepared for her next on-site study by receiving inoculations against the diseases of the fourteenth-century and crafting an alibi for a woman traveling alone. Her instructors in the modern day were busy with the painstaking calculations to send her to where she needed to be.

But then a crisis strands Kivrin in a time of superstition and fear. She finds herself becoming an unlikely angel of hope to those around her.

11. Time and Again by Jack Finney

Time and Again is the first book in the Time duology by Jack Finney. It follows a young man who is enlisted into a secret government experiment.

Si Morley finds himself transported from mid-twentieth century New York City to 1882. While enchanted by the city he solves a 20th-century mystery by finding its 19th-century roots. He also falls in love with a beautiful young woman and must choose between the past or the present.

10. The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley

An alternative history standalone, The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley asks the question of whether it is worth changing the past to save the future when it costs you everyone you’ve ever loved.

Joe Tournier doesn’t remember anything about his life before he stepped off a train onto the soil of 19th-century England, which is a French colony. The only clue he has is an old postcard of a Scottish lighthouse from 100 years ago. The post card is written in English, which is illegal, and signed with an M.

His search for his identity begins with who wrote this postcard. It will see Joe travel from French-ruled London to rebel-owned Scotland. He will remake history, and himself.

9. The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway

More than halfway through our list of the best time travel books is The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway. It presents another alternative history between London and France.

Lord Nicholas Falcott was dying on a Napoleonic battlefield when he suddenly awoke in 21st-century London. A secretive group of time travelers, The Guild, told him there is no return. But Nick’s heart belongs to Julia Percy back in 1815 and Nick is willing to gamble everything against the rules of time itself for their reunion.

8. One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle

After quite a few romantic time traveling stories, this recommendation ventures into a different type of relationship and form of love. One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle follows Katy to the Amalfi Coast of Italy as she grieves the loss of her mother.

Katy and her mother, Carol, were supposed to travel to Positano together; it is a town where Carol spent the summer before she met Katy’s father. While Katy travels to Italy alone, she soon feels her mother’s spirit all around her, and then she finds her mother walking through the streets, somehow 30 years old again.

Katy has gotten her mother back and has one Italian summer to get to know her as a young woman. But Katy will have to reconcile her version of her mother who knew everything with the young woman before her still figuring it out.

7. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

This next recommendation quickly became a beloved favorite following its publication, but before you read The Midnight Library by Matt Haig you may want to check out the detailed content warnings as it does have themes of suicide ideation and depression.

Despite the heavy themes, Haig is able to create a world that is lyrical, poignant, and strangely uplifting. Between life and death in this world there is a library which holds all the different variations of your life: The might-have-beens.

Nora Seed finds herself in the Midnight Library with the possibility to change her life for a new one. As she travels through the stacks she must decide what is truly fulfilling in life and what makes life worth living in the first place.

6. 11/22/63 by Stephen King

While he is known as the King of Horror, Stephen King has a grasp on writing that shines through in any genre he tackles. That much is true for 11/22/63 which takes place in two timelines as an English teacher from Maine attempts to stop the Kennedy assassination.

It begins in 2011 as Jake Epping’s friend shares with him the time traveling portal in the back of his diner. Jake agrees to this daring, and seemingly impossible, mission to prevent the Kennedy assassination. But in this world of a bygone era, Jake falls in love with a high school librarian and then encounters a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald…

5. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

As we begin counting down the top five best time travel books, this is where we start to feature the classics that undoubtedly affected the course of the genre. The first of these classics is Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

The time travelling aspect of this book is part of the narrative and how Billy Pilgrim relives his life in a slightly disorienting and non-linear way. Centering on the infamous bombing of Dresden during the Second World War, Billy Pilgrim’s odyssey through time reflects the mythic journey of our own fractured lives as we search for meaning in what we fear the most.

4. The End of Eternity by Isaac Asimov

Our fourth pick for the best time travel book is The End of Eternity by Issac Asimov. This is a dystopian science fiction in which humanity is split between Eternals and non-Eternals.

Andrew Harlan is an Eternal, which means it is his job to travel through the past and present to monitor Time and, when necessary, change it. But when he falls in love with a non-Eternal woman, he decides to use the powers at his disposal to twist time for his own purposes, so he and the woman he loves can carve out a life together.

3. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

This next best time travel book is an evocative story about friendship and family. A Wrinkle in Time is the first book in the Time Quintet by Madeleine L’Engle, which is a middle grade classic.

It begins at the Murry house when a stranger beckons Meg, her brother Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin O’Keefe on a dangerous and extraordinary adventure. It is a journey through time that will threaten their lives and our universe, but the life of Meg’s father hangs in the balance.

2. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

Our penultimate pick for the best time travel book explores a theme that has not yet featured on our list, which is how time travel can be an incredibly different experience with the dangers of racism. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler is heralded as the first science fiction novel written by a Black woman; Butler and this novel have become a cornerstone of the genre.

In 1976 California, on her 26th birthday, Dana finds herself hurtled through time to antebellum Maryland. She saves a drowning white boy, but finds herself staring down the barrel of a shotgun. She escapes with her life when she is inexplicably transported back to the present, but this is just the beginning of multiple time traveling experiences with the same young man, which makes Dana realize the challenge she has been given.

1. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

Finally, our best time travel book is the 1895 classic that literally coined the term which has now become universal: The Time Machine by H.G. Wells. Even though it was written more than a century ago, Wells’s novel remains a striking commentary on the duality of human nature.

It is a first-hand account of the main character’s journey from Victorian England to 800,000 years in the future. There the Time Traveller encounters an Earth that is slowly dying and populated by two races: The ethereal Eloi and the subterranean Morlocks. It depicts humanity’s greatest hopes, and its darkest fears.

Final thoughts on the best time travel books

In conclusion, here is a recap of our picks for the best time travel books. These recommendations span more than a century of literature. This list includes the first instances of time travel in fiction and other cornerstone classics that shaped this trope.

Books about time travel can go in countless directions, which makes it a building block for so many other genres: Middle grade, young adult, romance, or mystery. Regardless of whichever genre these time travel books share, each one offers a poignant reflection into the psyche of humanity. Each book on this list explores a what-if and the conclusions reveal a little bit more about our lived reality.

• The Time Machine by H.G. Wells (1895)
• Kindred by Octavia E. Butler (1979)
• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle (1962)
• The End of Eternity by Isaac Asimov (1955)
• Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut (1969)
• 11/22/63 by Stephen King (2011)
• The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (2020)
• One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle (2022)
• The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway (2013)
• The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley (2021)
• Time and Again by Jack Finney (1970)
• Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (1992)
• Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor (2013)
• The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells by Andrew Sean Greer (2013)
• All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai (2017)
• The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (2003)
• Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (1991)
• This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone (2019)
• The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley (2011)
• An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim (2018)
• Hyperion by Dan Simmons (1989)
• Recursion by Blake Crouch (2019)
• Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier (2009)
• Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister (2022)
• The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes (2013)

More Book Recommendation Resources

• 21 Best Psychological Thriller Books
• 15 Best Historical Fiction Books
• 17 Best Science Fiction Books
• 30 Best YA Fantasy Books

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50 Best Time Travel Books of All Time

I love the concept of time travel in books (and movies!). It just opens up so many creative possibilities, which make them so fun to read. So, here’s my list of the 50 Best Time Travel books!

This list includes titles released at any point in time, but has a slight preference for newer titles. It’s divided up into General Time Travel, Literary, Romance and Young Adult titles .

And feel free to drop a comment if you have a favorite time travel book that belongs on this list!

General Time Travel

Literary time travel, time travel romance, young adult, other time travel books.

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Wow. What a great list. I have only read a handful of these and have added another big handful to my TBR list. So glad to see Kindred here. It is a favorite of mine. Thanks for the post.

thanks rosi, glad you liked it! :)

I’m really interested in time travel nowadays, especially going into the past. I always wonder how I would manage 100, 200, 500 years ago. Life was so different!

yes! and I love how the change in time periods make for interesting perspective clashes that are a lot of fun to read about :)

An amazing list, thank you.

One of the best recent additions to the time travel genre is Novikov Windows: A Time Travel Novel, by Chris Cosmain.

With spring finally here and summer fast approaching, most of us are overcome with wanderlust . There's nothing like sunshine and warmer weather to make you want to pack a bag and go find some adventure. If you're already planning for airplanes and beaches, road trips and touristy jaunts, you're going to need a couple of books to bring with you, right? And if you're someone for whom staycations are the only vacation on the horizon, books are definitely the best way to travel without ever leaving your home. So, we've compiled a few of our favorite young adult travel reads that will definitely inspire you to take your dream vacation.

Books about boarding school in Paris, backpacking through Central America, summer beach houses and expeditions to Antarctica; we've got a little bit of everything from different countries and all different kinds of jaunts. Whether you want to learn more about a specific place, have already fallen in love with a country and want to return to it, or are looking to feel more comfortable before you take a trip or spend a semester abroad , all of these picks are sure to bring the excitement, fun and romance of finding yourself in a new place.

'Love & Gelato' by Jenna Evans Welch

Lina is spending the summer in Tuscany, but she isn’t in the mood for Italy’s famous sunshine and fairy-tale landscape. She’s only there because it was her mother’s dying wish that she get to know her father. But what kind of father isn’t around for 16 years? All Lina wants to do is get back home. But then she is given a journal that her mom had kept when she lived in Italy. Suddenly Lina’s uncovering a magical world of secret romances, art, and hidden bakeries. A world that inspires Lina, along with the ever-so-charming Ren, to follow in her mother’s footsteps and unearth a secret that has been kept for far too long. It’s a secret that will change everything she knew about her mother, her father — and even herself.

Click here to buy.

'Meant To Be' by Lauren Morrill

This spring break, Julia's rules are about to get defenestrated (SAT word: to be thrown from a window) when she's partnered with her personal nemesis, class-clown Jason, on a school trip to London. After one wild party, Julia starts receiving romantic texts from an unknown number. Jason promises to help discover the identity of her mysterious new suitor if she agrees to break a few rules along the way. And thus begins a wild goose chase through London, leading Julia closer and closer to the biggest surprise of all: true love. Because sometimes the things you least expect are the most meant to be.

'Up To This Pointe' by Jennifer Longo

Harper is a dancer. She and her best friend, Kate, have one goal: becoming professional ballerinas. And Harper won’t let anything—or anyone—get in the way of The Plan, not even the boy she and Kate are both drawn to. Harper is also a Scott — aka related to Robert Falcon Scott, the explorer who died racing to the South Pole. So when Harper’s life takes an unexpected turn, she finagles her way to the icy dark of McMurdo Station . . . in Antarctica. It's extreme, but somehow fitting — apparently she has always been in the dark, dancing on ice this whole time. And no one warned her. Not her family, not her best friend, not even the boy who has somehow found a way into her heart.

'Anna And The French Kiss' by Stephanie Perkins

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris — until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all — including a serious girlfriend. But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss or is heartbreak all that's on the horizon?

'Amy & Roger's Epic Detour' by Morgan Matson

Amy Curry is not looking forward to her summer. Her mother has decided to move across the country and now it's Amy's responsibility to get their car from California to Connecticut. But there's one problem. Since her father died in a car accident, she hasn't been able to get behind the wheel. Enter Roger, an old family friend who also has to make the cross-country trip... with plenty of baggage of his own. The road home may be unfamiliar, especially as their friendship starts venturing into uncharted territory, but together, Amy and Roger will figure out how to map their way to a new destination.

'Wanderlove' by Kristin Hubbard

In a quest for independence, 18-year-old Bria Sandoval signs up for a guided tour of Central America. But middle-aged tourists with fanny packs are hardly the key to self-rediscovery. Then Bria meets Rowan, a devoted backpacker, and his outspokenly humanitarian sister Starling, and she seizes the chance to join them off the beaten path. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages and remote Belizean islands, Bria and Rowan discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. And the secret to escaping the past, Rowan’s found, is to keep moving forward. But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever and if she ever wants the courage to fall for someone worthwhile, she has to start looking back.

'The Summer I Turned Pretty' by Jenny Han

Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good and magical in her life happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, when she can be back at the beach house with her mother's best friend Susannah and, most importantly, Susannah's sons Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer; they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer — one terrible and wonderful summer — everything changes.

'The Wonder Of Us' by Kim Culbertson (April 25, 2017)

Riya moved to Berlin, Germany with her family for junior year, while her best friend Abby stayed behind in their small California town. They thought it would be easy to keep up their friendship. After all, it's only a year, and they've been best friends since preschool. But instead, they've ended up fighting and not being there for the other. So Riya proposes an epic adventure to fix their friendship. Two weeks, six countries, unimaginable fun. But there are two small catches: They haven't talked in weeks and they've both been keeping secrets. Can Riya and Abby find their way back to each other among lush countrysides and dazzling cities, or does growing up mean growing apart?

'In A Perfect World' by Trish Doller (May 23, 2017)

Caroline Kelly is excited to be spending her summer vacation working at the local amusement park with her best friend, exploring weird Ohio with her boyfriend, and attending soccer camp. But when Caroline’s mother is hired to open an eye clinic in Cairo, Egypt, Caroline’s plans are upended. She is now expected to spend her summer and her senior year in a foreign country, away from everything she’s ever known. With this move, Caroline predicts she’ll spend her time navigating crowded streets, eating unfamiliar food, and having terrible bouts of homesickness. But what she finds instead is a culture that surprises her, a city that astounds her, and a charming, unpredictable boy who challenges everything she thought she knew.

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10 Best Travel Books to Inspire Wanderlust Teens

Jan 4, 2021

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As teens strive for independence, sometimes they look to break away from the family vacation and venture off on their own. Here are 10 travel books to help those teens plan a trip of their own, or dream of destinations to visit when they can finally spread their wings.

1. Diary of a Tokyo Teen: A Japanese-American Girl Travels to the Land of Trendy Fashion, High-Tech Toilets and Maid Cafes by Christine Mari Inzer

Our 17-year-old daughter has begged to visit Japan for years, and Diary of a Tokyo Teen   may be just the book to help stave off her wanderlust until she can visit. Author Christine Mari Inzer was born in Tokyo in 1997, spent her early years in Japan, and moved to the U.S. in 2003. Inzer returned to Japan the summer before she turned 16, and wrote this book when she was 17. Diary of a Tokyo Teen uses Inzer’s quirky musings, drawings, and photos to bring readers along to numerous neighborhoods in Japan.

2. The Bucket List: 1000 Adventures Big & Small by Kath Stathers

This 500-page coffee table book is full of inspiration (and photos) for adventures on every continent. Use it to plan your next trip or as encouragement for experiences you can do right now, close to home. The Bucket List  makes a great gift for teens planning a gap year before college, or looking for an adventure during a university break. You’ll find everything from panning for gold in California to catching the Aurora Borealis from an igloo in Finland.

3. Peak by Roland Smith

This young adult novel, Peak , is the first of two in a series, and follows 14-year-old Peak Marcello on a quest to become the youngest climber to summit Mount Everest. Before the American youth heads to the mountain, his English teacher provides him with two notebooks to fill to complete his school requirements. The tale is told from Peak’s point-of-view while also giving tips to aspiring travel writers.

4. The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig

Travel, history, and time-travel combine in this first of two young adult fiction books called The Girl from Everywhere.   Nix is the girl, and has grown up on her father’s ship that can sail to anyplace, anytime. Unfortunately, Nix’s mother died in childbirth, and her father is obsessed with getting back to the place and time it happened.

5. Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne

The classic Jules Verne adventure novel first published in 1873. Phileas Fogg must circumnavigate the globe in a little over two months to win a wager from the Reform Club. Fogg’s planned itinerary departs from London to India and across the subcontinent by train. Arriving in Japan he crosses the Pacific Ocean by steamer to San Francisco, where he takes the transcontinental railroad to New York City. After that it’s back to the U.K. by cruise ship. Does he make it?

6. The Innocents Abroad (Illustrated Edition) by Mark Twain

A travel book by the great American humorist Mark Twain about his “pleasure trip” through Europe and the Holy Land in 1867, complete with original illustrations. In The Innocents Abroad , Twain describes his visit to Egypt and the Holy Land, along with side trips to the 1867 Paris Exhibition, Rome, and stops along the Mediterranean Coast.

7. Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

Hiker, diver, and travel writer, Kirsten Hubbard weaves it all together in her young adult novel Wanderlove . When 18-year-old Bria Sandoval heads to Central America on her quest to be a global vagabond, she finds Rowan and discovers a kindred spirit looking for re-invention. Wanderlove is filled with vivid descriptions that make you feel like you are right there in the Mayan village with Bria and Rowan.

8. Wanderlost by Jen Malone

Aubree is perfectly happy in boring Ohio for the summer, but her older sister, Elizabeth, needs her help leading seniors on a bus tour through Europe. Jen Malone’s young adult novel, Wanderlost,  takes us through romantic European cities, and, along the way, Aubree ends up falling for the tour company owner’s son, Sam.

9. Atlas Obscura: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders

Strange, quirky, curious—Atlas Obscura celebrates the offbeat, hidden places of the world. Atlas Obscura: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders   is a collection of stories from the Atlas Obscura website . If you’re familiar with the website, you’ll love the book that features 600 sites around the world.

10. National Geographic: Destinations of a Lifetime

Billed as 225 of the World’s most amazing places, National Geographic’s “ Destinations of a Lifetime ” uses rich photography to supplement descriptions of stunning natural and man-made locales including Venezuela’s Angel Falls, Arizona’s Antelope Canyon, and the New York Botanical Gardens in New York City.

Dave Parfitt lives in Rochester, New York, with his wife and two daughters. A runner with a PhD in neuroscience, he lived in numerous Northeastern and Midwestern U.S. cities before taking a college job in the Finger Lakes. He’s traveled worldwide, but a Walt Disney World trip with two budding princesses is the trip that elicited the family travel wanderlust. He shares his vacation tips and tricks on AdventuresbyDaddy.com .

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Young Adult Books About Time Travel

25 Time Travel Novels and series for Children, Middle Grade, and Young Adult

Time Travel Is An Exciting Science Fiction/Fantasy Genre Where The Plot Possibilities Are Truly Endless And They Can Sometimes Be As Educational As They Are Entertaining. Of course, not all time travel books are a set up to teach kids about a specific time period. Many are simply a fun fantasy. They’re the perfect gateway to historical fiction – especially if the child enjoys the time period.   Here are our picks for kid-friendly, time-travel books – some old, some new – including series and stand-alone novels.   A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. This book only makes the list because people would expect to see it. But the brother and sister characters do not travel “back” in time. Instead, they travel through space and time, from galaxy to galaxy in search of their father – perhaps to future worlds? For ages 9 – 12.   Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne. There are over 60 books in this series where siblings Jack and Annie go on adventures throughout history experiencing dinosaurs and sabertooth tigers, Vikings, Egyptian Pharoahs and more. These make great early reader books. For ages 5 – 8.   The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls by M. J. Thomas is an adventure-packed chapter book series that follows siblings Peter and Mary and their dog, Hank, as they discover ancient scrolls that transport them back to key moments in biblical history. For ages 6 – 9.   Rescue on the Oregon Trail (Ranger in Time #1of 13) by Kate Messner. Ranger is a time-traveling golden retriever who has a nose for trouble . . . and always saves the day! For ages 7 – 10 years   World’s Worst Time Machine (Volume 1) by Dustin Brady. From the bestselling author of Trapped in a Video Game series, Brady’s laugh-out-loud sense of humor and daring adventure will keep even the most reluctant reader wanting to turn the pages of this new series. For ages 8 – 11.   The Secret Lake by Karen Inglis. Siblings Stella and Tom go back 100 years from their London home to solve a mystery in this page-turning instant classic. For ages 8 – 11.   George Washington’s Spy (Time Travel Adventures trilogy) by Elvira Woodruff. Ten-year-old Matt Carlton and six friends are accidentally swept back in time–to Boston in 1776! The British now occupy the city, and redcoat guards are everywhere! For ages 7 – 10.   One if By Land, Two if By Submarine by Eileen Schnabel. When Paul Revere is kidnapped by a time traveler determined to change the outcome of the American Revolution, thirteen-year-old Kep Westguard is sent to Boston, 1775, to take his famous midnight ride. For ages 10+.   Displaced: Both Feet in the Game by JJ Carroll. Seventh grader Nikola and his friends travel back 100 years and must travel over 4,500 miles with no money, no means of transportation and a sinister FBI agent on their heels. For ages 8 – 12.   Laurella Swift and the Keys of Time by Allison Parkinson. Laurella Swift and the Keys of Time is the first in a new series of Laurella Swift adventures. The historical fantasy takes middle-grade readers on a rip-roaring escapade to the court of Cyrus the Great. For ages 7 – 12.   The Last Musketeer by Stuart Gibbs. On a family trip to Paris, Greg Rich’s parents disappear. They’re not just missing from the city—they’re missing from the century. So, Greg does what any other fourteen-year-old would do: He travels through time to rescue them. For ages 8 – 12.   Anachronist : The Infinity Engines series (Book 1) by Andrew Hastie. Travelling into the past using the timelines of ancient artefacts, the Oblivion Order explore the forgotten centuries, ones that never made it into the history books. They make subtle adjustments to the past – saving us from oblivion in the future. Young Adult.   Glitch by Laura Martin. Glitchers are people who travel through time to preserve important historical events. Regan Fitz finds a letter from his future self, warning about an impending disaster that threatens him and everyone he knows. For ages 10+.   The Rhythm of Time by Questlove. Seventh grader Rahim Reynolds goes back to 1997 and learns what every time traveler before him has: Actions in the past jeopardize the future. For ages 10 – 12.   Stealing the Sword (Time Jumpers series Book 1) by Wendy Mass. Aimed at newly independent readers with easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page. For ages 6 – 9.   Justice for Joe by Dianna Dorisi Winget. When twelve-year-old Birch first learns the rare clock gene she inherited from her grandmother enables her to time travel, she’s not excited–she’s terrified. For ages 8 – 12.   The Hat, George Washington, and Me! By Gregory O. Smith. Part time travel, part crazy school, full-time fun! “Hey Mom, there’s a patriot in my cereal box!” A fast-moving mystery adventure for children ages 8-14.   The Eye of Ra by Ben Gartner . For readers graduating from the Magic Tree House series and ready for intense action, dive into this middle grade novel rich with meticulous historical detail. For ages 8 – 12.   The Thrifty Guide to the American Revolution : A Handbook for Time Travelers by Jonathan W Stokes. If you had a time travel machine and could take a vacation anywhere in history, this is the only guidebook you would need! For ages 8 – 12.   Hot on the Trail in Ancient Egypt by Linda Bailey. Book 1 of the series. All twins Josh and Emma want to do is get out of the creepy Good Times Travel Agency where their little sister, Libby, has led them. But the peculiar shop owner encourages them to open one of his guidebooks first — and they suddenly find themselves transported back in time.   The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. Everyone thinks it’s just a game until strange things start happening. Has the Egypt Game gone too far? For ages 8 – 12.   Greg’s First Adventure in Time (Book 1 of 5) by C. M. Huddleston. Archaeology, time travel, and a moose hunt combine to force 12-year-old Greg to face his fears and find his strengths. Greg explores a world that existed more than 3,000 years ago with his new Native American friend Hopelf. While Greg learns about Native American ways of life, how to hunt and fish, and just to survive, he is always searching for a way back home. For ages 10+.   The Time Travelers by Linda Buckley-Archer. Gideon, Peter, and Kate are swept into a journey through eighteenth-century London and form a bond that, they hope, will stand strong in the face of unfathomable treachery. For ages 8 – 12.   Found (Book 1 of 8) by Margaret Peterson Haddix. One night a plane appeared out of nowhere, the only passengers aboard: thirty-six babies. As soon as they were taken off the plane, it vanished. Now, thirteen years later, two of those children are receiving sinister messages, and they begin to investigate their past. Their quest to discover where they really came from leads them to a conspiracy that reaches from the far past to the distant future–and will take them hurtling through time. For ages 10+.   The History Mystery Kids: Fiasco in Florida (Book 1 of 10) by Daniel Kenney. Professor Abner Jefferson is missing. His children watched him get sucked into a book. Now they must find him. By going back… through History! For ages 8 – 10.

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Blog – Posted on Tuesday, Feb 04

115 best young adult books of all time.

However much teachers will make you read classics like Moby-Dick or Great Expectations , chances are that many of the books you’ll keep closest to your heart are the teenage books you read. Who can forget the first time they met irresistible, fast-talking Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables ? Or the years that they spent growing up with Harry, Hermione, and Ron? Or the breakneck, can’t-tear-your-eyes-away sequences that made The Hunger Games an international phenomenon?

Luckily for us, it truly is the golden age for young adult fiction right now, as YA authors today continue to take the genre in new and incredibly exciting directions. Indeed, young adult books have stepped up onto the literary stage as a powerful genre in its own right, creating role models for all of us and leading important conversations about personhood, gender, sexuality, and race.

So what are the greatest teenage books ever? It's a question that's too vast for any one person to answer. So to compile this masterpost, we asked our community of 300,000 readers to vote for their favorite teenage books. Without further ado, here are the 115 best young adult books of all time.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by the number of great YA books to read, you can also take our 30-second quiz below to narrow it down quickly and get a personalized YA book recommendation  😉

Which YA book should you read next?

Discover the perfect YA book for you. Takes 30 seconds!

1. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

From the author of Throne of Glass comes this equally intense and thrilling young adult book series, devised as a loose retelling of Beauty and the Beast . In the eponymous first installment, now a new adult favorite, a young human huntress named Feyre is captured and forced to become the ward of a part-faerie, part-beast High Lord called Tamlin. Though cold to one another at first, Feyre’s irrepressible human spirit and curiosity soon endear her to Tamlin, and their lives intertwine as she learns the ways of the fae. But this contentment is shattered when Feyre realizes the curse that hangs over Tamlin and his people… and finally understands that only she has the power to save them.

2. A Separate Peace by John Knowles

One of the most quietly impactful young adult books you’ll find on an AP English reading list, A Separate Peace centers on a complicated friendship between two adolescent boys. Gene and Finny are roommates at the quintessentially northeastern Devon School, where they become thick as thieves despite their very different personalities. But as the shy, unathletic Gene grows jealous of Finny’s easy confidence, he’s driven to do something unforgivable — after which their lives will ever be the same. Set against the sobering backdrop of WWII, A Separate Peace makes universal themes of loyalty and loss of innocence seem incredibly personal, and ensures this story is one the reader will never forget.

3. A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

No one can balance absurdity and tragedy quite like Lemony Snicket. His talents are on full display in A Series of Unfortunate Events, thirteen unrelentingly dark yet deliciously readable young adult books about the luckless Baudelaire children. Their troubles begin with their parents’ deaths and their adoption by Count Olaf, the notorious (albeit ridiculous) villain of the series who assumes a new identity in each book — all in pursuit of the Baudelaires’ vast fortune, which always seems just out of reach.

This is the one shred of luck the children do have, as they’re repeatedly forced into miserable situations with various odd caretakers, and have little success uncovering the secrets behind their parents’ deaths (and the mysterious organization, V.F.D., to which they belonged). It can certainly be frustrating, especially for young readers, to see them thwarted at every turn. Still, this young adult book series is more than worth it for the intrigue, excitement, and thought-provoking ideas about morality and “good vs. evil,” especially as these teenage books progress into more sophisticated territory.

4. A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

We wouldn’t leave this landmark young adult book from one of SFF’s best authors off the list. A Wizard of Earthsea presents the origin story of Ged, a boy with magical powers who must attend wizard school on an island (henceforth establishing this classic YA fantasy premise). Though Ged’s gifts impress his teachers and fellow students, he struggles to control them, and one day a spell gone awry releases a vicious “shadow creature” that attacks him. Ged recovers and graduates with his wizard’s staff, but the shadow pursues him, a looming threat over everything he does. Our hero eventually recognizes that he has seriously disrupted the equilibrium of the universe — and that he must do everything he can to make it right.

5. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

This mind-bending, genre-defying teenage book recounts the fantastical adventures of young Meg Murry, her brother Charles Wallace, and their neighbor Calvin on their mission to save the Murry siblings’ father. With the help of a supernatural trio of women, they “tesser” through space and time to strange settings on many different planets, each of which teaches them something new. But when they encounter the dark forces of the universe, will the children be able to overpower them and bring Dr. Murry back to Earth? Utterly unpredictable yet with perfectly calibrated characterization, A Wrinkle in Time absolutely lives up to its Newbery-winning legacy.

6. All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Theodore Finch is a teenage outcast: an academic slacker and self-labeled freak, he suffers from undiagnosed bipolar disorder and constantly obsesses over death. He believes he has nothing in common with Violet Markey, a popular cheerleader and classmate — that is, until the two are jostling for space at the top of the school bell tower, both planning to jump. Finch quickly realizes there’s more to Violet than meets the eye, and Violet finds her first true confidante since the death of her sister. But even as their relationship blooms, they can’t outpace their demons, and are forced to grapple with them over the course of this quippy yet moving YA novel.

7. All the Walls of Belfast by Sarah Carlson ⭐ Indie Spotlight

More star-crossed lovers take the stage in All the Walls of Belfast, an unlikely romance between two teens who must overcome the weight of their families’ pasts. Fiona and Danny may have been born in the same hospital, but their paths diverged completely from there: she was raised in the U.S. and has never returned to her father’s Catholic home, while he’s a born-and-bred Protestant who plans to escape his abusive father by joining the Royal Irish Regiment. Sparks fly when they meet and figure out how much they have in common, right down to the same favorite band… yet old conflicts still threaten to tear them apart, especially when shocking truths about their families begin to emerge.

8. American Street by Ibi Zoboi

Fabiola Toussaint might have been born in America, but she’s lived in Port-au-Prince almost all her life. Now, she and her Manman are returning to the States at last. Armed with an invitation from her aunt in Detroit, she’s determined to build une belle vie — a good life, richer in possibilities than the one she left behind in Haiti.

But Immigration detains Manman as soon as they land in JFK, and Fabiola is forced to fly on to Detroit alone, unable even to cry as the vastness of America passes beneath her. Her aunt Marjorie, she knows, lives on the intersection of American Street and Joy Road. What she doesn’t know is how to fit in with her three American cousins— and when she’ll see her mother again.

Shortlisted for the National Book Award, American Street is an elegant, deeply moving debut that mines Pushcart nominee Ibi Zoboi’s own experiences growing up as a Haitian-American immigrant. With subtle characterization and a vivid sense of place, it’s already emerged as a contemporary classic.

9. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

The first installment in an acclaimed fantasy young adult book series, An Ember in the Ashes offers some of the best worldbuilding in YA fantasy. In its painstakingly rendered, Rome-inspired Martial Empire, members of the deposed former ruling class, the Scholars, live in bondage and poverty under the thumbs of the Martial overlords who displaced them.

Laia, a young Scholar girl, witnesses Martial brutality firsthand when her brother is arrested under suspicion of treason. Desperate to save him from a cruel death, she throws her lot in with a shadowy rebel faction with links to her late parents. Now working as their spy, she infiltrates an elite military academy where she meets Elias, a trainee being groomed for the highest echelons of Martial power. But Elias has no desire for a crown on his head — or for blood on his hands. Together, these two unlikely allies strike at the very root of the empire’s corruption.

10. Anger Is a Gift: A Novel by Mark Oshiro

This timely book is no less real for the fact that it's fiction. Anger is a Gift centers on Moss Jeffries, a teenager whose father was murdered by an Oakland police officer several years ago — leaving Moss with not only intense grief, but also panic attacks. Now, in his sophomore year of high school, things haven’t gotten any easier. In fact, the Oakland police officers have been stationed in the halls of his school, where they treat Moss and his classmates like criminals. As the students push back against the administration oppressing them, Moss begins to realize that his anger can be used to fuel the fight to make things right.

11. Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

Louise Rennison’s series has been called the YA version of Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones, for good reason: it’s narrated in first-person by a witty Brit who can’t stop fixating on her appearance and often finds herself at the center of frequent mishaps. Check out the first installment, Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging , for the relatable female friendships and stay for the new catchphrases, like “Fabbity fab fab!”

12. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

Lucy Maud Montrgomery’s timeless story about an outspoken and imaginative orphan is one of the bestselling young adult books worldwide. And it’s no wonder: Anne of Green Gables is the epitome of an underdog story, tackling themes of friendship, belonging, the human relationship with the natural world, coming-of-age, gender roles, and more.

At the center of the Canadian young adult book is, of course, Anne (with an E!), who is adopted by the Cuthberts of Green Gables. The only thing is, when the Cuthberts wrote to Anne’s orphanage requesting they send a child, they actually asked for a boy. Still, Anne quickly grows on the Cuthberts and they agree to keep her, so long as she doesn’t get up to any trouble. Which, for someone as spirited as Anne, proves much easier said than done... 

13. Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

The titular character of Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret has just moved from New York City to Farbook, New Jersey. She’s found herself with a new group of friends who have a secret club that meets to talk about personal things, like periods, bras, and boys — nothing is off the table. However, one subject proves not to be without shock value: Margaret reveals that her family doesn’t follow a specific religion. What she hasn’t yet mentioned to her new friends is that she’s actually part of another secret club, where the only other member is God. Treating the deity like a diary, Margaret reveals things to God that she tells to no one else  — not even her new friends.

14. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

When Aristotle and Dante meet at the swimming pool one day, they don’t expect a friendship to flourish. The two have nothing in common: Dante is a self-styled intellectual with a unique way of looking at the world, while Aristotle is an angry teen with an incarcerated brother. But the title Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is nothing if not direct: the two teens do end up forming an unexpected bond, and enable one another to learn more about themselves, and, of course, the universe. 

15. Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

Tanner Scott wants to keep his head down and just get through the last semester of high school with good grades. His family has just moved from California to Provo, Utah, and he’s found himself somewhere he never wanted to be: back in the closet, hiding his bisexuality from his new peers.

To the protagonist of Autoboyography , laying low seems like a good plan while he waits to graduate and leave Utah. Still, when a friend challenges Tanner to join a prestigious Seminar that has students write their own books in one semester, he finds himself unable to resist. But this doesn’t have to derail Tanner’s plans, he tells himself. The only tiny complication might be the presence of Sebastier Brother, a Mormon prodigy who sold his own Seminar novel the year before and is now mentoring the class. Oh, there’s also the fact that Tanner is falling head over heels in love for him.

16. Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez

Growing up is turbulent. It’s not a coincidence that so many young adult books have become bestselling classics. For Anita de la Torre, adolescence has been anything but carefree. Before We Were Free follows the story of twelve year-old Anita living in the Dominican Republic of the 1960s. There, she faces plenty of struggles: most of her family now lives in the US, her uncle has disappeared, her dad has been receiving mysterious phone calls, and her family is suspected of opposing the country’s dictator — a dangerous accusation to live under. Through all this, Anita struggles to come into her own and to find moments when she can truly be carefree.

17. Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough

Blood Water Paint is based on the true story of Artemisia Gentileschi, an iconic artist who painted some of Rome’s most famous  works in the early 17th century. Despite her artistic accomplishments, she’s remained totally unknown — until she is unspeakably violated and has to make a decision: stay silent or speak up. Both choices carry pain and consequences, and Joy McCullough illustrates this impossible choice with eloquence and care.

18. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

Summer vacation was not everything Jess Aarons hoped it would be, but there’s a treat waiting for him with the return of the school year: the opportunity to race his classmates and leave them all in his dust. He’s been practicing all summer and is pretty confident in his ability to pick up speed. And he would have won, if not for Leslie Burke, a new girl in school, who easily outruns everyone, including Jess.

Post-race, it doesn’t seem like the two are on the verge of becoming BFFs. But they eventually discover they share more in common than the need for speed: imagination and love of fantasy. Together, Jess and Leslie create a magical kingdom in the woods called Terabithia — a place they can run and play, and where anything feels possible. 

(We can’t let you go without a quick warning, however: Bridge to Terabithia is an absolute tearjerker.) 

19. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Based on Jacqueline Woodson’s own life, Brown Girl Dreaming is a heartfelt poetry collection detailing what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and ‘70s: post-Jim Crow, and during the burgeoning Civil Rights movement. The poetry is accessible to all ages. It feels particularly powerful when Woodson shares her struggles with reading as a child — which, as is made clear through her mesmerizing verse — never extinguished her love for storytelling.

20. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

This book splashed onto the scene long before it was even printed, making headlines when both the novel and preemptive film rights sold in a deal so large it was basically unheard of for a debut author. What made this deal even more remarkable? Adeyemi was only 23 at a time.

With all that hype behind it, you’d hope the book lives up to expectations; thankfully, in this case, it does. Children of Blood and Bone follows a young woman named Zélie Adebola, who still remembers a time of magic, before the maji — including Zélie’s mother — were killed under the king’s orders. Now Zélie finds herself with the opportunity to strike back against the king and return magic to the land. This thrilling fantasy adventure has all the best elements of the genre: a rogue princess, a cunning crown prince on their tail, magical creatures and spirits, and of course, the looming danger as Zélie struggles to control her own ever-growing powers. With all that and more, it’s no wonder that CBB became such an instant success!

21. Cinder by Marissa Meyer

There’s just something delightful about a book that isn’t afraid to ask, What if Cinderella were a cyborg ?

With this first installment in her young adult book series of quirky, sci-fi takes on classic fairy tales, Marissa Meyer invites readers into the world of Cinder : a cyborg living in the future city of New Beijing and repairing broken machines to support herself. She lives (of course) with her stepmother and stepsisters — until one day when her world is upended by one sister falling ill to a plague. In a quick sequence of events, Cinder finds herself being studied by the royal doctors, and swept up in a world of imperial politics and a looming war with the Lunar colonies. Add in a charming robot sidekick and the requisite swoony prince, and you’ve got a futuristic fairytale sure to entertain all the way to the moon and back.

22. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Like many books for teen girls, this novel has two things about it that are undeniably true: it’s wildly popular, and people either love it or hate it. So make no mistake, you’re going to have strong feelings about this book.

For anyone who doesn’t know, City of Bones is part of the Shadowhunters universe, a multi-series fantasy saga that encompasses (to date) fifteen novels across four young adult book series, three volumes of related short stories, four graphic novels, as well as the requisite movie and TV show adaptations — with plenty more still to come.

This first book follows Clary: a seemingly ordinary girl in New York City whose life is turned upside-down when she stumbles upon the world of the Shadowhunters, humans with angel blood who are tasked with keeping the world safe from demons and other magical beings. It’s an exciting introduction to an enormous urban fantasy world, full of action, adventure, and romance, and has become an important part of many teenagers’ reading histories since its release in 2007.

23. Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

Sometimes young adult books are great because they’re beautifully written, or touching, or important — and some young adult books are great because they manage to be all three at once.

Darius the Great is Not Okay is one of those teenage books, and Darius himself is instantly relatable to teen audiences: somewhat awkward, dealing with depression, not really sure where he “fits” in the world. One of the few things he definitely understands is Star Trek: The Next Generation , which he watches with his dad every night. But then Darius’s grandfather falls ill, and his family must take an unexpected trip to Iran — Darius’s first time in the land where his mother was raised. It’s a chance to explore a whole new facet of his family and his identity.

Unfortunately, Darius is not entirely sure how to navigate the waters of his new experience, and isn’t convinced anyone here will accept him. That is, until he meets a neighbor boy named Sohrab, and the two form a friendship that runs deeper than any cultural differences they were raised with. It’s a groundbreaking YA novel about mental illness, racial identity, and above all, the importance of connecting with others.

24. Dear Martin by Nic Stone

Some young adult books aren’t just great stories, well-told: they’re essential . This is one such novel.

In a story both timely and sadly timeless, Dear Martin follows the life of prep school star Justyce. Justyce has just begun writing a series of letters to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a means of processing the things he experiences, and how race factors into these experiences. What he cannot know is how quickly racial issues will become larger-than-life in his own life. In the wake of being hassled by a cop for helping his staggeringly drunk (and white-passing) ex-girlfriend into a car, Justyce’s eyes are opened to the ugly reality he’s largely managed to avoid until now.

Dear Martin truly runs the full spectrum of emotions, so be prepared for them all. Joy and rage, sorrow and love, pain and compassion. It never pulls its punches, and thank goodness for that, because this story wouldn’t be anywhere near as powerful — or as honest — if it did. It’s a book that will sit in your heart forever, and may just inspire you to take a page from “Martin” himself.

25. Divergent by Veronica Roth

In the post- Hunger Games­ world, many young adult novels tried to fill the dystopian void left behind by the beloved trilogy. However, few managed to deliver the same levels of thrills and utterly engrossing storytelling.

Divergent is one of those few. Set in an alternate-future Chicago, society is divided into five factions: Abnegation, valuing selflessness; Amity, valuing peace; Erudite, valuing knowledge; Candor, valuing honesty; and Dauntless, valuing bravery. You might think of them like Hogwarts Houses, only the stakes are a lot higher, and the divisions a lot sharper.

But what happens when someone fails to fit neatly in one box? That’s the question at the beating heart of this series, and as you’ll see, the consequences of being different are fraught with danger and drama. It’s a story that will quickly sweep you up in the adventure, while also reminding us all of the importance of standing up and being true to ourselves. What more can you ask of a teenage book?

26. Dreadnought by April Daniels

Superheroes are all the rage in the movies, but they don’t often make a splash in novels . Which is a shame, because as Dreadnought demonstrates, superhero books can have just as much action, tension, thrills, and powerful messaging as their visual counterparts.

The story centers around Danny Tozer: a closeted trans-girl who witnesses the death of the most powerful superhero of her city, the famous Dreadnought. At the moment of his death, his powers transfer to her, granting her not only flight, super-strength, and more, but transforming her body into the one she’s always wanted. Which is an amazing gift, but unfortunately, one that also forces Danny to admit her true identity to her parents.

We’ll be honest: this is an emotionally difficult book. Throughout the story, Danny faces transphobia from both family and new associates alike, and her abilities and identity are often questioned and underestimated by those around her. But in spite of all that, Danny consistently shows a resilience of spirit that’s an inspiration to those of any gender identity. And, of course, we also get all the thrills that a superhero story is capable of delivering, complete with action sequences, entertaining science, and the joy of flight. Round it off with a sweet budding romance, and this debut truly has it all.

27. Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

A love letter to the world of fandom, Eliza and Her Monsters tells the story of Eliza Mirk. Though shy and withdrawn in real life, online she’s the anonymous creator of the wildly-popular webcomic Monstrous Sea .

Eliza’s perfectly comfortable with this duality, until one day her world is turned upside-down by the introduction of a boy named Wallace. A huge fan of Monstrous Sea , Wallace is immediately drawn to Eliza, and Eliza to him. There’s just one problem — she hasn’t actually admitted she’s the creator of the comic they both love.

Equal parts funny and heartbreaking, this teenage book is a timely examination of what it means to exist in the nebulous space of the internet, as well as what it means to create in our digital age. It’s a powerful story about the ways in which we both isolate and open ourselves up, and the importance of sharing our true selves with those we’re close to.

28. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Cinderella is easily one of the most recognizable fairy tales in the western world, and has been adapted countless times, in infinite variations — but perhaps none more charming than Ella Enchanted .

Like any good fairy tale retelling , the story is one you’ll immediately recognize, but with an imaginative twist: when she was a baby, Ella of Frell was granted the “gift” of obedience. In other words, if anyone tells her to do something — whether it’s easy or difficult to do, whether the order is minor or life-changing — Ella must obey. But where other girls may simply have accepted their fate, Ella is determined to find a way out of her situation.

In a wild adventure involving ogres, giants, elves, and of course a charming prince, this delightful tale not only entertains, but empowers young women everywhere to take charge of their own fate.

29. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

A beloved sci-fi classic, Ender’s Game is the story of a future on the defensive. After barely defeating hostile alien attackers, the government sets up a “Battle School” to train child geniuses who will protect the planet during the next war. Among them is Ender, a rare third-child who grew up with an abusive older brother and a beloved older sister. His skills position him well within his training; however, Ender faces difficulties fitting in among his classmates.

This is a book that uses the trappings of science fiction to delve deep into the human condition. Questions of morality and the haunting realities and impact of war make up the core of this book. The characters are relatable, the action fast-paced and breathless, and the writing perfectly tuned. Ender’s strategizing mind will keep the reader fascinated, while the plot compels us with its many surprising twists and turns. It’s no wonder this book has drawn so many young readers into the world of sci-fi — as it will no doubt continue to do for years to come.

30. Eragon by Christopher Paolini

One of the earliest self-publishing success stories, Eragon swept readers into a world of adventure as surely as if we were all riding the dragon’s back for ourselves.

Like many of the best classic fantasy novels, the story of its titular hero starts with very humble beginnings: on a farm. Specifically, Eragon’s uncle’s farm, where Eragon was left by his mother just after his birth. While hunting in the woods nearby, Eragon stumbles upon a mysterious “stone” — only to later discover that his prize is not a stone at all, but a dragon egg !

This discovery leads to the revelation that Eragon is a Dragon Rider, and soon kicks off a whole new chapter in Eragon’s life — one full of adventure, magic, power, and choices that will have lasting consequences for the whole kingdom. It’s a wildly entertaining teenage book that will surely capture the imagination of any child who wishes to become something more than they are.

31. Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan

In this poignant historical fiction novel, Muñoz Ryan tells us the story of Esperanza, a girl who was raised on her father’s ranch in Mexico. Spoiled by the wealth of her childhood, Esperanza’s circumstances take a turn for the disastrous when her father dies and her mother takes her and flees. Together, the two of them travel north, until they wind up in a Mexican labor camp in the United States during the Great Depression.

Based on the real-life experiences of the author’s grandmother, Esperanza Rising brings us a timeless story of one girl’s journey to adapt to her new world and improve her life. Even when faced with grueling physical labor, a worker’s strike, and an illness that threatens her mother, Esperanza’s perseverance and courage stand as inspiration to all of us.

32. Every Day by David Levithan

In this deeply imaginative teenage book, Levithan poses the question: who would we be if we were someone different Every Day? That’s the situation that our protagonist, A, has been facing for as long as they can remember. Every day, they wake up in a different body, with a different life: sometimes as a boy, sometimes as a girl, and always with access to the host body’s memory of facts — but not feelings.

It’s a situation that would drive anybody else crazy and miserable, but A has learned to live with it. They’ve developed a set of rules, and it works. Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere. That is, until A meets Rhiannon, a girl who changes their life forever.

But while this premise might quickly become stilted or gimmicky in another author’s hands, Levithan manages to hold true to A’s essence no matter how many bodies they pass through. Every Day is a novel, above all else, about people — the impressions they make, the lives they live, and the deep drives of their hearts. It’s a book that will make you laugh and think and ache, as you follow A through the unique and yet universal process of falling in love.

33. Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott

In Five Feet Apart we meet two teens, Stella and Will: both chronically ill with cystic fibrosis, and both dealing with it in very different ways. For Stella, doing what her doctors prescribe and staying at least six feet away from anyone who may pose the threat of infection is paramount. For Will, it’s a question of biding his time until he turns eighteen, and can finally rid himself of the machines and drugs and treatments being pushed on him.

Their worlds change, however, when the two of them encounter one another — as closely as they can, at any rate — and, despite the distance, sparks fly. It’s a heartbreaking story of what it means to be alive, and what we’ll risk in order to live our lives to the fullest, even if it means cutting our time down drastically.

34. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Let’s be honest, no list of YA books would be complete without the Harry Potter series. This worldwide phenomenon not only kick-started many people’s love of reading, it reshaped the face of YA literature forever.

From the very first novel, Harry entrances us with his sympathetic tale: abused orphan to budding wizard, known throughout the magical community for causing the downfall of He Who Must Not Be Named . It’s a big legacy for anyone to live up, much less an eleven-year-old boy — but Harry wins over the wizarding world with his big heart and exceptional courage, and watching him grow over the course of seven novels is a true delight.

These young adult books are truly a magic trick, full of instantly memorable characters both good and evil, clever mysteries that take multiple installments to unravel, and the irresistible idea that love can save us all. Despite some of the author’s problematic statements in recent years, the story of Harry, Ron, Hermione, and the rest will remain a beloved piece of so many of our childhoods. It’s no wonder it made the list of the New York Public Library’s 10 most-circulated books of all time .

35. Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

This 1986 Newbery Honor-winning classic is the perfect YA gateway to the works of those like Jack London, Thoreau, or even Hemingway .

Hatchet tells the story of Brian Robeson, a thirteen-year-old boy traveling from New York to Canada on a Cessna 406 bush plane. When the pilot dies from a heart attack mid-flight, Brian attempts to land and ends up crashing in a lake in the middle of a forest. Alone with nothing but his hatchet, a gift from his mother, Brian must quickly learn to survive and defend himself in the vast open wilderness.

As Brian grapples with not only the physical threats but the emotional impact his experience puts him through, readers will be rapt with the need to find out what happens next. Told in rich details — many of which were drawn for the author’s real-life experiences! — it’s a story that will make readers both young and old pause to appreciate the things that truly matter in this life.

36. His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

A story of parallel universes, magic, daemons, and armored polar bears — what’s not to love?

His Dark Materials follows the adventures of Lyra Belacqua, a twelve-year-old girl with a talent for lying. After learning of a plan to poison her rebellious uncle, Lyra is swept into a desperate mission to rescue not only him, but her best friends, and a host of other children she learns have gone missing. Lyra travels to the frozen north, where she finds witch clans, armored bears, and a race of child-thieves called the Gobblers.

But things are not always what they seem, and soon Lyra will learn the truth — about her life, about her family, and about the Gobblers. This epic beginning grows into one of the richest, most complicated fantasy worlds seen in recent years, enchanting readers everywhere with its wildly inventive worldbuilding, numerous twists and turns, and spirited protagonist.

37. History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera

In this heartbreaking teenage book of love and loss, teenage boy Griffin is grieving in more ways than one. His ex-boyfriend Theo has just died in a tragic accident — but not before breaking Griffin’s heart by moving to California and starting to date another guy. That’d be more than enough to wreck anyone, but what makes it worse is that until Theo’s death, Griffin had maintained the firm belief that Theo would realize his “mistake” and come back to him eventually.

Ironically, the only person who can even begin to understand what Griffin is going through is none other than his would-be romantic rival, Jackson. But even as the two boys begin talking, Griffin continues to spiral downward. And the only way Griffin might be able to escape his own obsessive behavior is to actually unpack his painful history.

Basically, this book will tear you apart and heal you back up again. A pitch-perfect examination of first love, grief, depression, and the importance of learning from your past in order to face the future, History Is All You Left Me is an unmissable YA sensation.

38. Holes by Louis Sachar

Sometimes a book needs to be grounded in realism if it wants to tackle serious issues — and sometimes, it needs a level of absurdity and general zaniness to help us make sense of them. If the latter is the case, there’s no one better than Louis Sachar to tackle the job.

In Holes , we’re introduced to Stanley Yelnats, a boy whose family has been cursed ever since the days of his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather. For Stanley, the curse takes the form of being arrested and sentenced for a crime he didn’t commit. As punishment, Stanley is sent to Camp Green Lake, a detention center that has neither greenery nor a lake — or hasn’t in a long time, at any rate. The whole area has dried up, and in the bottom of the former lakebed, boys “build character” by digging holes, all day, every day.

But of course, there’s more going on than meets the eye. Three distinct timelines and narratives weave through this book, each revealing a piece of the puzzle, until the whole thing ties together in the book’s stunning conclusion. Holes has become a beloved piece of young adult literature not only for its handling of racial issues and the criminal justice system, but for the deft, sure-handed way it balances both the absurd and the tragic.

39. Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt

Homecoming centers on Dicey Tillerman, who barely remembers her father — he walked out on their family before Dicey’s youngest brother was even born. Since then, she and her three younger siblings have relied on each other, and on their Momma. Sure, she might be a little “drifty and moony,” with a tendency to brush off their questions with teary I don’t knows . But Dicey knows she loves them all.

Then one day, Momma drives them to a mall parking lot and walks away, seemingly for good. Now Dicey, at thirteen years old, finds herself tasked with keeping herself and her siblings alive. With scraped-together funds and only the barest hint of a plan, can the Tillerman kids find their way to someplace they can call home?

40. How to Make Friends with the Dark by Kathleen Glasgow

This searing portrait of loss will haunt you long after you turn the final page. But don’t let your fear of sudden tears or a lingering ache in your chest keep you from picking it up: How to Make Friends with the Dark is one of the best contemporary novels of the last decade, YA and otherwise.

As long as sixteen-year-old Tiger Tolliver can remember, it’s just been her and her mom. Like all teens, she occasionally wants her space — especially when spending time with her cute new boyfriend. But for the most part, the two Tolliver women make up a “well-oiled, good-looking, and good-smelling machine,” and Tiger wouldn’t have it any other way. Then, Tiger’s mom dies unexpectedly. All of a sudden she’s a ward of the state, planning a funeral with only her grief for company. Needless to say, this isn’t the breeziest of reads, but the heartache it leaves you with is rich, rewarding, and real .

41. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

This charming fantasy classic spawned an Academy Award-winning Studio Ghibli film. Rest assured: the 1986 teenage book delights as readily as its animated adaptation. Howl’s Moving Castle introduces us to the titular wizard, Howl, who shares his black-turreted, physics-defying home with prickly fire demon, Calcifer. But despite this charismatic pair, the real hero of the story is Sophie Hatter, who looks far older than her eighteen years thanks to a witch’s curse.

Eager to break the spell (and just as eager to be somewhere other than her family’s hat shop) Sophie goes to work for Howl. A wizard, after all, is the perfect person to undo a witch’s work — or so she figures. What follows is a mesmerizing tale of magic, love and… contract law.

42. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez

Fifteen-year-old Julia Reyes knows she isn’t her parents’ favorite daughter. That would be Olga, who helped their Amá clean houses, showed up faithfully to church each Sunday, and went to community college so she could live at home. Sweet-natured and devout, she was every bit the perfect Mexican daughter that brash, inquisitive Julia can’t seem to be. So when Olga dies in a car accident, aged twenty-two, she becomes enshrined in familial memory as something of a saint. 

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter offers a sharply rendered portrait of a complicated grief. As Julia mourns, she clashes with parents who seem determined to remold her in the likeness of her dead sister — a sister who, it turns out, was far more complicated than the blameless Saint Olga of memory. Can Julia unravel the truth of Olga’s life and find her own place in a family that can’t seem to let her be herself?

43. I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver

In I Wish You All the Best , nonbinary author Mason Deaver tells the story they wish they could have read as a teen. The result is an urgent, nuanced tale of coming out — and coming of age — that captures all the wonders and horrors of growing up.

Ben De Backer is your typical high school overachiever, with a report card full of A’s and a resume burnished by an Art Club presidency. They’re also nonbinary. When Ben comes out to their parents, they get thrown out of the house. With no one else to turn to, Ben gives their estranged sister Hannah a desperate call.

Though Ben hasn’t seen Hannah in a decade and they’ve never met her new husband, the young couple is happy to offer them a place to stay, a school to finish out the year, and even a therapist to help them work through their parents’ rejection. But despite all these gifts, Ben remains closeted at their new school--and around the cute new neighbor boy. After the trauma of what happened the last time they came out, can Ben learn how to let their guard down and truly be themselves around those they care about?

44. I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

This is the rare book you’ll want to reread as soon as you turn the last page. On the first pass, I’ll Give You the Sun will mesmerize you with evocative language and an intricate structure, a narrative puzzle that begs to be figured out. On the next, you’ll relish getting to know its complex, vividly drawn characters all over again.

The narrative centers on the artsy Sweetwine twins, who give us two separate strands of the same, twisty story. Sensitive painter Noah and gregarious sculptor Jude have been inseparable since their days in the womb. But by the time they’re sixteen, they’re no longer speaking. Part of the novel’s initial pleasure lies in figuring out the root of their estrangement.

Noah recounts the early years the twins spent by each other’s side, while he’s grappling with his emergent queer sexuality in shadow of his charismatic sister. Jude, meanwhile, narrates their painful time apart as she’s alone at art school, carving sculptures that keep inexplicably falling apart. Together, the Sweetwines’ alternating chapters tell a rich, intoxicating story of blood bonds, family trauma, and artistic ambition.

45. If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo

When Amanda Hardy moves to a new school for her senior year, she finds herself being chatted up by the local heartthrob right away. Grant Everrett’s easy charm is interfering with all her well-laid plans: what she meant to do was keep her head down and her potential friends at arm’s length — at least until she can escape to New York for college.

After being beaten by her former classmates for being trans and rejected by a father who still called her “Andrew,” Amanda’s finally beginning to feel at home again. A cute boy with a crush on her? That’s a complication she doesn’t need — no matter how easy he is to talk to.

Still, sweet-natured Grant bats off all Amanda’s warnings about her complicated past, and he makes no secret of the fact that she makes his heart race. Can Amanda allow herself to feel the same way? If I Was Your Girl offers heartfelt romance that’s equal parts serious and sweet, written by a trans author with a flair for both nuanced characterization and swoony-worthy dialogue. 

46. Illuminae by Amie Kaufman

This wildly imaginative work offers a sprawling, galaxy-sized space opera in a striking, comic-adjacent package. Illuminae is an epistolary teenage book with visual flair, pieced together from hush-hush interviews, heavily redacted emails, and sleek schematics baring the structure of giant spaceships. It’s not unusual to turn the page and find yourself staring at a gorgeous map of the heavens. Too bad those beautifully rendered stars are marking out the boundaries of a war zone, where megacorporations command bomb-flinging fleets and whole planets bear the risk of imminent destruction.

Sound complicated? Wait till you hear that it’s also a love story. Teen heroine Kady Grant might be a gifted hacker forced to deal with the sudden invasion of her planet, but she’s also a high school student, reeling from a fresh breakup with the sweet but shiftless Ezra Mason. Unfortunately Kady doesn’t exactly have the time to process her feelings: the invading warships are hot on her heels. Maybe that’s for the best, since she has no choice but to fight her way past them with her just-dumped ex.

47. It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

Fifteen-year-old Craig Gilner never imagined having his dreams come true would land him in the hospital. He worked so hard to get into the Executive Pre-Professional High School, which was supposed to set him on the path to success for life. Instead, the mounting pressure almost cost him his life.

After a suicidal episode, Craig checks himself into a mental health ward. Cue five life-changing days of talk therapy, grudging introspection, and encounters with his fellow patients, all of them grappling with issues from sex addition to self-harm. 

Based on author Ned Vizzini’s own experiences with depression, It’s Kind of a Funny Story tackles mental illness in a way that’s sharp, sensitive, and not at all saccharine. Craig, with his acid wit and budding self-awareness, will wring shocked laughter out of you as he makes sense of anxiety with pitch-dark humor. He’s not lying: it really is kind of a funny story. 

48. Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore

Jane’s Aunt Magnolia once made her promise to accept any invitation she got to Tu Reviens, a sprawling island manor owned by the family of a glamorous acquaintance. But now Magnolia is dead, and Tu Reviens’ heiress, gala invite in hand. Jane jumps at the chance — to make good on her promise, and to maybe feel something other than grief.

Jane, Unlimited ’s setup seems to promise either fairytale escapism or gothic horror: it’s heroine has a mysterious mansion to explore, after all, its hallways filled with beautiful people and hints of potent, dangerous possibility. But the story we’re actually told is far more unruly — and far more interesting.

When bells ring through Tu Reviens, Jane encounters a series of choices that will allow her to reshape her world, now emptied of Magnolia’s presence, in the image of a literary genre. Will she choose to live out a spy thriller or a space opera, a love story or a romance? Can any of these stories even save her from her grief?

49. Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera

Juliet Milagros Palante grew up in the Bronx, chatting over arroz con maíz with her gossipy aunts and fending off her mom’s questions about her lack of boyfriends. But as much as she loves her big Puerto Rican family, she no longer feels at home in their world. There’s Grandma Petalda dismissing queerness as “crazy talk,” and Titi Wepa using a lesbian identity as a convenient lie — something you toss out laughingly to sidestep unwanted suitors. Juliet knows they love her, but how can she tell them the truth: that she has no boyfriend because she’s in love with her best friend Lainie, whom she’s actually been dating for a year?

When Juliet does come out, the evening ends in confusion — and tears. But before she can fix things with her family, she has to leave the Bronx for Portland. There, she’s due to intern for her idol, the queer feminist author Harlowe Brisbane: her magnum opus has shaped Juliet’s burgeoning queer identity as much as Lainie’s love. As Juliet Takes a Breath recounts the wild and wonderful summer that follows, we get to know one of the fiercest, most finely rendered heroines in all of YA lit. 

50. Legend by Marie Lu

Cynical readers see the YA dystopian genre as nothing more than a cash cow, but no one does it like Marie Lu. Sure, her wildly popular Legend checks all the boxes that make naysayers roll their eyes, from the Hunger Games comparisons to the Lionsgate film deal. But it’s crafted with enough polish to weather the strictest scrutiny, and its rich palette of influences makes for a fascinating world. After all, how many cyberpunk adventures can claim inspiration from Les Misérables ?

Lu’s audacious Victor Hugo rewrite swaps out post-revolutionary France for a police state centered in LA — and replaces Javert and Valjean with two brilliant, troubled teens. There’s June, a military-trained prodigy dealing with the murder of her brother. And there’s Day, the murder suspect, whose own brother is succumbing to a terrifying Plague.

Brought together by a crime investigation where all’s not what it seems, June and Day realize they’ve finally met their intellectual matches in one another. As unexpected sparks fly between them, it dawns on them both that the city they call home isn’t safe for either of them.

51. Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

This isn’t actually the first installment in pioneer girl-turned-bestselling author Laura Ingalls Wilders’ iconic, autobiographical young adult book series. But there’s no denying it’s the best known Little House book of them all: it even gave its name to the cherished, 200-episode TV adaptation. Wilder knows how to spin a satisfying yarn, and Little House on the Prairie shows off her storytelling chops at their sharpest. Urgent and emotionally varied, it combines tautly suspenseful beats — a wolfpack, a bout of malaria — with a surprisingly nuanced (though heavily romanticized) take of settler colonialism. 

Since its publication, Wilder’s masterwork has kept generations of young readers on the edge of their seats, daydreaming of homesteading exploits on the rolling plains of Kansas. Eight decades later, there’s still nothing like it for immersive historical fiction.

52. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

There’s been a fair bit of recent ink spilled on Greta Gerwig’s whip-smart, Academy-approved, boldly metafictional Little Women . But this staple of girlhood bookshelves has been a big deal ever since 1868, when it sold out its initial print run. It’s even been called the original super-franchise : an igniter of 19th-century ship wars and early 20th-century cosplays — not to mention the dozen or so pre-Gerwig adaptations, from the Broadway musical to the anime.

As they come of age in the 19th century, the four March sisters deal with tribulations both personal and profound, from their faded frocks to their family’s place in a nation at war with itself. Whether they’re literary strangers to you or beloved old friends, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are sure to charm you with their imagination, adaptability, and fierce sisterly love.

53. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

Written in sparse, dynamic verse, Long Way Down offers a chilling look at gun violence and grief. The teenage book takes place almost entirely over the course of sixty seconds. And in that single, terrifying minute, a fifteen-year-old boy has to decide whether or not to use the gun tucked into his waistband.

Will’s older brother, Shawn was just murdered, and now he’s out for revenge. It’s the only option, since The Rules that have been ingrained in him since childhood dictate no snitching and no tears. So Will grabs his brother’s gun and gets in the elevator that will bring him to the promised site of his vengeance. But he’s got seven floors to travel, and a lot can happen in the minute it takes to make his long way down.

54. Lord of the Flies by William Golding

This high school English standby is as cynical, in its own way, as Westeros’s grimdark tales of carnage. Just in case you haven’t had to grind out an essay on Lord of the Flies , we’ll briefly sketch out the scene. A group of English boys crash-land on an uninhabited island and work together to survive sans schoolmastery supervision. But it turns out, choir practice is poor preparation for self-governance, and the boys’ attempts to civilize the wild quickly dissolve into chaos.

Golding’s masterwork has been called an allegory, a morality tale, and a chilling glimpse into the darkness at the heart of man (or at least, at the heart of a mid-century English schoolboy). Think of it as a dark, resolutely un-magical anti-Narnia, where dropping youthful, World War II-era Brits into a strange new country leads to bloodshed instead of a golden age.

55. Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

This small press hit is delectably strange, combining old-timey found photos with buttoned-up, sepia-tinged prose — fittingly enough, since it’s set in the 1940s. But this isn’t a cozy, nostalgia-driven children’s fantasy, the sort of thing you’d turn to for a snug bedtime read. Debut author Ransom Riggs has a gift for the uncanny, to put it mildly, and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children abounds with hair-raising moments that read like Stephen King made PG-13, from haunted manors to tentacle-faced ghouls.

Jacob Magellan Portman knows his grandfather Abraham has lived a fascinating life: not only did he survive the Holocaust, but he’s had brushes with supernatural predators and once kept company with a sentient bird. As Jacob gets older, he starts to grow skeptical towards the more… ahistorical details in his grandfather’s stories. But one day, he finds Abraham bloodied and clearly dying, rasping out cryptic commands with his last breath.

Jacob’s attempts to escape the trauma of his grandfather’s death ultimately lead him to the ruin of a mysterious — and apparently haunted — Welsh schoolhouse. But the ghosts of the pupils who haunt the site may not be quite so dead after all. And Jacob just might need their help if he wants to avoid his grandfather’s fate.

56. Monster by Walter Dean Myers

Published in 1999, Monster was a revelation in a genre — and an industry — where very few YA books starred protagonists of color. Cleverly structured and rich in suspense, it tells the story of sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon’s trial for murder.

The text shifts between Steve’s diary entries and his in-progress screenplay — a way to use his passion for film to document the traumas inflicted by a broken legal system. Needless to say, this is a YA novel of tremendous complexity — both in the intricacy of its structure, and in its sensitive handling of topics from racial justice to the carceral state.

The prosecutor paints Steve as a “monster,” a callous criminal unashamed to look the other way when his coconspirators turn to murder in an armed robbery gone wrong. To his film teacher, however, he’s a young man with tremendous artistic potential and a good heart. Not even Steve knows who he really is — not anymore. No matter what the final verdict, can he hold onto his sense of his own humanity?

57. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

When Anna Fitzgerald decides to sue her parents, she knows she’ll be tearing her family apart. But in all her thirteen years, her life has never belonged to her. Conceived solely as a donor match for her older sister, she’s been supplying the blood and marrow that keeps Kate alive as she fights acute promyelocytic leukemia. But now Kate’s dying, and Anna’s expected to donate a kidney, in a major operation that puts both sisters at risk. Instead of quietly going under the knife yet again, Anna decides to call a lawyer

At once a briskly paced thriller and a nuanced treatment of bioethical dilemmas, My Sister’s Keeper is also a heartbreaker. If you want a read that’ll stimulate your mind and your tear ducts, we can think of no better book to pick up.

58. Nancy Drew Carolyn Keene

If you’ve seen Nancy Drew ’s name making the rounds lately, it’s probably because the famous girl detective got a somewhat… questionable birthday gift. In a new comic young adult book series rolled out to celebrate the 90th anniversary of her super-franchise, Nancy was killed — and the Hardy Boys pressed into service to solve her case.

The outcry over this ill-timed homicide was nothing short of ear-splitting, and it’s easy to see why. After a near-century of sleuthing, Nancy has inspired legions of armchair detectives with her brilliance and pluck. Ghostwritten into being by three generations of writers working under the collective pseudonym of Carolyn Keene, she’s nothing short of a legend: an all-American folk hero with the charm of apple-cheeked Betty Cooper and the deductive genius of Sherlock Holmes.

59. Open Mic Night at Westminster Cemetery by Mary Amato ⭐ Indie Spotlight

If you’re looking for paranormal fantasy that breaks the mold in all sorts of weird and wonderful ways, we can’t overstate the merits of Open Mic Night at Westminster Cemetery . It’s the tale of Lacy Brink, the first new “resident” of Westminster Cemetery in over a century, who’s given the distinguished post-mortem task of entertaining all the other dead people. Fortunately, Lacy has a plan: a very spooky open mic night, which might just lead to shocking secrets and mysteries being unveiled — and if that weren’t enough to sell you on it, Amato presents the book itself as a rollicking theatrical play. (Oh, and Edgar Allan Poe is there, too. Just read it!)

60. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan’s trailblazing young adult book series kicks off with one of the best premises this side of the millennium: twelve-year-old Percy Jackson discovering he is the son of Poseidon. This revelation leads him to Camp Half-Blood, where Percy adjusts to his new identity and meets fellow demigod kids. Along with his friends Luke and Annabeth, Percy soon embarks on a perilous quest to recover Zeus’ master lightning bolt, the disappearance of which has thrown Olympus into chaos. And this is only the beginning of the gripping Percy Jackson pentalogy, which is chock full of nail-biting suspense and enthralling mythological adaptation.

61. Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson

Thoughtful, timely, and beautifully drawn — these are the pieces of Piecing Me Together, a teenage book about the nuanced intersection of race and class. Our narrator, Jade, is a black teenager who attends an upscale school on scholarship and belongs to an “at-risk” mentorship program… even though Jade wouldn’t necessarily describe herself that way. Through interactions with her classmates and mentor, a wealthy black woman whose upbringing was very different from hers, Jade breaks down complex truths about being black in America and how public perception doesn’t always match up with reality. The result is a hugely enlightening must-read for any modern cultural participant (which is to say, hopefully, all of us).

62. Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

Alice Oseman released her debut book, Solitaire, at the prodigious age of 17. Two years later came Radio Silence: an emotional, semi-autobiographical YA novel inspired, in Oseman’s own words, “by university and how much I hated being there.” Her protagonist, Frances, gives an urgent and distinctive voice to Oseman’s own experience of collegiate pressure, impostor syndrome, and ultimately realizing there’s more to life than good grades. Bolstered by a gloriously quirky cast of characters, Frances’ quintessentially millennial story will resonate with every young person who’s ever found themselves lost and uncertain in their own ambitions, especially where academia is involved.

63. Redwall by Brian Jacques

If you haven’t read Redwall, did you even have a childhood? Just kidding — but this iconic young adult book series from Brian Jacques is pretty unmissable, from the intrepid adventures of Matthias the mouse in the eponymous first book to the fascinating expansion of Redwall Abbey in later installments. You’ll fall in love with the characters of each new book and root passionately for their victories, just as you would for any intricate medieval fantasy. And no matter how old you are, you’ll feel like a child again as you ride the highs and lows of this heartfelt series, which makes the troubles of mice in an abbey seem like the only important thing in the world.

64. Sadie by Courtney Summers

What do you get when you cross a true crime podcast with a teenage girl’s desperate quest to avenge her younger sister’s murder? Remarkably riveting storytelling, as it turns out — but also some harrowing details that can be awfully hard to process. Sadie by Courtney Summers is no light and breezy read, but that’s what makes it so exceptional; it’s a teenage book with all the dark sophistication of a Gillian Flynn novel that still manages to remain accessible for teen readers. Sadie’s story alone would be plenty propulsive, but add the innovative framing device of a podcast and you end up with a true suspense classic in the making .

65. Scythe by Neal Shusterman

In the not-so-distant future, medical technology has advanced to the point that death is virtually eliminated; even the most severe accident victims can be resuscitated. But as overpopulation looms, a macabre solution arises: the Scythedom, a league of assassins that chooses which people should die permanently. Needless to say, the Scythedom is universally abhorred — yet when schoolmates Citra and Rowan are offered apprenticeships with an eminent Scythe, they have no choice but to accept. And as they grow closer and learn more about the laws of Scythe , their concern escalates not only for themselves, but for the fate of society as a whole.

66. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

For those who haven’t yet read this superlative modern love story, we’ll lay it out for you. Simon Spier is a regular teenager living in the Atlanta suburbs, with a solid group of friends, a pile of AP classes, and a happy (if slightly chaotic) family. But he hasn’t told anyone he’s gay… well, no one except his pseudonymous email partner, “Blue,” another gay student at Simon’s school. This arrangement suits Simon just fine — until he leaves an email open on a school computer and finds himself on the receiving end of a poorly-planned blackmail campaign. Now Simon must weigh the blackmailer’s demands against being outed to everyone in his life, all the while hoping to uncover Blue’s true identity: could it perhaps be someone he already knows?

67. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Ocean’s Eleven meets grimdark in this outstandingly original fantasy heist teenage book. Six of Crows follows the exploits of Kaz Brekker, Ketterdam’s most notorious thief, and his crew of talented miscreants as they attempt to breach a guarded military stronghold called the Ice Court. Their task is to bring back Bo Yul-Bayur, a scientist who’s discovered a lethal and addictive drug that would destabilize the entire world if leaked to the public. Countless lives hang in the balance as Kaz and his team work their way to the Ice Court, their mission jeopardized at every turn by unexpected threats — fortunately for the world, the Six of Crows work well under pressure.

68. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

One of the most notable YA books to tackle sexual assault and trauma, Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak finds its intimate, compelling voice in Melinda Sordino: a high school freshman who is rejected by her peers after calling the cops at a party. What they don’t know is that Melinda had just been raped by a fellow student (a fact that she won’t even admit to herself). To cope with both the personal trauma and the stinging isolation, Melinda stops talking and turns to art as her primary means of self-expression. Though no one can know what she’s going through, art has a way of making things seem okay… but what will happen when the truth inevitably comes out?

69. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

This award-winning YA novel incepted the “manic pixie dream girl” trope long before it came into the mainstream — though some might argue Stargirl isn’t quite an MPDG, because she clearly has her own interests and identity outside of the protagonist (they just happen to be incredibly quirky ). This quirkiness, however, manifests in profoundly empathetic ways: singing happy birthday to everyone in school, cheering for both teams at football games, and leaving sweet cards for strangers. At first our narrator, Leo, is entranced by Stargirl’s kindness, and the two begin a relationship. But as the rest of the school turns against her, both Leo and Stargirl must make the painful adolescent choice between conformity and truth to themselves.

70. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Sherman Alexie’s semi-autobiographical novel relates the struggles of a Native-American teenager, Junior, after he transfers from his reservation high school to a wealthy, almost entirely white school. (As Junior aptly puts it, he is the only Indian there, other than the team mascot.) Consequently, Junior has to grapple with a serious culture clash between his and his white classmates’ lives, not to mention the guilt of leaving his reservation friends “behind.” But through all this, Alexie keeps the reader thoroughly entertained with witty, conversational prose and even visual accompaniments — as Junior himself is a budding cartoonist.

71. The Art of Losing by Lizzy Mason ⭐ Indie Spotlight

When seventeen-year-old Harley is dragged to a friend’s party against her will, she has no idea the living nightmare that’s about to unfold. Within a few hours, Harley will discover her boyfriend hooking up with her little sister, Audrey — and after she storms out, he will drive Audrey home drunk, culminating in a devastating accident. Tormented by possibilities, Harley soon seeks solace in an unexpected source: a long-estranged neighbor, Raf, himself fresh out of rehab. Over the course of the book, they wrestle with addiction, regret, and trauma, ultimately forging a path forward that makes it possible to not just live with themselves, but to thrive.

72. The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan

In the magical realist tradition of authors like Isabel Allende and Laura Esquivel, The Astonishing Color of After is predicated on tragedy and hope springing eternal. Specifically, our heroine Leigh believes that after her mother committed suicide, she transformed into a bird — a bright red bird who convinces Leigh to visit her mother’s first home in Taiwan. Leigh, a sensitive synesthete (hence the book’s title), has no choice but to follow the call. Soon she’s enmeshed in an unpredictable and utterly transformative quest, not only to discover her mother’s homeland and history, but also to get to the core of herself.

73. The Beauty That Remains by Ashley Woodfolk

Teenagers Autumn, Logan, and Shay have never met, but they’ve always shared something close to each of their hearts: a love of music, both listening to and creating it. Then tragedy strikes, and they have one more thing in common: the loss of someone they loved even more than music, the person with whom they always shared that particular fixation. In The Beauty that Remains, Ashley Woodfolk explores how different people respond and adjust to grief, and how one’s passions play a major role in the recovery process… despite how painful the reminders of days past can be.

74. The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

The Book of Three is the first volume of one of the best fantasy young adult book series of all time — Alexander’s The Chronicles of Prydain — and serves as both a useful and exciting introduction to these young adult books. We first meet Taran, assistant pig-keeper and aspiring hero, on a humble farmstead in the Welsh-inspired land of Prydain. When the pig he’s been tasked to protect flees into the nearby forbidden forest, Taran chases after her and collides headfirst with adventure. He’s soon swept up in a fast-paced battle of good and evil involving the vicious “Horned King,” the enchantress Princess Eilonwy, and an oracle in the form of his escaped porcine friend.

75. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Though it’s perhaps best remembered for the unorthodox narrator of Death itself, the accomplishments of The Book Thief are far more impressive than any one aspect. This is the extraordinary story of Liesel Meminger, a young German girl who grows up during the Nazi regime. Despite not being Jewish herself, Liesel is deeply affected by the harsh realities of inescapable hatred and violence. However, she never stops hoping for a brighter future, and nurtures her own education and imagination by becoming the eponymous “book thief.” Her determination sends a powerful message about chasing expression, freedom, and love, even when such things seem impossible.

76. The Call of the Wild by Jack London

Right up there with Old Yeller and Where the Red Fern Grows, we have the legendary canine tale (or should we say “tail”?) that started it all: Jack London’s The Call of the Wild . Our hero is Buck, a St. Bernard-Scotch Collie mix who goes from pampered pet to steely sled dog over the course of the Klondike Gold Rush. Buck is thrust into “pack society” and must learn to get along with the dogs on his team — not to mention his human handlers, whose greed and ignorance can be just as deadly as the Yukon cold. But as Buck starts to lean into his primitive side, he’s forced to choose: will he stick by the security of the sled, or pursue the call of the wild?

77. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Often regarded as the quintessential coming-of-age novel, The Catcher in the Rye recounts two days in the life of Holden Caulfield, a disillusioned teenager who can’t seem to do anything right. From the moment he’s expelled from preparatory school, Holden goes into a downward spiral full of violent encounters, awkward interactions, and rants about the many pitfalls of modern life. Yet for all his doom and gloom, there’s still a trace of hope in Holden’s story — that he could be the “catcher in the rye” who shields children from all the world’s harsh truths, so that they might avoid the same grim fate that’s befallen him.

78. The Clay Lion by Amalie Jahn

Innumerable pieces of literature and media have been devoted to the topic of time travel, but no other time travel book is quite like this. Rather than approaching it in terms of grand scientific possibilities, The Clay Lion uses time travel to tackle a single, very human question: what if you could go back in time and save your dying brother? The result is this beautifully rendered, fantastically moving journey undertaken by Brooke Wallace, who’s willing to bend all the rules of time, space, and society to do exactly that… even as she acknowledges the possibility of her failure.

79. The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

We bet that you haven’t read a book like this one. Winning both the Newberry and Coretta Scott King Awards the year it came out, The Crossover is the story of JD and Jordan Bell — twin brothers who love basketball and are playing towards the championship playoffs of their school’s division when a groundbreaking crisis strikes. What’s more? It’s written entirely in verse. If that’s hard to wrap your head around, take a quick look at the opening of its first chapter below:

At the top of the key, I'm 

MOVING & GROOVING

POPPING and ROCKING--

Why you BUMPING?

Why you LOCKING?

Man, take this THUMPING.

Be careful though, 

'cause now I'm CRUNKing

CrissCROSSING

and my dipping will leave you

G on the floor, while I

to the finish with a fierce finger roll...

Straight in the hole:

Swoooooooooosh.

Though its bouncing rap beat might be different from the prose you’re accustomed to reading, underneath the poetry lies the same themes that ground all of the best YA books: friendship, individuality, courage, and the power of family. Ingenious and bursting with humanity, The Crossover is simply a triumph in YA literature that will quickly win over any poetry-phobic teen. 

80. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The worldwide phenomenon that’s been adapted into a blockbuster play on Broadway, Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog at Night-Time will introduce you to an unforgettable protagonist in Christopher John Francis Boone. Christopher is fifteen-years old, wildly intelligent, curious, methodical… and he’s on the autism spectrum, which means that he doesn’t understand human emotions the same way as the people around him. He goes out of his way to make sure that his world is organized and logical, until all order is disrupted when he discovers his neighbor’s dead dog. What ensues is a rousing, touching adventure as Christopher attempts to crack the case of Wellington the dog’s death — and another even greater mystery in the family — all by himself. 

81. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

A staple of YA fiction, The Fault in Our Stars is John Green’s beautiful, lyrical tribute to a doomed teenage romance. Hazel Grace Lancaster, our heroine, knows that her days might be numbered — she has cancer, junk lungs, and a mother who insists that she attend Cancer Kid Support Group. She doesn’t dare to let herself think about the future, until she meets a gorgeous boy named Augustus Waters at the support group. Unfairly attractive, darkly funny, and wise beyond his years, Augustus steals both her heart and her breath. Nobody told her about this plot twist — and we won’t reveal anything else about what happens in this beloved novel about first love, heartbreak, courage, and the will to not go gently into that good night.

82. The Giver by Lois Lowry

If any YA book should be required reading for people of all ages, it’s The Giver . Published in 1993, Lois Lowry’s hallowed masterpiece has stood the test of time. It might be even more relevant — and more inspiring — today than ever before. Twelve-year-old Jonas’ world is one of peace, security, and order, and it’s the only life he’s ever known. But everything changes when the Ceremony of Twelve comes to pass, and Jonas is assigned to be the future Receiver of Memory — the single person upon whom all of the memories of the past are given. Becoming the Receiver of Memory will mean coming face-to-face with the “sameness” that the elders in his fragile community so fiercely protect, and confronting an unspeakable question: where exactly does the line fall between a utopia and a dystopia?

83. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle is truly a memoir that can stand on its own; fairytale-like in its prose and so emotionally transparent that you won’t be able to look away. In The Glass Castle , Jeannette Walls tells the story of her own life growing up with three siblings and a set of demanding, non-conformist parents. Her father spent her childhood either drinking himself into a stupor or sparking his children’s imaginations by teaching them about physics and geology. Her mother shrank from the mere idea of domesticity, shunning her role in the household. In this dysfunctional environment, the Walls children took care of one another and dreamt together of a way to get out. This is the tale of the guts, drive, and unconditional love that it took to actually succeed and carve out a life of their own in New York.

84. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Every once in a while, a book comes along that will make the literary world sit up, read, and even listen. This kind of book makes waves — and, more importantly, its ripples might even incite change in society. The Hate U Give was that book when it was published in 2017. At its center is sixteen-year-old Starr Carter, who has a foot in two worlds: one in her poor neighborhood, and the other in her rich prep school. But both worlds end up colliding when her best friend from childhood, Khalil, is shot and killed by a police officer.

Thus begins a national uproar that upends Starr’s already crumbling world, for she is the key to the true story behind Khalil’s death: she was the only one who witnessed the shooting that night. Searingly relevant, emotionally resonant, and bravely unapologetic in its unflinching portrayal of institutional racism and the corruption of the justice system, An important entry into the contemporary canon of African American literature , The Hate U Give is a must-read in our day and time.

85. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

People might steer you towards  the Lord of the Rings trilogy, or tell you that The Hobbit is “only” a children’s book, but don’t listen to them. The Hobbit is actually the best of them all. The prequel to the epic trilogy, The Hobbit is the funnier, livelier, and altogether better slice of the whole story — the Elizabeth Bennet to the Lord of the Rings ’ Mr. Darcy, if you will. From the start, you’ll meet Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit who embarks on an unexpected adventure with a band of twelve dwarves (and one unreliable wizard named Gandalf). Their mission? To journey to the Misty Mountains, defeat Smaug the great dragon, and help Thorin Oakenshield reclaim the seat of the King Under The Mountain. Meanwhile, Bilbo is the designated burglar of the merry gang, which is appropriate because, suffice to say, this time-tested book might just steal your heart.

86. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

The House on Mango Street is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, and it’s no secret why this young adult book remains beloved even after so many generations have passed: the key is its remarkable universality. Sandra Cisneros set out to make The House on Mango Street accessible in all ways, once saying in an interview: “You could read one or you could read the whole thing. You don’t have to read the whole thing, but if you do it’s like a necklace of stories. I wrote it so that it would be approachable for all people, whether they were educated or not, and whether they were children or adults. That’s exactly the kind of warmth and love that replenishes the pages of this bildungsroman, which consists of a series of beautifully crafted vignettes about a twelve-year-old girl named Esperanza who grows up in the Hispanic quarter of Chicago, on a street called (you guessed it) Mango Street.

87. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past ten years, you’ve probably heard of Suzanne Collins’ generational sensation, The Hunger Games . Collins dreamt up the premise one day while watching television and thinking, “What if a reality TV show was about 24 children killing each other, and what if it was broadcasted nationwide?” Katniss Everdeen is one such unlucky child in this first installment of The Hunger Games . From a poor family in District 12, Katniss must now compete against (read: murder) 23 other teenagers in order to survive — if possibly, made even more complicated by the fact one of the other tributes is a gentle boy from her district, who she has grown to know and perhaps even like. 

88. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

In a faraway land, unicorns do exist. One in particular is shy and content to keep to herself in her clearing, deep in the green forest — that is, until the day that she overhears a whispered conversation that suggests she is the last of her kind. In this classic book about a unicorn who sets out on a journey to find out what happened to her brethren, Peter Beagle has weaved a rich, spellbinding fairy tale of enchantment, hope, whimsy, and bittersweet lessons learned. You’ll encounter harpies, witches, wizards, and kings, all told in prose so lovely it’s heartbreaking. Indeed, if you’re looking for a book that will haunt you with its exquisiteness long after you’ve closed its pages, The Last Unicorn is the one for you.

89. The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Heard of Percy Jackson and the Olympians ? Get ready to meet The Lost Hero , Rick Riordan’s acclaimed spin-off. Though the setting and basic premise (demigods exist in our midst, and they practice their skills at a training facility called Camp Half-Blood) won’t be unfamiliar to readers of Percy Jackson, our protagonists are different this time around. The Lost Hero features Jason, who has entirely lost his memory, Piper, who has a secret that could change everything, and Leo… who somehow keeps seeing ghosts. How will they come together when the real enemy arises from the mist? Intricately plotted, fast-paced, and endlessly entertaining, The Lost Hero will be a satisfying return to Camp Half-Blood for any fan of Percy Jackson or Roman and Greek mythology.

90. The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline

What would you do if you had lost the ability to dream? Would you resign yourself to the new reality? Or would you go mad and regain the capacity to dream at all costs — even murder? This is the tantalizing idea that grounds Cherie Dimaline’s The Marrow Thieves , which finds a dreamless population of non-natives hunting indigenous Canadians, for the latter’s bone marrow is the key to a cure. But the price is death for the unwilling donor, which is why sixteen-year-old French and his family have been on the run for the last fifteen years. To escape the dark horror that awaits them at the hands of their pursuers, they must do something even more dangerous than dream — they have to act.

91. The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth

Cameron Post was just hanging out with her best friend Irene, eating ice cream and soaking in the rays of the summer sun, when Irene suddenly leans towards her and kisses her. It changes everything — not least because soon her conservative aunt Ruth arrives to whisk her away to live with her in Miles City, Montana. Her aunt intends to “fix” Cameron, but when the measures she takes become drastic, Cameron has to step up and figure out who exactly she is changing into — and whether or not she even wants that for herself. Bold and bracingly realistic , The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a frank exploration of identity, individuality, and sexuality that many children growing up will be able to relate to.

92. The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

A lonely boy named Bastian. The doomed world of Fantastica. Dragons, giants, monsters, magic, empresses, and a strange book that draws all of them deeper and deeper into its pages — to a point where even Bastian may not be able to return from his quest. Just ask its millions of readers worldwide: whoever reads Michael Ende’s The Neverending Story is never quite the same again. Whether that’s because of the dazzling imagination that bursts from its pages, the beauty of its prose, or the unforgettable nature of its universe is up to debate, but one thing is for certain: The Neverending Story has that extra something that elevates a mere story into a time-worn classic for the ages.

93. The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton

Ponyboy Curtis is a legend in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and in the hearts of the readers who grew up with S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders . Hinton herself was only 15 when she started writing this classic novel about two warring rival gangs: the working-class “greasers” and the privileged “Socs” (short for “socials”). Ponyboy, our protagonist, is a proud greaser who would die for his boys. But he didn’t actually think that mortality was in the cards — until the night that his friend Johnny murders a Soc. The two weeks that ensue will turn Ponyboy’s life — and maybe even his entire worldview — upside-down in this precocious book with a beating, emotional heart.

94. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Sure, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a celebrated Hollywood film with an all-star cast of Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, and Ezra Miller — but, as the saying goes, the book is always better. In his original novel, Stephen Chbosky has crafted a sensitive, deeply powerful story about a boy who knows what it’s like to be, well, a wallflower. Charlie tries to blend in with the wallpaper at parties, he hasn’t kissed anyone that he really likes yet, and he writes to himself in a diary because he feels like it’s the only place he can really be himself. All of this starts to change when he meets two seniors at school, Patrick and Sam… but the earthshaking revelations that surface as a result might only serve to remind Charlie why he had created a safety net for himself in the first place.

95. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

The Poet X is the debut novel of revered slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo, which is how you’ll already know that it will be something special. And it starts and ends with the novel’s powerfully drawn, irresistible protagonist, Xiomara Batista: a young girl who’s just beginning to discover her fiery passion for words. As her body grows into curves, her family life worsens, and the ever-constant gossip seethes at her school, it seems that Xiomara can only find solace in her school’s slam poetry club — just another thing that her ultra-religious mami can’t find out about. If you’d like another level of immersion, we recommend also listening to the audiobook. The verses are hard-hitting, beautiful, and so visceral that you might reel, and Xiomara’s story will ricochet around in your head long after you’ve put down the book.  

96. The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Yes, this book is the progenitor of two of the most famous lines in cinematic history (if you don’t mind spoilers, you can watch Inigo Montoya’s iconic moment in action here ). But the beloved The Princess Bride , a simple story about a young, beautiful woman who is kidnapped and forced into a marriage with the awful Prince Humperdinck, is much more than just that iconic film scene. It’s a story that has adventure, humor, determination, pain, death, heroes, cowards, fun, tragedy, and miracles — all in one humble, fairy tale-like book. William Goldman once said, "I've gotten more responses on The Princess Bride than on everything else I've done put together — all kinds of strange outpouring letters. Something in The Princess Bride affects people." Pick it up and see for yourself just how much it might change your life.

97. The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

If you ever wondered who or what higher being you can thank for Julie Andrews’ pitch-perfect rendition of a rather stern Queen of Genovia, it’s this book right here. Mia Thermopolis is just trying her best to be a normal freshman. This, to Mia, includes: passing Algebra, getting her hair under control, and kissing (or trying to kiss) gorgeous Josh Richter, otherwise known as “six feet of unadulterated hotness.” This does not include: finding out that you’re the crown princess of an entire small country called Genovia and then being forced into princess lessons . Both these average-teen and royal trials and tribulations are related first-person in The Princess Diaries , written in Mia’s hilarious, warm voice as she struggles to stay true to herself in a situation she never asked for — one that’s quickly threatening to spiral out of her control.

98. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Maggie Stiefvater’s The Raven Boys was a bonafide sleeper hit when it was published in 2012, spawning a bestselling series of four novels and a legion of fans across the nation. A good deal of its success has to do with the Raven Boys themselves: the group of four magnetic, unforgettable boys at the heart of the novel. There’s handsome Gansey, who’s on a quest to unearth the lost Welsh King. There’s fiery Ronan, who’s struggling with inner demons. There’s intelligent Adam, who’s in school on a scholarship. And there’s quiet Noah, who listens more than he talks. But here’s the thing: Blue Sargent, our protagonist, was warned away from the Raven Boys for a good reason. But as she’s inexorably drawn into Gansey’s quest, she realizes that maybe she’s in for more trouble than even she expected.

99. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

To illustrate the ferocity with which teenage readers have loved Ann Brashares’ The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, allow us to share a tidbit from a Reedsy team member: when she was a teenager, she and her five best friends all bought the same pair of jeans and decorated them so that they too could be a sisterhood of the… well, pants. 

For the uninitiated, this young adult book series follows four best friends in their final years of high school and early years of university. Each of the four teenage books (well, five, but we don’t like to talk about the fifth one), documents the four girls’ lives over summer breaks, along with the life lessons and growing pains that come with growing up. Meanwhile, the constant thread in the teen series is each girl’s attempt to stay true to the friends who’ve been by her side — and, of course, this bond of adolescent friendship is symbolized by the pants which mysteriously happen to fit each girl perfectly.

100. The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Natasha is on her way to meet with a lawyer to stop her family’s deportation from their home in New York City to Jamaica. Daniel, the son of Korean shopkeepers, is on his way to interview with a Yale alum. It’s a big day for both of them. And it becomes even bigger when the two happen to meet and spend the rest of the day learning about one another, falling in love. 

Nicola Yoon’s The Sun is Also a Star is YA romance at its best, and a reminder that the universe is home to a million different paths for each of our lives to follow — sometimes the course we ultimately chart boils down to a single, by-chance moment.

101. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

The title of Sarah Dessen’s novel promises a lot: who wouldn’t be intrigued to find out the truth about forever? 

For Macy, the teenage protagonist of The Truth About Forever , that “truth” might just reveal itself to her one fateful summer, when she’s overcome with grief. Her father has just unexpectedly passed away and her boyfriend has informed her that he thinks they need a bit of space before leaving abruptly for Brain Camp. Macy begins to shut herself off from those around her — even her mother and sister, probably the only people who really understand what Macy’s going through.

Then an unexpected encounter with a catering company lands her a new job and maybe even a new set of friends. As the summer wears on, Macy starts to come out of her shell, finding that she might just be ready to take on what lies in store for her out in the world.

102. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Sure, Mole, Ratty, Badger, and Toad might all be animals. But the characters in The Wind in the Willows serve as very human archetypes, and the tale in general is ultimately one that we all recognize about camaraderie. It follows the misadventures of this motley crew of friends, as they each struggle to withstand the strong personalities of one another. 

While the book can be read by young readers, critics have credited its lasting power to the mature themes and sharp social satire that run throughout its story — and which are observed at different levels based on the age of the reader. As Kenneth Grahame said, the book is for “those who still keep the spirits of youth alive in them.”

103. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

Set in 1687, The Witch of Blackbird Pond follows orphaned Kit Tyler, who has just been forced to move from her beloved home in Barbados to the cold shores of colonial Connecticut. Feeling alone and misunderstood, she frequently flees to the nearby meadows, the one place she feels relatively at home. It’s in these meadows that Kit meets the eponymous Witch of Blackbird Pond, an old Quaker woman whom Kit forms a friendship with… a friendship that eventually causes locals to regard Kit with suspicion, giving life to the rumor that she, too, might be a witch.

104. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

The 1937 novel Their Eyes Were Watching God is considered a classic of Harlem Renaissance literature, and in 2005, TIME included it in its list of the 100 best English-language novels published since 1923.

While the novel deals with mature themes, it’s become a staple in American high school classrooms. Tackling important topics such as race and gender roles, the novel centers around Janie Crawford’s quest to be her own person — not an easy feat for a black woman living in 1930s Florida. Her journey of self-discovery takes readers back through her past, and explores the relationships and roots that made her into who she is today — as well as her lifelong clashes against the values imposed on her by others. 

105. This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

This Savage Song is a dark urban fantasy about a city on the brink of becoming overrun by monsters — monsters being bred by the violence within the city itself. Kate Harker and August Flynn are both heirs to the city, but they couldn’t be more different. Kate takes after her father, who believed that monsters should roam free and humans should pay for protection. Meanwhile, August also makes like his father, who was a kind-natured man that sought to better protect the city’s human citizens. The one, tiny complication? August is, in fact, a monster.

Can the two heirs work together to save their city? Do they even want to? Read on to find out.

106. To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

Most of us have had that nightmare where you suddenly find yourself at school with no clothes on. In To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before , Lara Jean lives a different, but still mortifying, situation: all the secret letters she’s written to her various crushes have been mailed out without her knowledge! And now each one of them is approaching her to discuss the letters… including her sister’s ex-boyfriend. Adapted into an equally charming Netflix movie, Jenny Han’s tale of teenage love and finding the courage to speak your mind is sure to be the kind of book that teens struggle to put down.

107. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

This story about a sleepy Southern town rocked by a crisis of conscience also shook up the publishing world when it was first released in 1960. Meeting instant critical acclaim, To Kill a Mockingbird became an immediate bestseller. It then went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961, be adapted into an Oscar-winning film in 1962, remain a staple in high school English classes, and find its way into just about every “ Best Of” list published — including this one! In other words, it’s a classic of American literature, through and through.

108. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

The “love against all odds” trope is frequently at play in YA novels, so much so that you might be tired of it. But in Natalie Babbitt’s Tuck Everlasting , young love is up against the toughest foe of all: time. 

The Tuck family live a nomadic life on the outskirts of society, trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible. Why? They unknowingly drank from a magic spring that granted them eternal life, and for years have ceased aging. They’ve remained pretty successful at hiding their endless youth, until young Winnie Foster one day stumbles upon their secret. Winnie quickly becomes entranced by the Tuck family and bonds with them, vowing to keep their secret. What she doesn’t know is that she’s being followed by someone who wants to expose the Tucks and the magic spring in order to make a fortune… and he’ll stop at nothing to do so.

109. We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson

Things have been tough for Henry Denton lately. His mom is a struggling waitress barely keeping it together. His brother is an unemployed college dropout who’s just found out he might be a father. His grandmother is slowly losing a battle with Alzheimer’s. And he’s overwhelmed with unbelievable grief after his boyfriend’s suicide a year earlier. So when he’s abducted by aliens and given the option to destroy the world with the push of a big, red button, he can’t help but admit: it doesn’t sound like such a bad idea.

But Henry is a scientist who’s nothing if not logical. And so We Are the Ants makes Henry weigh the pros and cons of putting a stop to the world as we know it, and ultimately ask the question: Is there still good to be found?

110. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

The Sinclair family looks perfect from the outside, propped by the fact that their family gathers every summer on their very own private island. However, one summer on the island ends up being not so perfect: 15 year-old Cadence experiences an accident that leaves her physically weak — and amnesiac. Now she must find out exactly what happened to her. The New York Times called We Were Liars a “ticking time bomb of a novel.” If that doesn’t convince you this is a book of suspense and intrigue that you probably want to read, what will?

111. What to Say Next by Julie Buxbaum

Kit Lowell is popular, and David Drucker isn’t. Typically, Kit sits with her friends Annie and Violet at lunch — until the day that she decides to sit with David to both of their surprise. The thing is, Kit’s dad has passed away, and amidst all of the sympathy and awkward silences, she finds David’s blunt honesty and direct nature refreshing. More than that, she wants to enlist his help in figuring out what really happened the night of her father’s trafic car accident. David agrees to help, but neither of the teens are prepared for the answers they find in Buxbaum’s acclaimed young adult novel, What to Say Next.

112. When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

Dimple Shah couldn’t be more relieved when her parents agree to send her to a summer program for aspiring web developers, taking it as a signal that they’re going to ease up on the pressure for her to find the “Ideal Indian Husband.”

Rishi Patel, on the other hand, finds himself eagerly anticipating the same summer program for the exact opposite reasons: his parents have told him that his future wife is going to be at the program, and this is his opportunity to meet — and woo — her.

When the two protagonists of When Dimple Met Rishi finally, well, meet, their parents’ maneuvering doesn’t go exactly as planned. But the summer feels long when you’re young, and there’s lots of time to discover that first impressions aren’t always what they seem to be.

113. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

When You Reach Me is a Newbery Medal-winning science fiction and mystery novel set in late-1970s New York City. Our protagonist is Miranda Sinclair, a seemingly ordinary sixth grader, who starts receiving strange and mysterious notes from an unknown source — one who seems to know a whole lot about her, including things that haven’t even happened yet. The notes seem to be telling Miranda that a tragic death is forthcoming, and she’s the only one who can stop it… unless she’s already too late?

Stead’s novel revolves around themes of friendship, redemption, and independence — the latter being an important component to Stead, who felt that children in the latter half of the 20th century had much more independence than children of the 21st century.

114. With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

With the Fire on High follows Emoni Santiago, a high school senior with more than just a full course load to juggle — she’s also got a daughter to look after and her abuela to support. 

The only place that Emoni really feels like she can forget the struggles of her day is in the kitchen, where she’s a natural at creating mouth-watering dishes. Some might even say there’s a little bit of magic in each of her culinary creations. For a long time now, Emoni has dreamed of finding work as a chef when she’s done with high school, but then she’s always forced to remind herself that she doesn’t have time to pursue her dreams. Still, her passion for cooking has been simmering away for all this time, and things look like they’re about to reach a boiling point…

115. Zen and Gone by Emily France

In Zen and Gone , teen protagonist Essence McKree lives in Colorado with her mother and  nine-year-old sister, Puck. Of course, her mom works in a pot shop and is high most of the time — leaving Essence with the job of taking care of Puck, and feeling much older than just her 17 years. 

But when she meets Oliver, a new kid in town for the summer, she starts to feel a little bit lighter and freer. The two agree to go on a three-day trek in the Rocky Mountains, only to find upon setting out that they have an unexpected stowaway: Puck. As if that’s not bad enough, the next morning Puck has vanished altogether. It’s now up to Essa to rely on her own instincts and her new friend Oliver to find her sister, and save her family once again.

You may have reached the end of this list, but that doesn't mean there aren't tons of other wonderful young adult books to explore. Check out this list of the best young adult romance books or discover the newest indie YA novels hitting the shelves here !

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