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Young Adult (Y/A) fiction is a category of fiction written for teenagers with themes like love, friendship, and coming-of-age. So when someone says “Y/A novels,” nearly all of us think of books about cliché things and different high school drama based stories. Super lame, right?
But that’s kinda unfair and definitely a misconception because a lot of Y/A novels are absolute masterpieces.
And so, we’ve rounded up ten of our favourite novels from the young adult category that everyone should read at least once in their lifetime.
1. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Published in 2005, this novel is set in Nazi Germany and follows a young girl who is sent to live with foster parents after the death of her younger brother. The highlight of this book is that it is narrated by Death.
Set in sad times, following an innocent kid’s life, and looking into serious themes, the lyrical prose of The Book Thief stays with you for a long time.
2. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
The Night Circus appears out of nowhere. Open to visitors from dusk till dawn, it is an out-of-world experience filled with magical attractions, each one better than the last. But how was it formed? What secrets lurk behind those black-and-white tents?
The Night Circus is a magical character-driven story and is an absolute feast for the heart.
3. The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
Natasha is going to be deported to Jamaica due to her family’s illegal status. She’s out on her last day there, looking for people who can help her. After all, America is her home. However, the thought of leaving becomes even more difficult when she runs into Daniel.
This book is an absolute must-read for anyone who even slightly believes in destiny. Even though the basic story is of an insta-love between two high school kids, the tiny details come together in the end to form beauty.
4. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games is a trilogy based in dystopian North America. It’s a gruesome story of how a new-world government puts 24 children in an arena to fight to death until one remains.
Even though it’s based in an imaginary universe, more often than not, we find ourselves comparing the happenings of the story to life in the world right now. And that’s quite a scary thought, don’t you think?
5. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton
Debut author Leslye Walton has written a hypnotic generational saga. The novel follows the story of Ava Lavender’s grandmother, mother, and her.
In this magical-realism, Ava lavender is born with wings and no one knows how to react to that. Naturally, this leads to some unbelievable events which stuns readers into thinking about how people find it so difficult to accept someone who’s different.
6. Turtles All The Way Down by John Green
Like the rest of John Green’s novels, Turtles All The Way Down follows a teenage girl while she has some unusual adventures. And like his other books, it follows one very serious and important theme.
The protagonist, Aza Holmes, has to deal with mental health issues such as anxiety. And John green has managed to represent these mental health issues in an unbelievably relatable manner.
7. The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas
Angie Thomas’ debut novel is about a black girl who witnessed her unarmed best friend being shot to death by a police officer.
In blunt terms, it brings out the situation with racism in this world that does not seem to be dying out. Need I say more?
8. I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson
I’ll Give You the Sun is a novel about twin siblings who were joint at the hip since they were kids. However, extroverted Jude and introverted Noah start to drift apart when they reach high school. And then their world is blown apart when their mother dies.
Jandy Nelson’s novel is a beautiful story of love, family, and second chances.
9. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Harper Lee’s debut novel is a modern classic that was released in 1960. Narrated by six-year-old Scout, it is a story of a black man being accused of something he didn’t do while Scout’s dad fights his case.
Reading from a kid’s point-of-view, the reader sees how baseless the whole foundation of racism is. What’s truly frightening is that even after nearly 60 years of its release, the story still seems highly relevant.
10. Harry Potter by JK Rowling
Even though the first couple of books from this series is counted as children’s fiction, it just had to be on this list. If you haven’t read this series yet, heads up, it isn’t perfect.
Yet, somehow, it is one of the most relevant works of fiction told in the form of fantasy. Battle, war, political issues, bigotry and a number of similar themes are highlighted in this series. In many ways, it’s quite a wholesome image of almost everything wrong with our world.