Prepared by
Revised
May 18, 2023
Fiction
Promise Boys
2023
J.B., Ramón and Trey, students at the Urban Promise Prep School, must follow the school's strict rules, but when their principal is murdered, the three boys must band together to track down the real killer before they are arrested.
Dear Medusa
2023
This novel-in-verse follows a 16-year-old girl coping with sexual abuse and grappling with how to reclaim her story, her anger and her body in a world that seems determined to punish her for the sin of surviving.
Friday I'm in Love
2023
Deciding to throw herself an epic coming-out party with singing, dancing and rainbow cake, 16-year-old Mahalia Harris finds herself buried in a mountain of bills, unfinished schoolwork and enough drama to end her party before it even begins.
Lexile level
660
Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl
2022
When preacher's daughter Monique decides she's ready to have sex but then discovers she's physically incapable, she teams up with a straight-laced girl who knows a lot about her condition and a misunderstood bad boy to find the cure.
The Davenports
2023
The Davenports are one of the few Black families of immense wealth and status in 1910 Chicago, and the two daughters, Olivia and Helen, are finding their way and finding love-- even where they are not supposed to.
Lexile level
720
Mirror Girls
2022
Biracial twin sisters-- one who presents as Black and the other as white-- are determined to put the ghosts of the past to rest and uncover the truth behind their parents' murders in the Jim Crow South.
Stephanie B loved this! Find out why »
True Biz
2022
This novel follows a year of seismic romantic, political and familial shifts for a teacher and her students at a boarding school for the deaf.
April O loved this! Find out why »
Imposter Syndrome and Other Confessions of Alejandra Kim
2023
When a microaggression at her wealthy Manhattan high school thrusts her into the spotlight, half-Latina/half-Korean Alejandra Kim, who feels like an outcast, must carve out a place for herself while dealing with the loss of her father.
Lexile level
720
Man Made Monsters
2022
Haunting illustrations are woven throughout these horror stories that follow one extended Cherokee family across the centuries and well into the future as they encounter predators of all kinds in each time period.
The Ghosts of Rose Hill
2022
Staying with her aunt in Prague, aspiring violinist Ilana finds a forgotten Jewish cemetery. There she meets a kindhearted ghost named Benjamin, who introduces her to the enchanted side of the city, where she resolves to save the boy she loves.
Stephanie B loved this! Find out why »
The Renaissance of Gwen Hathaway
2023
Determined nothing in her life will change again after the death of her mother, Madeline Hathaway works the ren faire circuit with her father and meets Arthur, an actual lute-playing bard who ropes her into becoming Princess of the Faire, which dramatically changes her plans.
I Must Betray You
2022
In a country governed by isolation, fear and a tyrannical dictator, 17-year-old Cristian is blackmailed into becoming an informer, but he decides to use his position to try to undermine the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians and expose to the world what is happening in his country.
Julie M loved this! Find out why »
The First To Die at the End
2022
With society divided by a new technology claiming to alert people on the day of their death, thousands sign up, and on day one, dozens receive their calls, including two boys destined for love until one receives the first End-Day call.
All My Rage
2022
When his attempts to save his family's motel spiral out of control, Salahudin and his best friend Noor, two outcasts in their town, must decide what their friendship is worth and how they can defeat the monsters of their past and in their midst.
Stephanie B loved this! Find out why »
My Flawless Life
2023
Known as a fixer, but unable to fix her own life after her politician father ruins everything, Hana is hired to expose the dark secrets of her supposedly flawless classmates at the elite private school she's attending in Washington, D.C.
Nonfiction
How To Be a (Young) Antiracist
2023
T 305.8 KEN
This young adult edition of the #1 New York Times bestseller empowers teen readers to help create a more just society, encouraging them to think critically and build a more equitable world in doing so.
You: The Story
2023
A deeply personal how-to book for aspiring writers, encouraging them to look inward and excavate their own memories in order to discover the authentic voices and compelling details waiting to be put on the page.
Dark Testament: Poems
2023
T 811.6 SMI
The author, an award-winning poet, gives voice to the mournful dead, their lives unjustly lost to violence, and to the grieving chorus of protestors in today's Black Lives Matter movement, in search of resilience and hope.
Recommended for
Stephanie B
I am an adult services librarian who likes short walks to the fridge and long evenings at the park walking the dogs with my husband. To keep my imagination open, I read and watch a little of everything-- from crazy unreliable narrator thrillers to lighthearted rom-coms to fascinating nonfiction. I can be bribed with tacos.
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