Author: Rachel Milburn

Best Fiction for Young Adults Featured Review: Spell Bound by F.T. Lukens

  • Spell Bound
  • by F.T. Lukens
  • Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
  • Release Date: April 4, 2023
  • ISBN: 9781665916226

Rook is a genius who grew up around magic, but isn’t magical. He gets a job working in the office of the famous sorceress Antonia Hex who handles magical emergencies. Rook is introduced to a big magical world including rival apprentice Sun who he begrudgingly thinks is cute despite their moody disposition. Rook realizes he must break the rules in order to become who he was always meant to be, but might bring everyone he cares about down with him.

With some excellent world building and lots of humor, Lukens brings us a feel-good story that highlights not always believing what you have been told about yourself. In this enemies to friends modern fantasy, readers will enjoy this journey of belonging and acceptance.

Any teen who likes a robust magical world or queer romance will find something to love in this novel. This book is for anyone who enjoyed Carry On by Rainbow Rowell or How to Succeed in Witchcraft by Aislinn Brophy.

-Giovanna Forsyth

Other Nominated Titles

RainRisingbyCourtneComrie
Release Date: September 27, 2022
October 18, 2022
January 31, 2023
November 8, 2022

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.
The Best Fiction for Young Adults Committee appreciates teen feedback as members evaluate the nominated titles. Teen librarians are encouraged to share the List of Potential Nominees under consideration with their patrons and solicit feedback using the link: https://bit.ly/BFYA24TeenFB

Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2024) Featured Review: D&D Dungeon Club, Vol. 1: Roll Call by Molly Knox Ostertag and Xanthe Bouma

  • D&D Dungeon Club, Vol. 1: Roll Call
  • Molly Knox Ostertag and Xanthe Bouma
  • Publication Date: November 29, 2022
  • ISBN-13: 9780063039247

Jess Descheene is good at one thing and one thing only: building a story with her best friend (and Dungeon Master) Olivia in Dungeon & Dragons. When Olivia wants to start a D&D club at their middle school, Jess goes behind her back to undermine her. Will their friendship–and their long-running D&D campaign–survive Jess’ actions?

Dungeon Club: Roll Call beautifully conveys the importance D&D can have in students’ lives, especially those who may not be connected to school in other ways, like through academics and athletics. The intertwining of the D&D campaign and the real-world story helps raise the stakes in both worlds. The coming-of-age theme will resonate with anyone who had trouble fitting in in middle school, regardless of whether they play tabletop roleplaying games. Xanthe Bouma’s art shines, and their use of color is especially adroit. Both Jess and Olivia are POC characters, which provides both an important representation and reflection of students who play TTRPGs.

Fans of tabletop role playing games, like Dungeons & Dragons and Magical Kitties Save the Day will find a lot to love in this graphic novel, as will fans of play streams like Critical Role and Dimension20. Video game players who enjoy fantasy RPGs like Horizon: Forbidden West, Ni no Kuni, and The Legend of Zelda games may also enjoy this story. Lastly, this series starter is a must-buy for collections where Molly Knox Ostertag’s other comics circulate well, and where coming-of-age graphic novels like those by Raina Telgemeier and Jade Armstrong are in high demand.

-Ness Shortley

Other Nominated Titles

September 6, 2022
September 27, 2022
March 21, 2023
May 2, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

Amazing Audiobooks Featured Review: The Depths by Nicole Lesperance

  • The Depths
  • by Nicole Lesperance
  • Narrated by Phoebe Strole
  • Publisher: Books on Tape/Listening Library
  • Publication Date: September 13, 2022
  • ISBN: 9780593630631

Addie is dragged along on her newlywed mom and step dad’s honeymoon trip to a remote tropical island. She is recovering from a deadly freediving accident and wants nothing but to return to the water. Eulalie Island promises to be the best place to heal, but Addie quickly learns that the island is hiding many deadly secrets. After discovering the trapped spirit of a young girl, Addie is determined to solve the island’s mysteries and set her free. But, she will need to be careful because she could easily become the island’s next victim.

Author Lesperance crafts a setting that feels like a character in its own right. The beauty of the island artfully hides the rotting horrors within and the narration of the story send chills down listeners’ spines. Each time the narrator, Strole, mimics the island’s birds trilling Addie’s name, the story becomes more haunting and impossible to shake.

Fans of Natalie D. Richards, Stephanie Perkins, and Lumara by Melissa Landers will enjoy this suspenseful production of The Depths.

-Sarah Carpenter

Other Nominated Titles

November 8, 2022
January 10, 2023
September 13, 2022
February 7, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers Featured Review: The Truth About Everything by Bridget Farr

  • The Truth About Everything
  • by Bridget Farr
  • Publisher: Flux
  • Release Date: October 11, 2022
  • ISBN: 9781635830804

Lark’s off-the-grid, conspiracy-theorist parents claim to homeschool her but in reality, her education stopped long ago. Now she spends her days completing chores on their farm and hanging out with her only friend Alex. Her first period, with no previous knowledge of menstruation, leads her to secretly enroll in school and her worldview is soon blown apart. Lark quickly begins to question everything she has been taught and to engage with the world from which she has been shut away. But there are consequences for her actions back home.

Many teens are used to complaining about school so the idea of education not even being an option and the loss of everything that comes is eye-opening. Lark’s struggle to come to terms with the fact that her parents are wrong is difficult but something teens will face, though probably not to this extent. Lark is a naive and smart character who grows by leaps and bounds. Readers get to experience every self-doubt with her. These themes will be familiar with readers.

Readers who enjoy books about difficult families or unique family situations will enjoy this novel. Hand this to fans of We’ll Fly Away by Bryan Bliss and Smoke by Darcy Woods

-Cathy DeCampli

Other Nominated Titles

Release Date: January 3, 2023
Release Date: February 28, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

Best Fiction for Young Adults Featured Review: How to Succeed in Witchcraft by Aislinn Brophy

  • How to Succeed in Witchcraft
  • by Aislinn Brophy
  • Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
  • Release Date: September 27, 2022
  • ISBN: 9780593354520

Shay Johnson is the best or second best witch at her magical high school depending on who you ask. In order to win the coveted Brockton Scholarship ensuring her admittance to the college of her dreams and a career to help support her family, Shay must step outside of her comfort zone to do the school musical. She soon realizes that the person she thought was her nemesis might be a friend (or maybe more), and the teacher who is helping her out might be manipulating her and other young witches.

In her debut novel, Aislinn Brophy ambitiously creates a vivid magical world that feels fresh. She uses magic allegorically to mirror class differences in our own society, but in a seemingly effortless way that will make it easy for younger readers to understand and relate. The story delicately and realistically handles the internal thoughts of a teenager being groomed by a teacher. As the story progresses, you get frustrated by the choices of our protagonist, but in a testament to the writing, Brophy ensures we are always rooting for Shay to find her way.

The teen reader that will love this book will like the cross section of fantasy, feminism, and LGBTQIA+ stories. Recommend this title to readers who enjoyed Aiden Thomas’ Cemetery Boys or The Witchery by S. Isabelle.

Other Nominated Titles

HighlySupciousAndUnfairlyCutebyTaliaHibbert
Release Date: January 3, 2023
Release Date: November 8, 2022
Release Date: January 10, 2023
Release Date: October 18, 2022

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

The Best Fiction for Young Adults Committee appreciates teen feedback as members evaluate the nominated titles. Teen librarians are encouraged to share the List of Potential Nominees under consideration with their patrons and solicit feedback using the link: https://bit.ly/BFYA24TeenFB

Amazing Audiobooks (#AA2024) Featured Review: Whiteout by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon

  • Whiteout
  • by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jacson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon
  • Narrated by Nic Stone, Danielle Shemaiah, Shayna Small, Bahnie Turpin, Alaska Jackson, Joniece Abbott-Pratt, Kevin R. Free, James Fouhey, and Korey Jackson
  • Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers, Inc./Quill Tree Books
  • Publication Date: November 8, 2022
  • ISBN: 9780063088177

It’s winter holiday time and science-minded Stevie made a mistake. A huge mistake. She must find a way to apologize to her girlfriend, romance-loving Sola, or lose her forever. An amazing group of friends pitch in and help her attempt the apology of a lifetime, while also navigating their own love stories. The only problem is, Atlanta is experiencing a once-in-a-decade snowstorm.  

The same authors who brought us 2021’s Blackout, are back at it, this time in Atlanta. Twelve young friends work together to help save a relationship at risk. Stevie enlists her friends to help, and all are on board, but when Sola issues a time-sensitive ultimatum, the rush is on. Stevie’s friends adapt, but there’s a bigger problem: Atlanta is experiencing a snowstorm. Flights are delayed or canceled, roads are dangerous, and time is running out. During the course of the book, six couples will face second-chances, friends-to-lovers, and the realization that friendship and love are the most important part of the holiday season. 

Multiple narrators expertly represent the diverse cast of characters, each narrator reading one of the stories. The pacing and intonation of each narrator lifts each couple off the page making their stories come alive. This fun, fast-paced, romance has something for everyone.


For fans of Blackout by the same group of authors. Readers who enjoyed audiobooks like Slay! by Brittney Morris, Ibi Zoboi’s Pride, narrated by Elizabeth Acevdeo, or reruns of the 80s sitcom A Different World will enjoy this story of Black love and friendship.

-Jen Haas

Other Nominated Titles

September 13, 2022
January 10, 2023
September 13, 2023
February 7, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers (#QP2024) Featured Review: Scattered Showers by Rainbow Rowell

  • Scattered Showers
  • By Rainbow Rowell
  • Publisher: St. Martin’s Publishing Group
  • Imprint: Wednesday Books
  • Release Date: November 8, 2022
  • ISBN: 9781250855411

This novel consists of nine standalone short stories that get to the crux of what makes romance “romantic”: it is the careful details each partner puts into one another. While entering a romantic encounter is daunting, Rowell provides hope for the weary. A dual narration audiobook adds to the coziness of the stories.

This title is a good candidate for QPRR because there is a story for every reader’s interests: a New Year’s Eve “meet cute”; the sacredness of a midnight premiere; the distinct kindness of creating a playlist for someone else; the longing when a stranger you only know from routine suddenly disappears. The nine romance stories are fairy tales, fantasy adjacent, contemporary realism, queer, and nerdy. Some of the stories even return readers to old friends from Rowell’s Fangirl, Carry On, and Attachments. Additionally, the large font may be good for readers with visual disorders.

The teen reader who would most appreciate this title is someone who feels overwhelmed by an entire book. The short stories are unrelated, so a reader could read one, read some, or read them all.  For readers who may have also enjoyed Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick (2014); Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan (2011); Again, Again by E Lockhart (2020).

– Emma K. McNamara

Other Nominated Titles

Release Date: November 29, 2023
Release Date: November 8, 2022

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

Best Fiction for Young Adults (#BFYA2024) Featured Review: Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute

HighlySupciousAndUnfairlyCutebyTaliaHibbert

Celine Bangura and Bradley Graeme were best friends as children–until Brad ditched Celine and her “weird” obsession with conspiracy theories for the popular crowd. At least, that’s how Celine tells it. Since then, Brad has become a popular footballer at school and Celine has grown her unique interests into a thriving social media following. If it wasn’t for their inability to be in the same room without insulting each other, they probably wouldn’t ever speak. When Celine signs up for a leadership-based survival course in the woods with a scholarship as the grand prize, she’s shocked when Brad signs up too, and–horror of horrors–they’re forced to work together if they don’t want to fail. 

In her debut novel for teens, successful adult romance author, Talia Hibbert, brings her signature witty banter, lovably quirky characters, and emotional nuance to this delightful enemies-to-lovers romance. Celine and Brad narrate in distinct voices as they unpack the childhood betrayal that both remember differently and slowly regain each other’s trust. Brad’s OCD is thoughtfully portrayed as a part of his character. The confidence he has developed in managing it is a product of his maturity along with the help of supportive family and friends. Celine struggles with anger over her father’s abandonment of her family and, with help, begins to see how she’s let that anger define her. The outdoor survival camp, with its skills-based challenges, is entertaining and sets up humorous situations, while providing many opportunities for Brad and Celine to transform their relationship slowly and authentically. Side characters (friends and family) are the perfect amusing chorus through which to witness the growing romance. This romantic comedy is lighthearted and funny, but still realistically portrays teens’ messy emotional lives.

Teens who love feel-good romantic comedies that have characters with substance will want to pick this up immediately. Give this to readers who liked When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord, She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlan, and Love and Other Natural Disasters by Misa Sugiura.

-Krista Hutley

Other Nominated Titles

Release Date: November 8. 2023
Release Date: January 10, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

The Best Fiction for Young Adults Committee appreciates teen feedback as members evaluate the nominated titles. Teen librarians are encouraged to share the List of Potential Nominees under consideration with their patrons and solicit feedback using the link: https://bit.ly/BFYA24TeenFB

Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2024) Featured Review: Sunshine: A Graphic Novel by Jarrett J. Krosoczka

  • Sunshine: A Graphic Novel
  • by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
  • Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
  • Publication Date: April 18, 2023
  • ISBN-13: 9781338356328

In this graphic memoir, a standalone companion to Hey, Kiddo! (2018), Krosoczka recalls the summer he spent as a counselor at a camp for critically ill children, teens and their families. While at camp, he makes strong personal connections with the campers, his fellow counselors, and the adults who work there. He also comes to understand some of the complexities of life, illness, and death and how art can make a difference in the world.

Teens frequently seek coming-of-age stories which elicit strong emotional responses, and Sunshine certainly produces those feelings without becoming didactic or sentimental. Krosoczka deftly balances the difficult realities of Camp Sunshine with his own ever-changing perspectives of life and art. Of particular note in this memoir are Krosoczka’s unique illustrations. A limited color palette of gray and orange with the occasional splash of yellow helps to capture his multifaceted thoughts and memories from that time. The photographs, newspaper articles, and drawings that open the chapters add authenticity to Krosoczka’s experiences.

Teens who have already read Hey, Kiddo! will want to read more about Krosoczka’s life in this story. This graphic memoir will also be popular with teens who read novels and watch films like Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, and Five Feet Apart by Rachel Lippencott. Recommend this book to younger teens who have read Sharon Draper’s Out of My Heart or Rob Harrell’s Wink.

Other Nominated Titles

Release Date: October 18, 2022
Release Date: November 8, 2022
Release Date: January 19, 2023
Release Date: September 19, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.

Amazing Audiobooks (#AA2024) Featured Review: The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen

  • The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen
  • by Issac Blum
  • Narrated by Josh Bloomberg
  • Publisher: Books on Tape/Listening Library
  • Publication Date: September 13, 2022
  • ISBN: 9780593630037

Hoodie Rosen’s life is pretty good. He likes his friends, he has a great relationship with his sisters, and he enjoys playing basketball with his classmates. Sure, he is fitting in with his entire Orthodox Jewish community, adjusting to a new town actively campaigning against them and a recent string of anti-semantic hate crimes, but Hoodie’s happy. He has his Kosher snacks, and he just met Anna-Marie Diaz-O’Leary, a non-Jewish girl whose mother, the mayor, opposes Hoodie’s community. Hoodie is smitten with Anna-Marie though; he believes they are meant to be together. However, as the violence towards Hoodie’s community grows, he begins to question his faith, what it means to love, and where he truly belongs. The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen is realistic fiction and is an own-voices, character-driven novel.

Narrator, Josh Bloomberg, beautifully brings to life Isaac Bloom’s Morris Award-winning novel. Bloomberg perfectly blends humor and snark to give Hoodie a realistically unique voice as he explores painful topics of hate crimes and religious prejudice with heartfelt realism. The book is entertaining, powerful, and perfect for fans of Jeff Zentner and Deb Caletti.

-Rebecca Baldwin

Other Nominated Titles

Release Date: January 10, 2023
November 8, 2022
Release Date: September 13, 2023
Release Date: February 7, 2023

The Selected Lists teams read throughout the year in search of the best titles published in their respective categories. Once a book is suggested (either internally or through the title suggestion form), it must pass through a review process to be designated an official nomination.

Each week, the teams feature a review of one of the officially nominated titles. Additional titles to receive this designation are listed as well. At year’s end, the team will curate a final list from all nominated titles and select a Top Ten.