When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord Wednesday Books Publication Date: January 4, 2022 ISBN: 9781250783349
Millie Price is dead set on becoming a Broadway star, but her introverted dad is reluctant to let her leave home to attend a special musical theater school. When Millie discovers her dad’s LiveJournal from 2003, she decides that a deep dive into this history will help her find out who her birth mother is, in hopes that her newly found mom will support her dreams.
All That’s Left in the World by Erik J. Brown Balzer + Bray Publication Date: March 8, 2022 ISBN: 9780063054974
Andrew and Jamie, both with secrets of their own, lost everyone they cared about after a deadly pathogen killed off much of the population, but they find each other when they need it most and begin a dangerous trek together to search for civilization.
All That’s Left in the World is told from the point of view of Andrew, an expert at telling hilarious sarcastic jokes, and Jamie, a hopeful and kind person who loves Hallmark movies. Andrew is looking for help after he gets his leg stuck in a bear trap when he comes across Jamie’s cabin, and the rest is history.
This Might Get Awkward by Kara McDowell Publisher: Scholastic Inc. Imprint: Scholastic Press Release date: March 1, 2022 ISBN: 9781338746235
Gemma Wells’ social anxiety keeps her on the fringes of high school life until her major crush (and high school hot guy) Beau Booker is in a tragic boating accident. Having grown up on Lake Powell, Gemma immediately springs into action, dragging Beau out of the water and performing the CPR that saves his life–except his injuries have meant that he is in a medically-induced coma. Beau’s last Instagram post is of him and Gemma, and his claim that she is his girlfriend now provides her with entry into the hospital as family. Being Beau’s dutiful girlfriend is her dream come true until she meets his older “black sheep” of a brother, Griff. Now Gemma is caught in a web of lies, but how does she dump the comatose brother for Griff?
We Can’t Keep Meeting Like This by Rachel Lynn Solomon; Narrated by Carly Robbins Simon and Schuster Audio Release date: June 8, 2021 ISBN: 9781797123639
Wedding harpist Quinn has just graduated high school and her life has been laid out for her: attend business school nearby while continuing to help out with her parents’ wedding planning business, just as her older sister did. But Quinn is burnt out on love, especially after last summer when she confessed her feelings for wedding caterer Tarek and he vanished off to college without a reply. This summer he’s back and they keep getting thrown together to solve wedding emergencies, all while Quinn navigates telling her parents she doesn’t want to be a wedding planner and learning to build harps.
Each quarter, the Selected Lists teams compile the titles that have been officially nominated to date. These books have been suggested by the team or through the title suggestion form, read by multiple members of the team, and received approval to be designated an official nomination. At the end of the year, the final list of nominations and each Selected List’s Top Ten will be chosen from these titles.
*Prices shown are for Library Digital Download.
Admission. By Julie Buxbaum. Read by Julia Whelan. 2020. Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group/Listening Library, $63 (9780593216996).
Chloe, privileged daughter of a beloved celebrity, watches helplessly as her mother is caught up in a college admission scandal benefiting her. Julia Whelan skillfully unpacks the emotions that go with Chloe’s questioning whether her parents believe she is enough.
Amari and the Night Brothers. By B. B. Alston. Read by Imani Parks. Harper Collins/Balzer + Bray, $64.99 (9780063057968).
Amari believes her missing brother is alive. When a mysterious suitcase appears in her closest, she is whisked away to a land of magic. To find her brother, Amari must pass a series of tests in order to enter the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. Strong narration supports this fantastical adventure.
When You Look Like Us by Pamela N. Harris; Narrated by Preston Butler III Quill Tree Books Publication date: January 5, 2021 ISBN: 9780063064317
Looking like they do, with brown skin, Jay, his friends and neighbors live knowing they are already one step behind. Living in their neighborhood presents its own challenges where drug deals, violence, and both police interference AND ignorance are day to day problems. But now Jay’s sister Nic has disappeared and going missing in their neighborhood isn’t enough to warrant police investigation. Not wanting to worry his grandmother, Jay strikes out on his own to find her leading him into danger and into finding an unlikely friend.
Click here to see all of the current Best Fiction for Young Adults nominees along
with more information about the list and past years’ selections.
Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins Publication date: February 4, 2020 ISBN: 978-0062937049
When painfully shy Jamie and change-averse
Maya are forced by their mothers to team up to canvas for a local progressive
political candidate, it’s not the ideal summer either of them planned. Cultural
misunderstandings fly as Jamie helps plan his little sister’s bat mitzvah and
Maya fasts for Ramadan, and they never know when the face on the other side of
the door they’re knocking on will be an unfriendly one. Still, as election day
gets closer, so do Jamie and Maya. And while falling in love might be easy,
separating the personal from the political is harder than it seems.
