Teen Booklists

Ari Mendoza is an angry loner with a brother in prison, but when he meets Dante and they become friends, Ari starts to ask questions about himself, his parents, and his family that he has never asked before. Ages 12-14.

Writing letters to the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., seventeen-year-old college-bound Justyce McAllister struggles to face the reality of race relations today and how they are shaping him. Ages 15-18.

Natasha, whose family is hours away from being deported, and Daniel, a first generation Korean American who strives to live up to his parents' expectations, fall in love and must determine which path they will choose in order to be together. Ages 12-14.

When Xiomara Batista, who pours all her frustrations and passion into poetry, is invited to join the school slam poetry club, she struggles with her mother's expectations and her need to be heard. Ages 12+

A YA novel about a transgender teen grappling with identity and self-discovery while falling in love for the first time. Ages 15-18.

Chase Arthur is a hopeless romantic, but he's also struggling to figure out his gender identity and recover from an eating disorder. Ages 14+

Seamlessly toggling between past and present, this funny graphic memoir follows a queer Chinese American’s immigration to Texas where she just wants to make the basketball team, escape Chinese school and figure out why she is attracted to girls. Ages 15-1

authentic, honest, coming-of-age novel about finding the strength from within when your whole world changes in an instant. Ages 15-18.

Lu and Fassen are from different worlds and separate solar systems, so when the war of Fassen's world invades Lu's peaceful home, they find themselves at the forefront of a battle they hoped would never happen. Ages 12-14.

When Nao returns to Tokyo to reconnect with her Japanese heritage, she books a yearlong stay at the Himawari sharehouse. There she meets two other girls who came to Japan to freely forge their own paths. Ages 15-18