Unearth a Story: 2026 Summer Reading Young Adult Book List

Great new summer reads for teens ages 13 and above.

Updated April 22, 2026
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Sussex County Library System (NJ) Sussex County Library System (NJ)
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Unearth a Story: 2026 Summer Reading Young Adult Book List

Great new summer reads for teens ages 13 and above.

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Call me Iggy
Aguirre, Jorge Augusto
Paper Book
A Kirkus Best Book of the Year A School Library Journal Best Book of the YearWinner of the Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics Iggy is an Ohio-born Colombian American teen who's got a pretty easygoing life . . . for now....
Dreamover
Diaz, Dani
Paper Book
In this captivating debut YA graphic novel, two best friends becoming more than friends feels like a dream come true. But when one sleepover literally turns into a dream, will they ever want to wake up again? Amber's a headstrong goofball with a temper. Nico's a shy, self...
The Darkness Greeted Her
Ferko, Christina
Yellowjackets meets Smile in this atmospheric sapphic horror debut, in which a group of troubled girls are stalked through the Appalachian wilderness by a frightening monster that feeds on their deepest fears. Penny's abusive father is dead...but she still hears his voice...
It's not summer without you
Han, Jenny.
Paper Book
It used to be that Belly counted the days until summer, until she was back at Cousins Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come....
The summer I turned pretty
Han, Jenny.
Paper Book
Now a blockbuster original series on Prime Video! Will Belly choose Jeremiah or Conrad? Belly has an unforgettable summer in this stunning start to the Summer I Turned Pretty series from the New York Times bestselling author of To All the Boys I've Loved Before...
When I Was Death
Henderson, Alexis
Paper Book
A teenage girl must do Death's bidding to uncover the secrets of her sister's disappearance in this haunting young adult novel by the author of The Year of the Witching. "A searing portrayal of girlhood, at once sparkling and violently dark."--Goldy Moldavsky, New York...
What the river knows : a novel
Iban?ez, Isabel, (Novelist)
Paper Book
The Mummy meets Death on the Nile in What the River Knows, Isabel Ibañez's lush, immersive historical fantasy set in Egypt and filled with adventure, a rivals-to-lovers romance, and a dangerous race. Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera...
We were warned
Ichaso, Chelsea
Ebook
The American dream? : a journey on Route 66 discovering dinosaur statues, muffler men, and the perfect breakfast burrito
Khor, Shing Yin,
Paper Book
As a child growing up in Malaysia, Shing Yin Khor had two very different ideas of what "America" meant. The first looked a lot like Hollywood, full of beautiful people, sunlight, and freeways. The second looked more like The Grapes of Wrath--a nightmare landscape filled with impoverished...
The Roommate Arrangement
Markum, Samantha
Paper Book
When Blair accidentally becomes college roommates with her brother's best friend, sparks fly in this hilarious rom-com from bestselling author Samantha Markum, perfect for fans of Lynn Painter and Emma Lord. Blair might be a little type-A, but she never thought of herself as...
Every hidden thing
Oppel, Kenneth
Ebook
The hunt for a dinosaur skeleton buried in the Badlands, bitter rivalries, and a forbidden romance come together in this "fantastic" (The New York Times Book Review) novel that's Romeo and Juliet meets Indiana Jones. Somewhere in the Badlands, embedded deep in...
The dead of summer
La Sala, Ryan
Ebook
A heart-pounding thriller told in a mix of narrative voices and found documents from the bestselling author of The Honeys, perfect for fans of Tiffany D. Jackson, E. Lockhart, Karen McManus, and Rory Powers! Two Days Before Ollie Veltman is finally coming home...
Audre & Bash are just friends
Williams, Tia
Ebook
Scorching-hot summer. Scorching-hot chemistry. Two teens can't forget they're just friends in this sweet, funny, electrifying romance from New York Times bestselling author Tia Williams--perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Nicola Yoon.    Meet Audre....
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https://librarian.syndetics.com/syndeticsunbound/lp/1184.1568/list/6846

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