2025 Color Our World Young Adult Book List

The 2025 Summer Reading Lists are full of book titles to keep young adults engaged in reading and exploring throughout the summer. These books have been selected because they have received very good reviews or are award winning fiction and nonfiction books. This books are available through the Sussex County Library System.

Updated December 14, 2024
S
Sussex County Library System (NJ)
Drag items up and down to your preferred order then select the "Save Order" button.
Adventures of Mary Jane /
Jahren, Hope.
Paper Book
The bestselling, award-winning author of Lab Girl reimagines the world Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of a smart and determined young woman- Mary Jane, the red-headed spark who stole Huck's heart. "A journey not just along the...
All my rage /
Tahir, Sabaa.
Paper Book
National Book Award WINNER Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature WINNER An INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! An INSTANT INDIE BESTSELLER! A Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Book of the Century "All My Rage is a love story,...
Ariel crashes a train /
Cole, Olivia A.
Paper Book
LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD . A COSMOPOLITAN BEST YA BOOK OF THE YEAR . A PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, BOOKLIST AND KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Exploring the harsh reality of OCD and violent intrusive thoughts in stunning,...
The blood years /
Arnold, Elana K.
Paper Book
From Michael L. Printz honoree & National Book Award finalist Elana K. Arnold comes the harrowing story of a young girl's struggle to survive the Holocaust in Romania. Frederieke Teitler and her older sister, Astra, live in a house, in a city, in a world divided. Their father...
Breakup Lists
Khorram, Adib.
Paper Book
Love is more complicated "boy meets boy" in bestselling author Adib Khorram's sharply funny new romantic comedy, set in the sordid world of high school theater As a techie--a stage manager, a lighting guy, a jack-of-all-theatrical-trades-- Jackson Ghasnavi is not a fan of the...
The deep dark /
Ostertag, Molly,
Paper Book
From Molly Knox Ostertag, writer-illustrator of the New York Times and ABA Indie bestselling The Witch Boy trilogy and The Girl from the Sea, comes a darkly beautiful story of identity, family, love, loss, and magic. Everyone has secrets. Mags's has teeth. Magdalena...
Firekeeper's daughter
Boulley, Angeline
Paper Book
An Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller! A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick! A Printz Medal AND Morris Award Winner! Soon to be adapted at Netflix for TV with President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama's production company, Higher Ground.
Gather
Cadow, Kenneth
Paper Book
Winner of the Kirkus Prize A National Book Award Finalist A Michael L. Printz Honor Book "A heartfelt novel about the challenges of youth and the value of community." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Ian Gray isn't supposed to have a...
Gleanings :
Shusterman, Neal
Paper Book
The New York Times bestselling Arc of the Scythe series continues with "captivating...thrilling" (School Library Journal) stories that span the timeline. Storylines continue. Origin stories are revealed. And new Scythes emerge! There are still countless tales of the...
I'd rather burn than bloom /
Rogers, Shannon C. F.,
Paper Book
Packed with voice, Shannon C.F. Rogers' I'd Rather Burn than Bloom is a powerful YA novel about a Filipina-American teen who tries to figure out who she really is in the wake of her mother's death. Some girls call their mother their best friend. Marisol Martin? She...
The last bloodcarver /
Le, Vanessa,
Paper Book
A pulse-pounding YA fantasy in which "you'll gasp, you'll scream, you'll cry, and you'll be begging for the next book." (Chloe Gong, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of These Violent Delights) Nhika is a bloodcarver. A coldhearted, ruthless being who can...
Not Like Other Girls
Adamo, Meredith.
Paper Book
Cheats. Liars. Fakes. Friends? A breathtaking contemporary YA thriller - serious questions and hot romance in an irresistible twisty mystery. Perfect for fans of One of Us is Lying, Girl in Pieces and A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. 'A superbly...
Now, conjurers
Kölsch, Freddie
Paper Book
"This sensational YA debut blends tense, terrifying horror with dark humour, queer romance and hugely original storytelling." Guardian November 1999, North Dana, Massachusetts. The body of Bastion Attia - high school quarterback, secret witch, and Nesbit Nuñez's even-more...
A place for vanishing /
Fraistat, Ann,
Paper Book
A teen girl and her family return to her mother's childhood home, only to discover that the house's strange beauty may disguise a sinister past, in this contemporary gothic horror from the author of What We Harvest. A BOOKPAGE AND KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE...
Sky's End
Gregson, Marc J.
Paper Book
An instant New York Times bestseller with three starred reviews--now under development as a feature film franchise! Plummet into a kill-or-be-killed competition where a scrappy underdog hell-bent on revenge must battle colossal monstrosities and claw his way to the top in this...
Song of the Six Realms
Lin, Judy I.
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! Judy I. Lin, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Magic Steeped in Poison, weaves a dreamy standalone romance about a talented musician swept away to the Celestial Realm by a handsome duke in Song of the Six Realms...
Thirsty :
Hammonds, Jas,
Paper Book
A Goodreads Choice Awards NomineeA Junior Library Guild Selection From Jas Hammonds, the award-winning author of We Deserve Monuments, comes an electric, heart-wrenching novel about a teen whose desperation to fit in leads to a dizzying relationship with...
This book won't burn /
Ahmed, Samira
Paper Book
★ "[Ahmed] employs high stakes, increasing tensions, romantic near-misses, and adult hypocrisy to powerful effect." -Publisher's Weekly, starred review From the New York Times bestselling author of Internment<...
With the fire on high
Acevedo, Elizabeth
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling author of POET X comes a story of a girl with talent, pride and a little bit of magic that keeps her fire burning bright. Ever since she got pregnant during freshman year, Emoni Santiago's life has been about making the tough decisions, doing...
With the fire on high
Acevedo, Elizabeth
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling author of POET X comes a story of a girl with talent, pride and a little bit of magic that keeps her fire burning bright. Ever since she got pregnant during freshman year, Emoni Santiago's life has been about making the tough decisions, doing...

Library staff! You can create and contribute to lists. Contact your catalog administrator or log in here.