African American Fiction for Young Adults & Teens

Updated May 22, 2025
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Georgia Public Library Clayton County Library System
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African American Fiction for Young Adults & Teens

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There goes the neighborhood
Adia, Jade
Paper Book
Winner of the 2024 Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award A raised fist against the destructive forces of gentrification and a love letter to communities of color everywhere, Jade Adia's unforgettable debut tells the darkly hilarious story of three best friends willing to...
If you knew my name
Carter, Lisa Roberts
Paper Book
2024 Silver INDIES Winner for Young Adult Fiction A novel-in-rap-verse telling the story of 17-year-old Mason Tyndall-- an aspiring rap artist whose mother is a BLM activist. She saw fatal officer-involved shootings as senseless tragedies. He viewed them as trending...
Oathbound
Deonn, Tracy
Paper Book
Tracy Deonn's #1 New York Times bestselling Legendborn Cycle continues in the sensational third book about a dazzling contemporary fantasy world that blends Southern Black Girl Magic with secret societies and the legend of King Arthur! Severed from the Legendborn....
Needy little things
Desamours, Channelle
Paper Book
BLACK CAUCUS OF THE ALA - CHILDREN & YOUTH LITERARY AWARDS WINNER In this debut speculative YA mystery, a Black teen with premonition-like powers must solve her friend's disappearance before she finds herself in the same danger, perfect for fans of Ace of Spades.
Bright red fruit
Elhillo, Safia
Paper Book
An unflinching, honest novel in verse about a teenager's journey into the slam poetry scene and the dangerous new relationship that could threaten all her dreams. From the award-winning poet and author of HOME IS NOT A COUNTRY. A MICHAEL L. PRINTZ HONOR BOOK * A CALIBA...
Friday I'm in love
Garrett, Camryn
Paper Book
It's too late for a Sweet Sixteen, but what if Mahalia had a coming-out party? A love letter to romantic comedies, sweet sixteen blowouts, Black joy, and queer pride. "A perfect ode to romantic comedies, wrapped in a dazzling rainbow dress." --Rachael Lippincott, #1 New...
Not about a boy
Hollis, Myah
Paper Book
"This debut is a gritty teen drama full of mature themes that unfurl in compassionate ways and will resonate with many readers...Heartbreaking and powerful." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Lucid and luminous." --ALA Booklist "Hollis's powerful and compassionate...
Salt the water
Iloh, Candice
Paper Book
A Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book Cerulean Gene is free everywhere except school, where they're known for repeatedly challenging authority. Raised in a free-spirited home by two loving parents who encourage Cerulean to be their full self, they've got big dreams of moving cross...
Blackout
Jackson, Tiffany D.
Paper Book
Six critically acclaimed, bestselling, and award-winning authors bring the glowing warmth and electricity of Black teens in love to this charming, hilarious, and heartwarming novel that shines a bright light through the dark. A summer heatwave blankets New York City in darkness. But as the...
If we were a movie
Jamal, Zakiya N.
Paper Book
Booksmart meets Phantom of the Megaplex in Zakiya N. Jamal's debut enthralling enemies-to-lovers queer romance, set against the backdrop of a historic Black-owned movie theater, the quirky employees who work there, and the suburbs of Long Island. Perfect for fans of Leah Johnson...
On again, awkward again: a novel
Kelly, Erin Entrada
Paper Book
The laugh-out-loud YA romance by two award-winning and bestselling authors, Erin Entrada Kelly and Kwame Mbalia, that's perfect for fans of To All the Boys I've Loved Before or When Dimple Met Rishi When Pacy Mercado and Cecil Holloway spot each other...
Where was goodbye?
Mather, Janice Lynn
Paper Book
A teen girl searches for closure after her brother dies by suicide in this breathtaking novel for "fans of Erika L. Sánchez's I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter and Sarah Everett's How to Live without You" (Booklist, starred review). Karmen is about to...
Pritty
Miller, Keith F., Jr.
Paper Book
2024 Lambda Literary Awards Finalist 2025 Rainbow Book List Concrete Rose meets Things We Couldn't Say in Pritty, a debut novel by Keith F. Miller Jr.--the inspiration behind the forthcoming animated short film of Kickstarter fame--that follows two boys...
Briarcliff Prep: Sophomore Year
Peppins, Brianna
Paper Book
Amelia Westlake Was Never Here meets an empathetic exploration of anxiety at historically Black boarding school Briarcliff Prep. Love triangles, friendship breakups, and slice-of-student-life are balanced with a thoughtful discussion about mental health, all in a love letter to Black girls...
Tender beasts
Sambury, Liselle
Paper Book
After her private school is rocked by a gruesome murder, a teen tries to find the real killer and clear her brother's name in this "creepily potent story of a family legacy that gives terrifying shape to monsters real and imagined" (Kirkus Reviews) perfect for fans of The Taking of Jake...
Two Truths and a Lionel
Wasson, Brian
Paper Book
Perfect for fans of Justin A. Reynolds and Talia Hibbert, this comedic romp explores the social hierarchy of high school, the ego of a teenage boy raised in a culture marred by toxic masculinity, and the meaning of "the truth will set you free." As the grandson of a late,...
Their vicious games
Wellington, Joelle
Paper Book
"A brutally honest and haunting cautionary tale...exposing the lie that is meritocracy and the unrelenting toll that being a final girl takes. A bloody tale spun masterfully...a dark delight." --Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, New York Times bestselling author of Ace of Spades
Remember us
Woodson, Jacqueline
Paper Book
National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson brings readers a powerful story that delves deeply into life's burning questions about time and memory and what we take with us into the future. It seems like Sage's whole world is on fire the summer before she starts seventh grade....
(S)Kin
Zoboi, Ibi
Paper Book
A FINALIST FOR THE 2025 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD SIX STARRED REVIEWS A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection From award-winning, New York Times bestselling author Ibi Zoboi comes her groundbreaking contemporary fantasy debut--a novel in verse based...
Punching the air
Zoboi, Ibi Aanu
Paper Book
New York Times and USA Today bestseller * Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor * Walter Award Winner * Goodreads Finalist for Best Teen Book of the Year * Time Magazine Best Book of the Year * Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year * Shelf Awareness Best Book of...
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