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
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Sussex County Library System (NJ)
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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! "All My Rage is a love story, a tragedy and an infectious teenage fever dream about what home...
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...
The breakup lists /
Khorram, Adib,
Paper Book
Love is more complicated than "boy meets boy" in bestselling author Adib Khorram's sharply funny new romantic comedy, set in the sordid world of high school theater Jackson Ghasnavi is a lot of things-a techie, a smoothie afficionado, a totally not obsessive list-maker-but one...
Crashing into you /
Callen, Rocky,
Paper Book
In this fiercely moving YA romance novel, Leti Rivera's love of street racing is put to the test when tragedy strikes her family and threatens to tear her apart from the boy she's falling for. Seventeen-year-old Leti Rivera dreams of becoming a famous female street racer. Her...
Dig /
King, A. S.
Paper Book
Winner of the Michael L. Printz Medal ★"King's narrative concerns are racism, patriarchy, colonialism, white privilege, and the ingrained systems that perpetuate them. . . . [Dig] will speak profoundly to a generation of young people who are waking up to...
Everything sad is untrue :
Nayeri, Daniel.
Paper Book
Winner of the Michael L. Printz Award Christopher Award Winner Middle East Book Award Winner National Indie Bestseller NPR Best Book of the Year New York Times Best of the Year Amazon Best of the Year Booklist Editors' Choice ...
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.
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...
Into the sunken city /
Thiru, Dinesh
Paper Book
"Steal-your-breath adventure." --Marissa Meyer, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Lunar Chronicles Perfect for fans of Fable and House of Salt and Sorrows, this spectacular YA fantasy adventure debut is like nothing else, featuring a unique twist on Treasure Island, a...
Kill her twice /
Lee, Stacey
Paper Book
A YA murder mystery noir set in 1930s Los Angeles's Chinatown, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Downstairs Girl. "A captivating and crackling noir full of suspenseful twists. Readers will fall in love with the Chow sisters and their quest for the...
Kindling /
Chee, Traci,
Paper Book
From bestselling and award-winning author Traci Chee comes a standalone fantasy set against a war-ravaged world where kindling warfare--the use of elite, magic-wielding teenage soldiers--has been outlawed. In this rich and evocative novel, seven kindlings search for purpose and...
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...
Nigeria Jones /
Zoboi, Ibi Aanu
Paper Book
"An unwavering proclamation of Black girlhood." --Candice Iloh, author of National Book Award finalist Every Body Looking From Ibi Zoboi, bestselling, award-winning author of American Street and co-author of Punching the Air, comes a bold new YA coming-of-age story,...
Rez ball /
Graves, Byron,
Paper Book
This compelling debut novel by new talent Byron Graves tells the relatable, high-stakes story of a young athlete determined to play like the hero his Ojibwe community needs him to be. These days, Tre Brun is happiest when he is playing basketball on the Red Lake Reservation...
Shut up, this is serious /
Ixta, Carolina
Paper Book
WINNER OF THE PURA BELPRÉ YA AUTHOR AWARD *  A Morris Award Finalist * Parade Best Young Adult Books of All Time * Indie Next List Pick * An unforgettable YA debut about two Latina teens growing up in East Oakland as they discover that the world is brimming with...
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 the New York Times bestselling author of the National Book Award-winning title The Poet X comes a dazzling novel in prose about a girl with talent, pride, and a drive to feed the soul that keeps her fire burning bright. Winner of the California Young Reader Medal! Ever since she got...
With the fire on high /
Acevedo, Elizabeth,
Paper Book
From the New York Times bestselling author of the National Book Award-winning title The Poet X comes a dazzling novel in prose about a girl with talent, pride, and a drive to feed the soul that keeps her fire burning bright. Winner of the California Young Reader Medal! Ever since she got...

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