Happy November, YA Readers!
It’s hard to believe we are in the final few weeks of the year. Or maybe it isn’t hard to believe and you, like me, are kind of relieved to see this year come to an end.
Let’s take a look at this week’s best YA paperback releases, alongside all of the YA news you can use. I hope your new month is treating you as best it can.
Bookish Goods
New “Classics” YA Tee by MissFairchildCreates
I love every single thing about this T-shirt. It’s up for pre-order now, so grab one. It features sketches of some of the best YA authors out there right now, including Nicola Yoon, Adam Silvera, Elizabeth Acevedo, and more. $35, size small – 4 XL.
New Releases
Welcome to paperback releases out this week. This is but a sample of what’s hitting shelves; you can grab the full list of paperback books out this week over here!
Note that you may need to toggle to the paperback edition from the link.
Because of the virtue of these being paperback releases, there are not any paperback books out this week (in my records!) that are by authors of color. Expect this to happen periodically through the end of the year as publishing winds down its fall season. It’s not necessarily a bad thing — sometimes books remaining in hardcover for a longer period of time is a good thing!
The Midnight Girls by Alicia Jasinska
This one is going to be short and sweet, y’all.
It’s a snow-covered kingdom.
Two rivals are secretly competing for the heart of the price.
Except…in the midst of their rivalry, they might be falling for one another.
The Reckless Kind by Carly Heath
A queer historical YA book about teens who choose a life outside the norms of their small-town? Yes please!
In 1904, Asta is against marrying Nils, to whom she’s been betrothed. Her parents believe she should feel lucky to be married, as she is partially deaf, has an odd appearance, and is strange. Asta wants instead to run away with her friends who are more like her and live as a performer in the village theater.
When Nils lashes out against one of Asta’s friends, she decides things are officially over. She and her two friends move to a secluded cabin and are determined to make their off-grid life work…by winning the annual horse race put on by their village. None of them have experience, but that doesn’t matter. Their determination and drive are going to help them plan their lives out exactly as they wish.
They’ll just have to avoid death.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
YA Book News
- A great read about the thrill of queer YA horror.
- Another fabulous read from Tor/Alex Brown on the rise of Black YA horror.
- I am SO excited about this: Clown in a Cornfield is getting an adaptation.
- A nice roundup of underrated YA adaptations.
- Gene Luen Yang won the 2023 NSK Neustadt Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature.
Thanks, as always, for hanging out. We’ll see you on Saturday for some YA book deals.
Until then, happy reading!
— Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars on Twitter.