Hey, YA Readers!
Welcome to your bonus day of February. I hope you do something fun and memorable, even if it’s tiny, so you can say you only do it every four years.
2024 is the tenth year of the Read Harder Challenge! Join us as we make our way through 24 tasks meant to expand our reading horizons and diversify our TBRs. To get book recommendations for each task, sign up for the Read Harder newsletter. We’ll also keep you informed about other cool reading challenges, readathons, and more across the bookish internet. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations plus community features, where you can connect with a community of passionate, like-minded readers in a cozy and supportive corner of the internet. Sign up today!
Let’s get into all things new YA paperbacks and YA book news.
Bookish Goods
Retro Bookish Wall Art by LuneClub
How fun is this retro book club wall art? It would definitely pop in whatever space you put it in. $9 and up, depending on size.
New Releases
We’ve got a nice little array of paperback books out this week to round out the second month of 2024. Below are two of them, but you can check out the full list over here. As always, you might need to toggle your view once you click the link in order to see the paperback editions.
A Hunger of Thorns by Lili Wilkinson
Maude grew up as not just the daughter of witches, but she and her best friend Odette imagine fantastical worlds together. But once they grew up, those worlds dissipated and the two besties also found their friendship wither, too.
Magic has changed now, but Odette is craving it. So two weeks ago, she went in search of it. Now she is missing, and Maude might be the only one who knows where or how to find her.
The problem is Odette might be inside Sicklehurst, and Sicklehurst is inside a forest that isn’t just full of magic. It’s full of danger.
The Jump by Brittney Morris
Jax, Yas, Spider, and Han are all working-class teens living in Seattle. Together, they’re Team Jericho, incredible scavenger hunters around town. But with a new power plant being built in town, everything in their lives—including their parents’ well-being—is about to be destroyed.
The Order is a vigilante organization shrouded in mystery. They’ve concocted a puzzle in the scavenger hunting form, and Team Jericho sees their chance. If they win, they can save their lives and home.
But if they lose—a real possibility with another team attempting to win—the consequences will be life-altering.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
YA Book News
- Here’s a look at all of the YA books that will be published by Simon Teen this year.
- The Black Caucus of the American Library Association and School Library Journal announce the winners of the 2024 Children & Youth Literary Awards.
- Check out the roster of YA books up for the L.A. Times Book Prize.
- And here’s another awards shortlist, this time for the Stokers. Great YA horror abounds!
- New York Public Library’s Banned Books Book Club will be about The Downstairs Girl this time around. You can borrow a copy and take part in discussions even if you don’t have an NYPL library card.
- A new Disney imprint will bring Black sports stories to shelves soon. Though many will be focused on adult nonfiction and fiction, YA will also be part of the imprint’s plans.
- In Los Angeles, a teenager has opened a YA bookstore. This is rad!
As always, thanks for hanging out. We’ll see you on Saturday with some fresh ebook deals.
Until then, happy reading!
–Kelly Jensen