Best Fiction for Young Adults


The American Library Association's Best Fiction for Young Adults, previously known as Best Books for Young Adults, is a recommended list of books presented yearly by the Young Adult Library Services Association division. It is for "fiction titles published for young adults in the past 16 months that are recommended reading for ages 12 to 18. The purpose of the annual list is to provide librarians and library workers with a resource to use for collection development and readers advisory purposes." In addition there is a "Best of the Best" list of the top 10 titles, made available since 1997.
The list has been published since 1930 when it was founded as "Best Books for Young People". It has undergone several changes of focus and names over the years, including the "Book Selection Committee", the "Committee for the Selection of Significant Adult Books for Young People". It became the "Best Books for Young Adults Committee" in 1966 and then "Best Fiction for Young Adults" in 2010.
Before 1973, only "adult books" were eligible. Books marketed for "young adults" have been considered since then and now constitute a majority of the selections. Meanwhile, the marketing category has changed to include more books oriented to older teens.

Honorees

A list of historical recipients is available in Betty Carter, Best Books for Young Adults, 1st Edition. Later editions of this work contain additional information.
YearAuthorBook TitlePublisher
1997A Girl Named DisasterOrchard Books
1997Far NorthHarperCollins
1997Fragments: Memories of a Wartime ChildhoodSchocken
1997The Golden Compass / Northern LightsScholastic Point
1997Nathan's RunPinnacle Books
1997One More River to Cross: An African American Photograph AlbumHarcourt Brace
1997Rats Saw GodSimon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
1997, Bob Holman and Mark PellingtonThe United States of PoetryHarry N. Abrams
1997Who Killed Mr. Chippendale? A Mystery in PoemsLodestar Books
1997Wrestling SturbridgeRandom House Children's Books
1998Blood and ChocolateRandom House
1998TangerineHarcourt
1998Into Thin AirVillard Books
1998Swallowing StonesEmber
1998Out of the DustScholastic Incorporated
1998Starlite Drive-InPenguin Group
1998TendernessRandom House Children's Books
1998SeamstressBerkley Books
1998Growing Up in Coal CountryHoughton Mifflin Company
1998HarlemScholastic Press
1999Among the HiddenSimon and Schuster
1999Corpses, Coffins, and Crypts[Henry Henry Holt and Company|Holt and Company|Holt]
1999Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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Scholastic Press
1999HolesFarrar, Straus, and Giroux
1999If You Come SoftlyPutnam
1999Love Among the WalnutsHarcourt Brace
1999My Louisiana SkyHolt Publishing
1999No Pretty Pictures: a Child of WarGreenwillow
1999PeteyHyperion
1999Rules of the RoadPutnam
2000SpeakFarrar, Straus, and Giroux
2000Ender's ShadowTor
2000When Zachary Beaver came to TownHenry Holt & Co
2000The Raging QuietSimon and Schuster
2000CrookedAlfred A. Knopf
2000Mary, Bloody MaryHarcourt Brace
2000MonsterHarperCollins
2000Ties that Bind, Ties that BreakDelacorte Press
2000Imani All MineHoughton Mifflin
2000In My Hands: Memories of a Holocaust RescuerAlfred A. Knopf
2001Forgotten FireDK
2001Hope was HereG. P. Putnam's Sons
2001Girl with a Pearl EarringE. P. Dutton
2001Geeks: How Two Boys Rode the Internet Out of IdahoVillard
2001Silent to the BoneJean Karl Book/Atheneum Books
2001The Beet FieldsDelacorte Press
2001Esperanza RisingScholastic Press
2001StargirlAlfred A. Knopf
2001Homeless BirdHarperCollins
2001Memories of SummerFarrar, Straus, and Giroux
2002The Sisterhood of the Traveling PantsDelacorte
2002The Rag and Bone ShopDelacorte
2002Whale TalkHarperCollins
2002Breathing UnderwaterHarperCollins
2002DamageHarperCollins
2002ZazooHoughton Mifflin
2002LiraelHarperCollins
2002The LandPenguin Putnam
2002Every Time a Rainbow DiesWilliam Morrow
2002True BelieverAtheneum
2003The Lightkeeper's DaughterRandom House/Delacorte Press
2003AmericaSimon & Schuster/Atheneum/A Richard Jackson Book
2003CatalystPenguin Putnam/Viking Press
2003The House of the ScorpionSimon & Schuster/Atheneum/A Richard Jackson Book
200319 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle EastHarperCollins/Greenwillow
2003This Land Was Made For You and Me: The Life & Songs of Woody GuthriePenguin Putnam/Viking
2003Son of the MobHyperion Books for Children
2003Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS IndianapolisRandom House/Delacorte Press
2003FeedCandlewick Press
2003Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood PalHarperCollins/William Morrow & Co.
2004True Confessions of a Heartless GirlFarrar, Straus and Giroux/Melanie Kroupa Books
2004A Northern LightHarcourt
2004The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time: A NovelRandom House/Doubleday
2004The First Part LastSimon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2004Boy Meets BoyRandom House/Alfred A. Knopf
2004The Usual RulesSt. Martin's Press
2004EastHarcourt Children's Books
200433 SnowfishCandlewick Press
2004The Amulet of Samarkand
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Hyperion Books for Children/Miramax
2004Blankets: An Illustrated NovelTop Shelf Productions
2005The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob GreenWorkman Publishing Co. / Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
2005Bucking the SargeRandom House/Wendy Lamb
2005The Race to Save the Lord God BirdFarrar, Straus and Giroux/Melanie Kroupa Books
2005The Realm of PossibilityRandom House Children's Books/Alfred A. Knopf
2005Saving FrancescaRandom House Children's Books/Alfred A. Knopf
2005Private PeacefulScholastic
2005AirbornHarperCollins Children's Book Group/Eos Press
2005Under the Wolf, Under the DogCandlewick Press
2005Sammy and Juliana in HollywoodCinco Puntos Press
2005So B. It: a novelHarperCollins Children's Books/ Laura Geringer Books
2006 and Susan BurtonCome Back to Afghanistan: A California Teenager's StoryBloomsbury Publishing
2006Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's ShadowScholastic
2006UpstateSt. Martin's Press
2006Looking for AlaskaE. P. Dutton
2006Chris LynchInexcusableSimon & Schuster/Atheneum Books
2006Twilight: A Novel
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Little, Brown & Co./Megan Tingley
2006 with Adrian Alphona Runaways: Volume 1 HCMarvel Press
2006PeepsPenguin Books/Razorbill
2006PoisonScholastic/Orchard
2006I am the MessengerAlfred A. Knopf
2007The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume 1: The Pox PartyCandlewick Press
2007Samurai ShortstopPenguin Group/Dial Press
2007SurrenderCandlewick Press
2007SoldHyperion
2007Anahita's Woven RiddleAbrams Books/Amulet Books
2007The TrapHenry Holt & Co
2007The King of AttoliaHarperCollins/Greenwillow
2007The Rules of SurvivalPenguin Group/Dial Press
2007 and Lark PienAmerican Born ChineseRoaring Brook Press/First Second Books
2007The Book ThiefRandom House/Alfred A. Knopf
2008 with Ellen Forney The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time IndianLittle, Brown & Co.
2008A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy SoldierFarrar, Straus and Giroux/Sarah Crichton
2008Before I DieRandom House/David Fickling
2008Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia PlathRandom House/Alfred A. Knopf
2008Mister PipDell Publishing/Dial Press
2008Skulduggery Pleasant: The Sceptor of the Ancients
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HarperCollins
2008Tamar: A Novel of Espionage, Passion, and BetrayalCandlewick Press
2008American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New ChinaPenguin Group USA/Gotham Books
2008The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A NovelScholastic
2008The ArrivalScholastic/Arthur A. Levine
2009It's Complicated: The American TeenagerUmbrage Editions
2009The Hunger GamesScholastic
2009Waiting for NormalHarperCollins/HarperTeen
2009Mexican WhiteBoyDelacorte Press
2009Bog ChildRandom House/David Fickling Books
2009Ten Cents a DanceBloomsbury
2009BabyBoyd Mills Press/Front Street
2009NationHarperCollins
2009 and Jillian TamakiSkimHouse of Anansi Press / Groundwood Books
2009The Brothers TorresDisney/Hyperion
2010Demon's Lexicon
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Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing/Margaret K. McElderry
2010The Orange HousesPenguin/Dial Books
2010The Great Wide SeaPenguin/Viking
2010The Reformed Vampire Support GroupHarcourt/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
2010Alligator BayouRandom House / Alfred A. Knopf
2010Stitches: A MemoirW. W. Norton & Co
2010When You Reach MeRandom House/Wendy Lamb
2010Marcelo in the Real WorldScholastic/Arthur A. Levine Books
2010Lips Touch: Three TimesScholastic/Arthur A. Levine Books
2010Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial MarylandLerner/Carolrhoda Books
2011Ship BreakerLittle, Brown & Co
2011RevolutionRandom House/Delacorte Press
2011Finnikin of the RockCandlewick Press
2011Amy & Roger's Epic DetourSimon & Schuster
2011Hold Me Closer, NecromancerMacmillan Children's Book Group/Henry Holt & Co.
2011TrashRandom House/David Fickling Books
2011Bamboo PeopleCharlesbridge
2011The Things a Brother KnowsRandom House/Wendy Lamb
2011Last Night I Sang to the MonsterCinco Puntos Press
2011RevolverMacMillian Publishers/Roaring Brook Press
2012The Girl of Fire and ThornsHarperTeen
2012LeveragePenguin Group/E. P. Dutton
2012Everybody Sees the AntsLittle, Brown Books for Young Readers
2012Under the MesquiteLee & Low Books
2012ShineAbrams Books/Amulet Books
2012 with Jim Kay A Monster CallsCandlewick Press
2012Between Shades of GrayPenguin Group/Philomel Books
2012The Scorpio RacesScholastic
2012Daughter of Smoke and Bone
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Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
2012How to Save a LifeLittle, Brown Books for Young Readers
2013Me and Earl and the Dying GirlAbrams Books/Amulet Books
2013The DivinersLittle, Brown Books for Young Readers
2013SeraphinaRandom House Books for Young Readers
2013EnchantedHoughton Mifflin Harcourt/Harcourt Children's Books
2013Every DayRandom House/Knopf Books for Young Readers
2013Never Fall DownHarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
2013Boy 21Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
2013Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the UniverseSimon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2013The Raven BoysScholastic
2013Code Name VerityDisney/Hyperion
2014All the Truth That's in MePenguin Putnam/Viking
2014FreakboyMacmillan Publishers/Farrar, Straus, and Giroux
2014Better Nate Than EverSimon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2014Far Far AwayRandom House/Knopf Books for Young Readers
2014Eleanor & ParkMacmillan Publishers/St. Martin's Press
2014MidwinterbloodMacmillan Publishers/Roaring Brook Press
2014Out of the EasyPenguin Books/Philomel Books
2014 with Sam Bosma WingerSimon & Schuster
2014Golden BoyPenguin Books/ G. P. Putnam's sons Juvenile
2014Rose Under FireDisney/Hyperion
2015I'll Give You the SunDial Press
2015JackabyAlgonquin
2015NogginAtheneum Books
2015The Carnival at BrayElephant Rock Books
2015The CrossoverHoughton Mifflin Harcourt
2015The Gospel of WinterSimon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry
2015The Story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of TrondheimCarolrhoda/Lab
2015The Young ElitesG. P. Putnam's sons
2015VangoCandlewick Press
2015We Were LiarsDelacorte Publishing
2016Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens AgendaHarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
2016Six of CrowsHolt
2016The Bunker DiaryLerner Publishing Group/Carolrhoda Lab
2016AudacityPhilomel Books
2016ShadowshaperScholastic/Arthur A. Levine Books
2016The Boy in the Black SuitAtheneum Books
2016Bone GapHarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
2016 and Kekla MagoonX: A NovelCandlewick Press
2016Challenger DeepHarperTeen
2016More Happy than NotSoho Teen
2017The Passion of DolssaViking Books for Young Readers
2017The ReaderG. P. Putnam's Sons / Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
2017The Lie TreeAbrams Books
2017The Female of the SpeciesHarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books
2017Burn Baby BurnCandlewick Press
2017GhostAtheneum Books/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books
2017Salt to the SeaPhilomel Books
2017ScytheSimon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2017The Sun is Also a StarDelacorte Press
2017The Serpent KingCrown Books for Young Readers
2018What Girls Are Made OfLerner Publishing Group/Carolrhoda Lab
2018 with Sara Kipin The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous MagicMacmillan Publishers
2018The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and VirtueHarperCollins/Katherine Tegen
2018SparrowScholastic/Arthur A. Levine
2018Long Way DownSimon & Schuster/Atheneum Books
2018Strange the DreamerLittle, Brown & Co
2018The Hate U GiveHarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
2018Piecing Me TogetherBloomsbury USA
2018Eliza and Her MonstersHarperCollins/Greenwillow
2018Goodbye DaysCrown Books for Young Readers
2019The Poet XHarperTeen
2019 and Adam SilveraWhat if It's UsHarperTeen
2019The Cruel Prince
Little, Brown & Co.
2019A Heart in a Body in the WorldSimon Pulse
2019Dread NationHarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
2019Monday's Not ComingHarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books
2019Darius the Great is Not OkayDial Press
2019Foolish HeartsHenry Holt & Co
2019Neanderthal Opens the Door to the UniverseDisney Hyperion
2019FrankieFlatiron Books
2020The Field Guide to the North American TeenagerHarperCollins/Balzer+Bray
2020Girls on the VergeHolt
2020HeroineHarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books
2020Like a Love StoryHarperCollins/Balzer+Bray
2020Lovely WarViking Press
2020On the Come UpHarperCollins/Balzer+Bray
2020Patron Saints of NothingPenguin/Kokila
2020PetRandom House/Make Me a World
2020The Stars and the Blackness between ThemE. P. Dutton
2020With the Fire on HighHarperTeen
2021Be Not Far from MeHarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books
2021Cemetery BoysMacmillan/Swoon Reads
2021Clap When You LandHarperCollins/HarperTeen
2021DeeplightAbrams Books/Amulet Books
2021GrownHarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books
2021More Than Just a Pretty FaceHachette/Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
2021RaybearerAbrams Books/Amulet Books
2021This Is My AmericaRandom House Books for Young Readers
2021We Are Not from HerePenguin Random House/Philomel Books
2021What I CarryRandom House Books for Young Readers
2022, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola YoonBlackoutHarperCollins/Quill Tree Books
2022The City BeautifulHarlequin/Inkyard Press
2022Concrete RoseHarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
2022The Electric KingdomPenguin Random House/Viking Books for Young Readers
2022Firekeeper's DaughterMacmillan/Henry Holt & Co. Books for Young Readers
2022How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the UniverseSimon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2022In the Wild LightPenguin Random House/Crown Books for Young Readers
2022Last Night at the Telegraph ClubPenguin Random House/Dutton Books
2022Little ThievesMacmillan/Henry Holt & Co. Books for Young Readers
2022Me (Moth)Macmillan/Feiwel & Friends
2022The Ones We're Meant to FindMacmillan/Roaring Brook Press