Why Not YA? National Book Award Winners and Nominees for Young PeopleLike this list

24 items

• A First Time for Everything

  a True Story

  Santat, Dan

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  In this feel-good coming-of-age memoir, the best-selling author and Caldecott Medalist shares his life-changing middle school trip to Europe during which he experiences a series of firsts, including first love.

• The Lost Year

  Marsh, Katherine,

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  When his great-grandmother comes to stay with them during the pandemic, 13-year-old Matthew discovers a photo in her belongings that reveals a life-shattering family secret, in this brilliant survival story set in alternating timelines that connects…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• More Than a Dream

  the Radical March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom

  Williams, Yohuru, 1971-

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  Using Black newspaper reports from the period as a primary resource, this riveting book recounts the groundbreaking 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom during which Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Gather

  Cadow, Kenneth M.

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  A resourceful teenager in rural Vermont struggles to hold on to the family home while his mom recovers from addiction in this striking debut novel.

• Huda F Cares?

  Fahmy, Huda,

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  This summer's exercise in Fahmy family sisterly bonding involves a trip to Disney World--which seems like it is headed for disaster when Huda gets into a fight with a boy making fun of her hijab.

• Forget Me Not

  Derrick, Alyson,

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  Fifteen-year-old Stevie and Nora's plan to abandon their conservative small town for California so they can be together is shattered when a terrible fall steals every trace of Stevie's relationship with Nora from her memory.

• Simon Sort of Says

  Bow, Erin

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  Two years after surviving a school shooting, 12-year-old Simon moves to the only place in America where the internet is banned, finally getting a chance to spin his own story with the help of a new friend.

• All My Rage

  Tahir, Sabaa,

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  A family extending from Pakistan to California, deals with generations of young love, old regrets, and forgiveness.

• The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

  Reyes, Sonora,

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  Transferred to a Catholic school, 16-year-old Yami Flores finds it hard to fake being straight when she falls for Bo, the only openly queer girl at school, but refuses to follow her heart until she learns to live her full truth out loud.

• Victory. Stand!

  Raising My Fist for Justice

  Smith, Tommie, 1944-

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  On October 16, 1968, during the medal ceremony at the Mexico City Olympics, Tommie Smith, the gold medal winner in the 200-meter sprint, and John Carlos, the bronze medal winner, stood on the podium in black socks and raised their black-gloved fists…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen

  Blum, Isaac,

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  "Moving to the quiet, mostly non-Jewish town of Tregaron, Hoodie Rosen falls for the daughter of the mayor who is trying to keep Hoodie's Orthodox Jewish community out of town, and when antisemitic crimes turn deadly, he must choose between his…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Thousand Steps Into Night

  Chee, Traci,

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  When a girl who's never longed for adventure is hit with a curse that begins to transform her into a demon, she embarks on a quest to reverse the curse and return to her normal life, but along the way is forced to confront her true power within.

• Self-made Boys

  a Great Gatsby Remix

  McLemore, Anna-Marie,

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  Three teens chase their own versions of the American Dream during the Roaring 20s in this YA reimagining of The Great Gatsby.

• Last Night at the Telegraph Club

  Lo, Malinda,

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  "That book. It was about two women, and they fell in love with each other. Have you ever heard of such a thing?" Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can't remember exactly when the question took root, but the answer was in full bloom the moment she and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Revolution in Our Time

  the Black Panther Party's Promise to the People

  Magoon, Kekla,

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  In this comprehensive, inspiring, and all-too-relevant history of the Black Panther Party, Kekla Magoon introduces readers to the Panthers’ community activism, grounded in the concept of self-defense, which taught Black Americans how to protect and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Me (Moth)

  McBride, Amber,

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  Moth, who lost her family in an accident, and Sani, who is battling ongoing depression, take a road trip that has them chasing ghosts and searching for ancestors, which helps them move forward in surprising, powerful and unforgettable ways.

• A Snake Falls to Earth

  Little Badger, Darcie, 1987-

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  Fifteen-year-olds Nina and Oli come from different words--she is a Lipan Apache living in Texas and he is a cottonmouth from the Reflecting World--but their lives intersect when Oli journeys to Earth to find a cure for his ailing friend and they end…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Home Is Not a Country

  Elhillo, Safia,

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  A novel in verse follows the experiences of a misfit teen in a discriminatory suburban community who questions her mixed heritage before unexpected family revelations force her to fight for her own identity.

• From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry

  the Killing of Vincent Chin and the Trial That Galvanized the Asian American Movement

  Yoo, Paula,

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  America in 1982. Japanese car companies are on the rise and believed to be putting American autoworkers out of their jobs. Anti-Asian American sentiments simmer, especially in Detroit. A bar fight turns fatal, leaving Vincent Chin--a Chinese…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• We Are Not Free

  Chee, Traci,

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  Growing up together in the community of Japantown, San Francisco, fourteen second-generation Japanese American teens find their bond tested by widespread discrimination and the mass incarcerations of people of Japanese ancestry during World War II.