Young Adult

The bone witch book cover

The bone witch

Chupeco, Rin, author.

YOUNG ADULT FICTION Chupeco Rin
Young Adult, Fantasy

Tea's gift for death magic means that she is a bone witch, a title that makes her feared and ostracized by her community, but when an older bone witch trains her to become an asha--one who can wield elemental magic--Tea will have to overcome her obstacles and make a powerful choice in the face of danger as dark forces approach.

Mykle's picture

In a high fantasy world where you can literally give your heart to someone, a young necromancer accidentally raises her dead brother. Taken to a faraway island, she must learn to control her power amidst the threat of mysterious villains. This book really introduces a series that gets better with each book. -Mykle

The drowned woods book cover

The drowned woods

Emily Lloyd-Jones

ON ORDER BOOK
Fantasy, Young Adult

"Mer, the last living water diviner in the isles of Wales, seeks revenge against the prince who used her powers for his own evil ends"--

Casey's picture

I'm halfway through listening to The Drowned Woods, and Moira Quirk's reading of this dark, ethereal fantasy is wonderful. Just right for Leigh Bardugo and Naomi Novik fans. -Casey

Queer : the ultimate LGBTQ guide for teens book cover

Queer : the ultimate LGBTQ guide for teens

Belge, Kathy, author.

306.766 /Belge
LGBTQ+, Nonfiction, Young Adult, Self Help

Belge and Bieschke give LGBTQ teenagers everything they need to know about dating, coming out, safe sex, dealing with queerphobia, and standing up for their rights. This revised edition is a must-have for all teens who think they might be queer, or know someone who is. -- adapted from back cover.

Candice's picture

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The ex-girlfriend of my ex-girlfriend is my girlfriend: Advice on queer dating, love, and friendship book cover

The ex-girlfriend of my ex-girlfriend is my girlfriend: Advice on queer dating, love, and friendship

Maddy Court

306.76/Court (NEW)
Nonfiction, LGBTQ+, Young Adult

Writer Maddy Court answers letters from queer women and people of marginalized genders about dating, friendship, and love.

Candice's picture

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Self-ish: A transgender awakening book cover

Self-ish: A transgender awakening

Chloe Schwenke

306.768/Schwenke
Nonfiction, LGBTQ+, Memoir, Young Adult

SELF-ish is a narrative drawn from an international life, beginning with some early glimpses out at the world by a girl in a boy's body. Chloe Schwenke was raised as Stephen in a Marine Corps family, and was sent off at age fourteen to "man-up" at a military academy. Later--and still embodied as a man--she ventured abroad to work in some of the roughest regions of Africa, the Gaza Strip, Turkey, and many other locales. Her far-flung global journey was matched in intensity by an inner identity and spiritual struggle and the associated ravages of depression, before she came to the revelation of being a transgender woman. At a time when many Americans are just waking up to the reality of the transgender phenomenon, this portrayal of Chloe's life, her challenging gender transition, and her many accomplishments and adventures along the way (including being among the first three transgender political appointees in U.S. history, under President Obama), creates a poignant story of authenticity, self-discovery, and the meaning of gender set against a fascinating international backdrop

Candice's picture

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The book thief book cover

The book thief

Markus Zusak

YOUNG ADULT FICTION Zusak, Markus
Historical Fiction, Young Adult

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.

Hanna's picture

I've heard good things about this book for years, but I've never read it. Recently, it came up in an article, and I thought maybe it was time to give The Book Thief a try. (I do enjoy Mark Zusak's other books. I really can't believe it's taken me so long to get to this one.) Good news, ICPL has several copies, plus audio CDs, eBooks and eAudio, so if you're interested, you also check it out! -Hanna

Ain't burned all the bright book cover

Ain't burned all the bright

Jason Reynolds

811.6 /Reynolds
Young Adult

"Jason Reynolds, using three longggggggg sentences, and Jason Griffin, using three hundred pages of a pocket-size moleskine, have mind-melded this fierce-vulnerable-brilliant-terrifying-whatiswrongwithumans-hopefilled-hopeful-tendere-heartbreaking-heartmaking manifesto on what it means not to be able to breathe, and how the people and things at your fingertips are actually the oxygen you most need." -- jacket flap

Victoria's picture

2020 was unprecedented. The news rarely had anything good to say and we're still on our way out of a social isolation experiment that has profoundly impacted the way we connect. Melding the pandemic, what has changed and what is painfully still the same for a black family in America, this book delves in and out of living and loving. The sparse text is brought to life when needed and muted at times by explosive and illuminating illustrations. I would read the back of a cereal box if it was written by Jason Reynolds. Though his words are few in this book, he has distilled them into what really matters. -Victoria

Concrete Rose book cover

Concrete Rose

Angie Thomas

OverDrive Audiobook
Young Adult, Fiction, Black Lives Matter, Read Woke

International phenomenon Angie Thomas revisits Garden Heights seventeen years before the events of The Hate U Give in this searing and poignant exploration of Black boyhood and manhood.

Casey's picture

Dion Graham breathes life into the characters and setting of Angie Thomas's prequel to The Hate U Give. Don't miss this powerful chapter in Carter family history. -Casey

Aristotle and Dante dive into the waters of the world book cover

Aristotle and Dante dive into the waters of the world

Benjamin Alire Sáenz

YOUNG ADULT FICTION/Saenz, Benjamin
Diverse Characters, Young Adult

High school seniors Aristotle and Dante find ways to spend time together despite being at different schools, having to keep their love secret, and nightly news of gay men dying from AIDS.

Victoria's picture

This second novel is equally as eloquent, captivating and heart-wrenching as the first. Characters are beautifully life-like, multi-faceted and layered and the story is realistic, thought-provoking and well worth waiting nine years for! -Victoria

With the fire on high book cover

With the fire on high

Elizabeth Acevedo

YOUNG ADULT FICTION Acevedo Elizabet
Young Adult

Ever since she got pregnant freshman year, Emoni Santiago’s life has been about making the tough decisions—doing what has to be done for her daughter and her abuela. The one place she can let all that go is in the kitchen, where she adds a little something magical to everything she cooks, turning her food into straight-up goodness. Even though she dreams of working as a chef after she graduates, Emoni knows that it’s not worth her time to pursue the impossible. Yet despite the rules she thinks she has to play by, once Emoni starts cooking, her only choice is to let her talent break free.

Beth's picture

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