Question: I’m preparing for college. What are some award-winning books or required reading for teens?
Research: The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association, has a list of outstanding titles for the college bound. The list is comprised of fiction as well as non-fiction books.
YALSA also provides booklists of various award-winning fiction and non-fiction titles.
Alex Award – 10 adult books that appeal to young adults
Best Books for Young Adults – fiction and nonfiction titles recommended for young adults
Margaret A. Edwards Award – authors awarded for a lifetime of writing books that are popular with teens
Michael L. Printz Award - young adult books with literary excellence
Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults – 10-25 recommended paperbacks selected by popular genres, topics or themes such as mysteries, page turners, paranormal and feel good books
Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers – intriguing books for young adults who don’t like to read
Oklahoma ’s annual fiction award, Sequoyah Book Award, is selected by teens. Teens can vote once they’ve read or listened to three or more titles from the annual masterlists. Current & previous winners of the award are also listed on the site.
If you’re unsure as to the award, check the library’s recommended Book Awards sites; both can be browsed by award names to find titles that might be fun to read.
You can use your computer to check out the online reader’s source Novelist; it’s available at all libraries and from home and you can search an alphabetical list of young adult award winning books. At Novelist’s homepage, click Browse Lists and then Best Fiction. Limit your search to Young Adult, click Continue and then choose Literary. Each linked award opens a page describing the honor along with a list of its winners.
What Do Young Adults Read Next? indexes books by award; it’s a great source to check and is available at the Central, Hardesty, and Martin libraries.
If you have any questions, contact your local library or ask a librarian!