Top young adult books

Subscriber Account active since. When you buy through our links, Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more. For the first few years of my 20s, I kept it a secret that I still loved young adult books, fearing I'd be judged for enjoying stories with adolescent protagonists and problems. As I met more YA fans, I was genuinely thrilled to learn that I wasn't alone — that so many adults love YA stories because they're fun to read and tackle a variety of difficult or complex issues in remarkably accessible ways. Young adult books are written and marketed for teenagers, but span every subject and genre from fantasy to romance.

Who can forget the first time they met irresistible, fast-talking Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables? Or the years that they spent growing up with Harry, Hermione, and Ron? Luckily for us, it truly is the golden age for young adult fiction right now, as YA authors today continue to take the genre in new and incredibly exciting directions. Indeed, young adult books have stepped up onto the literary stage as a powerful genre in its own right, creating role models for all of us and leading important conversations about personhood, gender, sexuality, and race.

Who said young adult books were just for young adults? According to an oft-cited study from Publisher's Weekly , over half of YA readers are adults. Though they typically focus on teenage characters, YA literature holds an undeniable appeal for adults— perhaps because the fundamentals of life don't change all that much.

Sign in with Facebook Sign in options. Join Goodreads. News and Interviews. Then we narrowed down our search to books with at least a four star—average rating and sorted by total reviews.