Hey YA Readers!
One of my favorite annual newsletters is looking back at some of the major titles that published in years gone by. These books are a mix of titles that were bestsellers at the time–and as you’ll see, some are still bestsellers–and titles that either won major awards or have become super familiar to us. This year’s look was especially enlightening for me, as I have a hard time thinking about 2017 as five years ago and 2012 as TEN years ago. But alas, they are.
Because this is a longer list, I’m not including descriptions. You can grab those by clicking the link. Instead, I’m hopeful many of these will be familiar or encourage you to dive into the books of yesteryear, whether they’re the ones listed here or ones you end up finding when you go down the rabbit hole of those years. I know I could have kept picking titles to highlight.
We’ll begin with five years ago, then we’ll go every ten years, all the way back to 1962 . . . SIXTY years ago. It should come as no surprise that before 2012, the array of books by authors of color is limited. These aren’t impossible to find, and I’ve done what I can to include the ones I do find. These books span genres and formats.
Something you’ll notice and something I’ve talked about here and on site several times, is that YA books have “aged up.” In earlier decades, many of the YA books were aimed at younger teens and featured younger teen characters; several of those books might be published as middle grade in today’s publishing landscape.
Make sure to get your own Read Harder Book Journal from Book Riot to track your reading for the year!
2017
I don’t know about you, but thinking about five years ago feels both like a million years ago and yesterday. I especially feel it looking at this roster of best and most notable books from 2017, a year where we really saw growth in diverse YA. Still not good enough, but when you look at this year compared to years prior, it’s hard not to notice.
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
Warcross by Marie Lu
We Are Okay by Nina LaCour
2012
Even weirder to comprehend for me is that 2012 was ten years ago. I still remember these books releasing like it just happened.
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
The Diviners by Libba Bray — to think this series just wrapped up, too!
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas — talk about someone who has built an empire in the last decade.
2002
In 2002, I was a high school junior/senior. I remember one of these books from that time (Tithe) though the others all came into my sphere of awareness a little later.
Born Confused by Tanuja Desai Hidier — the companion to this published in 2014.
Coraline by Neil Gaiman — though I definitely know this is a middle grade novel, it’s one that’s so familiar, I wanted to include it because this book is 20 years old.
Feed by MT Anderson — and still eerily relevant.
Hush by Jacqueline Woodson
Tithe by Holly Black
1992
This was a year of great fantasy in teen fiction, as well as the launch of a franchise you’ll be familiar with, even if you aren’t a comic or manga reader.
Castles in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones — the sequel to Howl’s Moving Castle
Looking for Alabrandi by Melina Marchetta — though this book didn’t have tremendous popularity in the US, it was huge in Australia. Goodreads lists it as the 90th most popularly shelved title from 1992.
Sailor Moon #1 by Naoko Takeuchi
Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce
Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi — this one is definitely middle grade, but I wanted to include it since it might conjure some feelings of being a certain age in the early 90s.
1982
This is a particularly good year for YA books, including one that was groundbreaking and one that has been a long-time favorite in the UK.
Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden — this book is still in print and has a fascinating and important legacy in queer YA.
The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley
Dragon’s Blood by Jane Yolen
Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 by Sue Townsend — a long time favorite in the UK and one of the bestselling YA books of all time.
Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush by Virginia Hamilton — an author with a huge middle grade and YA legacy.
1972
Digging up some of the big books from 1972 for teens was surprisingly hard. Certainly, there are familiar names here, but at least one of these would be middle grade if published now.
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
It’s Not The End of the World by Judy Blume
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
Me and Fat Glenda by Lila Perl — I read this a handful of years back after picking it up in a bookstore while on a solo vacation. It was fine until the end when it turns Super Problematic.
Mom, The Wolf Man, and Me by Norma Klein — You can hear Brandy Colbert and I talk in depth about this book on an episode of Hey YA Extra Credit.
1962
Finally, sixty years back, and it wasn’t a banner year for young adult literature. There were better years in the 60s, so I’ve pulled a few titles by well-known/popular authors of the era who are still recognizable and I also included a couple of non-YA books but with huge YA appeal.
Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
Game of Danger by Lois Duncan — This is a very much out of print early teen novel by Duncan. You can’t find it on retail sites, so I’ve linked to the Wikipedia page.
Going On Sixteen by Betty Cavanna — Cavanna is a well-known name from this era in teen lit.
Three Loves Has Sandy by Amelia Elizabeth Walden — namesake of the Walden Award for teen literature.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Don’t forget you can get three free audiobooks at Audiobooks.com with a free trial!
As always, thanks for hanging out. We’ll see you later this week for your YA news and new books.
Until then, happy reading!
— Kelly Jensen, @heykellyjensen on Instagram
