Top 10 Books for People Who Don’t Normally Read YA Contemporary
Yay, Top Ten Tuesday is back with new topics starting this week! For those unfamiliar with it, Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is Ten book recommendations for ______________: (Skies the limit here…examples: for Hufflepuffs, for fans of Game of Thrones, for people who don’t normally read YA, for animal lovers, for video game lovers, etc.
* * * * *
Since I’ve been reading and loving a lot of YA contemporary books lately, I decided to come up with a list of some amazing books that I think people who don’t usually read YA contemporary would love. All of these are favorites of mine. Some are light and fun, while others are more serious and shine a much-needed spotlight on important social issues and, in some cases, mental health issues. All of these books are so good that I think they could turn any reader into a fan of YA contemporary even if it’s not usually your thing.
Top 10 Book Recs for People Who Don’t Normally Read YA Contemporary
1. THE HATE U GIVE by Angie Thomas
* * * * *
2. SIMON VS. THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA by Becky Albertalli
* * * * *
3. SAINTS AND MISFITS by S.K. Ali
* * * * *
4. ALL THE BRIGHT PLACES by Jennifer Niven
* * * * *
5. THE UPSIDE OF UNREQUITED by Becky Albertalli
* * * * *
6. WORDS IN DEEP BLUE by Cath Crowley
* * * * *
7. EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING by Nicola Yoon
* * * * *
8. THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES by Mindy McGinnis
* * * * *
9. UNDER ROSE-TAINTED SKIES by Louise Gornall
* * * * *
10. FANGIRL by Rainbow Rowell
* * * * *
Amazing list! Half of them are some of my all-time favorites too and the other half is still on my TBR so I can only agree wholeheartedly with your list 🙂 They’re definitely must-reads for people who aren’t normally into YA contemporary.
Thanks!
You’ve got so many great recommendations! 🙂 I’m a big fan of Becky Albertalli’s writing. My sister who doesn’t enjoy contemporary loved Simon Vs!
I love Becky Albertalli too. Her books just always make me smile. 🙂
I don’t usually read contemporary, yet I loved Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda and Fangirl so I think you nailed it here 🙂
Happy TTT!
Thanks!
Such a great list. I love all the ones I have read on here, which is most of them. Fangirl is an all time fav for me. The ones I haven’t read are all on my TBR.
Thanks! Cool, hope that means you’ll love all of the rest of them too since we have pretty similar taste when it comes to contemporary. 🙂
Ooh some really good ones on here like Simon Vs. and Fangirl. Others I need to read – The Upside of Unrequited and The Hate U Give (though I own a copy so SOON).
One of my all-time favorite contemporary novels is Ballads of Suburbia by Stephanie Kuehnert, so I highly recommend that.
I hadn’t heard of Ballads of Suburbia so I will definitely have to check that one out! 🙂
Great list idea! I’d definitely class myself as someone who doesn’t usually read YA contemporary, but I really liked Simon versus… and The Female of the Species is on my TBR, so these recs seem spot on to me!
My TTT this week.
Thanks!
I loved The Hate U Give and Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda! I think I’d recommend either David Levithan or Jenny Han’s books to people who don’t normally read contemporary; there’s pretty light and easy going but there are some serious subjects in them at the same time 🙂
I’ve actually never read either of those authors so will definitely have to check them out. Thanks for the recs!
Great choices Suzanne!!
Thanks!
I haven’t read a ton of contemporary YA fiction lately, and I haven’t read any of these, so I think may have to check some of them out! Everything, Everything is one I’m particularly interested in.
I actually just read that one this week and thought it was so good. I wanted to get it read before the movie comes out.
I don’t typically read a lot of contemporary, but I might have to check several of these out. Nice list! Here is our TTT.
Thanks!
There are some really fantastic book recs here. I love YA contemporaries but there are a couple here that I haven’t read yet. The Hate U Give is going to appear on a lot of ‘Best of 2017’ lists at the end of the year I think and rightfully so!
I also chose contemporary for my post but with a UKYA slant, maybe you’ll find something there you like the look of!
Here’s my TTT.
Nice! I’ll definitely have to check out your list. 🙂
I don’t read much YA Contemporary though I have heard of several of these. I’m trying to expand my genres a bit more and this is a great list! Under Rose Tainted Skies and Words in Deep Blue look especially tempting!
I hope you enjoy them!
This list is exactly what I needed! I’m definitely not usually a contemporary YA fan, but the few I have read on this list (The Hate U Give and The Female of the Species) are ones that I LOVED! I will definitely be looking into more of these because this list seems great. Thanks for the recs! 🙂
Oh cool! I hope this list is helpful then. 🙂
Great list! I love reading contemporary, and really enjoyed Everything, Everything. I still have to a few of these, but Fangirl is definitely one I hope to read really soon 🙂
Fangirl is so much fun to read. I hope you love it!
Becky Albertalli is great for those that don’t usually read YA contemporary like me. I’ve really liked her books so far. 🙂
I love her books too. Reading her books was actually what got me more interested in YA contemporary. I also can’t wait to watch the Simon movie when it comes out. 🙂
I’ve heard of most of these but the only one I’ve read is Under Rose Tainted Skies. I’m not a big contemporary YA reader, a lot of them seem to be very romance focused and I’m not big on that.
I’m not big on romance either so most of the ones on this list either don’t have a romance or else the romance is secondary to a more substantial storyline.
I read more YA contemps than I ever did before and it’s always nice to get more ideas! Under Rose- Tainted Skies is one I added to my TBR after reading some great reviews, and Fangirl is a favorite of mine.
Fangirl is so good. I have a couple more of Rainbow Rowell’s books sitting on my TBR and really need to read those soon.
As a huge contemporary YA fan I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve only read one of these – Everything, Everything. I guess I just need to add all the rest to my TBR pile lol I have been dying to get my hands of The Hate You Give and Words of Blue though. Everyone in the blogging community seems to just love them. Wonderful list, Suzanne! 🙂
Thank you!
It’s been a long time since I’ve really dived into YA Contemporary, but I have a huge to read list. Words in Deep Blue is near the top! I also really want to read the Becky Albertalli books. Thanks so much for sharing!
I really like Albertalli’s books. Reading Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens agenda is actually the book that got me interested in YA contemporary.
I have read 7 of those books and want to read the other 3. This is an awesome list.
Thanks!
Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda is such a feel-good book. I can`t wait for the movie to come out. Also, The Hate U Give is such an important book. On that note, I`m also very excited for “Dear Martin”, who deals with the same topics.
Oh yes, I’m really looking forward to the Simon movie as well. I really hope it’s as wonderful as the book. 🙂
I really liked Fangirl. Didn’t like All the Bright Places but will definitely check the others out. Great list!
Thanks!