YALSA names 2022 Best Fiction for Young Adults

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), announced its 2022 Best Fiction for Young Adults list.

The full list consists of 89 titles selected from 137 official nominations, which were posted and discussed in blog posts on The Hub. From that list, the team created a short list of the top eleven titles. 

The top eleven titles are:

• Blackout. By Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, Nicola Yoon. HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books, $19.99 (9780063088092). 
• The City Beautiful. By­­ Aden Polydoros. Harlequin/Inkyard Press, $19.99 (9781335402509).
• Concrete Rose. By Angie Thomas. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray. $19.99 (9780062846716).
• Electric Kingdom. By David Arnold. Penguin Random House/Viking Books for Young Readers, $18.99 (9780593202227).
• Firekeeper’s Daughter. By Angeline Boulley. Macmillan/Henry Holt and Co. Books for Young Readers. $18.99 (9781250766564).
• How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe. By Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $19.99 (9781534448667).
• In the Wild Light. By Jeff Zentner. Penguin Random House/Crown Books for Young Readers, $17.99 (9781524720247).
• Last Night at the Telegraph Club. By Malinda Lo. Penguin Random House/Dutton Books, $18.99 (9780525555254).
• Little Thieves. By Margaret Owen. Macmillan/Henry Holt & Co. Books for Young Readers, $18.99 (9781250191908).
• Me (Moth). By Amber McBride. Macmillan/Feiwel & Friends, $18.99 (9781250780362).
• The Ones We’re Meant to Find. By Joan He. Macmillan/Roaring Brook Press, $18.99 (9781250258564).

The suggestion form for the 2023 Best Fiction for Young Adults list will be open soon. If you’d like to suggest a title to the blogging team for consideration as a nominee, please fill out the form. YALSA’s portfolio of book and media awards helps strengthen library services for and with teens by identifying quality, age appropriate resources for librarians and library workers to share with the teens in their communities. Learn more about YALSA’s other book and media lists.

The members of the Best Fiction for Young Adults Blogging Team are: Coordinator, Allie Stevens, Calhoun County Library, Hampton, AR; Lindsay Bailey, Belfast Area High School Library, Belfast, ME; Heather Christensen, Portales Municipal Schools, Portales, NM; Matthew Clark, Bayview Glen Upper School, Toronto, Ontario; Megan Jackson, Free Library of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA; Amanda Kordeliski, Norman Public Schools, Norman, OK; Shelbie Marks, Metropolitan Library System, Oklahoma City, OK; Kali Olson, The Blake School, Minneapolis, MN; Beth Slade, Twinsburg Public Library, Twinsburg, OH; Andrea Vernola, Kalamazoo Public Library, Kalamazoo, MI; and Courtney Waters, Missouri River Regional Library, Jefferson City, MO.

The mission of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is to support library staff in alleviating the challenges teens face, and in putting all teens ‒ especially those with the greatest needs ‒ on the path to successful and fulfilling lives. For more information about YALSA or to access national guidelines and other resources go to www.ala.org/yalsa, or contact the YALSA office by phone, 800-545-2433, ext. 4390; or e-mail: [email protected].