Reading is good for you. Everybody knows that. But somehow some find it hard to stick to this routine. Reading is like working out: you need to get used to it at first, and than you won’t be able to live without it. So in order to make young adults get hooked on reading forever, they must be given the best pieces of advice. Here are 10 young adult fiction books that will make any youngster fall in love with reading forever.
1. The Catcher In The Rye – J.D. Salinger
The Catcher in the Rye is the perfect novel for a freshman in high school. Holden Caulfield, the 17-year-old protagonist, deals with the alienation of his peers, getting kicked out of school, and wondering about his sexuality just because he respects women enough to take the answer “no.” He jaunts around New York City, feeling pissed off at the world, encountering trouble behind every corner, every closed door.
2. The Hunger Games Series – Suzanne Collins
The books are a cautionary tale about greed, rebellion, and the abuse of power. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, The Hunger Games opens with a special annual event. Every year, a boy and a girl from each of the 12 districts in this world are randomly selected to fight to the death in the Hunger Games, a televised event held by the government to maintain control over its citizens, and as punishment for a past uprising. The winner of the fight gets to return to his or her home with food for their entire community.
3. The Fault in Our Stars – John Green
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.
4. Lord of the Flies – William Golding
Perhaps the most chilling novel about human nature ever written, William Golding’s classic tale about a group of English schoolboys who are plane-wrecked on a deserted island is just as relevant today as when it was first published in 1954. Ralph, Piggy, and Simon attempt to form societies but cooperation leads to savagery as alliances are formed and the trappings of civilization quickly deteriorate.
5. Speak – Laurie Halse Anderson
Speak follows Melinda as she overcomes her past, and finds her voice in a triumphant ending that will have readers cheering, crying, and rethinking what the word compassion and judgment really mean. Melinda’s journey from victim to hero is powerful and unforgettable. It perfectly reflects the inner battles every teenager eventually has to go through.
6. Feed – MT Anderson
Identity crises, consumerism, and star-crossed teenage love in a futuristic society where people connect to the Internet via feeds implanted in their brains. Following in the footsteps of George Orwell, Anthony Burgess, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr., M. T. Anderson has created a a smart, savage satire that has captivated readers with its view of an imagined future that veers unnervingly close to the here and now.
7. The Book Thief – Markus Zusak
Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.
8. To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee
Lee draws the reader in with her seemingly simple story about a family living in the “tired old” town of Maycomb, Alabama, during The Great Depression. To Kill a Mockingbird follows three years in the life of 8-year-old Scout Finch, her brother, Jem, and their father, Atticus, a lawyer – the defending attorney in the trial of a young black man accused of raping a white woman. Though her story explores big themes, racial tension, sexual assault, prejudice, Lee narrates it through the eyes of a young child. An old time classic that must be read.
9. The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold
Susie Salmon, a fourteen-year-old girl who has been raped and killed by her serial killer neighbor in suburban Pennsylvania, narrates the story. That’s right, Susie is telling her story from the afterlife. She weaves back and forth in time from the date of her death in 1973, remembering her life, peering into the mind of her killer, and watching the love ones she left behind. It’s a gruesome and horrifying story, but also one of hope and renewal.
10. Legend – Marie Lu
The action is set in 2130 AD where the flooded coast of former Los Angeles now separates The Republic and The Colonies, two warring nations in North America. Our heroine is the Republic’s privileged 15-year-old June who is set against Day, a 15-year-old criminal accused of murdering June’s brother. Secrets are revealed and truths are uncovered as their two worlds collide in this page-turning thriller.
Keep in mind that these 10 young adult fiction books can be read at any age. No one is too old for any of the above. If a touching book is what you are looking for, you can pick whichever from the above. Happy reading everyone!
