Readers > Adult & teen lists > Selected Adult Reads for Teens
Selected Adult Reads for Teens
Acito, Marc-
When Edward's father gets remarried and refuses to pay his son's tuition to Julliard, Edward and his friends embark on a variety of crazy schemes to steal the money from his father.
Alexie, Sherman-
In this darkly comic short story collection, Sherman Alexie, a Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian, weaves memory, fantasy and stark realism to paint a complex, grimly ironic portrait of life in and around the Spokane Indian Reservation.
Atwood, Margaret-
In 1846 a house maid named Grace Marks was accused of the murder of her employer and his mistress. This is the fictionalized account of her trial and incarceration.
Bradshaw, Gillian-
Marie, a young Norman woman at the court of Brittany, falls for Tiarnâan just before he marries Eline. But when Tiarnâan mysteriously vanishes and his "widow" seizes control of his lands, only Marie can save him.
Brooks, Geraldine-
In the 17th century, the inhabitants of a small English village isolate themselves in order to avoid the plague.
Chambers, Aidan-
Seventeen-year-old Jacob visits modern day Amsterdam at the request of his English grandmother. His story alternates with Geertrui's, who relates her experience of British soldiers' attempts to liberate Holland during WWII.
Cisneros, Sandra-
Esperanza describes her life in a Spanish-speaking area of Chicago through a series of vignettes.
Clarke, Susanna-
In an alternative 1800's England, magicians vie to influence and control the government through their powers.
Daswani, Kavita-
Unable to find a husband despite the efforts of friends, fortune-tellers, and matchmakers, thirty-three year old Anju, confronted by her family's shame, obtains their permission to leave Bombay to look for a husband in the United States.
Duncan, David James-
The Chance family is wild about baseball and argumentative about religion. Papa is a gifted but luckless minor-league pitcher. Mama is a devout Seventh Day Adventist who is constantly attempting to save her teenaged sons. When a mill accident crushes Papa's thumb, and Mama's religious zeal begins to wear down the family, parents and children find themselves at odds.
Earley, Tony-
Jim's first steps to understanding the confusing adult world in a small southern town in the early 20th century.
Foer, Jonathan Safran-
A young writer travels to the farmlands of eastern Europe, where he embarks on a quest to find Augustine, the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis, and, guided by his young Ukrainian translator, he discovers an unexpected past that will resonate far into the future.
Gaiman, Neil-
When the armies of Heaven and Hell announce it's time for Armageddon, a demon and an angel decide they like life on earth enough to team up to stop the coming apocalypse.
Going, K.L.-
Seventeen-year-old Troy, depressed, suicidal, and weighing nearly 300 pounds, gets a new perspective on life when a homeless teenager who is a genius on guitar wants Troy to be the drummer in his rock band.
Gold, Glen-
A 1920s San Francisco magician is caught up in an intrigue over Warren Harding's death and a battle with his nemesis, Mysteriouso.
Goldberg, Myla-
Nine-year-old Eliza Naumann is considered an unspectacular child — until she surprises everyone by winning her school spelling bee. But just as she begins to shine, her family starts falling apart.
Grimes, Martha-
A nameless young woman awakens in a strange bed-and-breakfast with a message that her "Daddy" will soon return. Fearing the worst, she flees into the wilderness and meets Mary Dark Hope. Together, the two track down the one person who holds the key to the girl's identity: the man who abducted her.
Guterson, David -
After returning from internment and trying to get his land in the San Juan islands back, Kabuo Miyomoto is arrested and tried for the murder of Carl Heine, a fisherman who died or was killed in a storm.
Mark Haddon-
An autistic boy sets out to solve the mysterious murder of his neighbor's dog.
Hornby, Nick-
A pop music junkie ponders life, love and hangs out with the two offbeat clerks who work at his semi-failing record store.
Hosseini, Khaled-
When Amir is forced to flee Kabul with his prominent and wealthy father for a new life in California, he leaves behind Hassan, the son of his father's servant. Amir cannot, however, leave the memory of his friend behind him.
Hough, Robert-
The juicy, funny, awful "autobiography" of a cantankerous old woman who was a famous circus tiger trainer in the 1920s.
Kidd, Sue Monk-
After her stand-in mother, a bold black woman named Rosaleen, insults the three biggest racists in town, Lily Owens joins Rosaleen on a journey to Tiburon, South Carolina, where they are taken in by three black, bee-keeping sisters.
Kincaid, Jamaica-
The theme of lost childhood remains constant in this short fictional narrative of rebellious Annie John's coming of age on the small island of Antigua.
King, Stephen-
Lost in the forest, after wandering off, Trisha draws comfort from tuning her radio to Boston Red Sox broadcasts and following her hero, relief pitcher Tom Gordon. When the reception fades, she imagines Tom is with her. He is her key to surviving the unseen enemy leaving slaughtered animals and mangled trees in its wake.
Kingsolver, Barbara-
The family of a fierce evangelical Baptist missionary — Nathan Price, his wife, and his four daughters — begins to unravel after they embark on a 1959 mission to the Belgian Congo, where they find their lives transformed over the course of three decades.
Lawrence, D.H. -
The story of two sisters and their lovers — one a mining tycoon, the other a school inspector in industrial England — in the time surrounding the First World War. Interweaves the author's perennial themes of love, sex and death.
LeGuin, Ursula K.-
Presents a collection of stories that are filled with love, lust, sex, marriage, gender and other annoying problems that people must deal with no matter where they reside in the universe.
Lethem, Jonathan -
Lionel Essrog has always respected Frank Minna, who helped him out when he was young, and when Frank is found dead, Lionel and his friends, the Minna Men, scour the streets of Brooklyn in search of the killer.
Lipman, Elinor-
Alice Thrift, a socially inept surgical intern at a Boston hospital, is pursued romantically by shady social climber Ray Russo, until her roommate and her neighbor decide to guide Alice through the social complexities of life.
Martel, Yann -
Possessing encyclopedia-like intelligence, unusual zookeeper's son Pi Patel sets sail for America, but when the ship sinks, he escapes on a life boat and is lost at sea with a dwindling number of animals until only he and a hungry Bengal tiger remain.
Maclean, Norman -
Two novellas and one short story, based on the author's own experiences, center on a young man's discovery of life and art, and of their proximities, in the woods of western Montana.
McCall Smith, Alexander-
The charming Mma Ramotswe opens the first female-owned detective agency in her small town in Botswana and tackles a series of interesting cases with the help of her detective manual and her uncommonly good common sense.
McDonell, Nick -
Well-to-do Manhattan teens spend winter break on the prowl for the next big party/score/drug deal.
McLaughlin, Emma-
A wicked satire based on the real-life experiences of two former New York City nannies. Nan takes care of young Grayson X while enduring the outrageous demands of the rich and patronizing Mrs. X.
Moriarty, Jaclyn-
In a funny and bittersweet story told through letters, musings and notes on the fridge, Elizabeth searches for love-and for her wild, vanished friend Celia.
Mukherjee, Bharati-
Struggling to reconcile with her estranged husband, Tara Chatterjee relates the story of an East Bengali ancestor who married a tree at the age of five and who grew up to be a nationalist freedom fighter against the British Raj.
Nelson, Blake -
A bored Beaverton, Oregon, teenager forsakes her privileged, good girl ways and escapes to the wild side of Portland on weekends where she meets her unsavory new pals on the steps of Central Library.
Niffenegger, Audrey-
Henry De Tamble is a Chicago librarian with "Chrono Displacement" disorder, which causes him to disapear without warning, only to find himself in the past or future, paradoxically interfering with his own life.
Nix, Garth-
Sabriel, daughter of the vanished necromancer, must journey into the dangerous and magical Old Kingdom to rescue her father from the Land of the Dead.
Packer, Ann-
Things hadn't been going well with Carrie's fiancé, Mike; but after the awful accident, how can she leave him? Then again, how can she not?
Patchett, Ann-
When terrorists seize hostages at an embassy party, an unlikely assortment of people is thrown together, including American opera star Roxanne Coss, and Mr. Hosokawa, a Japanese CEO and her biggest fan.
Pattou, Edith-
In this lyrical retelling of a strange old fairy tale, a young woman journeys to the troll queen's castle on the back of a great white bear who is not what he seems to be.
Price, Susan-
Andrea's company plans to use time travel to exploit the untouched resources of the 16th century, but violent Scottish border clans are causing trouble. Sent back to negotiate, the young anthropologist never expects to fall in love.
Russell, Mary Doria-
The sole survivor of a crew sent to explore a new planet, Jesuit priest Emilio Sandoz discovers an alien civilization that raises questions about the very essence of humanity, an encounter that leads Sandoz to a public inquisition and the destruction of his faith.
Rosoff, Meg-
Daisy, 15, left New York City and came to England to meet her cousins-and to get away from her pregnant stepmother. She didn't plan on being stranded with them in the middle of World War III.
Sebold, Alice-
Looking down from heaven, 14-year-old Susie Salmon recounts her rape and murder and watches her family as they cope with their grief and "the lovely bones" growing around her absence.
Sherwood, Ben -
J. Smith, Keeper of the Records for "The Book of Records," meets the ultimate record breaker: a man who is proving his love for a woman by ingesting a 747 airplane, piece by piece.
Smith, Dodie -
The 1934 journal of 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain tells of life and love during six stormy months with her eccentric and poverty-stricken family in a ruined Suffolk castle.
Tan, Amy -
Jing-mei never understood her mother until she is coerced into taking her place at the weekly Mah-jong and gossip session.
Tartt, Donna-
Growing up in a small Mississippi town in a family haunted by the murder of her brother, 12-year-old Harriet lives in a world of her imagination, until she decides to find Robin's murderer and exact her revenge.
Thayer, Steve -
Nine-year-old Angela can hear gunshots and see the firelight of the Los Angeles riots. Her father 's window overlooks a rural Minnesota scene. In his letters to his daughter the father promises her a different kind of future but Angela's diary entries suggest that future needs to happen now.
Thompson, Craig-
This loosely autobiographical graphic novel chronicles Craig's life, from his childhood in a rigid fundamentalist family who didn't appreciate his drawing talent to his meeting of the amazing Raina in high school.
Vonnegut, Kurt -
Often called one of the world's "great anti-war" books, Slaughterhouse Five, based on the author's experience as a prisoner of war, focuses on the fire-bombing of Dresden and Billy Pilgrim's odyssey through time.
Zusak, Mark-
After capturing a bank robber, 19-year-old cab driver Ed Kennedy begins receiving mysterious messages that direct him to addresses where people seem to need his help.
Bryson, Bill -
The author recounts his grueling hike along the world's longest continuous footpath, the Appalachian Trail.
Collins, Billy-
Poems from a former U.S. Poet Laureate.
Conlon-McIvor, Maura-
A Hoover-era FBI agent's daughter tells the story of growing up with a Down Syndrome brother and a taciturn father who works for the FBI.
Davis, Samson-
Despite growing up in the 'hood, three teenage friends promise to attend medical school together and become doctors.
Ehrenreich, Barbara-
The author takes jobs as a waitress and a clerk at Wal-Mart to see what the lives of America's working poor are really like.
Fuller, Alexandra -
The writer recounts her experiences growing up on a number of hard-scrabble farms across Africa.
Karr, Mary-
This is a coming of age story of a small town Texas teen involved with drugs and in love with books.
Kimmel, Haven-
An amusing and poignant story about coming of age in small town America.
Kurlansky, Mark -
The author describes the history of salt — the only rock we eat and a substance so valuable it has served as currency.
Lekuton, Joseph -
The author, a Virgina school teacher, spends half of each year on the African savanna, living in a mud hut, hunting and drinking cow's blood.
Lewis, C.S.-
A story in letters between an apprentice demon named Wormwood and his uncle, the worldly wise Satan.
Oliver, Mary-
Forty-two poems from Oliver, an award-winning nature poet.
Philbrick, Nat-
Based on the author's adult book In the heart of the sea, the author tells of the 1820 sinking of a ship by an enraged sperm whale and how the crew of young men survived against impossible odds.
Pollan, Michael -
The author presents an examination of human/plant relationships and how humankind tries to manipulate the plant world.
Roach, Mary-
The author explores the myriad of things that can happen to a human body after death.
Runyon, Brent -
The author describes his suicide attempt and his recovery after setting himself on fire when he was fourteen.
Sapolsky, Robert -
The humorous adventures of a scientist who spends his time chasing after baboons in Africa.
Satrapi, Marjane-
In comic book format, the author describes her life growing up in Iran during the Islamic revolution.
Sedaris, David-
The author describes the hilarious antics that ensue when he moves to Paris and tries to learn to communicate in French.
Sobel, Dava-
Eighteenth-century scientist and clockmaker William Harrison solved one of the most perplexing problems of history — determining east-west location at sea. This is his story.
Steinbeck, John-
On what is to become a legendary road trip, the author of The grapes of wrath sets off to see the country with his faithful dog.