2013 Best Fiction for Young Adults

Each year, YALSA presents the Best Fiction for Young Adults list after ALA's Midwinter Meeting. This year’s list of ____ books was drawn from ___ official nominations. The books, recommended for ages 12-18, meet the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading for teens. The list comprises a wide range of genres and styles, including contemporary realistic fiction, fantasy, horror, historical fiction and novels in verse.

In addition to the full list, the Best Fiction for Young Adults committee also created a Top Ten list of titles from the final list, denoted here by an asterisk.

“The members of the Best Fiction for Young Adults committee worked countless hours, reading, discussing and finally selecting the 2013 list. Many members of the committee read more than 400 books over the past year, searching for the best titles for teens,”said Chair Ted Schelvan. “The resulting list represents exceptional teen literature from a variety of genres that will appeal to teen readers.”

The members of the Best Fiction for Young Adults Committee are: Ted Schelvan, Chair, Chief Umtuch Middle School, Battle Ground, Wash.; L. Lee Butler; Rachel Cornelius; Valerie Davis; Carol Edwards, Denver Public Library; Diana Herald, Genrefluent.com, Glade Park, Colo.; Christopher Lassen, Brooklyn Public Library - Bay Ridge; Stacey McCraken; Stacey McCraken; Abigail Moore; Sherry Rampey; Elizabeth Schneider; Shanna Smith; Julie Vaught; and Ann Kelley, Booklist Consultant.

Jennifer Barnes, Malden (Mass.) Public Library;

Debbie Fisher, Central Falls (R.I.) High School

; Michael L. Fleming, Pacific Cascade Middle School Library, Issaquah, Wash.;

Clio Hathaway, Hayward (Calif.) Public Library;

Janet Hilbun, University of North Texas Department of Library and Information Science, Denton;

Alissa Lauzon, Haverhill (Mass.) Public Library;

Shelly McNerney, Blue Valley West High School, Overland Park, Kan.;

Stacey McCracken, W.F. West High School, Chehalis, Wash.;

Shilo Pearson, Chicago Public Library;

Judith E. Rodgers, Wayzata Central Middle School, Plymouth, Minn.;

and Carol Steen, administrative assistant, Columbia Valley Gardens, Longview, Wash.