YA Authors of Note

Young Adult (YA) literature develops characters and themes that most students find themselves confronted with as they move through their high school years or engage with American media. At times, YA books contain scenes with violent or sexual content, or that deal with substance abuse and rule-breaking. But award winning authors like those that follow provide for many readers “a safe distance” from the action. Such allows the reader to reflect on consequences and strategies, and perhaps develop problem-solving insights. It is not unusual for writers of YA to develop characters aged about 2 years older than the intended audience of their work, and to provide hope in the situations faced by characters and a sense of identity and “not being alone.”

Fantasy: Leigh Bardugo, Holly Black, James Dashner, Neil Gaiman, Philip Pullman, Christopher Paolini, Susanne Collins, Sarah J. Maas, Marissa Meyer, Tamora Pierce, Marcus Sedgwick, J.R.R. Tolkein, Scott Westerfield…

Science Fiction: Kiera Cass, Margaret Peterson Haddix (gr.5-8), Marie Lu, Orson Scott Card, Marissa Meyer, Philip Reeve, Veronica Roth, Rainbow Rowell, Neal Shusterman, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Scott Westerfield, Rick Yancey…

Realistic Fiction: Elizabeth Acevedo, Becky Albertalli, Kwame Alexander, Laurie Halse Anderson, Libba Bray, Robert Cormier, John Green, Jenny Han, S.E. Hinton, Jenny Han, E. Lockhart, Lois Lowry, David Levithan, Jennifer Niven, Jodi Picoult, Jason Reynolds, Rainbow Rowell, Nic Stone, Gary Soto, Alice Walker, Ibi Zoboi…

Historical Fiction: Laurie Halse Anderson, Avi, Christopher Paul Curtis, Jennifer Nielsen, Ruta Sepetys, Markus Zusak…

Adventure/Thrillers: Avi, Eoin Colfer, James Dashner, E. Lockhart, James Patterson, Rick Riordan (gr 5-8)…

Humor: Dave Barry, James Patterson, Jack Gantos…

Mystery/ Thriller:  Karen M. McManus, Kenneth Oppel

Romance: Sarah Dessen, John Green, Nicola Yoon.

A few themes:

Sports: Mike Lupica

LGBTQ: Becky Albertalli, John Green, Bill Konigsburg, David Levithan, Rainbow Rowell, Benjamin Alire Saenz, Adam Silvera…

Dystopia:  Victoria Aveyard, Kiera Cass, Marie Lu, Veronica Roth, Scott Westerfield,

Horror/Supernatural/Paranormal: Libba Bray, Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, Stephen King, Marcus Sedgwick, Maggie Stiefvater,

Promoting Under-represented Voices in Lit:  African American: Jason Reynolds, Kwame Alexander, Walter Dean Myers, Nic Stone, Jacqueline Woodson, Ibi Zoboi,  Latinx: Matt de la Pena, Gary Soto, Benjamin Alire Saenz, Elizabeth Acevedo, Asian-American: Jenny Han, Lawrence Yep …