In normal years, I read a lot of YA. That did not happen this year for no particular reason. The good news is what I lacked in quantity, I made up for in quality. Most of the YA I read blew me away. Last year I leaned more toward fantasy than contemporary. This year it was the other way around, for no particular reason. Here are my favorite YA novels of 2020!
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Like A Love Story by Abdi Nazemiany
Meet my all-time favorite YA novel. This book wrecked me. What an utterly magnificent story! It explores friendship, first love, AIDS, grief, Madonna, and so much more. This is set in 1989-1990, when I was 9/10 years old. The characters are 17 so we had different experiences and it gave me a new way to relive that time, particularly to reflect on what life was like for the LGBTQ+ community and those coming out in the wake of AIDS. I knew about HIV and AIDS when I was growing up, although I don’t remember when I first became aware or how. By the time I was in college, the treatment had much improved and there were more options. But we can’t forget about the period in which AIDS wreaked havoc and Reza, Art, and Uncle Stephen, as well as the activists, brought this to life in a new way for me. Reza, Art, and Judy had such an interesting dynamic and I loved the way this looked at their changing relationships. This is structured with alternating POVs between the three of them and then sections interspersed with one of the gay flashcards Uncle Stephen created for Art. I also appreciated seeing Reza’s mom’s journey toward acceptance and the way their Iranian culture impacted her understanding and concerns. While it’s about grief and loss, it’s also a celebration of the queer community and found family. I’m a better person for having read it.
CW: AIDS, death of a loved one, grief, internalized homophobia, homophobia, Islamaphobia, racism, homophobic and racial slurs, fatshaming, death of parent (alcoholism, liver failure), bullying (including telling main character to kill themselves), euthanasia, police violence, reference to Pulse nightclub shooting, reference to someone getting their stomach pumped
You Should See Me In A Crown by Leah Johnson
What a remarkable YA debut from Leah Johnson! Liz is a Black closeted queer senior who prefers to be a wallflower in her small town high school. But when she loses out on a crucial scholarship, she has to throw her hat in the ring for prom queen. Because in Campbell County, Indiana, the prom king and queen is such a big deal, they get a $10,000 scholarship. Liz is only out to her family and close friends and the high school has very conservative and gendered ideas about who belongs at prom so it’s not the most convenient time to fall for Amanda. But what else can Liz do?
This book made me cry happy tears! And some sad tears too but mostly this book was one giant delight of a read. Liz was such a fantastic heroine and I loved every bit of her character arc as she vied for prom queen. She’s an orchestra geek who wants to be a hematologist specializing in Sickle Cell Disease, as her brother Robbie has SCD and her mother died from complications related to the illness. I was a pediatric oncology/hematology social worker and sickle cell was one of my specialties. This is the first time I can remember seeing the chronic illness portrayed in-depth in a book and I thought it was done so well.
Liz and Amanda were so cute together and I loved watching them figure things out. I loved the way their favorite band factored in. The story really delves into the ups and downs of friendship, with Liz ultimately reconnecting with her former best friend Jordan who essentially cut her off freshman year. She also has to deal with her best friend Gabi not being very best friend-like. There’s also a popular girl bully and I thought this was also handled well, with Liz getting some unexpected allies along the way. It was such a compelling story through and through. I can’t wait to see what Johnson writes next!
CW: heroine’s brother has sickle cell disease (references to medication and treatment; crisis resulting in hospitalization, recovers), heroine’s mother died from a stroke and complications from sickle cell, grief, racism, microaggressions, homophobia, bullying, forced outing, anxiety, panic attacks (past and present, heroine will throw up during really bad ones), side character’s mother died of ovarian cancer a few years ago, side character’s parents are divorcing
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender
This was truly magnificent. It blew me away starting with chapter 1 and didn't let up from there. The writing was stunning and the characters truly came alive. Normally I don’t want even a hint of a love triangle in my books but I was completely riveted as Felix had to make sense of his feelings toward his best friend Ezra and his enemy Declan. Felix struggles to believe he’ll ever be loved and this made for one moving story. Yes, I wept. But this ultimately has a happy ending. It just insists on ripping your heart out first.
There were moments when I wanted to take Felix aside (just block that Instagram troll!) but this was a teenager acting like a teenager, simply doing their best. And I sure was rooting for him to figure out his feelings and do what was right.
The transphobia and homophobia could be hard to read about—and I’m saying this as a cishet reader. But the author took such care in how the bullying was depicted, particularly when Felix is deadnamed. We never learn what that name is, not through that transphobic bullying or even when his largely supportive dad struggles to call him by Felix. I really appreciated the addition of the LGBTQ+ support group, as Felix questions his identity. And there were some really great secondary characters amongst his and Ezra’s group of friends.
Character notes: Felix is 17, trans, Black, and queer. Through the course of the story, Felix ends up identifying as a demiboy. Ezra is 17, bisexual, and Black-Bengali. Declan is 17 and biracial (Black-Puerto Rican mom, white Irish father.) This is set in NYC.
CW: transphobia, homophobia, bullying, Felix is deadnamed (the name is not used, only referenced), dysphoria, Felix’s mom left when he was 10 and has had little contact, top surgery scars, marijuana, underage drinking, secondary character’s father is emotionally abusive and disowned him after he came out
Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust
I loved Bashardoust’s first novel Girls Made of Snow and Glass so I was very excited when I heard about her new book. It was inspired by the poisonous girl in a garden from Rappaccini’s Daughter and the Persian epic Shahnameh (or the Book of Kings.)
Soraya was cursed to be poisonous to the touch and consequently hasn’t touched anyone in 18 years. She wears gloves at all times and remains in Golvahar, the oldest of the palaces. Her twin brother Sorush is the shah and about to be married to her former friend Laleh, bringing her family back to Golvahar. My heart really went out to Soraya. Can you imagine never touching anyone or being touched in return? She experienced so much loneliness and isolation with no hope of reprieve unless her curse can be broken. Because of this isolation, she knows very few people but we get to know those people fairly well as things unfold and they brought so much to story.
I don’t want to say much more than that because I loved experiencing all the twists and turns of this plot. Not everyone is who they seem and many of the characters have secrets. Add in Soraya’s determination to break the curse at almost any cost and you have a high stakes plot that doesn’t quit.
One of the most interesting parts to me was how much longing and yearning Soraya experienced and how she kept having to tamp down her hopes of ever having more. Then to not have that barrier in place anymore…whew. The story does a great job examining the line between hero and monster and what it means to belong. Soraya has to really grapple with who she is and what her power means. She can be dangerous if she wants but is that what she wants and what will it mean for her family if she acts on that? She really comes into her own as the story progresses and it was such a great evolution of her character. She’s strong but imperfect and that’s all I ever want in my heroines. I can’t wait to see what Bashardoust does next.
CW: isolation, kidnapping, threat of murder/execution, murder, villain executed his own family in the past, religious shaming
Disclosure: I received an advanced copy from Flatiron Books in exchange for an honest review.
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