Booklists

These YA authors don’t flinch from the tough stuff, exploring harassment, privilege, racism, family expectations, and more, but these tender, utterly intimate books are also laced with humor and understanding. Looking for more summer reading recommendations? SLJ is publishing lists all summer long—from family stories to mysteries to teen reads. 

Starting this week and continuing through the end of June and beyond, SLJ is publishing lists of our top picks for summer reading, from stories to share with the whole family to recommended titles for emerging readers to captivating fiction, nonfiction, and graphic novels for tweens and teens.

From inventors and engineers to scientists and artists, the individuals profiled in these captivating read-alouds will inspire young readers (and their grown-ups). Looking for more summer reading recommendations? SLJ is publishing lists all summer long—from family stories to mysteries to teen reads.  

Essential and exceptional titles reviewed in our June 2020 issue, including picture books, middle grade, YA, nonfiction, and graphic novels for children and teens.

Students have been reading To Kill a Mockingbird, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and the “Little House” series for generations, and having these “classics” available in school libraries is a given. Should that change?

Some curriculum staples misrepresent cultures, reinforce racist or sexist ideas, and contain pejorative descriptions. Try these books instead of “The Little House” series, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, these YA titles depict teens in counseling, normalizing and demystifying the process for readers.

These narratives of home and family push back against stereotypes.

The SLJ team is hard at work curating some of our top summer reading picks for a variety of age groups by type, genre, and subject area. Those lists will roll out starting after Memorial Day. In the meantime, here are some of our favorite lists from other organizations and libraries.