My friend Katie at The Amateur Librarian posted recently about NPR’s list of 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels and, well, you know I’m a sucker for a list of books, so I had to comment! I’m surprised by the number of these I’ve never heard of, and also by the number of these that seem to be extremely recent. A few also seem to be not quite what I’d classify as “teen novels” (Jodi Picoult?). I am pleased, however, with the inclusion of a few minority writers. My beloved English professor, Dr. Sprayberry, would be bouncing off the walls excited to see Sherman Alexie and Sandra Cisneros on the list.
Somehow I can’t remember exactly what I loved when I was a teenager (not that it was that long ago), but I feel like many of these weren’t even out until I was in college! Katie pointed out that the list may be skewed by the fact that it was based on internet voting and some authors campaigned hard to make it on the list.
Anyway, without further ado, here’s the list with my annotations.
- means I’ve read at least 1 book of the series
! means I’d like to
means I read it for school
- means I particularly enjoyed it ~ means I disliked it
Top 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels
+*1. Harry Potter (series), by J.K. Rowling
+*2. The Hunger Games (series), by Suzanne Collins
#*3. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
4. The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green
#~5. The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien
6. The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
7. The Lord of the Rings (series), by J.R.R. Tolkien
8. Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
9. Looking for Alaska, by John Green
+10. The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak
+*11. The Giver (series), by Lois Lowry
12. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (series), by Douglas Adams
+*13. The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton
+14. Anne of Green Gables (series), by Lucy Maud Montgomery
15. His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
!16. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
17. The Princess Bride, by William Golding
#18. Lord of the Flies, by William Golding
19. Divergent (series), by Veronica Roth
20. Paper Towns, by John Green
21. The Mortal Instruments (series), by Cassandra Clare
22. An Abundance of Katherines, by John Green
+23. Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes
24. Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher
!25. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon
+26. Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson
+27. Twilight (series), by Stephenie Meyer
28. Uglies (series), by Scott Westerfeld
29. The Infernal Devices (series), by Cassandra Clare
+30. Tuck Everlasting, by Natalie Babbitt
!31. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
+*32. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (series), by Anne Brashares
+33. The Call of the Wild, by Jack London
34. Will Grayson, Will Grayson, by John Green, David Levithan (reading right now)
35. Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous
36. Howl’s Moving Castle, by Diana Wynne Jones
+37. Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli
#38. A Separate Peace, by John Knowles
39. Vampire Academy (series), by Richelle Mead
40. Abhorsen Trilogy / Old Kingdom Trilogy (series), by Garth Nix
41. Dune, by Frank Herbert
42. Discworld / Tiffany Aching (series, by Terry Pratchett
43. My Sister’s Keeper, by Jodi Picoult
44. The Dark is Rising (series), by Susan Cooper
45. Graceling (series), Kristin Cashore
+46. Forever…, by Judy Blume
47. Earthsea (series), by Ursula K. Le Guin
48. Inheritance Cycle (series), by Christopher Paolini
+49. The Princess Diaries (series), by Meg Cabot
50. The Song of the Lioness (series), by Tamora Pierce
51. Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson
52. Delirium (series), by Lauren Oliver
53. Anna and the French Kiss, by Stephanie Perkins
54. Hush, Hush Saga (series), by Stephanie Perkins
55. 13 Little Blue Envelopes, by Maureen Johnson
56. It’s Kind of a Funny Story, by Ned Vizzini
57. The Gemma Doyle Trilogy (series), by Libba Bray
!58. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs
!59. The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros
60. Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury
61. The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
62. Just Listen, by Sarah Dessen
+*63. A Ring of Endless Light, by Madeleine L’Engle
+64. The Truth About Forever, by Sarah Dessen
65. The Bartimaeus Trilogy (series), by Jonathan Stroud
66. Bloodlines (series), by Richelle Mead
67. Fallen (series), by Lauren Kate
68. House of Night (series), by P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast
+*69. I Capture the Castle, by Dodie Smith
70. Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlsit, by Rachel Cohn, David Levithan
71. Before I Fall, by Lauren Oliver
72. Unwind, by Neal Shusterman
73. The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle
74. The Maze Runner Trilogy (series), by James Dashner
75. If I Stay, by Gayle Forman
76. The Blue Sword, by Robin McKinley
77. Crank (series), by Ellen Hopkins
78. Matched (series), by Allie Condie
79. Gallagher Girls (series), by Ally Carter
80. The Goose Girl, by Shannon Hale
81. Daughter of the Lioness / Tricksters (series), by Tamora Pierce
82. I Am the Messenger, by Markus Zusak
83. The Immortals (series), by Tamora Pierce
84. The Enchanted Forest Chronicles (series), by Patricia C. Wrede
85. Chaos Walking (series), by Patrick Ness
86. Circle of Magic (series), by Tamora Pierce
87. Daughter of Smoke & Bone, by Laini Taylor
88. Feed, by M.T. Anderson
89. Weetzie Bat (series), by Francesca Lia Block
90. Along for the Ride, by Sarah Dessen
91. Confessions of Georgia Nicolson (series), by Louise Rennison
92. Leviathan (series), by Scott Westerfeld
93. The House of the Scorpion, by Scott Westerfeld
94. The Chronicles of Chrestomanci (series), by Diana Wynne Jones
+95. The Lullaby, by Sarah Dessen
96. Gone (series), by Michael Grant
97. The Shiver Trilogy (series), by Maggie Stiefvater
98. The Hero and the Crown, by Robin McKinley
99. Wintergirls, by Laurie Halse Anderson
100. Betsy-Tacy Books (series), by Maud Hart Lovelace
For a girl who’s a voracious reader to have only read 21 of the supposedly best teen novels ever, I’d have to say I think the list is off! How many of these have you read? What would you add or subtract from the list?
