recommended reading

Need help finding your next great read? Look no further. (If you're still looking, you can always e-mail your teen librarian, Martha Sullivan at msullivan@gpld.org, or stop by to see her - she's excellent at finding the perfect book for searching readers.)

yalsa award winners

YALSA, the Young Adult Library Services Association, gives out a bunch of awards every year for the best of the best in young adult literature. Here are their major awards, which you can click through to the current list of winners and nominees:

The Printz Award

The Michael L. Printz Award recognizes the best of the best in literary excellence. Each year, one winner and four honorees are selected from the young adult books published in the preceding year. The 2019winner: The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo.

The Alex Awards

This award recognizes ten books every year written for adults but with strong teen appeal. If you're looking for something a little above and beyond our YA section, this is the list for you. Includes both fiction and nonfiction.

The Morris Award

The William C. Morris Award is given every year to honor a debut novel by a first-time author, one winner and four honorees. These authors are definitely ones to watch out for. The 2019 winner: Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram.

The YALSA Nonfiction Award

YALSA's Award for Excellence in Nonfiction honors the best nonfiction book published for young adults (ages 12-18) during a Nov. 1 – Oct. 31 publishing year. A shortlist of five titles are selected and one winner announced. The 2019 winner: The Unwanted: Stories of the Syrian Refugees by Don Brown.

martha's bookshelf

This month, Martha is recommending: Damsel by Elana K. Arnold (a Printz award finalist!).

Forget everything you thought you knew about Sleeping Beauty. When Ama wakes in the arms of Prince Emory, she has no memory of what came before she was captured by the dragon, or what horrors she has faced in its lair. She knows only this handsome prince, the story he tells of her rescue, and her destiny to sit on the throne beside him. Ama comes with Emory back to the kingdom of Harding, hailed as the new princess, welcomed to the court.

However, as soon as her first night falls, she begins to realize that not all is as it seems, that there is more to the legends of the dragons and the damsels than anyone knows–and that the greatest threats to her life may not be behind her, but here, in front of her.

My Favorite Authors YA Edition

Choose any number of authors from this list and we will place a hold for you on their new books before they are released.  While we cannot guarantee how near the top of the list you will be, we will notify you when your next great read is available for pickup.

Personal Reading Lists

Looking for your next great read? Fill out this form with your Geneva Public Library card number and reading preferences and our book experts will take care of the rest! Give us 24-48 hours to personalize a list of 5 books we think you'll love.