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by Jeanette Winterson
MoreScore: 3 white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic England Evangelical Christians Lesbians 192 pages
Jeanette grows up in her adopted family knowing she is destined to be a Christian missionary. When Jeanette meets Melanie at the market one day, it slowly dawns on Jeanette that she loves Melanie. To her great joy, Melanie loves her back. Jeanette's mother is not so happy. The relationship Melanie ends, but other relationships begin. Ultimately, Jeanette is banished from her home and church community. She leaves to live on her own in the city, returning eventually to try to repair her relationship with her mother.
by Jeanette Winterson
MoreScore: 3 white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic England Evangelical Christians Lesbians 192 pages
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by M-E Girard
Featured Book Lambda Literary Award MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Canada Protuguese Lesbians 384 pages
All Pen wants is to be the kind of girl she’s always been. So why does everyone have a problem with it? They think the way she looks and acts means she’s trying to be a boy — that she should quit trying to be something she’s not. If she dresses like a girl, and does what her folks want, it will show respect. If she takes orders and does what her friend Colby wants, it will show her loyalty.But respect and loyalty, Pen discovers, are empty words. Old-world parents, disintegrating friendships, and strong feelings for other girls drive Pen to see the truth — that in order to be who she truly wants to be, she’ll have to man up.
by M-E Girard
Featured Book Lambda Literary Award MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Canada Protuguese Lesbians 384 pages
All Pen wants is to be the kind of girl she’s always been. So why does everyone have a problem with it? They think the way she looks and acts means she’s trying to be a boy — that she should quit trying to be something she’s not. If she dresses like a girl, and does what her folks want, it will show respect. If she takes orders and does what her friend Colby wants, it will show her loyalty.But respect and loyalty, Pen discovers, are empty words. Old-world parents, disintegrating friendships, and strong feelings for other girls drive Pen to see the truth — that in order to be who she truly wants to be, she’ll have to man up.
by Jacqueline Woodson
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age historical Southern United States Bi-racial Lesbians 176 pages Lexile: HL690L
Thirteen-year-old Staggerlee used to be called Evangeline, but she took on a fiercer name. She's always been different--set apart by the tragic deaths of her grandparents in an anti-civil rights bombing, by her parents' interracial marriage, and by her family's retreat from the world. This summer she has a new reason to feel set apart--her confused longing for her friend Hazel. When cousin Trout comes to stay, she gives Staggerlee a first glimpse of her possible future selves and the world beyond childhood.
by Jacqueline Woodson
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age historical Southern United States Bi-racial Lesbians 176 pages Lexile: HL690L
Thirteen-year-old Staggerlee used to be called Evangeline, but she took on a fiercer name. She's always been different--set apart by the tragic deaths of her grandparents in an anti-civil rights bombing, by her parents' interracial marriage, and by her family's retreat from the world. This summer she has a new reason to feel set apart--her confused longing for her friend Hazel. When cousin Trout comes to stay, she gives Staggerlee a first glimpse of her possible future selves and the world beyond childhood.
by Gabby Rivera
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic New York Lesbians Puerto Rican 128 pages
Juliet Milagros Palante is leaving the Bronx and headed to Portland, Oregon. She just came out to her family and isn’t sure if her mom will ever speak to her again. But Juliet has a plan, sort of, one that’s going to help her figure out this whole “Puerto Rican lesbian” thing. She’s interning with the author of her favorite book: Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women’s bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff.
by Gabby Rivera
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic New York Lesbians Puerto Rican 128 pages
Juliet Milagros Palante is leaving the Bronx and headed to Portland, Oregon. She just came out to her family and isn’t sure if her mom will ever speak to her again. But Juliet has a plan, sort of, one that’s going to help her figure out this whole “Puerto Rican lesbian” thing. She’s interning with the author of her favorite book: Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women’s bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff.
by Meliza Bañales
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic California Mexican American Punk 148 pages
From the forests, beaches, and Xicano community of Santa Cruz to the smokey punk bars, strip clubs, and Queer-girl culture of San Francisco. Missy Fuego is an eighteen-year-old Xicana, the first in her family to take a scholarship at a prestigious yet hippie university tucked away in the Redwood forests of the Santa Cruz. She manages to get entangled with Xicano authenticity battles, Riot Grrrl race politics, and hippies, all the while exploring her Queer identity.
by Meliza Bañales
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic California Mexican American Punk 148 pages
From the forests, beaches, and Xicano community of Santa Cruz to the smokey punk bars, strip clubs, and Queer-girl culture of San Francisco. Missy Fuego is an eighteen-year-old Xicana, the first in her family to take a scholarship at a prestigious yet hippie university tucked away in the Redwood forests of the Santa Cruz. She manages to get entangled with Xicano authenticity battles, Riot Grrrl race politics, and hippies, all the while exploring her Queer identity.
by Tonya Hegamin
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age magical realism slavery lesbians 165 pages Lexile: 910L
There are two constants in Opal’s life: her dad’s grungy green baseball cap, and her troubled pal, Marianne, whom Opal loves as a best friend . . . and even more. But nothing stays the same forever. When Opal receives the horrifying news that Marianne is dead, she suddenly must live her life and make decisions based on the needs of one person instead of two. Only with the help of her family and the story of Hannah, a runaway slave, can Opal begin to free herself from the weight of her memories, her ghosts, and her own truth.
by Tonya Hegamin
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age magical realism slavery lesbians 165 pages Lexile: 910L
There are two constants in Opal’s life: her dad’s grungy green baseball cap, and her troubled pal, Marianne, whom Opal loves as a best friend . . . and even more. But nothing stays the same forever. When Opal receives the horrifying news that Marianne is dead, she suddenly must live her life and make decisions based on the needs of one person instead of two. Only with the help of her family and the story of Hannah, a runaway slave, can Opal begin to free herself from the weight of her memories, her ghosts, and her own truth.
by Deborah Ellis
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Iran Lesbians Politics 224 pages Lexile: HL700L
Fifteen-year-old Farrin has many secrets. Although she goes to a school for gifted girls in Tehran, she must keep a low profile. It is 1988; a deeply conservative and religious government controls Iran. The day she meets Sadira, Farrin's life changes forever. Sadira is funny, wise and outgoing; the two girls become inseparable. Their friendship deepens into a romance the must hide from everyone. Homosexuality is punishable by death in Iran. How with the girls find peace?
by Deborah Ellis
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Iran Lesbians Politics 224 pages Lexile: HL700L
Fifteen-year-old Farrin has many secrets. Although she goes to a school for gifted girls in Tehran, she must keep a low profile. It is 1988; a deeply conservative and religious government controls Iran. The day she meets Sadira, Farrin's life changes forever. Sadira is funny, wise and outgoing; the two girls become inseparable. Their friendship deepens into a romance the must hide from everyone. Homosexuality is punishable by death in Iran. How with the girls find peace?
by Bill Konigsberg
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Montana African Americans Dysfunctional Families 336 pages Lexile: HL670L
Carson Smith is resigned to spending his summer in Billings, Montana, helping his mom take care of his father, a dying alcoholic he doesn't really know. Then he meets Aisha Stinson who has run away from her difficult family, and discovers a secret regarding his grandfather, who disappeared without warning or explanation decades before. Together, Carson and Aisha embark on an epic road trip to try and save Carson's dad.
by Bill Konigsberg
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Montana African Americans Dysfunctional Families 336 pages Lexile: HL670L
Carson Smith is resigned to spending his summer in Billings, Montana, helping his mom take care of his father, a dying alcoholic he doesn't really know. Then he meets Aisha Stinson who has run away from her difficult family, and discovers a secret regarding his grandfather, who disappeared without warning or explanation decades before. Together, Carson and Aisha embark on an epic road trip to try and save Carson's dad.
by Carla Trujillo
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age domestic California Mexican-American Lesbians 242 pages
Marci tells the story with the wisdom of someone twice her age as she determines to defy her family and God in order to find her identity, sexuality and freedom.
by Carla Trujillo
MoreScore: 5 non-white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age domestic California Mexican-American Lesbians 242 pages
Marci tells the story with the wisdom of someone twice her age as she determines to defy her family and God in order to find her identity, sexuality and freedom.
by Nnedi Okorafor
Featured Book MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy nigeria magic women 384 pages Lexile: HL590L
Akata Witch weaves together a heart-pounding tale of magic, mystery, and finding one's place in the world. Twelve-year-old Sunny lives in Nigeria, but she was born American. Her features are African, but she's albino. She discovers she is a "free agent" with latent magical power. Soon she's part of a quartet of magic students, studying the visible and invisible, learning to change reality.
by Nnedi Okorafor
Featured Book MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy nigeria magic women 384 pages Lexile: HL590L
Akata Witch weaves together a heart-pounding tale of magic, mystery, and finding one's place in the world. Twelve-year-old Sunny lives in Nigeria, but she was born American. Her features are African, but she's albino. She discovers she is a "free agent" with latent magical power. Soon she's part of a quartet of magic students, studying the visible and invisible, learning to change reality.
by Malinda Lo
MoreScore: 4 undisclosed cis-female non-straight coming-of-age fantasy love lesbians hunting 272 pages Lexile: 1050L
In this variation on the Cinderella story, Ash grows up believing in the fairy realm that the king and his philosophers have sought to suppress, until one day she must choose between a handsome fairy cursed to love her and the King's Huntress whom she loves.
by Malinda Lo
MoreScore: 4 undisclosed cis-female non-straight coming-of-age fantasy love lesbians hunting 272 pages Lexile: 1050L
In this variation on the Cinderella story, Ash grows up believing in the fairy realm that the king and his philosophers have sought to suppress, until one day she must choose between a handsome fairy cursed to love her and the King's Huntress whom she loves.
by Rachel Gold
MoreScore: 4 white trans-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Minnestoa Teenagers Gender Identity 210 pages
They say that whoever you are it's okay, you were born that way. Those words don't comfort Emily, because she wasn't born Emily. She desperately wants high school in her small Minnesota town to get better. She wants to be the woman she knows is inside, but it's not until a substitute therapist and a girl named Natalie come into her life that she believes she has a chance of actually Being Emily.
by Rachel Gold
MoreScore: 4 white trans-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic Minnestoa Teenagers Gender Identity 210 pages
They say that whoever you are it's okay, you were born that way. Those words don't comfort Emily, because she wasn't born Emily. She desperately wants high school in her small Minnesota town to get better. She wants to be the woman she knows is inside, but it's not until a substitute therapist and a girl named Natalie come into her life that she believes she has a chance of actually Being Emily.
by Toni Morrison
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic african americans women beauty 224 pages Lexile: 920L
Pecola Breedlove, a young black girl, prays every day for beauty. Mocked by other children for the dark skin, curly hair, and brown eyes that set her apart, she yearns for normalcy, for the blond hair and blue eyes that she believes will allow her to finally fit in.Yet as her dream grows more fervent, her life slowly starts to disintegrate in the face of adversity and strife. A powerful examination of our obsession with beauty and conformity.
by Toni Morrison
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic african americans women beauty 224 pages Lexile: 920L
Pecola Breedlove, a young black girl, prays every day for beauty. Mocked by other children for the dark skin, curly hair, and brown eyes that set her apart, she yearns for normalcy, for the blond hair and blue eyes that she believes will allow her to finally fit in.Yet as her dream grows more fervent, her life slowly starts to disintegrate in the face of adversity and strife. A powerful examination of our obsession with beauty and conformity.
by Junot Díaz
Featured Book MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic dominican republic fantasy fiction spanglish 339 pages Lexile: 1010L
Oscar is a sweet but disastrously overweight, lovesick Dominican ghetto nerd. From his home in New Jersey, where he lives with his old-world mother and rebellious sister, Oscar dreams of becoming the Dominican J. R. R. Tolkien and, most of all, of finding love. But he may never get what he wants, thanks to the curse that has haunted Oscar's family for generations, dooming them to prison, torture, tragic accidents, and, above all, ill-starred love.
by Junot Díaz
Featured Book MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic dominican republic fantasy fiction spanglish 339 pages Lexile: 1010L
Oscar is a sweet but disastrously overweight, lovesick Dominican ghetto nerd. From his home in New Jersey, where he lives with his old-world mother and rebellious sister, Oscar dreams of becoming the Dominican J. R. R. Tolkien and, most of all, of finding love. But he may never get what he wants, thanks to the curse that has haunted Oscar's family for generations, dooming them to prison, torture, tragic accidents, and, above all, ill-starred love.
by Charles Rice González
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age South Bronx Latino Coming Out 317 pages
Set against a vibrant South Bronx neighborhood and the queer youth culture of Manhattan's piers, Chulito is a coming-of-age, coming out love story of a sexy, tough, hip hop-loving, young Latino man and the colorful characters who populate his block. Chulito, which means "cutie," is one of the boys. As Chulito comes to understand his love for Carlos, the must learn again how to be in love and a man in a macho culture.
by Charles Rice González
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age South Bronx Latino Coming Out 317 pages
Set against a vibrant South Bronx neighborhood and the queer youth culture of Manhattan's piers, Chulito is a coming-of-age, coming out love story of a sexy, tough, hip hop-loving, young Latino man and the colorful characters who populate his block. Chulito, which means "cutie," is one of the boys. As Chulito comes to understand his love for Carlos, the must learn again how to be in love and a man in a macho culture.
by Chris McCormick
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic Coming Out Mojave Desert Armenia 224 pages
This book follows the life of a young man growing up, leaving home, and coming back again, marked by the stark beauty of California's Mojave Desert and the various fates of those who leave and those who stay behind. This series of powerful, intertwining stories illuminates Daley Kushner's world - the family, friends and community that have both formed and constrained him, and his new life in San Francisco.
by Chris McCormick
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic Coming Out Mojave Desert Armenia 224 pages
This book follows the life of a young man growing up, leaving home, and coming back again, marked by the stark beauty of California's Mojave Desert and the various fates of those who leave and those who stay behind. This series of powerful, intertwining stories illuminates Daley Kushner's world - the family, friends and community that have both formed and constrained him, and his new life in San Francisco.
by Celia C. Pérez
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic mexican-americans punk rock friendship 336 pages Lexile: 670L
There are no shortcuts to surviving your first day at a new school—you can’t fix it with duct tape like you would your Chuck Taylors. On Day One, twelve-year-old Malú (María Luisa, if you want to annoy her) inadvertently upsets Posada Middle School’s queen bee, violates the school’s dress code with her punk rock look, and disappoints her college-professor mom in the process.
by Celia C. Pérez
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic mexican-americans punk rock friendship 336 pages Lexile: 670L
There are no shortcuts to surviving your first day at a new school—you can’t fix it with duct tape like you would your Chuck Taylors. On Day One, twelve-year-old Malú (María Luisa, if you want to annoy her) inadvertently upsets Posada Middle School’s queen bee, violates the school’s dress code with her punk rock look, and disappoints her college-professor mom in the process.
by Octavia E Butler
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Vampires Amnesia 320 pages Lexile: 730L
An apparently young, amnesiac girl whose alarmingly un-human needs and abilities lead her to a startling conclusion: she is in fact a genetically modified, 53-year-old vampire. Forced to discover what she can about her stolen former life, she must at the same time learn who wanted—and still wants—to destroy her and those she cares for, and how she can save herself. Fledgling is a captivating novel that tests the limits of "otherness" and questions what it means to be truly human.
by Octavia E Butler
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Vampires Amnesia 320 pages Lexile: 730L
An apparently young, amnesiac girl whose alarmingly un-human needs and abilities lead her to a startling conclusion: she is in fact a genetically modified, 53-year-old vampire. Forced to discover what she can about her stolen former life, she must at the same time learn who wanted—and still wants—to destroy her and those she cares for, and how she can save herself. Fledgling is a captivating novel that tests the limits of "otherness" and questions what it means to be truly human.
by Shyam Selvadurai
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic Sri Lanka Tamil Gay Teens 310 pages Lexile: 780L
The second son of a privileged family in Sri Lanka, Arjie prefers staging make-believe weddings with his female cousins than batting balls with the other boys. When his parents discover his innocent pastime, Arjie is forced to abandon his idyllic childhood games and adopt the rigid rules of the adult world. Bewildered by his incipient sexual awakening, Arjie painfully grows toward manhood and an understanding of his own "different" identity.
by Shyam Selvadurai
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic Sri Lanka Tamil Gay Teens 310 pages Lexile: 780L
The second son of a privileged family in Sri Lanka, Arjie prefers staging make-believe weddings with his female cousins than batting balls with the other boys. When his parents discover his innocent pastime, Arjie is forced to abandon his idyllic childhood games and adopt the rigid rules of the adult world. Bewildered by his incipient sexual awakening, Arjie painfully grows toward manhood and an understanding of his own "different" identity.
by Thanhha Lai
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic vietnam american south immigration 276 pages Lexile: 800L
Moving to America turns Ha's life inside out. For all the 10 years of her life, Ha has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by, and the beauty of her very own papaya tree. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Ha and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, Ha discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food, the strange shape of its landscape.
by Thanhha Lai
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic vietnam american south immigration 276 pages Lexile: 800L
Moving to America turns Ha's life inside out. For all the 10 years of her life, Ha has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by, and the beauty of her very own papaya tree. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Ha and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, Ha discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food, the strange shape of its landscape.
by Firoozeh Dumas
MEOC Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age historical California Iranian 224 pages
Zomorod (Cindy) Yousefzadeh is the new kid on the block . . . for the fourth time. California’s Newport Beach is her family’s latest perch, and she’s determined to shuck her brainy loner persona and start afresh with a new Brady Bunch name—Cindy. It’s the late 1970s, and fitting in becomes more difficult as Iran makes U.S. headlines with protests, revolution, and finally the taking of American hostages. Even mood rings and puka shell necklaces can't distract Cindy from the anti-Iran sentiments that creep way too close to home.
by Firoozeh Dumas
MEOC Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age historical California Iranian 224 pages
Zomorod (Cindy) Yousefzadeh is the new kid on the block . . . for the fourth time. California’s Newport Beach is her family’s latest perch, and she’s determined to shuck her brainy loner persona and start afresh with a new Brady Bunch name—Cindy. It’s the late 1970s, and fitting in becomes more difficult as Iran makes U.S. headlines with protests, revolution, and finally the taking of American hostages. Even mood rings and puka shell necklaces can't distract Cindy from the anti-Iran sentiments that creep way too close to home.
by G. Willow Wilson
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age graphic novel muslim american women 120 pages Lexile: GN420L
Kamala Khan is an ordinary girl from Jersey City - until she is suddenly empowered with extraordinary gifts. But who truly is the all-new Ms. Marvel? Teenager? Muslim? Inhuman? Find out as she takes the Marvel Universe by storm!
by G. Willow Wilson
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age graphic novel muslim american women 120 pages Lexile: GN420L
Kamala Khan is an ordinary girl from Jersey City - until she is suddenly empowered with extraordinary gifts. But who truly is the all-new Ms. Marvel? Teenager? Muslim? Inhuman? Find out as she takes the Marvel Universe by storm!
by Willa Cather
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age historical nebraska pioneer women immigration 416 pages Lexile: 1010L
James Burden writes to a friend about a girl, Antonia whom he met when he was ten and she was thirteen, and the influence she had on his life.
by Willa Cather
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age historical nebraska pioneer women immigration 416 pages Lexile: 1010L
James Burden writes to a friend about a girl, Antonia whom he met when he was ten and she was thirteen, and the influence she had on his life.
by Imogen Binnie
Lambda Literary Award MoreScore: 4 white trans-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic New York, New York Gender Identity Road Trip 243 pages
Maria Griffiths is a young trans woman living in New York City and trying to stay true to her punk values while working retail. When she finds out her girlfriend has lied to her, the world she thought she'd carefully built for herself begins to unravel, and Maria sets out on a journey across the country that will most certainly change her forever.
by Imogen Binnie
Lambda Literary Award MoreScore: 4 white trans-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic New York, New York Gender Identity Road Trip 243 pages
Maria Griffiths is a young trans woman living in New York City and trying to stay true to her punk values while working retail. When she finds out her girlfriend has lied to her, the world she thought she'd carefully built for herself begins to unravel, and Maria sets out on a journey across the country that will most certainly change her forever.
by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Featured Book MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic Nigeria Coup Fanaticism 307 pages Lexile: 920L
Fifteen-year-old Kambili and her older brother Jaja lead a privileged life in Enugu, Nigeria. They live in a beautiful house, with a caring family, and attend an exclusive missionary school. They're completely shielded from the troubles of the world. Yet, as Kambili reveals in her tender-voiced account, things are less perfect than they appear.
by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Featured Book MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic Nigeria Coup Fanaticism 307 pages Lexile: 920L
Fifteen-year-old Kambili and her older brother Jaja lead a privileged life in Enugu, Nigeria. They live in a beautiful house, with a caring family, and attend an exclusive missionary school. They're completely shielded from the troubles of the world. Yet, as Kambili reveals in her tender-voiced account, things are less perfect than they appear.
by Bil Wright
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic New York Makeup Artists High School 219 pages Lexile: 820L
Carlos Duarte knows that he's fabulous. He's got a better sense of style than half the fashionistas in New York City, and he can definitely apply makeup like nobody's business. He may only be in high school, but when he lands the job of his dreams--makeup artist at the FeatureFace counter in Macy's--he's sure that he's finally on his way to great things.
by Bil Wright
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic New York Makeup Artists High School 219 pages Lexile: 820L
Carlos Duarte knows that he's fabulous. He's got a better sense of style than half the fashionistas in New York City, and he can definitely apply makeup like nobody's business. He may only be in high school, but when he lands the job of his dreams--makeup artist at the FeatureFace counter in Macy's--he's sure that he's finally on his way to great things.
by Nikki Grimes
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic New York City African American Racial Identity 153 pages Lexile: 700L
Paris has just moved in with the Lincoln family, and she isn't thrilled to be in yet another foster home. She has a tough time trusting people, and she misses her brother, who's been sent to a boys' home. Over time, the Lincolns grow on Paris. But no matter how hard she tries to fit in, she can't ignore the feeling that she never will, especially in a town that's mostly white while she is half black. It isn't long before Paris has a big decision to make about where she truly belongs.
by Nikki Grimes
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic New York City African American Racial Identity 153 pages Lexile: 700L
Paris has just moved in with the Lincoln family, and she isn't thrilled to be in yet another foster home. She has a tough time trusting people, and she misses her brother, who's been sent to a boys' home. Over time, the Lincolns grow on Paris. But no matter how hard she tries to fit in, she can't ignore the feeling that she never will, especially in a town that's mostly white while she is half black. It isn't long before Paris has a big decision to make about where she truly belongs.
by Jeff Garvin
MoreScore: 4 white non-binary non-straight coming-of-age realistic Politics Gender Identity Internet 352 pages Lexile: HL760L
Riley Cavanaugh is many things: Punk rock. Snarky. Rebellious. Gender fluid. Some days Riley identifies as a boy, and others as a girl. Between starting a new school and having a congressman father running for reelection in conservative Orange County, the pressure is building up. On the advice of a therapist, Riley starts an anonymous blog to vent those pent-up feelings and tell the truth of what it's really like to be a gender fluid teenager. The blog, however, goes viral, and Riley's real identity is threatened.
by Jeff Garvin
MoreScore: 4 white non-binary non-straight coming-of-age realistic Politics Gender Identity Internet 352 pages Lexile: HL760L
Riley Cavanaugh is many things: Punk rock. Snarky. Rebellious. Gender fluid. Some days Riley identifies as a boy, and others as a girl. Between starting a new school and having a congressman father running for reelection in conservative Orange County, the pressure is building up. On the advice of a therapist, Riley starts an anonymous blog to vent those pent-up feelings and tell the truth of what it's really like to be a gender fluid teenager. The blog, however, goes viral, and Riley's real identity is threatened.
by Randall Kenan
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age domestic North Carolina African American Gay Teens 257 pages
Horace Cross, the 16-year-old descendent of slaves and deacons of the church, spends a horror-filled spring night wrestling with the demons and angels of his brief life. Brilliant, popular, and the bright promise of his elders, Horace struggles with the guilt of discovering who he is, a young man attracted to other men and yearning to escape the narrow confines of Tim's Creek.
by Randall Kenan
MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age domestic North Carolina African American Gay Teens 257 pages
Horace Cross, the 16-year-old descendent of slaves and deacons of the church, spends a horror-filled spring night wrestling with the demons and angels of his brief life. Brilliant, popular, and the bright promise of his elders, Horace struggles with the guilt of discovering who he is, a young man attracted to other men and yearning to escape the narrow confines of Tim's Creek.
by Rukhsana Khan
MEOC Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age perseverance Kabul, Afghanistan Orphans 190 pages Lexile: 540L
Based on a true story, Jameela, a young girl living in war-torn Afghanistan, must struggle to find her place in the world after her mother dies and she is moved to Kabul with her drunken father where she clashes with her mean stepmother and ends up in an orphanage run by the same army who was responsible for killing members of her family.
by Rukhsana Khan
MEOC Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age perseverance Kabul, Afghanistan Orphans 190 pages Lexile: 540L
Based on a true story, Jameela, a young girl living in war-torn Afghanistan, must struggle to find her place in the world after her mother dies and she is moved to Kabul with her drunken father where she clashes with her mean stepmother and ends up in an orphanage run by the same army who was responsible for killing members of her family.
by Randa Abdel Fattah
MEOC Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic Israeli Palestinian Conflict Palestinians 313 pages Lexile: 740L
Thirteen-year-old Hayaat is on a mission. She believes a handful of soil from her grandmother's ancestral home in Jerusalem will save her beloved Sitti Zeynab's life. The only problem is that Hayaat and her family live behind the impenetrable wall that divides the West Bank, and they're on the wrong side of checkpoints, curfews, and the travel permit system. Plus, Hayaat's best friend, Samy, always manages to attract trouble.
by Randa Abdel Fattah
MEOC Award MoreScore: 4 non-white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic Israeli Palestinian Conflict Palestinians 313 pages Lexile: 740L
Thirteen-year-old Hayaat is on a mission. She believes a handful of soil from her grandmother's ancestral home in Jerusalem will save her beloved Sitti Zeynab's life. The only problem is that Hayaat and her family live behind the impenetrable wall that divides the West Bank, and they're on the wrong side of checkpoints, curfews, and the travel permit system. Plus, Hayaat's best friend, Samy, always manages to attract trouble.
by Kathleen Winter
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 3 white non-binary undisclosed coming-of-age historical Newfoundland, Canada Gender Identity Intersex Teens 480 pages
In 1968, into rural Labrador, Canada, a child is born: a baby who appears to be neither fully boy nor fully girl, but both at once. The baby's father insists that the child be raised as a boy named Wayne. Yet, the child's mother continues to quietly nurture the the child's female side. And as Wayne grows into adulthood within a hyper-masculine hunting society, a shadow-self, an inner girl named "Annabel,” is never entirely extinguished.
by Kathleen Winter
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 3 white non-binary undisclosed coming-of-age historical Newfoundland, Canada Gender Identity Intersex Teens 480 pages
In 1968, into rural Labrador, Canada, a child is born: a baby who appears to be neither fully boy nor fully girl, but both at once. The baby's father insists that the child be raised as a boy named Wayne. Yet, the child's mother continues to quietly nurture the the child's female side. And as Wayne grows into adulthood within a hyper-masculine hunting society, a shadow-self, an inner girl named "Annabel,” is never entirely extinguished.
by Christopher Paul Curtis
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age historical Michican African Americans Depression 256 pages Lexile: 950L
It’s 1936, in Flint Michigan. Times may be hard, and ten-year-old Bud may be a motherless boy on the run, but Bud’s got a few things going for him. He has his own suitcase full of special things. He’s the author of Bud Caldwell’s Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself. His momma never told him who his father was, but she left a clue: flyers advertising Herman E. Calloway and his famous band, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression.
by Christopher Paul Curtis
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age historical Michican African Americans Depression 256 pages Lexile: 950L
It’s 1936, in Flint Michigan. Times may be hard, and ten-year-old Bud may be a motherless boy on the run, but Bud’s got a few things going for him. He has his own suitcase full of special things. He’s the author of Bud Caldwell’s Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself. His momma never told him who his father was, but she left a clue: flyers advertising Herman E. Calloway and his famous band, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression.
by Natasha Díaz
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis female pending coming-of-age romance new york city african american jewish american 384 pages
Growing up in an affluent suburb of New York City, sixteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz never thought much about her biracial roots. When her Black mom and Jewish dad split up, she relocates to her mom's family home in Harlem and is forced to confront her identity for the first time. Only when Nevaeh stumbles upon a secret from her mom's past, finds herself falling in love, and sees firsthand the prejudice her family faces does she begin to discover her own voice. And freedom of choice.
by Natasha Díaz
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis female pending coming-of-age romance new york city african american jewish american 384 pages
Growing up in an affluent suburb of New York City, sixteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz never thought much about her biracial roots. When her Black mom and Jewish dad split up, she relocates to her mom's family home in Harlem and is forced to confront her identity for the first time. Only when Nevaeh stumbles upon a secret from her mom's past, finds herself falling in love, and sees firsthand the prejudice her family faces does she begin to discover her own voice. And freedom of choice.
by Abraham Verghese
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic ethiopia new york surgeons 556 pages
Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon. Orphaned by their mother’s death and their father’s disappearance and bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution. Moving from Addis Ababa to New York City and back again, Cutting for Stone is an unforgettable story of love and betrayal, medicine and ordinary miracles—and two brothers whose fates are forever intertwined.
by Abraham Verghese
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic ethiopia new york surgeons 556 pages
Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon. Orphaned by their mother’s death and their father’s disappearance and bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution. Moving from Addis Ababa to New York City and back again, Cutting for Stone is an unforgettable story of love and betrayal, medicine and ordinary miracles—and two brothers whose fates are forever intertwined.
by Gail Giles
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic Neurodiversity Developmental Disability Sexual Assault 224 pages Lexile: HL570L
Quincy and Biddy are both graduates of their high school’s special ed program, but they couldn’t be more different: suspicious Quincy faces the world with her fists up, while gentle Biddy is frightened to step outside her front door. When they’re thrown together as roommates in their first apartment, it initially seems to be an uneasy fit. But life soon teaches them they might have more in common than they thought.
by Gail Giles
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic Neurodiversity Developmental Disability Sexual Assault 224 pages Lexile: HL570L
Quincy and Biddy are both graduates of their high school’s special ed program, but they couldn’t be more different: suspicious Quincy faces the world with her fists up, while gentle Biddy is frightened to step outside her front door. When they’re thrown together as roommates in their first apartment, it initially seems to be an uneasy fit. But life soon teaches them they might have more in common than they thought.
by Sandra Cisneros
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic chicago mexican-americans women 144 pages Lexile: 870L
The House on Mango Street is the remarkable story of Esperanza Cordero, a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become. Told in a series of vignettes, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous, it's a story of childhood and self-discovery.
by Sandra Cisneros
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic chicago mexican-americans women 144 pages Lexile: 870L
The House on Mango Street is the remarkable story of Esperanza Cordero, a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become. Told in a series of vignettes, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous, it's a story of childhood and self-discovery.
by Julia Alvarez
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age historical New York City Dominican Americans Acculturation 250 pages Lexile: 950L
The García sisters—Carla, Sandra, Yolanda, and Sofía—and their family must flee their home in the Dominican Republic after their father’s role in an attempt to overthrow a tyrannical dictator is discovered. They arrive in New York City in 1960 to a life far removed from their existence in the Caribbean. In the wild and wondrous and not always welcoming U.S.A., their parents try to hold on to their old ways, but the girls try find new lives.
by Julia Alvarez
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age historical New York City Dominican Americans Acculturation 250 pages Lexile: 950L
The García sisters—Carla, Sandra, Yolanda, and Sofía—and their family must flee their home in the Dominican Republic after their father’s role in an attempt to overthrow a tyrannical dictator is discovered. They arrive in New York City in 1960 to a life far removed from their existence in the Caribbean. In the wild and wondrous and not always welcoming U.S.A., their parents try to hold on to their old ways, but the girls try find new lives.
by Cris Beam
MoreScore: 3 non-white trans-male straight coming-of-age realistic transgender friendship 326 pages Lexile: HL710L
J had always felt different. He was certain that eventually everyone would understand who he really was: a boy mistakenly born as a girl. Yet as he grew up, his body began to betray him; eventually J stopped praying to wake up a "real boy" and started covering up his body, keeping himself invisible -- from his parents, from his friends, from the world. But after being deserted by the best friend he thought would always be by his side, J decides that he's done hiding.
by Cris Beam
MoreScore: 3 non-white trans-male straight coming-of-age realistic transgender friendship 326 pages Lexile: HL710L
J had always felt different. He was certain that eventually everyone would understand who he really was: a boy mistakenly born as a girl. Yet as he grew up, his body began to betray him; eventually J stopped praying to wake up a "real boy" and started covering up his body, keeping himself invisible -- from his parents, from his friends, from the world. But after being deserted by the best friend he thought would always be by his side, J decides that he's done hiding.
by Amélie Sarn
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic France Islam Death 160 pages Lexile: HL560L
Two sisters. Two lives. One future. Sohane loves no one more than her beautiful, carefree younger sister, Djelila. And she hates no one as much. They used to share everything. But now, Djelila is spending more time with her friends, partying, and hanging out with boys, while Sohane is becoming more religious. When Sohane starts wearing a head scarf, her school threatens to expel her. Meanwhile, Djelila is harassed by neighborhood bullies for not being Muslim enough. Sohane can't help thinking that Djelila deserves what she gets.
by Amélie Sarn
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic France Islam Death 160 pages Lexile: HL560L
Two sisters. Two lives. One future. Sohane loves no one more than her beautiful, carefree younger sister, Djelila. And she hates no one as much. They used to share everything. But now, Djelila is spending more time with her friends, partying, and hanging out with boys, while Sohane is becoming more religious. When Sohane starts wearing a head scarf, her school threatens to expel her. Meanwhile, Djelila is harassed by neighborhood bullies for not being Muslim enough. Sohane can't help thinking that Djelila deserves what she gets.
by Pat Schmatz
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed non-binary pending coming-of-age science fiction Wilderness Aliens Telepathy 288 pages Lexile: HL610L
Fifteen-year-old Kivali has never fit in. As a girl in boys’ clothes, she is accepted by neither tribe, bullied by both. Abandoned as a baby wrapped in a T-shirt with an image of a lizard on the front, Kivali found a home with outcast artist Sheila. Sheila says Kivali was left by a race of lizard people and that, one day, she’ll save the world. When Sheila sends Kivali is sent to CropCamp outdoors and working in the fields, Kivali uses her unique ability to channel and explore the power of her animal self. She has Lizard Radio.
by Pat Schmatz
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed non-binary pending coming-of-age science fiction Wilderness Aliens Telepathy 288 pages Lexile: HL610L
Fifteen-year-old Kivali has never fit in. As a girl in boys’ clothes, she is accepted by neither tribe, bullied by both. Abandoned as a baby wrapped in a T-shirt with an image of a lizard on the front, Kivali found a home with outcast artist Sheila. Sheila says Kivali was left by a race of lizard people and that, one day, she’ll save the world. When Sheila sends Kivali is sent to CropCamp outdoors and working in the fields, Kivali uses her unique ability to channel and explore the power of her animal self. She has Lizard Radio.
by Walter Dean Myers
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic New York City African American Old Age 272 pages Lexile: 730L
When I first got to Progress, it freaked me out to be locked in a room and unable to get out. But after a while, when you got to thinking about it, you knew nobody could get in, either. It seems as if the only progress that's going on at Progress juvenile facility is moving from juvy jail to real jail. Reese wants out early, but is he supposed to just sit back and let his friend Toon get jumped? Then Reese gets a second chance when he's picked for the work program at a senior citizens' home. He doesn't mean to keep messing up, but it's not so easy, at Progress or in life.
by Walter Dean Myers
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic New York City African American Old Age 272 pages Lexile: 730L
When I first got to Progress, it freaked me out to be locked in a room and unable to get out. But after a while, when you got to thinking about it, you knew nobody could get in, either. It seems as if the only progress that's going on at Progress juvenile facility is moving from juvy jail to real jail. Reese wants out early, but is he supposed to just sit back and let his friend Toon get jumped? Then Reese gets a second chance when he's picked for the work program at a senior citizens' home. He doesn't mean to keep messing up, but it's not so easy, at Progress or in life.
by Emily M. Danforth
MoreScore: 3 white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic montana lesbians christianity 480 pages Lexile: 1120L
Cameron Post feels a mix of guilt and relief when her parents die in a car accident. Their deaths mean they will never learn the truth she eventually comes to: that she's gay. Orphaned, Cameron comes to live with her old-fashioned grandmother and ultraconservative aunt Ruth. There she falls in love with her best friend, a beautiful cowgirl. When she’s eventually outed, her aunt sends her to God’s Promise, a religious conversion camp that is supposed to “cure” her homosexuality. At the camp, Cameron comes face to face with the cost of denying her true identity.
by Emily M. Danforth
MoreScore: 3 white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic montana lesbians christianity 480 pages Lexile: 1120L
Cameron Post feels a mix of guilt and relief when her parents die in a car accident. Their deaths mean they will never learn the truth she eventually comes to: that she's gay. Orphaned, Cameron comes to live with her old-fashioned grandmother and ultraconservative aunt Ruth. There she falls in love with her best friend, a beautiful cowgirl. When she’s eventually outed, her aunt sends her to God’s Promise, a religious conversion camp that is supposed to “cure” her homosexuality. At the camp, Cameron comes face to face with the cost of denying her true identity.
by Rita Williams-Garcia
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age historical sisters civil rights black panthers 224 pages Lexile: 750L
Delphine has it together. Even though her mother, Cecile, abandoned her and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, seven years ago. Even though her father and Big Ma send them from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to stay with Cecile for the summer. Cecile sends Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern to a summer camp sponsored by a revolutionary group, the Black Panthers, where the girls get a radical new education.
by Rita Williams-Garcia
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age historical sisters civil rights black panthers 224 pages Lexile: 750L
Delphine has it together. Even though her mother, Cecile, abandoned her and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, seven years ago. Even though her father and Big Ma send them from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to stay with Cecile for the summer. Cecile sends Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern to a summer camp sponsored by a revolutionary group, the Black Panthers, where the girls get a radical new education.
by Nella Larsen
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic Denmark Bi-Racial Harlem Renaissance 144 pages
Helga's mother is white, and her father is black--and absent. Ostracized throughout her lonely childhood for her dark skin, Helga spends her adult life seeking acceptance. Everywhere she goes — the American South, Harlem, even Denmark--she feels oppressed. Socially, economically, and psychologically, Helga struggles against the "quicksand" of classism, racism, and sexism.
by Nella Larsen
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic Denmark Bi-Racial Harlem Renaissance 144 pages
Helga's mother is white, and her father is black--and absent. Ostracized throughout her lonely childhood for her dark skin, Helga spends her adult life seeking acceptance. Everywhere she goes — the American South, Harlem, even Denmark--she feels oppressed. Socially, economically, and psychologically, Helga struggles against the "quicksand" of classism, racism, and sexism.
by Patricia Dunn
MEOC Award MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic Cairo, Egypt Muslim Arab Spring 320 pages Lexile: HL610L
Mariam just wants to fit in. That's not easy when she's the only Egyptian at her high school and her parents are super traditional. So when she sneaks into a party that gets busted, Mariam knows she's in trouble...big trouble. Convinced she needs more discipline and to reconnect with her roots, Mariam's parents send her to Cairo to stay with her grandmother, her sittu. As Mariam searches for the courage to be true to herself, a teen named Asmaa calls on the people of Egypt to protest their president. The country is on the brink of revolution—and now, in her own way, so is Mariam.
by Patricia Dunn
MEOC Award MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic Cairo, Egypt Muslim Arab Spring 320 pages Lexile: HL610L
Mariam just wants to fit in. That's not easy when she's the only Egyptian at her high school and her parents are super traditional. So when she sneaks into a party that gets busted, Mariam knows she's in trouble...big trouble. Convinced she needs more discipline and to reconnect with her roots, Mariam's parents send her to Cairo to stay with her grandmother, her sittu. As Mariam searches for the courage to be true to herself, a teen named Asmaa calls on the people of Egypt to protest their president. The country is on the brink of revolution—and now, in her own way, so is Mariam.
by Ingrid Law
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Magic Voyages Birthdays 272 pages Lexile: 1070L
For Mibs Beaumont's family, the day of their thirteenth birthday could be an adventure or a disaster. It's when they get their savvy - an extra-special talent and know-how. Her brother Rocket is Mr Electric, he can send static shocks from the other side of the room, just for fun. But on Mibs's special day, their Poppa lies in a coma in hospital, and she has to reach him. The only way to get there is on the pink Bible bus, so, adventure or disaster, Mibs is getting on that bus. And who could guess what might happen then?
by Ingrid Law
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Magic Voyages Birthdays 272 pages Lexile: 1070L
For Mibs Beaumont's family, the day of their thirteenth birthday could be an adventure or a disaster. It's when they get their savvy - an extra-special talent and know-how. Her brother Rocket is Mr Electric, he can send static shocks from the other side of the room, just for fun. But on Mibs's special day, their Poppa lies in a coma in hospital, and she has to reach him. The only way to get there is on the pink Bible bus, so, adventure or disaster, Mibs is getting on that bus. And who could guess what might happen then?
by Rachel Hartman
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Dragons Music Monarchy 368 pages Lexile: 760L
Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high. Seraphina has reason to fear both sides.
by Rachel Hartman
MoreScore: 3 undisclosed cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Dragons Music Monarchy 368 pages Lexile: 760L
Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high. Seraphina has reason to fear both sides.
by Fatima Sharafeddine
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic Beirut, Lebanon Education Women's Rights 144 pages Lexile: HL770L
Faten’s happy life in her village comes to an abrupt end when her father arranges for her to work as a servant for a wealthy Beirut family with two spoiled daughters. What does a bright, ambitious seventeen-year-old do when she is suddenly deprived of her friends, family, education and freedom? Could the mysterious, wealthy young man who lives in the next apartment building help? When Faten finally manages to make contact with Marwan, a musician and engineering student, he helps her figure out a way to pursue her studies in secret.
by Fatima Sharafeddine
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic Beirut, Lebanon Education Women's Rights 144 pages Lexile: HL770L
Faten’s happy life in her village comes to an abrupt end when her father arranges for her to work as a servant for a wealthy Beirut family with two spoiled daughters. What does a bright, ambitious seventeen-year-old do when she is suddenly deprived of her friends, family, education and freedom? Could the mysterious, wealthy young man who lives in the next apartment building help? When Faten finally manages to make contact with Marwan, a musician and engineering student, he helps her figure out a way to pursue her studies in secret.
by Zora Neale Hurston
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic african americans women jim crow laws 231 pages Lexile: 890L
Fair and long-legged, independent and articulate, Janie Crawford sets out to be her own person -- no mean feat for a black woman in the '30s. Janie's quest for identity takes her through three marriages and into a journey back to her roots.
by Zora Neale Hurston
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic african americans women jim crow laws 231 pages Lexile: 890L
Fair and long-legged, independent and articulate, Janie Crawford sets out to be her own person -- no mean feat for a black woman in the '30s. Janie's quest for identity takes her through three marriages and into a journey back to her roots.
by Jenny Downham
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 3 white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic England Grandmothers Alzheimer's 384 pages Lexile: HL700L
Three women. Three generations. Three secrets. Katie's life is falling apart: her best friend thinks she's a freak, her mother, Caroline, controls every aspect of her life, and her estranged grandmother, Mary, appears as if out of nowhere. Mary has dementia and needs lots of care, and when Katie starts putting together Mary's life story, secrets and lies are uncovered: Mary's illegitimate baby, her zest for life and freedom and men; the way she lived her life to the full yet suffered huge sacrifices along the way. As the relationship between Mary and Caroline is explored, Katie begins to understand her own mother's behavior in a new light.
by Jenny Downham
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 3 white cis-female non-straight coming-of-age realistic England Grandmothers Alzheimer's 384 pages Lexile: HL700L
Three women. Three generations. Three secrets. Katie's life is falling apart: her best friend thinks she's a freak, her mother, Caroline, controls every aspect of her life, and her estranged grandmother, Mary, appears as if out of nowhere. Mary has dementia and needs lots of care, and when Katie starts putting together Mary's life story, secrets and lies are uncovered: Mary's illegitimate baby, her zest for life and freedom and men; the way she lived her life to the full yet suffered huge sacrifices along the way. As the relationship between Mary and Caroline is explored, Katie begins to understand her own mother's behavior in a new light.
by Chris Crutcher
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic sports 304 pages Lexile: 1000L
A varsity letter jacket: it's exclusive, nearly unattainable, revered . . . and everything that's screwed up about Cutter High, as far as T. J. Jones is concerned. That's why T. J. is determined to have the Cutter All Night Mermen—the unlikeliest swim team a high school has ever seen—earn letter jackets of their own.
by Chris Crutcher
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic sports 304 pages Lexile: 1000L
A varsity letter jacket: it's exclusive, nearly unattainable, revered . . . and everything that's screwed up about Cutter High, as far as T. J. Jones is concerned. That's why T. J. is determined to have the Cutter All Night Mermen—the unlikeliest swim team a high school has ever seen—earn letter jackets of their own.
by Janice Warman
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic South Africa Black South Africans Apartheid 176 pages Lexile: HL650L
South Africa, 1976. Joshua lives with his mother in the maid’s room, in the backyard of their wealthy white employers’ house in the city by the sea. He doesn’t quite understand the events going on around him. But when he rescues a stranger and riots begin to sweep the country, Joshua has to face the world beneath—the world deep inside him—to make heartbreaking choices that will change his life forever. Genuine and quietly unflinching, this beautifully nuanced novel from a veteran journalist captures a child’s-eye view of the struggle that shaped a nation and riveted the world.
by Janice Warman
MoreScore: 3 non-white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age realistic South Africa Black South Africans Apartheid 176 pages Lexile: HL650L
South Africa, 1976. Joshua lives with his mother in the maid’s room, in the backyard of their wealthy white employers’ house in the city by the sea. He doesn’t quite understand the events going on around him. But when he rescues a stranger and riots begin to sweep the country, Joshua has to face the world beneath—the world deep inside him—to make heartbreaking choices that will change his life forever. Genuine and quietly unflinching, this beautifully nuanced novel from a veteran journalist captures a child’s-eye view of the struggle that shaped a nation and riveted the world.
by Sherman Alexie
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age humor native americans cartoons racism 272 pages Lexile: 600L
Junior is a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Illustrated with great cartoons from the protagonist.
by Sherman Alexie
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age humor native americans cartoons racism 272 pages Lexile: 600L
Junior is a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. Illustrated with great cartoons from the protagonist.
by L M Montgomery
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age historical Canada Farm Life Imagination 296 pages
Farm-owning siblings Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert hope to adopt a boy to help them around the farm. In a mix-up, the orphanage sends them the talkative and athletic Anne Shirley instead. Anne's talent for imagination and storytelling is prodigious and she quickly becomes a beloved part of the family and community.
by L M Montgomery
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age historical Canada Farm Life Imagination 296 pages
Farm-owning siblings Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert hope to adopt a boy to help them around the farm. In a mix-up, the orphanage sends them the talkative and athletic Anne Shirley instead. Anne's talent for imagination and storytelling is prodigious and she quickly becomes a beloved part of the family and community.
by Holly Goldberg Sloan
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic genius autism school 369 pages Lexile: 770L
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius who is obsessed with diagnosing medical conditions and finds comfort in counting by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn't kept her from leading a quietly happy life until now. Suddenly Willow's world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.
by Holly Goldberg Sloan
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic genius autism school 369 pages Lexile: 770L
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius who is obsessed with diagnosing medical conditions and finds comfort in counting by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn't kept her from leading a quietly happy life until now. Suddenly Willow's world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.
by Angela Johnson
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age realistic New York City African Americans Fatherhood 131 pages Lexile: 790L
This little thing with the perfect face and hands doing nothing but counting on me. And me wanting nothing else but to run crying into my own mom's room and have her do the whole thing. It's not going to happen. Bobby is your classic urban teenager boy -- impulsive, eager, restless. On his sixteenth birthday he gets some news from his girlfriend, Nia, that changes his life forever. She's pregnant. Bobby steps up and accepts his responsibilities, no matter the cost.
by Angela Johnson
Coretta Scott King Award MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age realistic New York City African Americans Fatherhood 131 pages Lexile: 790L
This little thing with the perfect face and hands doing nothing but counting on me. And me wanting nothing else but to run crying into my own mom's room and have her do the whole thing. It's not going to happen. Bobby is your classic urban teenager boy -- impulsive, eager, restless. On his sixteenth birthday he gets some news from his girlfriend, Nia, that changes his life forever. She's pregnant. Bobby steps up and accepts his responsibilities, no matter the cost.
by Merrie Haskell
MoreScore: 2 pending cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Dragons Writing 336 pages Lexile: 770L
Political upheaval sends Princess Tilda fleeing from her kingdom in the company of two hopeful dragon slayers. The princess never had any interest in chasing dragons. The pain from her crippled foot was too great, and her dream was to write a book. But the princess finds herself making friends with magical horses, facing the Wild Hunt, and pointing a sword at fire-breathing dragons. While doing things she never imagined, Tilda finds qualities in herself she never knew she possessed.
by Merrie Haskell
MoreScore: 2 pending cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age fantasy Dragons Writing 336 pages Lexile: 770L
Political upheaval sends Princess Tilda fleeing from her kingdom in the company of two hopeful dragon slayers. The princess never had any interest in chasing dragons. The pain from her crippled foot was too great, and her dream was to write a book. But the princess finds herself making friends with magical horses, facing the Wild Hunt, and pointing a sword at fire-breathing dragons. While doing things she never imagined, Tilda finds qualities in herself she never knew she possessed.
by Jhumpa Lahiri
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age realistic massachusetts india immigration 291 pages Lexile: 1140L
On the heels of their arranged wedding, Ashoke and Ashima Ganguli settle together in Cambridge, Massachusetts. An engineer by training, Ashoke adapts far less warily than his wife, who resists all things American and pines for her family. When their son is born, the task of naming him betrays the vexed results of bringing old ways to the new world. Named for a Russian writer by his Indian parents in memory of a catastrophe years before, Gogol Ganguli knows only that he suffers the burden of his heritage as well as his odd name.
by Jhumpa Lahiri
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age realistic massachusetts india immigration 291 pages Lexile: 1140L
On the heels of their arranged wedding, Ashoke and Ashima Ganguli settle together in Cambridge, Massachusetts. An engineer by training, Ashoke adapts far less warily than his wife, who resists all things American and pines for her family. When their son is born, the task of naming him betrays the vexed results of bringing old ways to the new world. Named for a Russian writer by his Indian parents in memory of a catastrophe years before, Gogol Ganguli knows only that he suffers the burden of his heritage as well as his odd name.
by I W Gregorio
MoreScore: 2 white non-binary straight coming-of-age realistic Intersex Teens Gender Identity High School 352 pages Lexile: HL770L
When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She's a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she's madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she's decided that she's ready to take things to the next level with him. But Kristin's first time isn't the perfect moment she's planned.
by I W Gregorio
MoreScore: 2 white non-binary straight coming-of-age realistic Intersex Teens Gender Identity High School 352 pages Lexile: HL770L
When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She's a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she's madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she's decided that she's ready to take things to the next level with him. But Kristin's first time isn't the perfect moment she's planned.
by Louise Erdrich
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age detective North Dakota Ojibwe Rape 368 pages Lexile: 790L
After the rape of his mother, Geraldine Coutts, is raped, Joe Coutts and his father, a tribal judge, set out to uncover the truth and find justice. Across the Ojibwe reservation in North Dakota and through a series of encounters with both fellow Ojibwe indians and visiting Christian missionaries, Joe and his father collect clues. The ultimate confrontation sheds light on the violence against women and clash of cultures in modern Ojibwe culture.
by Louise Erdrich
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age detective North Dakota Ojibwe Rape 368 pages Lexile: 790L
After the rape of his mother, Geraldine Coutts, is raped, Joe Coutts and his father, a tribal judge, set out to uncover the truth and find justice. Across the Ojibwe reservation in North Dakota and through a series of encounters with both fellow Ojibwe indians and visiting Christian missionaries, Joe and his father collect clues. The ultimate confrontation sheds light on the violence against women and clash of cultures in modern Ojibwe culture.
by John Joseph Mathews
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age autobiographical Oaklahoma Osage World War I 312 pages
Challenge Windzer, the mixed-blood protagonist of this compelling autobiographical novel, was born at the beginning of the twentieth century "when the god of the great Osages was still dominate over the wild prairie and the blackjack hills" of northeast Oklahoma Territory. Named by his father to be "a challenge to the disinheritors of his people," Windzer finds it hard to fulfill his destiny, despite oil money, a university education, and the opportunities presented by the Great War and the roaring twenties.
by John Joseph Mathews
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age autobiographical Oaklahoma Osage World War I 312 pages
Challenge Windzer, the mixed-blood protagonist of this compelling autobiographical novel, was born at the beginning of the twentieth century "when the god of the great Osages was still dominate over the wild prairie and the blackjack hills" of northeast Oklahoma Territory. Named by his father to be "a challenge to the disinheritors of his people," Windzer finds it hard to fulfill his destiny, despite oil money, a university education, and the opportunities presented by the Great War and the roaring twenties.
by Harper Lee
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic american south criminal justice racism 336 pages Lexile: 790L
Scout Finch is witness to the power of the law and the power of systemic racism as her father tries to defend the falsely accused Tom Robinson, a black resident of the town of Maycomb, Alabama.
by Harper Lee
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic american south criminal justice racism 336 pages Lexile: 790L
Scout Finch is witness to the power of the law and the power of systemic racism as her father tries to defend the falsely accused Tom Robinson, a black resident of the town of Maycomb, Alabama.
by Kenneth Logan
MoreScore: 2 white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic homosexuality vermont sports 336 pages Lexile: HL690L
If you asked anyone in his small Vermont town, they’d tell you the facts: James Liddell, star athlete, decent student, and sort-of boyfriend to cute, peppy Theresa, is a happy, funny, carefree guy. But whenever James sits down at his desk to write, he tells a different story. As he fills his drawers with letters to the people in his world letters he never intends to send he spills the truth: he’s gay.
by Kenneth Logan
MoreScore: 2 white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age realistic homosexuality vermont sports 336 pages Lexile: HL690L
If you asked anyone in his small Vermont town, they’d tell you the facts: James Liddell, star athlete, decent student, and sort-of boyfriend to cute, peppy Theresa, is a happy, funny, carefree guy. But whenever James sits down at his desk to write, he tells a different story. As he fills his drawers with letters to the people in his world letters he never intends to send he spills the truth: he’s gay.
by Paul Elliott Russell
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 2 white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age historical Fame Russians Brothers 381 pages
Sergey Nabokov's brother Vladimir is a famous novelist. So it should come as no surprise that Sergey is the basis for numerous gay characters in Vladimir's fiction. That doesn't mean they loved each other. Quite the contrary is seems. The story explores this tense fraternal relationship, beginning with their childhood, when the Nabokov family were forced to flee Russia during the Revolution. It's an important window into both the Nabokov family and the gay experience.
by Paul Elliott Russell
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 2 white cis-male non-straight coming-of-age historical Fame Russians Brothers 381 pages
Sergey Nabokov's brother Vladimir is a famous novelist. So it should come as no surprise that Sergey is the basis for numerous gay characters in Vladimir's fiction. That doesn't mean they loved each other. Quite the contrary is seems. The story explores this tense fraternal relationship, beginning with their childhood, when the Nabokov family were forced to flee Russia during the Revolution. It's an important window into both the Nabokov family and the gay experience.
by Fran Wilde
MoreScore: 2 undisclosed cis-female straight coming-of-age adventure Bureaucracy Mystery Flyingz 368 pages
Kirit Densira cannot wait to pass her wingtest and begin flying as a trader by her mother's side. When Kirit inadvertently breaks Tower Law she must must begin training at the Spire, the tallest, most forbidding tower, deep at the heart of the City. As she grows in power, she starts to uncover the Spire's secrets. Kirit begins to doubt her world and its unassailable Laws, leading to a haunting choice that may change the city forever.
by Fran Wilde
MoreScore: 2 undisclosed cis-female straight coming-of-age adventure Bureaucracy Mystery Flyingz 368 pages
Kirit Densira cannot wait to pass her wingtest and begin flying as a trader by her mother's side. When Kirit inadvertently breaks Tower Law she must must begin training at the Spire, the tallest, most forbidding tower, deep at the heart of the City. As she grows in power, she starts to uncover the Spire's secrets. Kirit begins to doubt her world and its unassailable Laws, leading to a haunting choice that may change the city forever.
by Sarah Orne Jewett
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic norway women 32 pages
A nine-year-old New England girl has to decide whether or not she will help the ornithologist who is searching for the rare white heron.
by Sarah Orne Jewett
MoreScore: 2 white cis-female undisclosed coming-of-age realistic norway women 32 pages
A nine-year-old New England girl has to decide whether or not she will help the ornithologist who is searching for the rare white heron.
by Ursula K. Le Guin
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age fantasy Islands Wizards Dragons 240 pages Lexile: 1150L
Ged was the greatest sorcerer in Earthsea, but in his youth he was the reckless Sparrowhawk. In his hunger for power and knowledge, he tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tumultuous tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.
by Ursula K. Le Guin
MoreScore: 2 non-white cis-male straight coming-of-age fantasy Islands Wizards Dragons 240 pages Lexile: 1150L
Ged was the greatest sorcerer in Earthsea, but in his youth he was the reckless Sparrowhawk. In his hunger for power and knowledge, he tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tumultuous tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.
by Madeleine L'Engle
MoreScore: 2 undisclosed cis-female straight coming-of-age science fiction time travel 216 pages Lexile: 740L
It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger. "Wild nights are my glory," the unearthly stranger told them. "I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I'll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract.
by Madeleine L'Engle
MoreScore: 2 undisclosed cis-female straight coming-of-age science fiction time travel 216 pages Lexile: 740L
It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger. "Wild nights are my glory," the unearthly stranger told them. "I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I'll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract.
by Kirstin Cronn Mills
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 1 white trans-male straight coming-of-age realistic Gender Identity High School DJs 271 pages Lexile: HL600L
"This is Beautiful Music for Ugly Children, on community radio 90.3, KZUK. I'm Gabe. Welcome to my show." My birth name is Elizabeth, but I'm a guy. Gabe. My parents think I've gone crazy and the rest of the world is happy to agree with them, but I know I'm right. I've been a boy my whole life. When you think about it, I'm like a record. Elizabeth is my A side, the song everybody knows, and Gabe is my B side—not heard as often, but just as good. It's time to let my B side play.
by Kirstin Cronn Mills
Stonwall Award MoreScore: 1 white trans-male straight coming-of-age realistic Gender Identity High School DJs 271 pages Lexile: HL600L
"This is Beautiful Music for Ugly Children, on community radio 90.3, KZUK. I'm Gabe. Welcome to my show." My birth name is Elizabeth, but I'm a guy. Gabe. My parents think I've gone crazy and the rest of the world is happy to agree with them, but I know I'm right. I've been a boy my whole life. When you think about it, I'm like a record. Elizabeth is my A side, the song everybody knows, and Gabe is my B side—not heard as often, but just as good. It's time to let my B side play.
by Henrik Ibsen
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age drama norway women 96 pages
Nora Helmer has secretly (and deceptively) borrowed a large sum of money to pay for her husband, Torvald, to recover from illness on a sabbatical in Italy. Torvald's perception of Nora is of a silly, naive spendthrift, so it is only when the truth begins to emerge, and Torvald appreciates the initiative behind his wife, that unmendable cracks appear in their marriage.
by Henrik Ibsen
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age drama norway women 96 pages
Nora Helmer has secretly (and deceptively) borrowed a large sum of money to pay for her husband, Torvald, to recover from illness on a sabbatical in Italy. Torvald's perception of Nora is of a silly, naive spendthrift, so it is only when the truth begins to emerge, and Torvald appreciates the initiative behind his wife, that unmendable cracks appear in their marriage.
by Antony John
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic High School Deafness Rock Band 352 pages Lexile: 890L
Eighteen-year-old Piper has one month to get her high school’s coolest rock band Dumb a paying gig.The Deal: If she does it, Piper will become the band’s manager and get her share of the profits.The Catch: How can Piper possibly manage a band made up of an egomaniacal pretty boy, a talentless piece of eye candy, a silent rocker, an angry girl, and a crush-worthy nerd boy? Oh, and Piper's deaf. With growing self-confidence, a budding romance, and a new understanding of her parent’s decision to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby sister, she discovers her own inner rock star.
by Antony John
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age realistic High School Deafness Rock Band 352 pages Lexile: 890L
Eighteen-year-old Piper has one month to get her high school’s coolest rock band Dumb a paying gig.The Deal: If she does it, Piper will become the band’s manager and get her share of the profits.The Catch: How can Piper possibly manage a band made up of an egomaniacal pretty boy, a talentless piece of eye candy, a silent rocker, an angry girl, and a crush-worthy nerd boy? Oh, and Piper's deaf. With growing self-confidence, a budding romance, and a new understanding of her parent’s decision to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby sister, she discovers her own inner rock star.
by Libba Bray
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age fantasy england magic boarding school 416 pages Lexile: 700L
It's 1895, and after the death of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in England. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma must unravel the mystery of her past and future.
by Libba Bray
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age fantasy england magic boarding school 416 pages Lexile: 700L
It's 1895, and after the death of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in England. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma must unravel the mystery of her past and future.
by Charlotte Brontë
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age romance england governess women 480 pages Lexile: 810L
Bronte’s novel about a shy, quiet governess who becomes a tutor in a great house and falls in love with its lonely and mysterious master is one of the great classics of English literature. Unique in its attention to the thoughts and feelings of a female protagonist, Jane Eyre was ahead of its time as a proto-feminist text. When it was published in 1847, however, Bronte was attacked by critics for what they felt was anti-Christian sentiment in her unflinching critique of the oppressions of Victorian society.
by Charlotte Brontë
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age romance england governess women 480 pages Lexile: 810L
Bronte’s novel about a shy, quiet governess who becomes a tutor in a great house and falls in love with its lonely and mysterious master is one of the great classics of English literature. Unique in its attention to the thoughts and feelings of a female protagonist, Jane Eyre was ahead of its time as a proto-feminist text. When it was published in 1847, however, Bronte was attacked by critics for what they felt was anti-Christian sentiment in her unflinching critique of the oppressions of Victorian society.
by Louisa May Alcott
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age historical New England Poverty American Civil War 525 pages Lexile: 950L
The beautiful Meg, artistic tomboy Jo, doomed Beth, and selfish Amy are the 4 sisters of Little Women. Set in New England during the Civil War, the novel follows the adventures of the March sisters as they struggle to pursue their dreams.
by Louisa May Alcott
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age historical New England Poverty American Civil War 525 pages Lexile: 950L
The beautiful Meg, artistic tomboy Jo, doomed Beth, and selfish Amy are the 4 sisters of Little Women. Set in New England during the Civil War, the novel follows the adventures of the March sisters as they struggle to pursue their dreams.
by Jason Wallace
MoreScore: 1 white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age historical Zimbabwe African Post-revolution 288 pages Lexile: HL710L
For Robert Jacklin - packed off without warning to boarding school in Zimbabwe - everything is terrifyingly new. Branded an outsider from the moment he opens his mouth and unable to decode the subtle power struggles of the classroom, he longs for the safety of his old life in England. And then he meets Ivan. Clever, cunning, seductive Ivan, who offers him not only friendship, but power. As Robert is drawn slowly into Ivan's destructive web, he begins to question things he'd always held true and, as Ivan's grip tightens, he finds himself caught up in something far more dangerous than he could have imagined.
by Jason Wallace
MoreScore: 1 white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age historical Zimbabwe African Post-revolution 288 pages Lexile: HL710L
For Robert Jacklin - packed off without warning to boarding school in Zimbabwe - everything is terrifyingly new. Branded an outsider from the moment he opens his mouth and unable to decode the subtle power struggles of the classroom, he longs for the safety of his old life in England. And then he meets Ivan. Clever, cunning, seductive Ivan, who offers him not only friendship, but power. As Robert is drawn slowly into Ivan's destructive web, he begins to question things he'd always held true and, as Ivan's grip tightens, he finds himself caught up in something far more dangerous than he could have imagined.
by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
MoreScore: 1 white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age rural West Virginia Dogs Rescue 173 pages Lexile: 780L
When Marty Preston comes across a young beagle in the hills behind his home, it's love at first sight -- and also big trouble. It turns out the dog, which Marty names Shiloh, belongs to Judd Travers, who drinks too much and has a gun -- and abuses his dogs. So when Shiloh runs away from Judd to Marty, Marty just has to hide him and protect him from Judd. But Marty's secret becomes too big for him to keep to himself, and it exposes his entire family to Judd's anger.
by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
MoreScore: 1 white cis-male undisclosed coming-of-age rural West Virginia Dogs Rescue 173 pages Lexile: 780L
When Marty Preston comes across a young beagle in the hills behind his home, it's love at first sight -- and also big trouble. It turns out the dog, which Marty names Shiloh, belongs to Judd Travers, who drinks too much and has a gun -- and abuses his dogs. So when Shiloh runs away from Judd to Marty, Marty just has to hide him and protect him from Judd. But Marty's secret becomes too big for him to keep to himself, and it exposes his entire family to Judd's anger.
by Tamora Pierce
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age fantasy royalty 448 pages Lexile: 790L
Alianne is the teenage daughter of the famed Alanna, the first lady knight in Tortall. Young Aly follows in the quieter footsteps of her father, however, delighting in the art of spying. When she is captured and sold as a slave to an exiled royal family in the faraway Copper Islands, it is this skill that makes a difference in a world filled with political intrigue, murderous conspiracy, and warring gods.
by Tamora Pierce
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age fantasy royalty 448 pages Lexile: 790L
Alianne is the teenage daughter of the famed Alanna, the first lady knight in Tortall. Young Aly follows in the quieter footsteps of her father, however, delighting in the art of spying. When she is captured and sold as a slave to an exiled royal family in the faraway Copper Islands, it is this skill that makes a difference in a world filled with political intrigue, murderous conspiracy, and warring gods.
by Tamora Pierce
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age fantasy royalty 467 pages Lexile: 840L
Sequel to Trickster's Choice. No longer a slave, Alanna’s daughter is now spying as part of an underground rebellion against the colonial rulers of the Copper Isles. The people in the rebellion believe that a prophecy in which a new queen will rise up to take the throne is about to be realized. Aly is busy keeping the potential teenage queen and her younger siblings safe, while also keeping her in the dark about her future.
by Tamora Pierce
MoreScore: 1 white cis-female straight coming-of-age fantasy royalty 467 pages Lexile: 840L
Sequel to Trickster's Choice. No longer a slave, Alanna’s daughter is now spying as part of an underground rebellion against the colonial rulers of the Copper Isles. The people in the rebellion believe that a prophecy in which a new queen will rise up to take the throne is about to be realized. Aly is busy keeping the potential teenage queen and her younger siblings safe, while also keeping her in the dark about her future.