5 replies to this topic

[Tater]

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Edited by Tater, 18 February 2022 - 01:22 AM.

[tashy the yak]

Have you read The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver? I read it in English AP back when I was in high school in grade 12 I believe. It tells the story of a missionary family in Africa, and what's cool is that it's actually narrated by the four daughters of the missionary. Three of the daughters are teenagers, so I think it would hit both of your requirements. All four of the daughters have very distinct personalities and perspectives, so I think you'd have really interesting answers to your questions based on how you related and identified with each of the protagonists.

 

It was one of my favourite books I read in high school English.

 

Some other favorites of mine that don't necessarily have a young/teenage protagonist:

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres

I Am The Messenger by Marcus Zusak

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

 

Let me know if you want more suggestions

[Morag]

Zeyn Joukhadar has two books you might like: Map of Salt and Stars and The Thirty Names of Night. The Thirty Names of Night is his newest book, I haven't read it yet, but Map of Salt and Stars was one of the best books I read last year.

 

If you like sci-fi, Binti by Nnedi Okorafor is quite good. It's a series in 3 novellas, but you can get them all as one book.

There's also Dune by Frank Herbert, which would be a great choice. It's quite long, but definitely worth the read (I'm re-reading it right now in anticipation for the movie coming out in the fall).

 

Goodreads.com is a helpful website for finding books, there's a lot of lists and you can search for books that match your criteria  

[RedPanda]

Book recommendations! Wonderful! 
not being sarcastic here I love reading

I think Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, a series by Leigh Bardugo, would fit your requirements: they have teenage/young adult  perspectives and depth and complexity. They may not be as advanced of reading as other recommendations (think higher quality Divergent series  mixed with Terry Pratchet’s Discworld books but better character depth, more complex plot, insane world building, and varied perspectives), but are still great. 
If you can’t tell from my description, Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom are my favorite books. 
Other than that… 

  From other recommendations, I’ve read The Book Thief and Catch 22, both are wonderful. A book in about the same genre as The Book Thief is All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. The Book Thief is in Nazi Germany, from perspective of a (somewhat?) orphaned teenage girl living with her adoptive parents. All the Light We Cannot See is from Nazi France and mostly from the perspective of a blind teenage girl. 

 

Honestly, if I were you I’d read all of the recommended books, but not everyone is as interested in books as I am so just pick a book or two that sound interesting from everyone’s recommendations and read them. 

edit: forgot to finish sentence

Edited by RedPanda, 14 July 2021 - 05:14 AM.

[Lillias]

Pride by Ibi Zoboi - It's a modernization of Pride and Prejudice, with teens in Brooklyn. You could pair it with Pride and Prejudice. They both center on two people from different backgrounds meeting, but the novels go in different directions with that trope.

[katkin21]

Naughts and crosses by Malory Blackman I’m not sure about grade level but it’s quite an interesting read especially in today’s society.