Young Adult Winner: On the Come Up
"There seems to be no such thing as the sophomore slump in the YA genre this year.
Each of these authors shined with their sophomore releases (to be fair, Holly Black has a large catalog, but The Wicked King *is* the second in her latest series). Black continued to keep us on the edge of our seats with her epic Faerie series The Folk of the Air. Elizabeth Acevedo pulled double duty once more writing and performing With the Fire on High—and made our mouths water, to boot. Abdi Nazemian wove a beautiful story of love and friendship, shedding light on gay culture in NYC during the height of the AIDS epidemic. Randy Ribay wrote a powerful and tangible coming-of-age tale about immigrant identity. And Angie Thomas reunited with Bahni Turpin to rap their way to the top of this list with On the Come Up. 2019 showed us yet again how beautifully YA can touch on all genres—fiction, fantasy, LGBTQIA, and more—and how all people, and all stories, deserve to be heard." —Katie, Audible Editor
Best of Young Adult: Four More
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With the Fire on High
- By: Elizabeth Acevedo
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Acevedo
- Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,984
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,678
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,666
Ever since she got pregnant freshman year, Emoni Santiago’s life has been about making the tough decisions - doing what has to be done for her daughter and her abuela. The one place she can let all that go is in the kitchen, where she adds a little something magical to everything she cooks, turning her food into straight-up goodness. Even though she dreams of working as a chef after she graduates, Emoni knows that it’s not worth her time to pursue the impossible. Yet despite the rules she thinks she has to play by, once Emoni starts cooking, her only choice is to let her talent break free.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Whole life is slayed...
- By AudioBookHoe on 05-16-19
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The Wicked King
- The Folk of the Air, Book 2
- By: Holly Black
- Narrated by: Caitlin Kelly
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7,625
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 6,695
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 6,681
After the jaw-dropping revelation that Oak is the heir to Faerie, Jude must keep her younger brother safe. To do so, she has bound the wicked King Cardan to her and made herself the power behind the throne. When it becomes all too clear that someone close to Jude means to betray her, threatening her own life and the lives of everyone she loves, Jude must uncover the traitor and fight her own complicated feelings for Cardan to maintain control as a mortal in a Faerie world.
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5 out of 5 stars
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You're Killing Me, Holly!
- By Kristal on 01-12-19
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Like a Love Story
- By: Abdi Nazemian
- Narrated by: Lauren Ambrose, Vikas Adam, Michael Crouch
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 336
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 308
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 307
It’s 1989 in New York City. Reza is an Iranian boy who has just moved to the city with his mother to live with his stepfather and stepbrother. He’s terrified that someone will guess the truth he can barely acknowledge about himself. Reza knows he’s gay, but all he knows of gay life are the media’s images of men dying of AIDS. Judy is an aspiring fashion designer who worships her uncle Stephen, a gay man with AIDS who devotes his time to activism as a member of ACT UP. Art is Judy’s best friend, their school’s only out and proud teen.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A must read for all
- By Kelly *BookCrushin* on 06-13-19
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Patron Saints of Nothing
- By: Randy Ribay
- Narrated by: Ramón de Ocampo
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 434
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 357
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 356
Jay Reguero plans to spend the last semester of his senior year playing video games before heading to the University of Michigan in the fall. But when he discovers that his Filipino cousin Jun was murdered as part of President Duterte's war on drugs, and no one in the family wants to talk about what happened, Jay travels to the Philippines to find out the real story. Hoping to uncover more about Jun and the events that led to his death, Jay is forced to reckon with the many sides of his cousin before he can face the whole horrible truth - and the part he played in it.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Touching and informative
- By Pedro Navejas on 07-09-19
-
With the Fire on High
- By: Elizabeth Acevedo
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Acevedo
- Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,984
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,678
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,666
Ever since she got pregnant freshman year, Emoni Santiago’s life has been about making the tough decisions - doing what has to be done for her daughter and her abuela. The one place she can let all that go is in the kitchen, where she adds a little something magical to everything she cooks, turning her food into straight-up goodness. Even though she dreams of working as a chef after she graduates, Emoni knows that it’s not worth her time to pursue the impossible. Yet despite the rules she thinks she has to play by, once Emoni starts cooking, her only choice is to let her talent break free.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Whole life is slayed...
- By AudioBookHoe on 05-16-19
-
The Wicked King
- The Folk of the Air, Book 2
- By: Holly Black
- Narrated by: Caitlin Kelly
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7,625
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 6,695
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 6,681
After the jaw-dropping revelation that Oak is the heir to Faerie, Jude must keep her younger brother safe. To do so, she has bound the wicked King Cardan to her and made herself the power behind the throne. When it becomes all too clear that someone close to Jude means to betray her, threatening her own life and the lives of everyone she loves, Jude must uncover the traitor and fight her own complicated feelings for Cardan to maintain control as a mortal in a Faerie world.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
You're Killing Me, Holly!
- By Kristal on 01-12-19
-
Like a Love Story
- By: Abdi Nazemian
- Narrated by: Lauren Ambrose, Vikas Adam, Michael Crouch
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 336
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 308
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 307
It’s 1989 in New York City. Reza is an Iranian boy who has just moved to the city with his mother to live with his stepfather and stepbrother. He’s terrified that someone will guess the truth he can barely acknowledge about himself. Reza knows he’s gay, but all he knows of gay life are the media’s images of men dying of AIDS. Judy is an aspiring fashion designer who worships her uncle Stephen, a gay man with AIDS who devotes his time to activism as a member of ACT UP. Art is Judy’s best friend, their school’s only out and proud teen.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A must read for all
- By Kelly *BookCrushin* on 06-13-19
-
Patron Saints of Nothing
- By: Randy Ribay
- Narrated by: Ramón de Ocampo
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 434
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 357
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 356
Jay Reguero plans to spend the last semester of his senior year playing video games before heading to the University of Michigan in the fall. But when he discovers that his Filipino cousin Jun was murdered as part of President Duterte's war on drugs, and no one in the family wants to talk about what happened, Jay travels to the Philippines to find out the real story. Hoping to uncover more about Jun and the events that led to his death, Jay is forced to reckon with the many sides of his cousin before he can face the whole horrible truth - and the part he played in it.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Touching and informative
- By Pedro Navejas on 07-09-19